William Lewis  Manly Death Valley In '49 (Fiscle Part 4) 
 
 
 Chapter 1 Pg 1 
   
 St. Albans, Vermont Is Near The Eastern Shore Of Lake Champlain, And 
 Only A Short Distance South Of "Five-And-Forty North Degrees" Which 
 Separates The United States From Canada, And Some Sixty Or Seventy Miles 
 From The Great St. Lawrence River And The City Of Montreal. Near Here It 
 Was, On April 6th, 1820, I Was Born, So The Record Says, And From This 
 Point With Wondering Eyes Of Childhood I Looked Across The Waters Of The 
 Narrow Lake To The Slopes Of The Adirondack Mountains In New York, Green 
 As The Hills Of My Own Green Mountain State. 
   
   
   
 The Parents Of My Father Were English People And Lived Near Hartford, 
 Connecticut, Where He Was Born. While Still A Little Boy He Came With 
 His Parents To Vermont. My Mother's Maiden Name Was Phoebe Calkins, Born 
 Near St. Albans Of Welch Parents, And, Being Left An Orphan While Yet In 
 Very Tender Years, She Was Given Away To Be Reared By People Who 
 Provided Food And Clothes, But Permitted Her To Grow Up To Womanhood 
 Without Knowing How To Read Or Write. After Her Marriage She Learned To 
 Do Both, And Acquired The Rudiments Of An Education. 
   
   
   
 Grandfather And His Boys, Four In All, Fairly Carved A Farm Out Of The 
 Big Forest That Covered The Cold Rocky Hills. Giant Work It Was For Them 
 In Such Heavy Timber--Pine, Hemlock, Maple, Beech And Birch--The 
 Clearing Of A Single Acre Being A Man's Work For A Year. The Place Where 
 The Maples Were Thickest Was Reserved For A Sugar Grove, And From It Was 
 Made All Of The Sweet Material They Needed, And Some Besides. Economy Of 
 The Very Strictest Kind Had To Be Used In Every Direction. Main Strength 
 
 
 
 Chapter 1 Pg 2 
 And Muscle Were The Only Things Dispensed In Plenty. The Crops Raised 
 Consisted Of A Small Flint Corn, Rye Oats, Potatoes And Turnips. Three 
 Cows, Ten Or Twelve Sheep, A Few Pigs And A Yoke Of Strong Oxen 
 Comprised The Live Stock--Horses, They Had None For Many Years. A Great 
 Ox-Cart Was The Only Wheeled Vehicle On The Place, And This, In Winter, 
 Gave Place To A Heavy Sled, The Runners Cut From A Tree Having A Natural 
 Crook And Roughly, But Strongly, Made. 
   
   
   
 In Summer There Were Plenty Of Strawberries, Raspberries, Whortleberries 
 And Blackberries Growing Wild, But All The Cultivated Fruit Was Apples. 
 As These Ripened Many Were Peeled By Hand, Cut In Quarters, Strung On 
 Long Strings Of Twine And Dried Before The Kitchen Fire For Winter Use. 
 They Had A Way Of Burying Up Some Of The Best Keepers In The Ground, And 
 Opening The Apple Hole Was Quite An Event Of Early Spring. 
   
   
   
 The Children Were Taught To Work As Soon As Large Enough. I Remember 
 They Furnished Me With A Little Wooden Fork To Spread The Heavy Swath Of 
 Grass My Father Cut With Easy Swings Of The Scythe, And When It Was Dry 
 And Being Loaded On The Great Ox-Cart I Followed Closely With A Rake 
 Gathering Every Scattering Spear. The Barn Was Built So That Every 
 Animal Was Housed Comfortably In Winter, And The House Was Such As All 
 Settlers Built, Not Considered Handsome, But Capable Of Being Made Very 
 Warm In Winter And The Great Piles Of Hard Wood In The Yard Enough To 
 Last As Fuel For A Year, Not Only Helped To Clear The Land, But Kept Us 
 Comfortable. Mother And The Girls Washed, Carded, Spun, And Wove The 
 Wool From Our Own Sheep Into Good Strong Cloth. Flax Was Also Raised, 
 And I Remember How They Pulled It, Rotted It By Spreading On The Green 
 Meadow, Then Broke And Dressed It, And Then The Women Made Linen Cloth 
 Of Various Degrees Of Fineness, Quality, And Beauty. Thus, By The Labor 
 Of Both Men And Women, We Were Clothed. If An Extra Fine Sunday Dress 
 Was Desired, Part Of The Yarn Was Colored And From This They Managed To 
 Get Up A Very Nice Plaid Goods For The Purpose. 
   
   
   
 In Clearing The Land The Hemlock Bark Was Peeled And Traded Off At The 
 Tannery For Leather, Or Used To Pay For Tanning And Dressing The Hide Of 
 An Ox Or Cow Which They Managed To Fat And Kill About Every Year. Stores 
 For The Family Were Either Made By A Neighboring Shoe-Maker, Or By A 
 Traveling One Who Went From House To House, Making Up A Supply For The 
 Family--Whipping The Cat, They Called It Then. They Paid Him In 
 Something Or Other Produced Upon The Farm, And No Money Was Asked Or 
 Expected. 
   
   
   
 Wood Was One Thing Plenty, And The Fireplace Was Made Large Enough To 
 Take In Sticks Four Feet Long Or More, For The More They Could Burn The 
 Better, To Get It Out Of The Way. In An Outhouse, Also Provided With A 
 Fireplace And Chimney, They Made Shingles During The Long Winter 
 
 
 
 Chapter 1 Pg 3 
 Evenings, The Shavings Making Plenty Of Fire And Light By Which To Work. 
 The Shingles Sold For About A Dollar A Thousand. Just Beside The 
 Fireplace In The House Was A Large Brick Oven Where Mother Baked Great 
 Loaves Of Bread, Big Pots Of Pork And Beans, Mince Pies And Loaf Cake, A 
 Big Turkey Or A Young Pig On Grand Occasions. Many Of The Dishes Used 
 Were Of Tin Or Pewter; The Milk Pans Were Of Earthenware, But Most 
 Things About The House In The Line Of Furniture Were Of Domestic 
 Manufacture. 
   
   
   
 The Store Bills Were Very Light. A Little Tea For Father And Mother, A 
 Few Spices And Odd Luxuries Were About All, And They Were Paid For With 
 Surplus Eggs. My Father And My Uncle Had A Sawmill, And In Winter They 
 Hauled Logs To It, And Could Sell Timber For $8 Per Thousand Feet. 
   
   
   
 The School Was Taught In Winter By A Man Named Bowen, Who Managed Forty 
 Scholars And Considered Sixteen Dollars A Month, Boarding Himself, Was 
 Pretty Fair Pay. In Summer Some Smart Girl Would Teach The Small 
 Scholars And Board Round Among The Families. 
   
   
   
 When The Proper Time Came The Property Holder Would Send Off To The 
 Collector An Itemized List Of All His Property, And At Another The Taxes 
 Fell Due. A Farmer Who Would Value His Property At Two Thousand Or Three 
 Thousand Dollars Would Find He Had To Pay About Six Or Seven Dollars. 
 All The Money In Use Then Seemed To Be Silver, And Not Very Much Of 
 That. The Whole Plan Seemed To Be To Have Every Family And Farm 
 Self-Supporting As Far As Possible. I Have Heard Of A Note Being Given 
 Payable In A Good Cow To Be Delivered At A Certain Time, Say October 1, 
 And On That Day It Would Pass From House To House In Payment Of A Debt, 
 And At Night Only The Last Man In The List Would Have A Cow More Than 
 His Neighbor. Yet Those Were The Days Of Real Independence, After All. 
 Every Man Worked Hard From Early Youth To A Good Old Age. There Were No 
 Millionaires, No Tramps, And The Poorhouse Had Only A Few Inmates. 
   
   
   
 I Have Very Pleasant Recollections Of The Neighborhood Cider Mill. There 
 Were Two Rollers Formed Of Logs Carefully Rounded And Four Or Five Feet 
 Long, Set Closely Together In An Upright Position In A Rough Frame, A 
 Long Crooked Sweep Coming From One Of Them To Which A Horse Was Hitched 
 And Pulled It Round And Round, One Roller Had Mortices In It, And 
 Projecting Wooden Teeth On The Other Fitted Into These, So That, As They 
 Both Slowly Turned Together, The Apples Were Crushed, A Huge Box Of 
 Coarse Slats, Notched And Locked Together At The Corners, Held A Vast 
 Pile Of The Crushed Apples While Clean Rye Straw Was Added To Strain The 
 Flowing Juice And Keep The Cheese From Spreading Too Much; Then The 
 Ponderous Screw And Streams Of Delicious Cider. Sucking Cider Through A 
 Long Rye Straw Inserted In The Bung-Hole Of A Barrel Was Just The Best 
 Of Fun, And Cider Taken That Way "Awful" Good While It Was New And 
 
 
 
 Chapter 1 Pg 4 
 Sweet. 
   
   
   
 The Winter Ashes, Made From Burning So Much Fuel And Gathered From The 
 Brush-Heaps And Log-Heaps, Were Carefully Saved And Traded With The 
 Potash Men For Potash Or Sold For A Small Price. Nearly Every One Went 
 Barefoot In Summer, And In Winter Wore Heavy Leather Moccasins Made By 
 The Canadian French Who Lived Near By. 
   
   
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 2 Pg 5 
   
 About 1828 People Began To Talk About The Far West. Ohio Was The Place 
 We Heard Most About, And The Most We Knew Was, That It Was A Long Way 
 Off And No Way To Get There Except Over A Long And Tedious Road, With 
 Oxen Or Horses And A Cart Or Wagon. More Than One Got The Western Fever, 
 As They Called It, My Uncle James Webster And My Father Among The Rest, 
 When They Heard Some Traveler Tell About The Fine Country He Had Seen; 
 So They Sold Their Farms And Decided To Go To Ohio, Uncle James Was To 
 Go Ahead, In The Fall Of 1829 And Get A Farm To Rent, If He Could, And 
 Father And His Family Were To Come On The Next Spring. 
   
   
   
 Uncle Fitted Out With Two Good Horses And A Wagon; Goods Were Packed In 
 A Large Box Made To Fit, And Under The Wagon Seat Was The Commissary 
 Chest For Food And Bedding For Daily Use, All Snugly Arranged. Father 
 Had, Shortly Before, Bought A Fine Morgan Mare And A Light Wagon Which 
 Served As A Family Carriage, Having Wooden Axles And A Seat Arranged On 
 Wooden Springs, And They Finally Decided They Would Let Me Take The 
 Horse And Wagon And Go On With Uncle, And Father And Mother Would Come 
 By Water, Either By Way Of The St. Lawrence River And The Lakes Or By 
 Way Of The New Canal Recently Built, Which Would Take Them As Far As 
 Buffalo. 
   
   
   
 So They Loaded Up The Little Wagon With Some Of The Mentioned Things And 
 Articles In The House, Among Which I Remember A Fine Brass Kettle, 
 Considered Almost Indispensable In Housekeeping. There Was A Good Lot Of 
 Bedding And Blankets, And A Quilt Nicely Folded Was Placed On The Spring 
 Seat As A Cushion. 
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 2 Pg 6 
   
 As May Be Imagined I Was The Object Of A Great Deal Of Attention About 
 This Time, For A Boy Not Yet Ten Years Old Just Setting Out Into A 
 Region Almost Unknown Was A Little Unusual. When I Was Ready They All 
 Gathered Round To Say Good Bye And My Good Mother Seemed Most Concerned. 
 She Said--"Now You Must Be A Good Boy Till We Come In The Spring. Mind 
 Uncle And Aunt And Take Good Care Of The Horse, And Remember Us. May God 
 Protect You." She Embraced Me And Kissed Me And Held Me Till She Was 
 Exhausted. Then They Lifted Me Up Into The Spring Seat, Put The Lines In 
 My Hand And Handed Me My Little Whip With A Leather Strip For A Lash. 
 Just At The Last Moment Father Handed Me A Purse Containing About A 
 Dollar, All In Copper Cents--Pennies We Called Them Then. Uncle Had 
 Started On They Had Kept Me So Long, But I Started Up And They All 
 Followed Me Along The Road For A Mile Or So Before We Finally Separated 
 And They Turned Back. They Waved Hats And Handkerchiefs Till Out Of 
 Sight As They Returned, And I Wondered If We Should Ever Meet Again. 
   
   
   
 I Was Up With Uncle Very Soon And We Rolled Down Through St. Albans And 
 Took Our Road Southerly Along In Sight Of Lake Champlain. Uncle And Aunt 
 Often Looked Back To Talk To Me, "See What A Nice Cornfield!" Or, "What 
 Nice Apples On Those Trees," Seeming To Think They Must Do All They 
 Could To Cheer Me Up, That I Might Not Think Too Much Of The Playmates 
 And Home I Was Leaving Behind. 
   
   
   
 I Had Never Driven Very Far Before, But I Found The Horse Knew More Than 
 I Did How To Get Around The Big Stones And Stumps That Were Found In The 
 Road, So That As Long As I Held The Lines And The Whip In Hand I Was An 
 Excellent Driver. 
   
   
   
 We Had Made Plans And Preparations To Board Ourselves On The Journey. We 
 Always Stopped At The Farm Houses Over Night, And They Were So 
 Hospitable That They Gave Us All We Wanted Free. Our Supper Was 
 Generally Of Bread And Milk, The Latter Always Furnished Gratuitously, 
 And I Do Not Recollect That We Were Ever Turned Away From Any House 
 Where We Asked Shelter. There Were No Hotels, Or Taverns As They Called 
 Them, Outside Of The Towns. 
   
   
   
 In Due Time We Reached Whitehall, At The Head Of Lake Champlain, And The 
 Big Box In Uncle's Wagon Proved So Heavy Over The Muddy Roads That He 
 Put It In A Canal Boat To Be Sent On To Cleveland, And We Found It Much 
 Easier After This For There Were Too Many Mud-Holes, Stumps And Stones 
 And Log Bridges For So Heavy A Load As He Had. Our Road Many Times After 
 This Led Along Near The Canal, The Champlain Or The Erie, And I Had A 
 Chance To See Something Of The Canal Boys' Life. The Boy Who Drove The 
 Horses That Drew The Packet Boat Was A Well Dressed Fellow And Always 
 Rode At A Full Trot Or A Gallop, But The Freight Driver Was Generally 
 
 
 
 Chapter 2 Pg 7 
 Ragged And Barefoot, And Walked When It Was Too Cold To Ride, Threw 
 Stones Or Clubs At His Team, And Cursed And Abused The Packet-Boy Who 
 Passed As Long As He Was In Hearing. Reared As I Had Been I Thought It 
 Was A Pretty Wicked Part Of The World We Were Coming To. 
   
   
   
 We Passed One Village Of Low Cheap Houses Near The Canal. The Men About 
 Were Very Vulgar And Talked Rough And Loud, Nearly Every One With A 
 Pipe, And Poorly Dressed, Loafing Around The Saloon, Apparently The 
 Worse For Whisky. The Children Were Barefoot, Bare Headed And Scantly 
 Dressed, And It Seemed Awfully Dirty About The Doors Of The Shanties. 
 Pigs, Ducks And Geese Were At The Very Door, And The Women I Saw Wore 
 Dresses That Did Not Come Down Very Near The Mud And Big Brogan Shoes, 
 And Their Talk Was Saucy And Different From What I Had Ever Heard Women 
 Use Before. They Told Me They Were Irish People--The First I Had Ever 
 Seen. It Was Along Here Somewhere That I Lost My Little Whip And To Get 
 Another One Made Sad Inroads Into The Little Purse Of Pennies My Father 
 Gave Me. We Traveled Slowly On Day After Day. There Was No Use To Hurry 
 For We Could Not Do It. The Roads Were Muddy, The Log Ways Very Rough 
 And The Only Way Was To Take A Moderate Gait And Keep It. We Never 
 Traveled On Sunday. One Saturday Evening My Uncle Secured The Privilege 
 Of Staying At A Well-To Do Farmer's House Until Monday. We Had Our Own 
 Food And Bedding, But Were Glad To Get Some Privileges In The Kitchen, 
 And Some Fresh Milk Or Vegetables. After All Had Taken Supper That Night 
 They All Sat Down And Made Themselves Quiet With Their Books, And The 
 Children Were As Still As Mice Till An Early Bed Time When All Retired. 
 When Sunday Evening Came The Women Got Out Their Work--Their Sewing And 
 Their Knitting, And The Children Romped And Played And Made As Much 
 Noise As They Could, Seeming As Anxious To Break The Sabbath As They Had 
 Been To Have A Pious Saturday Night. I Had Never Seen That Way Before 
 And Asked My Uncle Who Said He Guessed They Were Seventh Day Baptists. 
   
   
   
 After Many Days Of Travel Which Became To Me Quite Monotonous We Came To 
 Cleveland, On Lake Erie, And Here My Uncle Found His Box Of Goods, 
 Loaded It Into The Wagon Again, And Traveled On Through Rain And Mud, 
 Making Very Slow Headway, For Two Or Three Days After, When We Stopped 
 At A Four-Corners In Medina County They Told Us We Were Only 21 Miles 
 From Cleveland. Here Was A Small Town Consisting Of A Hotel, Store, 
 Church, Schoolhouse And Blacksmith Shop, And As It Was Getting Cold And 
 Bad, Uncle Decided To Go No Farther Now, And Rented A Room For Himself 
 And Aunt, And Found A Place For Me To Lodge With Daniel Stevens' Boy 
 Close By. We Got Good Stables For Our Horses. 
   
   
   
 I Went To The District School Here, And Studied Reading, Spelling And 
 Colburn's Mental Arithmetic, Which I Mastered. It Began Very Easy--"How 
 Many Thumbs On Your Right Hand?" "How Many On Your Left?" "How Many 
 Altogether?" But It Grew Harder Further On. 
 
 
 
 Chapter 2 Pg 8 
   
 Uncle Took Employment At Anything He Could Find To Do. Chopping Was His 
 Principal Occupation. When The Snow Began To Go Off He Looked Around For 
 A Farm To Rent For Us And Father To Live On When He Came, But He Found 
 None Such As He Needed. He Now Got A Letter From Father Telling Him That 
 He Had Good News From A Friend Named Cornish Who Said That Good Land 
 Nearly Clear Of Timber Could Be Bought Of The Government In Michigan 
 Territory, Some Sixty Or Seventy Miles Beyond Detroit, And This Being An 
 Opportunity To Get Land They Needed With Their Small Capital, They Would 
 Start For That Place As Soon As The Water-Ways Were Thawed Out, Probably 
 In April. 
   
   
   
 We Then Gave Up The Idea Of Staying Here And Prepared To Go To Michigan 
 As Soon As The Frost Was Out Of The Ground. Starting, We Reached Huron 
 River To Find It Swollen And Out Of Its Bank, Giving Us Much Trouble To 
 Get Across, The Road Along The Bottom Lands Being Partly Covered With 
 Logs And Rails, But Once Across We Were In The Town And When We Enquired 
 About The Road Around To Detroit, They Said The Country Was All A Swamp 
 And 30 Miles Wide And In Spring Impassible. They Called It The Maumee Or 
 Black Swamp, We Were Advised To Go By Water, When A Steamboat Came Up 
 The River Bound For Detroit We Put Our Wagons And Horses On Board, And 
 Camped On The Lower Deck Ourselves. We Had Our Own Food And Were Very 
 Comfortable, And Glad To Have Escaped The Great Mudhole. 
   
   
   
   
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 3 Pg 9 
   
 We Arrived In Detroit Safely, And A Few Minutes Answered To Land Our 
 Wagons And Goods, When We Rolled Outward In A Westerly Direction. We 
 Found A Very Muddy Roads, Stumps And Log Bridges Plenty, Making Our Rate 
 Of Travel Very Slow. When Out Upon Our Road About 30 Miles, Near 
 Ypsilanti, The Thick Forest We Had Been Passing Through Grew Thinner, 
 And The Trees Soon Dwindled Down Into What They Called Oak Openings, And 
 The Road Became More Sandy. When We Reached Mccracken's Tavern We Began 
 To Enquire For Ebenezer Manley And Family, And Were Soon Directed To A 
 Large House Near By Where He Was Stopping For A Time. 
   
   
   
 We Drove Up To The Door And They All Came Out To See Who The New Comers 
 Were. Mother Saw Me First And Ran To The Wagon And Pulled Me Off And 
 Hugged And Kissed Me Over And Over Again, While The Tears Ran Down Her 
 Cheeks, Then She Would Hold Me Off At Arm's Length, And Look Me In The 
 
 
 
 Chapter 3 Pg 10 
 Eye And Say--"I Am So Glad To Have You Again"; And Then She Embraced Me 
 Again And Again. "You Are Our Little Man," Said She, "You Have Come Over 
 This Long Road, And Brought Us Our Good Horse And Our Little Wagon." My 
 Sister Polly Two Years Older Than I, Stood Patiently By, And When Mother 
 Turned To Speak To Uncle And Aunt, She Locked Arms With Me And Took Me 
 Away With Her. We Had Never Been Separated Before In All Our Lives And 
 We Had Loved Each Other As Good Children Should, Who Have Been Brought 
 Up In Good And Moral Principles. We Loved Each Other And Our Home And 
 Respected Our Good Father And Mother Who Had Made It So Happy For Us. 
   
   
   
 We All Sat Down By The Side Of The House And Talked Pretty Fast Telling 
 Our Experience On Our Long Journey By Land And Water, And When The Sun 
 Went Down We Were Called To Supper, And Went Hand In Hand To Surround 
 The Bountiful Table As A Family Again. During The Conversation At Supper 
 Father Said To Me--"Lewis, I Have Bought You A Smooth Bore Rifle, 
 Suitable For Either Ball Or Shot." This, I Thought Was Good Enough For 
 Any One, And I Thanked Him Heartily. We Spent The Greater Part Of The 
 Night In Talking Over Our Adventures Since We Left Vermont, And Sleep 
 Was Forgotten By Young And Old. 
   
   
   
 Next Morning Father And Uncle Took The Horse And Little Wagon And Went 
 Out In Search Of Government Land. They Found An Old Acquaintance In 
 Jackson County And Government Land All Around Him, And, Searching Till 
 They Found The Section Corner, They Found The Number Of The Lots They 
 Wanted To Locate On--200 Acres In All. They Then Went To The Detroit 
 Land Office And Secured The Pieces They Had Chosen. 
   
   
   
 Father Now Bought A Yoke Of Oxen, A Wagon And A Cow, And As Soon As We 
 Could Get Loaded Up Our Little Emigrant Train Started West To Our Future 
 Home, Where We Arrived Safely In A Few Days And Secured A House To Live 
 In About A Mile Away From Our Land. We Now Worked With A Will And Built 
 Two Log Houses And Also Hired 10 Acres Broken, Which Was Done With Three 
 Or Four Yoke Of Oxen And A Strong Plow. The Trees Were Scattered Over 
 The Ground And Some Small Brush And Old Limbs, And Logs Which We Cleared 
 Away As We Plowed. Our Houses Went Up Very Fast--All Rough Oak Logs, 
 With Oak Puncheons, Or Hewed Planks For A Floor, And Oak Shakes For A 
 Roof, All Of Our Own Make. The Shakes Were Held Down Upon The Roof By 
 Heavy Poles, For We Had No Nails, The Door Of Split Stuff Hung With 
 Wooden Hinges, And The Fire Place Of Stone Laid Up With The Logs, And 
 From The Loft Floor Upward The Chimney Was Built Of Split Stuff 
 Plastered Heavily With Mud. We Have A Small Four-Paned Window In The 
 House. We Then Built A Log Barn For Our Oxen, Cow And Horse And Got 
 Pigs, Sheep And Chickens As Fast As A Chance Offered. 
   
   
   
 As Fast As Possible We Fenced In The Cultivated Land, Father And Uncle 
 Splitting Out The Rails, While A Younger Brother And Myself, By Each 
 
 
 
 Chapter 3 Pg 11 
 Getting Hold Of An End Of One Of Them Managed To Lay Up A Fence Four 
 Rails High, All We Small Men Could Do. Thus Working On, We Had A Pretty 
 Well Cultivated Farm In The Course Of Two Or Three Years, On Which We 
 Produced Wheat, Corn And Potatoes, And Had An Excellent Garden. We Found 
 Plenty Of Wild Cranberries And Whortleberries, Which We Dried For Winter 
 Use. The Lakes Were Full Of Good Fish, Black Bass And Pickerel, And The 
 Woods Had Deer, Turkeys, Pheasants, Pigeons, And Other Things, And I 
 Became Quite An Expert In The Capture Of Small Game For The Table With 
 My New Gun. Father And Uncle Would Occasionally Kill A Deer, And The 
 Indians Came Along And Sold Venison At Times. 
   
   
   
 One Fall After Work Was Done And Preparations Were Made For The Winter, 
 Father Said To Me:--"Now Lewis, I Want You To Hunt Every Day--Come Home 
 Nights--But Keep On Till You Kill A Deer." So With His Permission I 
 Started With My Gun On My Shoulder, And With Feelings Of Considerable 
 Pride. Before Night I Started Two Deer In A Brushy Place, And They 
 Leaped High Over The Oak Bushes In The Most Affrighted Way. I Brought My 
 Gun To My Shoulder And Fired At The Bounding Animal When In Most Plain 
 Sight. Loading Then Quickly, I Hurried Up The Trail As Fast As I Could 
 And Soon Came To My Deer, Dead, With A Bullet Hole In Its Head. I Was 
 Really Surprised Myself, For I Had Fired So Hastily At The Almost Flying 
 Animal That It Was Little More Than A Random Shot. As The Deer Was Not 
 Very Heavy I Dressed It And Packed It Home Myself, About As Proud A Boy 
 As The State Of Michigan Contained. I Really Began To Think I Was A 
 Capital Hunter, Though I Afterward Knew It Was A Bit Of Good Luck And 
 Not A Bit Of Skill About It. 
   
   
   
 It Was Some Time After This Before I Made Another Lucky Shot. Father 
 Would Once In A While Ask Me:--"Well Can't You Kill Us Another Deer?" I 
 Told Him That When I Had Crawled A Long Time Toward A Sleeping Deer, 
 That I Got So Trembly That I Could Not Hit An Ox In Short Range. "O," 
 Said He, "You Get The Buck Fever--Don't Be So Timid--They Won't Attack 
 You." But After Awhile This Fever Wore Off, And I Got So Steady That I 
 Could Hit Anything I Could Get In Reach Of. 
   
   
   
 We Were Now Quite Contented And Happy. Father Could Plainly Show Us The 
 Difference Between This Country And Vermont And The Advantages We Had 
 Here. There The Land Was Poor And Stony And The Winters Terribly Severe. 
 Here There Were No Stones To Plow Over, And The Land Was Otherwise Easy 
 To Till. We Could Raise Almost Anything, And Have Nice Wheat Bread To 
 Eat, Far Superior To The "Rye-And-Indian" We Used To Have. The Nice 
 White Bread Was Good Enough To Eat Without Butter, And In Comparison 
 This Country Seemed A Real Paradise. 
   
   
   
 The Supply Of Clothing We Brought With Us Had Lasted Until Now--More 
 Than Two Years--And We Had Sowed Some Flax And Raised Sheep So That We 
 
 
 
 Chapter 3 Pg 12 
 Began To Get Material Of Our Own Raising, From Which To Manufacture Some 
 More. Mother And Sister Spun Some Nice Yarn, Both Woolen And Linen, And 
 Father Had A Loom Made On Which Mother Wove It Up Into Cloth, And We 
 Were Soon Dressed Up In Bran New Clothes Again. Domestic Economy Of This 
 Kind Was As Necessary Here As It Was In Vermont, And We Knew Well How To 
 Practice It. About This Time The Emigrants Began To Come In Very Fast, 
 And Every Piece Of Government Land Any Where About Was Taken. So Much 
 Land Was Ploughed, And So Much Vegetable Matter Turned Under And 
 Decaying That There Came A Regular Epidemic Of Fever And Ague And 
 Bilious Fever, And A Large Majority Of The People Were Sick. At Our 
 House Father Was The First One Attacked, And When The Fever Was At Its 
 Height He Was Quite Out Of His Head And Talked And Acted Like A Crazy 
 Man. We Had Never Seen Any One So Sick Before, And We Thought He Must 
 Surely Die, But When The Doctor Came He Said:--"Don't Be Alarmed. It Is 
 Only 'Fever 'N' Agur,' And No One Was Ever Known To Die Of That." Others 
 Of Us Were Sick Too, And Most Of The Neighbors, And It Made Us All Feel 
 Rather Sorrowful. The Doctor's Medicines Consisted Of Calomel, Jalap And 
 Quinine, All Used Pretty Freely, By Some With Benefit, And By Others To 
 No Visible Purpose, For They Had To Suffer Until The Cold Weather Came 
 And Froze The Disease Out. At One Time I Was The Only One That Remained 
 Well, And I Had To Nurse And Cook, Besides All The Out-Door Work That 
 Fell To Me. My Sister Married A Man Near By With A Good Farm And Moved 
 There With Him, A Mile Or Two Away. When She Went Away I Lost My Real 
 Bosom Companion And Felt Very Lonesome, But I Went To See Her Once In A 
 While, And That Was Pretty Often, I Think. There Was Not Much Going On 
 As A General Thing. Some Little Neighborhood Society And News Was About 
 All. There Was, However, One Incident Which Occurred In 1837, I Never 
 Shall Forget, And Which I Will Relate In The Next Chapter. 
   
   
   
   
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 4 Pg 13 
   
 About Two Miles West Father's Farm In Jackson County Mich., Lived Ami 
 Filley, Who Moved Here From Connecticut And Settled About Two And A Half 
 Miles From The Town Of Jackson, Then A Small Village With Plenty Of 
 Stumps And Mudholes In Its Streets. Many Of The Roads Leading Thereto 
 Had Been Paved With Tamarac Poles, Making What Is Now Known As Corduroy 
 Roads. The Country Was Still New And The Farm Houses Far Between. 
   
   
   
 Mr. Filley Secured Government Land In The Oak Openings, And Settled 
 There With His Wife And Two Or Three Children, The Oldest Of Which Was A 
 Boy Named Willie. The Children Were Getting Old Enough To Go To School, 
 But There Being None, Mr. Filley Hired One Of The Neighbor's Daughters 
 
 
 
 Chapter 4 Pg 14 
 To Come To His House And Teach The Children There, So They Might Be 
 Prepared For Usefulness In Life Or Ready To Proceed Further With Their 
 Education--To College, Perhaps In Some Future Day. 
   
   
   
 The Young Woman He Engaged Lived About A Mile A Half Away--Miss Mary 
 Mount--And She Came Over And Began Her Duties As Private School Ma'am, 
 Not A Very Difficult Task In Those Days. One Day After She Had Been 
 Teaching Some Time Miss Mount Desired To Go To Her Father's On A Visit, 
 And As She Would Pass A Huckleberry Swamp On The Way She Took A Small 
 Pail To Fill With Berries As She Went, And By Consent Of Willie's 
 Mother, The Little Boy Went With Her For Company. Reaching The Berries 
 She Began To Pick, And The Little Boy Found This Dull Business, Got 
 Tired And Homesick And Wanted To Go Home. They Were About A Mile From 
 Mr. Filley's And As There Was A Pretty Good Foot Trail Over Which They 
 Had Come, The Young Woman Took The Boy To It, And Turning Him Toward 
 Home Told Him To Follow It Carefully And He Would Soon See His Mother. 
 She Then Filled Her Pail With Berries, Went On To Her Own Home, And 
 Remained There Till Nearly Sundown, When She Set Out To Return To Mr. 
 Filley's, Reaching There Yet In The Early Twilight. Not Seeing Willie, 
 She Inquired For Him And Was Told That He Had Not Returned, And That 
 They Supposed He Was Safe With Her. She Then Hastily Related How It 
 Happened That He Had Started Back Toward Home, And That She Supposed He 
 Had Safely Arrived. 
   
   
   
 Mr. Filley Then Started Back On The Trail, Keeping Close Watch On Each 
 Side Of The Way, For He Expected He Would Soon Come Across Master Willie 
 Fast Asleep. He Called His Name Every Few Rods, But Got No Answer Nor 
 Could He Discover Him, And So Returned Home Again, Still Calling And 
 Searching, But No Boy Was Discovered. Then He Built A Large Fire And Put 
 Lighted Candles In All The Windows, Then Took His Lantern And Wont Out 
 In The Woods Calling And Looking For The Boy. Sometimes He Thought He 
 Heard Him, But On Going Where The Sound Came From Nothing Could Be 
 Found. So He Looked And Called All Night, Along The Trail And All About 
 The Woods, With No Success. Mr. Mount's Home Was Situated Not Far From 
 The Shore Of Fitch's Lake, And The Trail Went Along The Margin, And In 
 Some Places The Ground Was Quite A Boggy Marsh, And The Trail Had Been 
 Fixed Up To Make It Passably Good Walking. 
   
   
   
 Next Day The Neighbors Were Notified, And Asked To Assist, And Although 
 They Were In The Midst Of Wheat Harvest, A Great Many Laid Down The 
 Cradle And Rake And Went Out To Help Search. On The Third Day The Whole 
 County Became Excited And Quite An Army Of Searchers Turned Out, Coming 
 From The Whole Country Miles Around. 
   
   
   
 Mr. Filley Was Much Excited And Quite Worn Out An Beside Himself With 
 Fatigue And Loss Of Sleep. He Could Not Eat. Yielding To Entreaty He 
 
 
 
 Chapter 4 Pg 15 
 Would Sit At The Table, And Suddenly Rise Up, Saying He Heard Willie 
 Calling, And Go Out To Search For The Supposed Voice, But It Was All 
 Fruitless, And The Whole People Were Sorry Indeed For The Poor Father 
 And Mother. 
   
   
   
 The People Then Formed A Plan For A Thorough Search. They Were To Form 
 In A Line So Near Each Other That They Could Touch Hands And Were To 
 March Thus Turning Out For Nothing Except In Passable Lakes, And Thus We 
 Marched, Fairly Sweeping The County In Search Of A Sign. I Was With This 
 Party And We Marched South And Kept Close Watch For A Bit Of Clothing, A 
 Foot Print Or Even Bones, Or Anything Which Would Indicate That He Had 
 Been Destroyed By Some Wild Animal. Thus We Marched All Day With No 
 Success, And The Next Went North In The Same Careful Manner, But With No 
 Better Result. Most Of The People Now Abandoned The Search, But Some Of 
 The Neighbors Kept It Up For A Long Time. 
   
   
   
 Some Expressed Themselves Quite Strongly That Miss Mount Knew Where The 
 Boy Was, Saying That She Might Have Had Some Trouble With Him And In 
 Seeking To Correct Him Had Accidentally Killed Him And Then Hidden The 
 Body Away--Perhaps In The Deep Mire Of The Swamp Or In The Muddy Waters 
 On The Margin Of The Lake. Search Was Made With This Idea Foremost, But 
 Nothing Was Discovered. Rain Now Set In, And The Grain, From Neglect 
 Grew In The Head As It Stood, And Many A Settler Ate Poor Bread All 
 Winter In Consequence Of His Neighborly Kindness In The Midst Of 
 Harvest. The Bread Would Not Rise, And To Make It Into Pancakes Was The 
 Best Way It Could Be Used. 
   
   
   
 Still No Tidings Ever Came Of The Lost Boy. Many Things Were Whispered, 
 About Mr. Mount's Dishonesty Of Character And There Were Many Suspicions 
 About Him, But No Real Facts Could Be Shown To Account For The Boy. The 
 Neighbors Said He Never Worked Like The Rest Of Them, And That His Patch 
 Of Cultivated Land Was Altogether Too Small To Support His Family, A 
 Wife And Two Daughters, Grown. He Was A Very Smooth And Affable Talker, 
 And Had Lots Of Acquaintances. A Few Years Afterwards Mr. Mount Was 
 Convicted Of A Crime Which Sent Him To The Jackson State Prison, Where 
 He Died Before His Term Expired. I Visited The Filley Family In 1870, 
 And From Them Heard The Facts Anew And That No Trace Of The Lost Boy Had 
 Ever Been Discovered. 
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 5 Pg 16 
   
   
   
 The Second Year Of Sickness And I Was Affected With The Rest, Though It 
 Was Not Generally So Bad As The First Year. I Suffered A Great Deal And 
 Felt So Miserable That I Began To Think I Had Rather Live On The Top Of 
 The Rocky Mountains And Catch Chipmuncks For A Living Than To Live Here 
 And Be Sick, And I Began To Have Very Serious Thoughts Of Trying Some 
 Other Country. In The Winter Of 1839 And 1840 I Went To A Neighboring 
 School For Three Months, Where I Studied Reading, Writing And Spelling, 
 Getting As Far As Rule Of Three In Daboll's Arithmetic. When School Was 
 Out I Chopped And Split Rails For Wm. Hanna Till I Had Paid My Winter's 
 Board. After This, Myself And A Young Man Named Orrin Henry, With Whom I 
 Had Become Acquainted, Worked Awhile Scoring Timber To Be Used In 
 Building The Michigan Central Railroad Which Had Just Then Begun To Be 
 Built. They Laid Down The Ties First (Sometimes A Mudsill Under Them) 
 And Then Put Down Four By Eight Wooden Rails With A Strips Of Band Iron 
 Half An Inch Thick Spiked On Top. I Scored The Timber And Henry Used The 
 Broad Axe After Me. It Was Pretty Hard Work And The Hours As Long As We 
 Could See, Our Wages Being $13 Per Month, Half Cash. 
   
   
   
 In Thinking Over Our Prospect It Seemed More And More As If I Had Better 
 Look Out For My Own Fortune In Some Other Place. The Farm Was Pretty 
 Small For All Of Us. There Were Three Brothers Younger Than I, And Only 
 200 Acres In The Whole, And As They Were Growing Up To Be Men It Seemed 
 As If It Would Be Best For Me, The Oldest, To Start Out First And See 
 What Could Be Done To Make My Own Living. I Talked To Father And Mother 
 About My Plans, And They Did Not Seriously Object, But Gave Me Some Good 
 Advice, Which I Remember To This Day--"Weigh Well Every Thing You Do; 
 Shun Bad Company; Be Honest And Deal Fair; Be Truthful And Never Fear 
 When You Know You Are Right." But, Said He, "Our Little Peach Trees Will 
 Bear This Year, And If You Go Away You Must Come Back And Help Us Eat 
 Them; They Will Be The First We Ever Raised Or Ever Saw." I Could Not 
 Promise. 
   
   
   
 Henry And I Drew Our Pay For Our Work. I Had Five Dollars In Cash And 
 The Rest In Pay From The Company's Store. We Purchased Three Nice 
 Whitewood Boards, Eighteen Inches Wide, From Which We Made Us A Boat And 
 A Good Sized Chest Which We Filled With Provisions And Some Clothing And 
 Quilts. This, With Our Guns And Ammunition, Composed The Cargo Of Our 
 Boat. When All Was Ready, We Put The Boat On A Wagon And Were To Haul It 
 To The River Some Eight Miles Away For Embarkation. After Getting The 
 Wagon Loaded, Father Said To Me;--"Now My Son, You Are Starting Out In 
 Life Alone, No One To Watch Or Look After You. You Will Have To Depend 
 Upon Yourself In All Things. You Have A Wide, Wide World To Operate 
 In--You Will Meet All Kinds Of People And You Must Not Expect To Find 
 Them All Honest Or True Friends. You Are Limited In Money, And All I Can 
 Do For You In That Way Is To Let You Have What Ready Money I Have." He 
 Handed Me Three Dollars As He Spoke, Which Added To My Own Gave Me Seven 
 Dollars As My Money Capital With Which To Start Out Into The World Among 
 
 
 
 Chapter 5 Pg 17 
 Perfect Strangers, And No Acquaintances In Prospect On Our Western 
 Course. 
   
   
   
 When Ready To Start, Mother And Sister Poll Came Out To See Us Off And 
 To Give Us Their Best Wishes, Hoping We Would Have Good Health, And Find 
 Pleasant Paths To Follow. Mother Said To Me:--"You Must Be A Good Boy, 
 Honest And Law-Abiding. Remember Our Advice, And Honor Us For We Have 
 Striven To Make You A Good And Honest Man, And You Must Follow Our 
 Teachings, And Your Conscience Will Be Clear. Do Nothing To Be Ashamed 
 Of; Be Industrious, And You Have No Fear Of Punishment." We Were Given A 
 Great Many "Good Byes" And "God Bless You's" As With Hands, Hats And 
 Handkerchiefs They Waved Us Off As Far As We Could See Them. In The 
 Course Of An Hour Or So We Were At The Water's Edge, And On A Beautiful 
 Morning In Early Spring Of 1840 We Found Ourselves Floating Down The 
 Grand River Below Jackson. 
   
   
   
 The Stream Ran West, That We Knew, And It Was West We Thought We Wanted 
 To Go, So All Things Suited Us. The Stream Was Small With Tall Timber On 
 Both Sides, And So Many Trees Had Fallen Into The River That Our 
 Navigation Was At Times Seriously Obstructed. When Night Came We Hauled 
 Our Boat On Shore, Turned It Partly Over, So As To Shelter Us, Built A 
 Fire In Front, And Made A Bed On A Loose Board Which We Carried In The 
 Bottom Of The Boat. We Talked Till Pretty Late And Then Lay Down To 
 Sleep, But For My Part My Eyes Would Not Stay Shut, And I Lay Till Break 
 Of Day And The Little Birds Began To Sing Faintly. 
   
   
   
 I Thought Of Many Things That Night Which Seemed So Long. I Had Left A 
 Good Dear Home, Where I Had Good Warm Meals And A Soft And Comfortable 
 Bed. Here I Had Reposed On A Board With A Very Hard Pillow And None Too 
 Many Blankets, And I Turned From Side To Side On My Hard Bed, To Which I 
 Had Gone With All My Clothes On. It Seemed The Beginning Of Another 
 Chapter In My Pioneer Life And A Rather Tough Experience. I Arose, 
 Kindled A Big Fire And Sat Looking At The Glowing Coals In Still Further 
 Meditation. 
   
   
   
 Neither Of Us Felt Very Gleeful As We Got Our Breakfast And Made An 
 Early Start Down The River Again. Neither Of Us Talked Very Much, And No 
 Doubt My Companion Had Similar Thoughts To Mine, And Wondered What Was 
 Before Us. But I Think That As A Pair We Were At That Moment Pretty 
 Lonesome. Henry Had Rested Better Than I But Probably Felt No Less 
 Keenly The Separation From Our Homes And Friends. We Saw Plenty Of 
 Squirrels And Pigeons On The Trees Which Overhung The River, And We Shot 
 And Picked Up As Many As We Thought We Could Use For Food. When We Fired 
 Our Guns The Echoes Rolled Up And Down The River For Miles Making The 
 Feeling Of Loneliness Still More Keen, As The Sound Died Faintly Away. 
 We Floated Along Generally Very Quietly. We Could See The Fish Dart 
 
 
 
 Chapter 5 Pg 18 
 Under Our Boat From Their Feeding Places Along The Bank, And Now And 
 Then Some Tall Crane Would Spread His Broad Wings To Get Out Of Our Way. 
   
   
   
 We Saw No Houses For Several Days, And Seldom Went On Shore. The Forest 
 Was All Hard Wood, Such As Oak, Ash, Walnut, Maple, Elm And Beech. 
 Farther Down We Occasionally Passed The House Of Some Pioneer Hunter Or 
 Trapper, With A Small Patch Cleared. At One Of These A Big Green Boy 
 Came Down To The Bank To See Who We Were. We Said "How D'you Do," To 
 Him, And, Getting No Response, Henry Asked Him How Far Is Was To 
 Michigan, At Which A Look Of Supreme Disgust Came Over His Features As 
 He Replied--"'Taint No Far At All." 
   
   
   
 The Stream Grew Wider As We Advanced Along Its Downward Course, For 
 Smaller Streams Came Pouring In To Swell Its Tide. The Banks Were Still 
 Covered With Heavy Timber, And In Some Places With Quite Thick 
 Undergrowth. One Day We Saw A Black Bear In The River Washing Himself, 
 But He Went Ashore Before We Were Near Enough To Get A Sure Shot At Him. 
 Many Deer Tracks Were Seen Along The Shore, But As We Saw Very Few Of 
 The Animals Themselves, They Were Probably Night Visitors. 
   
   
   
 One Day We Overtook Some Canoes Containing Indians, Men, Women And 
 Children. They Were Poling Their Craft Around In All Directions Spearing 
 Fish. They Caught Many Large Mullet And Then Went On Shore And Made 
 Camp, And The Red Ladies Began Scaling The Fish. As Soon As Their Lords 
 And Masters Had Unloaded The Canoes, A Party Started Out With Four Of 
 The Boats, Two Men In A Boat, To Try Their Luck Again. They Ranged All 
 Abreast, And Moved Slowly Down The Stream In The Still Deep Water, 
 Continually Beating The Surface With Their Spear Handles, Till They Came 
 To A Place So Shallow That They Could See The Bottom Easily, When They 
 Suddenly Turned The Canoes Head Up Stream, And While One Held The Craft 
 Steady By Sticking His Spear Handle Down On The Bottom, The Other Stood 
 Erect, With A Foot On Either Gunwale So He Could See Whatever Came Down 
 On Either Side. Soon The Big Fish Would Try To Pass, But Mr. Indian Had 
 Too Sharp An Eye To Let Him Escape Unobserved, And When He Came Within 
 His Reach He Would Turn His Spear And Throw It Like A Dart, Seldom 
 Missing His Aim. The Poor Fish Would Struggle Desperately, But Soon Came 
 To The Surface, When He Would Be Drawn In And Knocked In The Head With A 
 Tomahawk To Quiet Him, When The Spear Was Cut Out And The Process 
 Repeated. We Watched Them About An Hour, And During That Time Some One 
 Of The Boats Was Continually Hauling In A Fish. They Were Sturgeon And 
 Very Large. This Was The First Time We Had Ever Seen The Indian's Way Of 
 Catching Fish And It Was A New Way Of Getting Grub For Us. When The 
 Canoes Had Full Loads They Paddled Up Toward Their Camp, And We Drifted 
 On Again. 
   
   
   
 When We Came To Grand Rapids We Had To Go On Shore And Tow Our Boat 
 
 
 
 Chapter 5 Pg 19 
 Carefully Along Over The Many Rocks To Prevent Accident. Here Was A 
 Small Cheap Looking Town. On The West Bank Of The River A Water Wheel 
 Was Driving A Drill Boring For Salt Water, It Seemed Through Solid Rock. 
 Up To This Time The Current Was Slow, And Its Course Through A Dense 
 Forest. We Occasionally Saw An Indian Gliding Around In His Canoe, But 
 No Houses Or Clearings. Occasionally We Saw Some Pine Logs Which Had 
 Been Floated Down Some Of The Streams Of The North. One Of These Small 
 Rivers They Called The "Looking-Glass," And Seemed To Be The Largest Of 
 Them. 
   
   
   
 Passing On We Began To See Some Pine Timber, And Realized That We Were 
 Near The Mouth Of The River Where It Emptied Into Lake Michigan. There 
 Were Some Steam Saw Mills Here, Not Then In Operation, And Some Houses 
 For The Mill Hands To Live In When They Were At Work. This Prospective 
 City Was Called Grand Haven. There Was One Schooner In The River Loaded 
 With Lumber, Ready To Sail For The West Side Of The Lake As Soon As The 
 Wind Should Change And Become Favorable, And We Engaged Passage For A 
 Dollar And A Half Each. While Waiting For The Wind We Visited The Woods 
 In Search Of Game, But Found None. All The Surface Of The Soil Was Clear 
 Lake Sand, And Some Quite Large Pine And Hemlock Trees Were Half Buried 
 In It. We Were Not Pleased With This Place For It Looked As If Folks 
 Must Get Their Grub From Somewhere Else Or Live On Fish. 
   
   
   
 Next Morning We Were Off Early, As The Wind Had Changed, But The Lake 
 Was Very Rough And A Heavy Choppy Sea Was Running. Before We Were Half 
 Way Across The Lake Nearly All Were Sea-Sick, Passengers And Sailors. 
 The Poor Fellow At The Helm Stuck To His Post Casting Up His Accounts At 
 The Same Time, Putting On An Air Of Terrible Misery. 
   
   
   
 This, I Thought Was Pretty Hard Usage For A Land-Lubber Like Myself Who 
 Had Never Been On Such Rough Water Before. The Effect Of This 
 Sea-Sickness Was To Cure Me Of A Slight Fever And Ague, And In Fact The 
 Cure Was So Thorough That I Have Never Had It Since. As We Neared The 
 Western Shore A Few Houses Could Be Seen, And The Captain Said It Was 
 Southport. As There Was No Wharf Our Schooner Put Out Into The Lake 
 Again For An Hour Or So And Then Ran Back Again, Lying Off And On In 
 This Manner All Night. In The Morning It Was Quite Calm And We Went On 
 Shore In The Schooner's Yawl, Landing On A Sandy Beach. We Left Our 
 Chest Of Clothes And Other Things In A Warehouse And Shouldered Our 
 Packs And Guns For A March Across What Seemed An Endless Prairie 
 Stretching To The West. We Had Spent All Our Lives Thus Far In A Country 
 Where All The Clearing Had To Be Made With An Axe, And Such A Broad 
 Field Was To Us An Entirely New Feature. We Laid Our Course Westward And 
 Tramped On. The Houses Were Very Far Apart, And We Tried At Every One Of 
 Them For A Chance To Work, But Could Get None, Not Even If We Would Work 
 For Our Board. The People All Seemed To Be New Settlers, And Very Poor, 
 Compelled To Do Their Own Work Until A Better Day Could Be Reached. The 
 Coarse Meals We Got Were Very Reasonable, Generally Only Ten Cents, But 
 
 
 
 Chapter 5 Pg 20 
 Sometimes A Little More. 
   
   
   
 As We Travelled Westward The Prairies Seemed Smaller With Now And Then 
 Some Oak Openings Between. Some Of The Farms Seemed To Be Three Or Four 
 Years Old, And What Had Been Laid Out As Towns Consisted Of From Three 
 To Six Houses, Small And Cheap, With Plenty Of Vacant Lots. The Soil 
 Looked Rich, As Though It Might Be Very Productive. We Passed Several 
 Small Lakes That Had Nice Fish In Them, And Plenty Of Ducks On The 
 Surface. 
   
   
   
 Walking Began To Get Pretty Tiresome. Great Blisters Would Come On Our 
 Feet, And, Tender As They Were, It Was A Great Relief To Take Off Our 
 Boots And Go Barefoot For A While When The Ground Was Favorable. We 
 Crossed A Wide Prairie And Came Down To The Rock River Where There Were 
 A Few Houses On The East Side But No Signs Of Habitation On The West 
 Bank. We Crossed The River In A Canoe And Then Walked Seven Miles Before 
 We Came To A House Where We Staid All Night And Inquired For Work. None 
 Was To Be Had And So We Tramped On Again. The Next Day We Met A Real 
 Live Yankee With A One-Horse Wagon, Peddling Tin Ware In Regular Eastern 
 Style, We Inquired Of Him About The Road And Prospects, And He Gave Us 
 An Encouraging Idea--Said All Was Good. He Told Us Where To Stop The 
 Next Night At A Small Town Called Sugar Creek. It Had But A Few Houses 
 And Was Being Built Up As A Mining Town, For Some Lead Ore Had Been 
 Found There. There Were As Many Irish As English Miners Here, A Rough 
 Class Of People. We Put Up At The House Where We Had Been Directed, A 
 Low Log Cabin, Rough And Dirty, Kept By Bridget & Co. Supper Was Had 
 After Dark And The Light On The Table Was Just The Right One For The 
 Place, A Saucer Of Grease, With A Rag In It Lighted And Burning At The 
 Edge Of The Saucer. It At Least Served To Made The Darkness Apparent And 
 To Prevent The Dirt Being Visible. We Had Potatoes, Beans And Tea, And 
 Probably Dirt Too, If We Could Have Seen It. When The Meal Was Nearly 
 Done Bridget Brought In And Deposited On Each Plate A Good Thick Pancake 
 As A Dessert. It Smelled Pretty Good, But When I Drew My Knife Across It 
 To Cut It In Two, All The Center Was Uncooked Batter, Which Ran Out Upon 
 My Plate, And Spoiled My Supper. 
   
   
   
 We Went To Bed And Soon Found It Had Other Occupants Beside Ourselves, 
 Which, If They Were Small Were Lively And Spoiled Our Sleeping. We Left 
 Before Breakfast, And A Few Miles Out On The Prairie We Came To A House 
 Occupied By A Woman And One Child, And We Were Told We Could Have 
 Breakfast If We Could Wait To Have It Cooked. Everything Looked Cheap 
 But Cheery, And After Waiting A Little While Outside We Were Called In 
 To Eat. The Meal Consisted Of Corn Bread, Bacon, Potatoes And Coffee. It 
 Was Well Cooked And Looked Better Than Things Did At Bridget's. I 
 Enjoyed All But The Coffee, Which Had A Rich Brown Color, But When I 
 Sipped It There Was Such A Bitter Taste I Surely Thought There Must Be 
 Quinine In It, And It Made Me Shiver. I Tried Two Or Three Times To 
 Drink But It Was Too Much For Me And I Left It. We Shouldered Our Loads 
 
 
 
 Chapter 5 Pg 21 
 And Went On Again. I Asked Henry What Kind Of A Drink It Was. "Coffee," 
 Said He, But I Had Never Seen Any That Tasted Like That And Never Knew 
 My Father To Buy Any Such Coffee As That. 
   
   
   
 We Labored Along And In Time Came To Another Small Place Called 
 Hamilton's Diggings Where Some Lead Mines Were Being Worked. We Stopped 
 At A Long, Low Log House With A Porch The Entire Length, And Called For 
 Bread And Milk, Which Was Soon Set Before Us. The Lady Was Washing And 
 The Man Was Playing With A Child On The Porch. The Little Thing Was 
 Trying To Walk, The Man Would Swear Terribly At It--Not In An Angry Way, 
 But In A Sort Of Careless, Blasphemous Style That Was Terribly Shocking. 
 I Thought Of The Child Being Reared In The Midst Of Such Bad Language 
 And Reflected On The Kind Of People We Were Meeting In This Far Away 
 Place. They Seemed More Wicked And Profane The Farther West We Walked. I 
 Had Always Lived In A More Moral And Temperate Atmosphere, And I Was 
 Learning More Of Some Things In The World Than I Had Ever Known Before. 
 I Had Little To Say And Much To See And Listen To And My Early Precepts 
 Were Not Forgotten. No Work Was To Be Had Here And We Set Out Across The 
 Prairie Toward Mineral Point, Twenty Miles Away. When Within Four Miles 
 Of That Place We Stopped At The House Of Daniel Parkinson, A Fine 
 Looking Two-Story Building, And After The Meal Was Over Mr. Henry Hired 
 Out To Him For $16 Per Month, And Went To Work That Day. I Heard Of A 
 Job Of Cutting Cordwood Six Miles Away And Went After It, For Our Money 
 Was Getting Very Scarce, But When I Reached The Place I Found A Man Had 
 Been There Half An Hour Before And Secured The Job. The Proprietor, Mr. 
 Crow, Gave Me My Dinner Which I Accepted With Many Thanks, For It Saved 
 My Coin To Pay For The Next Meal. I Now Went To Mineral Point, And 
 Searched The Town Over For Work. My Purse Contained Thirty-Five Cents 
 Only And I Slept In An Unoccupied Out House Without Supper. I Bought 
 Crackers And Dried Beef For Ten Cents In The Morning And Made My First 
 Meal Since The Day Before, Felt Pretty Low-Spirited. I Then Went To 
 Vivian's Smelting Furnace Where They Bought Lead Ore, Smelted It, And 
 Run It Into Pigs Of About 70 Pounds Each. He Said He Had A Job For Me If 
 I Could Do It. The Furnace Was Propelled By Water And They Had A Small 
 Buzz Saw For Cutting Four-Foot Wood Into Blocks About A Foot Long. These 
 Blocks They Wanted Split Up In Pieces About An Inch Square To Mix In 
 With Charcoal In Smelting Ore. He Said He Would Board Me With The Other 
 Men, And Give Me A Dollar And A Quarter A Cord For Splitting The Wood. I 
 Felt Awfully Poor, And A Stranger, And This Was A Beginning For Me At 
 Any Rate, So I Went To Work With A Will And Never Lost A Minute Of 
 Daylight Till I Had Split Up All The Wood And Filled His Woodhouse 
 Completely Up. The Board Was Very Coarse--Bacon, Potatoes, And Bread--A 
 Man Cook, And Bread Mixed Up With Salt And Water. The Old Log House 
 Where We Lodged Was Well Infested With Troublesome Insects Which Worked 
 Nights At Any Rate, Whether They Rested Days Or Not, And The Beds Had A 
 Mild Odor Of Pole Cat. The House Was Long, Low And Without Windows. In 
 One End Was A Fireplace, And There Were Two Tiers Of Bunks On Each Side, 
 Supplied With Straw Only. In The Space Between The Bunks Was A 
 Stationary Table, With Stools For Seats. I Was The Only American Who 
 Boarded There And I Could Not Well Become Very Familiar With The 
 Boarders. 
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 5 Pg 22 
   
   
 The Country Was Rolling, And There Were Many Beautiful Brooks And Clear 
 Springs Of Water, With Fertile Soil. The Cornish Miners Were In The 
 Majority And Governed The Locality Politically. My Health Was Excellent, 
 And So Long As I Had My Gun And Ammunition I Could Kill Game Enough To 
 Live On, For Prairie Chickens And Deer Could Be Easily Killed, And Meat 
 Alone Would Sustain Life, So I Had No Special Fears Of Starvation. I Was 
 Now Paid Off, And Went Back To See My Companion, Mr. Henry. I Did Not 
 Hear Of Any More Work, So I Concluded I Would Start Back Toward My Old 
 Home In Michigan, And Shouldered My Bundle And Gun, Turning My Face 
 Eastward For A Long Tramp Across The Prairie. I Knew I Had A Long Tramp 
 Before Me, But I Thought Best To Head That Way, For My Capital Was Only 
 Ten Dollars, And I Might Be Compelled To Walk The Whole Distance. I 
 Walked Till About Noon And Then Sat Down In The Shade Of A Tree To Rest 
 For This Was June And Pretty Warm. I Was Now Alone In A Big Territory, 
 Thinly Settled, And Thought Of My Father's Home, The Well Set Table, All 
 Happy And Well Fed At Any Rate, And Here Was My Venture, A Sort Of 
 Forlorn Hope. Prospects Were Surely Very Gloomy For Me Here Away Out 
 West In Wisconsin Territory, Without A Relative, Friend Or Acquaintance 
 To Call Upon, And Very Small Means To Travel Two Hundred And Fifty Miles 
 Of Lonely Road--Perhaps All The Way On Foot. There Were No Laborers 
 Required, Hardly Any Money In Sight, And No Chance For Business. I Knew 
 It Would Be A Safe Course To Proceed Toward Home, For I Had No Fear Of 
 Starving, The Weather Was Warm And I Could Easily Walk Home Long Before 
 Winter Should Come Again. Still The Outlook Was Not Very Pleasing To One 
 In My Circumstances. 
   
   
   
 I Chose A Route Which Led Me Some Distance North Of The One We Travelled 
 When We Came West, But It Was About The Same. Every House Was A New 
 Settler, And Hardly One Who Had Yet Produced Anything To Live Upon. In 
 Due Time I Came To The Rock River, And The Only House In Sight Was Upon 
 The East Bank. I Could See A Boat Over There And So I Called For It, And 
 A Young Girl Came Over With A Canoe For Me. I Took A Paddle And Helped 
 Her Hold The Boat Against The Current, And We Made The Landing Safely. I 
 Paid Her Ten Cents For Ferriage And Went On Again. The Country Was Now 
 Level, With Burr-Oak Openings. Near Sundown I Came To A Small Prairie Of 
 About 500 Acres Surrounded By Scattering Burr-Oak Timber, With Not A 
 Hill In Sight, And It Seemed To Me To Be The Most Beautiful Spot On 
 Earth. This I Found To Belong To A Man Named Meachem, Who Had An Octagon 
 Concrete House Built On One Side Of The Opening. The House Had A Hollow 
 Column In The Center, And The Roof Was So Constructed That All The Rain 
 Water Went Down This Central Column Into A Cistern Below For House Use. 
 The Stairs Wound Around This Central Column, And The Whole Affair Was 
 Quite Different From The Most Of Settlers' Houses. I Staid Here All 
 Night, Had Supper And Breakfast, And Paid My Bill Of Thirty-Five Cents. 
 He Had No Work For Me So I Went On Again. I Crossed Heart Prairie, 
 Passed Through A Strip Of Woods, And Out At Round Prairie. It Was Level 
 As A Floor With A Slight Rise In One Corner, And On It Were Five Or Six 
 Settlers. Here Fortune Favored Me, For Here I Found A Man Whom I Knew, 
 Who Once Lived In Michigan, And Was One Of Our Neighbors There For Some 
 Time. His Name Was Nelson Cornish. I Rested Here A Few Days, And Made A 
 
 
 
 Chapter 5 Pg 23 
 Bargain To Work For Him Two Or Three Days Every Week For My Board As 
 Long As I Wished To Stay. As I Got Acquainted I Found Some Work To Do 
 And Many Of My Leisure Hours I Spent In The Woods With My Gun, Killing 
 Some Deer, Some Of The Meat Of Which I Sold. In Haying And Harvest I Got 
 Some Work At Fifty Cents To One Dollar Per Day, And As I Had No Clothes 
 To Buy, I Spent No Money, Saving Up About Fifty Dollars By Fall. I Then 
 Got A Letter From Henry Saying That I Could Get Work With Him For The 
 Winter And I Thought I Would Go Back There Again. 
   
   
   
 Before Thinking Of Going West Again I Had To Go To Southport On The Lake 
 And Get Our Clothes We Had Left In Our Box When We Passed In The Spring. 
 So I Started One Morning At Break Of Day, With A Long Cane In Each Hand 
 To Help Me Along, For I Had Nothing To Carry, Not Even Wearing A Coat. 
 This Was A New Road, Thinly Settled, And A Few Log Houses Building. I 
 Got A Bowl Of Bread And Milk At Noon And Then Hurried On Again. The Last 
 Twenty Miles Was Clear Prairie, And Houses Were Very Far Apart, But 
 Little More Thickly Settled As I Neared Lake Michigan. I Arrived At The 
 Town Just After Dark, And Went To A Tavern And Inquired About The 
 Things. I Was Told That The Warehouse Had Been Broken Into And Robbed, 
 And The Proprietor Had Fled For Parts Unknown. This Robbed Me Of All My 
 Good Clothes, And I Could Now Go Back As Lightly Loaded As When I Came. 
 I Found I Had Walked Sixty Miles In That One Day, And Also Found Myself 
 Very Stiff And Sore So That I Did Not Start Back Next Day, And I Took 
 Three Days For The Return Trip--A Very Unprofitable Journey. 
   
   
   
 I Was Now Ready To Go West, And Coming Across A Pet Deer Which I Had 
 Tamed, I Knew If I Left It It Would Wander Away With The First Wild Ones 
 That Came Along, And So I Killed It And Made My Friends A Present Of 
 Some Venison. I Chose Still A New Route This Time, That I Could See All 
 That Was Possible Of This Big Territory When I Could Do It So Easily. I 
 Was Always A Great Admirer Of Nature And Things Which Remained As They 
 Were Created, And To The Extent Of My Observation, I Thought This The 
 Most Beautiful And Perfect Country I Had Seen Between Vermont And The 
 Mississippi River. The Country Was Nearly Level, The Land Rich, The 
 Prairies Small With Oak Openings Surrounding Them, Very Little Marsh 
 Land And Streams Of Clear Water. Rock River Was The Largest Of These, 
 Running South. Next West Was Sugar River, Then The Picatonica. Through 
 The Mining Region The Country Was Rolling And Abundantly Watered With 
 Babbling Brooks And Health-Giving Springs. 
   
   
   
 In Point Of Health It Seemed To Me To Be Far Better Than Michigan. In 
 Mr. Henry's Letter To Me He Had Said That He Had Taken A Timber Claim In 
 "Kentuck Grove," And Had All The Four-Foot Wood Engaged To Cut At 
 Thirty-Seven Cents A Cord. He Said We Could Board Ourselves And Save A 
 Little Money And That In The Spring He Would Go Back To Michigan With 
 Me. This Had Decided Me To Go Back To Mineral Point. I Stopped A Week Or 
 Two With A Man Named Webb, Hunting With Him, And Sold Game Enough To 
 Bring Me In Some Six Or Seven Dollars, And Then Resumed My Journey. 
 
 
 
 Chapter 5 Pg 24 
   
   
   
 On My Way I Found A Log House Ten Miles From A Neighbor Just Before I 
 Got To The Picatonica River. It Belonged To A Mr. Shook Who, With His 
 Wife And Three Children, Lived On The Edge Of A Small Prairie, And Had A 
 Good Crop Of Corn. He Invited Me To Stay With Him A Few Days, And As I 
 Was Tired I Accepted His Offer And We Went Out Together And Brought In A 
 Deer. We Had Plenty Of Corn Bread, Venison And Coffee, And Lived Well. 
 After A Few Days He Wanted To Kill A Steer And He Led It To A Proper 
 Place While I Shot It In The Head. We Had No Way To Hang It Up So He 
 Rolled The Intestines Out, And I Sat Down With My Side Against The Steer 
 And Helped Him To Pull The Tallow Off. 
   
   
   
 It Was Now Getting Nearly Dark And While He Was Splitting The Back Bone 
 With An Axe, It Slipped In His Greasy Hands And Glancing, Cut A Gash In 
 My Leg Six Inches Above The Knee. I Was Now Laid Up For Two Or Three 
 Weeks, But Was Well Cared For At His House. Before I Could Resume My 
 Journey Snow Had Fallen To The Depth Of About Six Inches, Which Made It 
 Rather Unpleasant Walking, But In A Few Days I Reached Mr. Henry's Camp 
 In "Kentuck Grove," When After Comparing Notes, We Both Began Swinging 
 Our Axes And Piling Up Cordwood, Cooking Potatoes, Bread, Bacon, Coffee 
 And Flapjacks Ourselves, Which We Enjoyed With A Relish. 
   
   
   
 I Now Went To Work For Peter Parkinson, Who Paid Me Thirteen Dollars Per 
 Month, And I Remained With Him Till Spring. While With Him A Very Sad 
 Affliction Came To Him In The Loss Of His Wife. He Was Presented By Her 
 With His First Heir, And During Her Illness She Was Cared For By Her 
 Mother, Mrs. Cullany, Who Had Come To Live With Them During The Winter. 
 When The Little Babe Was Two Or Three Weeks Old The Mother Was Feeling 
 In Such Good Spirits That She Was Left Alone A Little While, As Mrs. 
 Cullany Was Attending To Some Duties Which Called Her Elsewhere. When 
 She Returned She Was Surprised To See That Both Mrs. Parkinson And The 
 Babe Were Gone. Everyone Turned Out To Search For Her. I Ran To The 
 Smokehouse, The Barn, The Stable In Quick Order, And Not Finding Her A 
 Search Was Made For Tracks, And We Soon Discovered That She Had Passed 
 Over A Few Steps Leading Over A Fence And Down An Incline Toward The 
 Spring House, And There Fallen, Face Downward, On The Floor Of The House 
 Which Was Covered Only A Few Inches Deep With Water Lay The Unfortunate 
 Woman And Her Child, Both Dead. This Was Doubly Distressing To Mr. 
 Parkinson And Saddened The Whole Community. Both Were Buried In One 
 Grave, Not Far From The House, And A More Impressive Funeral I Never 
 Beheld. 
   
   
   
 I Now Worked Awhile Again With Mr. Henry And We Sold Our Wood To Bill 
 Park, A Collier, Who Made And Sold Charcoal To The Smelters Of Lead Ore. 
 When The Ice Was Gone In The Streams, Henry And I Shouldered Our Guns 
 And Bundles, And Made Our Way To Milwaukee, Where We Arrived In The 
 
 
 
 Chapter 5 Pg 25 
 Course Of A Few Days. The Town Was Small And Cheaply Built, And Had No 
 Wharf, So That When The Steamboat Came We Had To Go Out To It In A Small 
 Boat. The Stream Which Came In Here Was Too Shallow For The Steamer To 
 Enter. When Near The Lower End Of The Lake We Stopped At An Island To 
 Take On Food And Several Cords Of White Birch Wood. The Next Stopping 
 Place Was At Michilamackanac, Afterward Called Mackinaw. Here Was A 
 Short Wharf, And A Little Way Back A Hill, Which Seemed To Me To Be A 
 Thousand Feet High, On Which A Fort Had Been Built. On The Wharf Was A 
 Mixed Lot Of People--Americans, Canadians, Irish, Indians, Squaws And 
 Papooses. I Saw There Some Of The Most Beautiful Fish I Had Ever Seen. 
 They Would Weigh Twenty Pounds Or More, And Had Bright Red And Yellow 
 Spots All Over Them. They Called Them Trout, And They Were Beauties, 
 Really. At The Shore Near By The Indians Were Loading A Large White 
 Birch Bark Canoe, Putting Their Luggage Along The Middle Lengthways, And 
 The Papooses On Top. One Man Took A Stern Seat To Steer, And Four Or 
 Five More Had Seats Along The Gunwale As Paddlers And, As They Moved 
 Away, Their Strokes Were As Even And Regular As The Motions Of An 
 Engine, And Their Crafts Danced As Lightly On The Water As An Egg Shell. 
 They Were Starting For The Michigan Shore Some Eight Or Ten Miles Away. 
 This Was The First Birch Bark Canoe I Had Ever Seen And Was A Great 
 Curiosity In My Eyes. 
   
   
   
 We Crossed Lake Huron During The Night, And Through Its Outlet, So 
 Shallow That The Wheels Stirred Up The Mud From The Bottom; Then Through 
 Lake St. Clair And Landed Safety At Detroit Next Day. Here We Took The 
 Cars On The Michigan Central Railroad, And On Our Way Westward Stopped 
 At The Very Place Where We Had Worked, Helping To Build The Road, A Year 
 Or More Before. After Getting Off The Train A Walk Of Two And One Half 
 Miles Brought Me To My Father's House, Where I Had A Right Royal 
 Welcome, And The Questions They Asked Me About The Wild Country I Had 
 Traveled Over, How It Looked, And How I Got Along--Were Numbered By The 
 Thousand. 
   
   
   
 I Remained At Home Until Fall, Getting Some Work To Do By Which I Saved 
 Some Money, But In August Was Attacked With Bilious Fever, Which Held Me 
 Down For Several Weeks, But Nursed By A Tender And Loving Mother With 
 Untiring Care, I Recovered, Quite Slowly, But Surely. I Felt That I Had 
 Been Close To Death, And That This Country Was Not To Be Compared To 
 Wisconsin With Its Clear And Bubbling Springs Of Health-Giving Water. 
 Feeling Thus, I Determined To Go Back There Again. 
   
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 6 Pg 26 
   
 With The Idea Of Returning To Wisconsin I Made Plans For My Movements. I 
 Purchased A Good Outfit Of Steel Traps Of Several Kinds And Sizes, 
 Thirty Or Forty In All, Made Me A Pine Chest, With A False Bottom To 
 Separate The Traps From My Clothing When It Was Packed In Traveling 
 Order, The Clothes At The Top. My Former Experience Had Taught Me Not To 
 Expect To Get Work There During Winter, But I Was Pretty Sure Something 
 Could Be Earned By Trapping And Hunting At This Season, And In Summer I 
 Was Pretty Sure Of Something To Do. I Had About Forty Dollars To Travel 
 On This Time, And Quite A Stock Of Experience. The Second Parting From 
 Home Was Not So Hard As The First One. I Went To Huron, Took The Steamer 
 To Chicago, Then A Small, Cheaply Built Town, With Rough Sidewalks And 
 Terribly Muddy Streets, And The People Seemed Pretty Rough, For Sailors 
 And Lake Captains Were Numerous, And Knock Downs Quite Frequent. The 
 Country For A Long Way West Of Town Seemed A Low, Wet Marsh Or Prairie. 
   
   
   
 Finding A Man Going West With A Wagon And Two Horses Without A Load, I 
 Hired Him To Take Me And My Baggage To My Friend Nelson Cornish, At 
 Round Prairie. They Were Glad To See Me, And As I Had Not Yet Got Strong 
 From My Fever, They Persuaded Me To Stay A While With Them And Take Some 
 Medicine, For He Was A Sort Of A Doctor. I Think He Must Have Given Me A 
 Dose Of Calomel, For I Had A Terribly Sore Mouth And Could Not Eat Any 
 For Two Or Three Weeks. As Soon As I Was Able To Travel I Had Myself And 
 Chest Taken To The Stage Station On The Line For The Lake To Mineral 
 Point. I Think This Place Was Called Geneva. On The Stage I Got Along 
 Pretty Fast, And Part Of The Time On A New Road. The First Place Of Note 
 Was Madison The Capital Of The Territory, Situated On A Block Of Land 
 Nearly Surrounded By Four Lakes, All Plainly Seen From The Big House. 
 Further On At The Blue Mounds I Left The Stage, Putting My Chest In The 
 Landlord's Keeping Till I Should Come Or Send For It. 
   
   
   
 I Walked About Ten Miles To The House Of A Friend Named A. Bennett, Who 
 Was A Hunter And Lived On The Bank Of The Picatonica River With His Wife 
 And Two Children. I Had To Take Many A Rest On The Way, For I Was Very 
 Weak. 
   
   
   
 Resting The First Few Days, Mrs. Bennett's Father, Mr. J.P. Dilly, Took 
 Us Out About Six Miles And Left Us To Hunt And Camp For A Few Days. We 
 Were Quite Successful, And Killed Five Nice, Fat Deer, Which We Dressed 
 And Took To Mineral Point, Selling Them Rapidly To The Cornish Miners 
 For Twenty-Five Cents A Quarter For The Meat. We Followed This Business 
 Till About January First, When The Game Began To Get Poor, When We Hung 
 Up Our Guns For A While. I Had A Little Money Left Yet. The Only Money 
 In Circulation Was American Silver And British Sovereigns. They Would 
 Not Sell Lead Ore For Paper Money Nor On Credit. During The Spring I 
 Used My Traps Successfully, So That I Saved Something Over Board And 
 
 
 
 Chapter 6 Pg 27 
 Expenses. 
   
   
   
 In Summer I Worked In The Mines With Edwin Buck Of Bucksport, Maine, But 
 Only Found Lead Ore Enough To Pay Our Expenses In Getting It. Next 
 Winter I Chopped Wood For Thirty-Five Cents Per Cord And Boarded Myself. 
 This Was Poor Business; Poorer Than Hunting. In Summer I Found Work At 
 Various Things, But In The Fall Mr. Buck And Myself Concluded That As We 
 Were Both Hunters And Trappers, We Would Go Northward Toward Lake 
 Superior On A Hunting Expedition, And, Perhaps Remain All Winter. We 
 Replenished Our Outfit, And Engaged Mr. Bennett To Take Us Well Up Into 
 The North Country. We Crossed The Wisconsin River Near Muscoda, Went 
 Then To Prairie Du Chien, Where We Found A Large Stone Fur Trading 
 House, Owned By Mr. Brisbois, A Frenchman, From Whom We Obtained Some 
 Information Of The Country Further On. He Assured Us There Was No Danger 
 From The Indians If We Let Them Alone And Treated Them Fairly. 
   
   
   
 We Bought Fifty Pounds Of Flour For Each Of Us, And Then Started Up The 
 Divide Between The Wisconsin And Mississippi Rivers. On One Side Flowed 
 The Bad River, And On The Other The Kickapoo. We Traveled On This Divide 
 About Three Days, When Mr. Bennett Became Afraid To Go Any Further, As 
 He Had To Return Alone And The Indians Might Capture Him Before He Could 
 Get Back To The Settlement. We Camped Early One Night And Went Out 
 Hunting To Get Some Game For Him. I Killed A Large, Black Bear And Mr. 
 Bennett Took What He Wanted Of It, Including The Skin, And Started Back 
 Next Morning. 
   
   
   
 We Now Cached Our Things In Various Places, Scattering Them Well. Some 
 Went In Hollow Logs, And Some Under Heaps Of Brush Or Other Places, 
 Where The Indians Could Not Find Them. We Then Built A Small Cabin About 
 Six By Eight Feet In Size And Four Feet High, In Shape Like A A. We Were 
 Not Thoroughly Pleased With This Location And Started Out To Explore The 
 Country To The North Of Us, For We Had An Idea That It Would Be Better 
 Hunting There. 
   
   
   
 The First Day We Started North We Killed A Bear, And Filled Our Stomachs 
 With The Fat, Sweet Meat. The Next Night We Killed Another Bear After A 
 Little Struggling. The Dog Made Him Climb A Tree And We Shot At Him; He 
 Would Fall To The Ground As If Dead, But Would Be On His Feet Again In 
 An Instant, When, After The Dog Had Fastened To His Ham, He Would Climb 
 The Tree Again. In The Third Trial He Lay In The Fork And Had A Good 
 Chance To Look Square At His Tormentor. I Shot Him In The Head, And As 
 He Lay Perfectly Still, Buck Said:--"Now You Have Done It--We Can't Get 
 Him." But In A Moment He Began To Struggle, And Soon Came Down, 
 Lifeless. 
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 6 Pg 28 
   
 Here We Camped On The Edge Of The Pine Forest, Ate All The Fat Bear Meat 
 We Could, And In The Morning Took Separate Routes, Agreeing To Meet 
 Again A Mile Or So Farther Up A Small Brook. I Soon Saw A Small Bear 
 Walking On A Log And Shot Him Dead. His Mate Got Away, But I Set My Dog 
 On Him And He Soon Had To Climb A Tree. When I Came Up To Where The Dog 
 Was Barking I Saw Mr. Bear And Fired A Ball In Him That Brought Him 
 Down. Just Then I Heard Mr. Buck Shoot Close By, And I Went To Him And 
 Found He Had Killed Another And Larger Bear. We Stayed Here Another 
 Night, Dressed Our Game And Sunk The Meat In The Brook And Fastened It 
 Down, Thinking We Might Want To Get Some Of It Another Time. 
   
   
   
 We Were So Well Pleased With This Hunting Ground That We Took The Bear 
 Skins And Went Back To Camp. When We Got There Our Clothes Were Pretty 
 Well Saturated With Bear's Oil, And We Jokingly Said It Must Have Soaked 
 Through Our Bodies, We Had Eaten So Much Bear Meat. I Began To Feel 
 Quite Sick, And Had A Bad Headache. I Felt As If Something Must Be Done, 
 But We Had No Medicine. Mr. Buck Went Down By The Creek And Dug Some 
 Roots He Called Indian Physic, Then Steeped Them Until The Infusion 
 Seemed As Black As Molasses, And, When Cool Told Me To Take A Swallow 
 Every Fifteen Minutes For An Hour, Then Half As Much For Another Hour As 
 Long As I Could Keep It Down. I Followed Directions And Vomited Freely 
 And For A Long Time, But Felt Better Afterward, And Soon Got Well. It 
 Reminded Me Some Of The Feelings I Had When I Was Seasick On Lake 
 Michigan. 
   
   
   
 It May Be Interesting To Describe How We Were Dressed To Enter On This 
 Winter Campaign. We Wore Moccasins Of Our Own Make. I Had A Buckskin 
 Jumper, And Leggins That Came Up To My Hips. On My Head A Drab Hat That 
 Fitted Close And Had A Rim About Two Inches Wide. In Fair Weather I Went 
 Bare-Headed, Indian Fashion. I Carried A Tomahawk Which I Had Made. The 
 Blade Was Two Inches Wide And Three Inches Long--The Poll Two Inches 
 Long And About As Large Round As A Dime; Handle Eighteen Or Twenty 
 Inches Long With A Knob On The End So It Would Not Easily Slip From The 
 Hand. Oiled Patches For Our Rifle Balls On A String, A Firing Wire, A 
 Charger To Measure The Powder, And A Small Piece Of Leather With Four 
 Nipples On It For Caps--All On My Breast, So That I Could Load Very 
 Rapidly. My Bed Was A Comfort I Made Myself, A Little Larger Than Usual. 
 I Lay Down On One Side Of The Bed And With My Gun Close To Me, Turned 
 The Blanket Over Me. When Out Of Camp I Never Left My Gun Out Of My 
 Reach. We Had To Be Real Indians In Custom And Actions In Order To Be 
 Considered Their Equals. We Got Our Food In The Same Way They Did, And 
 So They Had Nothing To Ask Us For. They Considered Themselves The Real 
 Kings Of The Forest. 
   
   
   
 We Now Determined To Move Camp, Which Proved Quite A Job As We Had To 
 Pack Everything On Our Backs; Which We Did For Ten Or Fifteen Miles To 
 The Bank Of A Small Stream Where There Were Three Pine Trees, The Only 
 
 
 
 Chapter 6 Pg 29 
 Ones To Be Found In Many Miles. We Made Us A Canoe Of One Of Them. While 
 We Were Making The Canoe Three Indians Came Along, And After They Had 
 Eaten Some Of Our Good Venison, They Left Us. These Were The First We 
 Had Seen, And We Began To Be More Cautious And Keep Everything Well Hid 
 Away From Camp And Make Them Think We Were As Poor As They Were, So They 
 Might Not Be Tempted To Molest Us. 
   
   
   
 We Soon Had The Canoe Done And Loaded, And Embarked On The Brook Down 
 Stream. We Found It Rather Difficult Work, But The Stream Grew Larger 
 And We Got Along Very Well. We Came To One Place Where Otter Signs 
 Seemed Fresh, And Stopped To Set A Trap For Them. Our Dog Sat On The 
 Bank And Watched The Operation, And When We Started On We Could Not Get 
 Him To Ride Or Follow. Soon We Heard Him Cry And Went Back To Find He 
 Had The Trap On His Fore Foot. To Get It Off We Had To Put A Forked 
 Stick Over His Neck And Hold Him Down, He Was So Excited Over His 
 Mishap. When He Was Released He Left At Full Speed And Was Never Seen By 
 Us After. 
   
   
   
 When We Got Well Into The Pine Woods We Camped And Cached Our Traps And 
 Provisions On An Island, And Made Our Camp Further Down The Stream And 
 Some Little Distance From The Shore. We Soon Found This Was Very Near A 
 Logging Camp, And As No One Had Been Living There For A Year, We Moved 
 Camp Down There And Occupied One Of The Empty Cabins. We Began To Set 
 Dead-Fall Traps In Long Lines In Many Different Directions, Blazing The 
 Trees So We Could Find Them If The Snow Came On. West Of This About Ten 
 Miles, Where We Had Killed Some Deer Earlier, We Made A A-Shaped Cabin 
 And Made Dead Falls Many Miles Around To Catch Fishes, Foxes, Mink And 
 Raccoons. We Made Weekly Journeys To The Places And Generally Staid 
 About Two Nights. 
   
   
   
 One Day When Going Over My Trap Lines I Came To A Trap Which I Had Set 
 Where I Had Killed A Deer, And Saw By The Snow That An Eagle Had Been 
 Caught In The Trap And Had Broken The Chain And Gone Away. I Followed On 
 The Trail He Made And Soon Found Him. He Tried To Fly But The Trap Was 
 Too Heavy, And He Could Only Go Slowly And A Little Way. I Fired And Put 
 A Ball In Him And He Fell And Rolled Under A Large Log On The Hillside. 
 As I Took The Trap Off I Saw An Indian Coming Down The Hill And Brought 
 My Gun To Bear On Him. He Stopped Suddenly And Made Signs Not To Shoot, 
 And I Let Him Come Up. He Made Signs That He Wanted The Feathers Of The 
 Bird Which I Told Him To Take, And Then He Wanted To Know Where We 
 Slept. I Pointed Out The Way And Made Him Go Ahead Of Me There, For I 
 Did Not Want Him Behind Me. At Camp He Made Signs For Something To Eat, 
 But When I Showed Him Meat He Shook His Head. However He Took A Leg Of 
 Deer And Started On, I Following At A Good Distance Till Satisfied That 
 He Would Not Come Back. 
   
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 6 Pg 30 
 We Had Not Taken Pains To Keep Track Of The Day Of The Week Or Month; 
 The Rising And Setting Of The Sun And The Changes Of The Moon Were All 
 The Almanacs We Had. Then Snow Came About A Foot Deep, And Some Days 
 Were So Cold We Could Not Leave Our Camp Fire At All. As No Indians 
 Appeared We Were Quite Successful And Kept Our Bundle Of Furs In A 
 Hollow Standing Tree Some Distance From Camp, And When We Went That Way 
 We Never Stopped Or Left Any Sign That We Had A Deposit There. 
   
   
   
 Some Time After It Was All Frozen Up Solid, Some Men With Two Yoke Of 
 Oxen Came Up To Cut And Put Logs In The River To Raft Down When The Ice 
 Went Out. With Them Came A Shingle Weaver, With A Pony And A Small Sled, 
 And Some Indians Also. We Now Had To Take Up All Of Our Steel Traps, And 
 Rob All Our Dead-Falls And Quit Business Generally--Even Then They Got 
 Some Of Our Traps Before We Could Get Them Gathered In. We Were Now 
 Comparatively Idle. 
   
   
   
 Until These Loggers Came We Did Not Know Exactly Where We Were Situated, 
 But They Told Us We Were On The Lemonai River, A Branch Of The 
 Wisconsin, And That We Could Get Out By Going West Till We Found The 
 Mississippi River And Then Home. We Hired The Shengle Man With His Pony 
 To Take Us To Black River, Farther North Which We Reached In Three Days, 
 And Found A Saw Mill There In Charge Of A Keeper. Up The River Farther 
 We Found Another Mill Looked After By Sam Ferguson. Both Mills Were 
 Frozen Up. The Indians Had Been Here All Winter. They Come From Lake 
 Superior When The Swamps Froze Up There, To Hunt Deer, Till The Weather 
 Gets Warm, Then They Returned To The Lake To Fish. 
   
   
   
 Of Course The Presence Of The Indians Made Game Scarce, But The Mill Men 
 Told Us If We Would Go Up Farther Into The Marten Country They Thought 
 We Would Do Well. We Therefore Made Us A Hand Sled, Put Some Provisions 
 And Traps On Board, And Started Up The River On The Ice. As We Went The 
 Snow Grew Deeper And We Had To Cut Hemlock Boughs For A Bed On Top Of 
 The Snow. It Took About A Half A Cord Of Wood To Last Us All Night, And 
 It Was A Trouble To Cut Holes In The Ice To Water, For It Was More Than 
 Two Feet Thick. Our Fire Kindled On The Snow, Would Be Two Or Three Feet 
 Below On The Ground, By Morning. This Country Was Heavily Timbered With 
 Cedar, Or Spruce And Apparently Very Level. 
   
   
   
 One Day We Saw Two Otters Coming Toward Us On The Ice. We Shot One, But 
 As The Other Gun Missed Fire, The Other One Escaped, For I Could Not 
 Overtake It In The Woods. We Kept On Up The River Till We Began To Hear 
 The Indians' Guns, And Then We Camped And Did Not Fire A Gun For Two 
 Days, For We Were Afraid We Might Be Discovered And Robbed, And We Knew 
 We Could Not Stay Long After Our Grub Was Gone. All The Game We Could 
 Catch Was The Marten Or Sable, Which The Indians Called _Waubusash_. The 
 Males Were Snuff Color And The Female Much Darker. Mink Were Scarce, And 
 
 
 
 Chapter 6 Pg 31 
 The Beaver, Living In The River Bank, Could Not Be Got At Till The Ice 
 Went Out In The Spring. 
   
   
   
 We Now Began To Make Marten Traps Or Dead-Falls, And Set Them For This 
 Small Game. There Were Many Cedar And Tamarack Swamps, Indeed That Was 
 The Principal Feature, But There Were Some Ridges A Little Higher Where 
 Some Small Pines And Beech Grew. Now Our Camp Was One Place Where There 
 Was No Large Timber Caused By The Stream Being Dammed By The Beaver. 
 Here Were Some Of The Real Russian Balsam Trees, The Most Beautiful In 
 Shape I Had Ever Seen. They Were Very Dark Green, The Boughs Very Thick, 
 And The Tree In Shape Like An Inverted Top. Our Lines Of Trips Led For 
 Miles In Every Direction Marked By Blazed Trees. We Made A Trap Of Two 
 Poles, And Chips Which We Split From The Trees. These Were Set In The 
 Snow And Covered With Brush, We Sometimes Found A Porcupine In The Top 
 Of A Pine Tree. The Only Signs Of His Presence Were The Chips He Made In 
 Gnawing The Bark For Food. They Never Came Down To The Ground As We Saw. 
 They Were About All The Game That Was Good To Eat. I Would Kill One, 
 Skin It And Drag The Carcass After Me All Day As I Set Traps, Cutting 
 Off Bits For Bait, And Cooking The Rest For Ourselves To Eat. We Tried 
 To Eat The Marten But It Was Pretty Musky And It Was Only By Putting On 
 Plenty Of Salt And Pepper That We Managed To Eat Them. We Were Really 
 Forced To Do It If We Remained Here. We Secured A Good Many Of These 
 Little Fellows Which Have About The The Best Fur That Is Found In 
 America. 
   
   
   
 We Were Here About Three Weeks, And Our Provisions Giving Out And The 
 Ice Becoming Tender In The Swamp Were Two Pretty Strong Reasons For Our 
 Getting Out, So We Shouldered Our Packs Of Fur And Our Guns And, Getting 
 Our Course From A Pocket-Compass, We Started Out. As We Pushed On We 
 Came To Some Old Windfalls That Were Troublesome To Get Through. The 
 Dense Timber Seemed To Be Six Feet Deep, And We Would Sometimes Climb 
 Over And Sometimes Crawl Under, The Fallen Trees Were So Thickly Mixed 
 And Tangled. 
   
   
   
 Mr. Buck Got So Completely Tired That He Threw Away His Traps. We 
 Reached Our Starting Place At O'neil's Saw-Mill After Many Days Of The 
 Hardest Work, And Nearly Starved, For We Had Seen No Game On Our Trip. 
 We Found Our Traps And Furs All Safe Here And As This Stream Was One Of 
 The Tributaries Of The Mississippi, We Decided To Make Us A Boat And 
 Float Down Toward That Noted Stream. We Secured Four Good Boards And 
 Built The Boat In Which We Started Down The River Setting Traps And 
 Moving At Our Leisure. We Found Plenty Of Fine Ducks, Two Bee Trees, And 
 Caught Some Cat-Fish With A Hook And Line We Got At The Mill. We Also 
 Caught Some Otter, And, On A Little Branch Of The River Killed Two 
 Bears, The Skin Of One Of Them Weighing Five Pounds. We Met A Keel Boat 
 Being Poled Up The River, And With The Last Cent Of Money We Possessed 
 Bought A Little Flour Of Them. 
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 6 Pg 32 
   
   
 About The First Of May We Reached Prairie Du Chien. Here We Were Met 
 With Some Surprise, For Mr. Brisbois Said He Had Heard We Were Killed Or 
 Lost. He Showed Us Through His Warehouses And Pointed Out To Us The Many 
 Bales Of Different Kinds Of Furs He Had On Hand. He Told Us We Were The 
 Best Fur Handlers He Had Seen, And Paid Us Two Hundred Dollars In 
 American Gold For What We Had. We Then Stored Our Traps In The Garret Of 
 One Of His Warehouses, Which Was Of Stone, Two Stories And An Attic, As 
 We Thought Of Making Another Trip To This Country If All Went Well. 
   
   
   
 We Now Entered Our Skiff Again And Went On Down The Great River Till We 
 Came To A Place Nearly Opposite Mineral Point, When We Gave Our Boat To 
 A Poor Settler, And With Guns And Bundles On Our Backs Took A Straight 
 Shoot For Home On Foot. The Second Day About Dark We Came In The Edge Of 
 The Town And Were Seen By A Lot Of Boys Who Eyed Us Closely And With 
 Much Curiosity, For We Were Dressed In Our Trapping Suits. They Followed 
 Us, And As We Went Along The Crowd Increased So That When We Got To 
 Crum. Lloyd's Tavern The Door Was Full Of Boys' Heads Looking At Us As 
 If We Were A Circus. Here We Were Heartily Welcomed, And Every Body Was 
 Glad To See Us, As They Were About To Start A Company To Go In Search Of 
 Their Reported Murdered Friends. It Seems A Missionary Got Lost On His 
 Way To Prairie La Crosse And Had Come Across Our Deserted Cabin, And 
 When He Came In He Reported Us As No Doubt Murdered. 
   
   
   
 I Invested All Of My Hundred Dollars In Buying Eighty Acres Of Good 
 Government Land. This Was The First $100 I Ever Had And I Felt Very 
 Proud To Be A Land Owner. I Felt A Little More Like A Man Now Than I Had 
 Ever Felt Before, For The Money Was Hard Earned And All Mine. 
   
   
   
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 7 Pg 33 
   
 Mr. Buck And Myself Concluded We Would Try Our Luck At Lead Mining For 
 The Summer And Purchased Some Mining Tools For The Purpose. We Camped 
 Out And Dug Holes Around All Summer, Getting Just About Enough To Pay 
 Our Expenses--Not A Very Encouraging Venture, For We Had Lived In A Tent 
 And Had Picked And Shoveled And Blasted And Twisted A Windlass Hard 
 Enough To Have Earned A Good Bit Of Money. 
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 7 Pg 34 
   
 In The Fall We Concluded To Try Another Trapping Tour, And Set Out For 
 Prairie Du Chien. We Knew It Was A Poor Place To Spend Money Up In The 
 Woods, And When We Got Our Money It Was All In A Lump And Seemed To 
 Amount To Something. Mr. Brisbois Said That The Prospects Were Very Poor 
 Indeed, For The Price Of Fur Was Very Low And No Prospect Of A Better 
 Market. So We Left Our Traps Still On Storage At His Place And Went Back 
 Again. This Was In 1847, And Before Spring The War Was Being Pushed In 
 Mexico. I Tried To Enlist For This Service, But There Were So Many Ahead 
 Of Me I Could Not Get A Chance. 
   
   
   
 I Still Worked In The Settlement And Made A Living, But Had No Chance To 
 Improve My Land. The Next Winter I Lived With Mr A. Bennett, Hunted Deer 
 And Sold Them At Mineral Point, And In This Way Made And Saved A Few 
 Dollars. 
   
   
   
 There Had Been From Time To Time Rumors Of A Better Country To The West 
 Of Us And A Sort Of A Pioneer, Or Western Fever Would Break Out Among 
 The People Occasionally. Thus In 1845 I Had A Slight Touch Of The 
 Disease On Account Of The Stories They Told Us About Oregon. It Was 
 Reported That The Government Would Give A Man A Good Farm If He Would Go 
 And Settle, And Make Some Specified Improvement. They Said It Was In A 
 Territory Of Rich Soil, With Plenty Of Timber, Fish And Game And Some 
 Indians, Just To Give A Little Spice Of Adventure To The Whole Thing. 
 The Climate Was Very Mild In Winter, As They Reported, And I Concluded 
 It Would Suit Me Exactly. I Began At Once To Think About An Outfit And A 
 Journey, And I Found That It Would Take Me At Least Two Years To Get 
 Ready. A Trip To California Was Not Thought Of In Those Days, For It Did 
 Not Belong To The United States. 
   
   
   
 In The Winter Of 1848-49 News Began To Come That There Was Gold In 
 California, But Not Generally Believed Till It Came Through A U.S. 
 Officer, And Then, As The People Were Used To Mines And Mining, A 
 Regular Gold Fever Spread As If By Swift Contagion. Mr. Bennett Was 
 Aroused And Sold His Farm, And I Felt A Change In My Oregon Desires And 
 Had Dreams At Might Of Digging Up The Yellow Dust. Nothing Would Cure Us 
 Then But A Trip, And That Was Quickly Decided On. 
   
   
   
 As It Would Be Some Weeks Yet Before Grass Would Start, I Concluded To 
 Haul My Canoe And A Few Traps Over To A Branch Of The Wisconsin, And 
 Make My Way To Prairie Du Chien, Do A Little Trapping, Get Me An Indian 
 Pony On Which To Ride To California. There Were No Ponies To Be Had At 
 Mineral Point. Getting A Ride Up The River On A Passing Steamboat I 
 Reached Prairie La Crosse, Where The Only House Was That Of A Dutch 
 Trader From Whom I Bought A Winnebago Pony, Which He Had Wintered On A 
 Little Brushy Island, And I Thought If He Could Winter On Brush And 
 
 
 
 Chapter 7 Pg 35 
 Rushes He Must Be Tough Enough To Take Me Across The Plains. He Cost Me 
 $30, And I Found Him To Be A Poor, Lazy Little Fellow. However, I 
 Thought That When He Got Some Good Grass, And A Little Fat On His Ribs 
 He Might Have More Life, And So I Hitched A Rope To Him And Drove Him 
 Ahead Down The River. When I Came To The Bad Axe River I Found It 
 Swimming Full, But Had No Trouble In Crossing, As The Pony Was As Good 
 As A Dog In The Water. 
   
   
   
 Before Leaving Bennett's I Had My Gun Altered Over To A Pill Lock And 
 Secured Ammunition To Last For Two Years. I Had Tanned Some Nice 
 Buckskin And Had A Good Outfit Of Clothes Made Of It, Or Rather Cut And 
 Made It Myself. Where I Crossed The Bad Axe Was A The Battle Ground 
 Where Gen. Dodge Fought The Winnebago Indians. At Prairie Du Chien I 
 Found A Letter From Mr. Bennett, Saying That The Grass Was So Backward 
 He Would Not Start Up For Two Or Three Weeks, And I Had Better Come Back 
 And Start With Them; But As The Letter Bore No Date I Could Only Guess 
 At The Exact Time. I Had Intended To Strike Directly West From Here To 
 Council Bluffs And Meet Them There, But Now Thought Perhaps I Had Better 
 Go Back To Mineral Point And Start Out With Them There, Or Follow On 
 Rapidly After Them If By Any Chance They Had Already Started. 
   
   
   
 On My Way Back I Found The Kickapoo River Too High To Ford, So I Pulled 
 Some Basswood Bark And Made A Raft Of A Couple Of Logs, On Which To 
 Carry My Gun And Blanket; Starting The Pony Across I Followed After. He 
 Swam Across Quickly, But Did Not Seem To Like It On The Other Side, So 
 Before I Got Across, Back He Came Again, Not Paying The Least Attention 
 To My Scolding. I Went Back With The Raft, Which Drifted A Good Way Down 
 Stream, And Caught The Rascal And Started Him Over Again, But When I Got 
 Half Way Across He Jumped And Played The Same Joke On Me Again. I Began 
 To Think Of The Old Puzzle Of The Story Of The Man With The Fox, The 
 Goose And A Peck Of Corn, But I Solved It By Making A Basswood Rope To 
 Which I Tied A Stone And Threw Across, Then Sending The Pony Over With 
 The Other End. He Staid This Time, And After Three Days Of Swimming 
 Streams And Pretty Hard Travel Reached Mineral Point, To Find Bennett 
 Had Been Gone Two Weeks And Had Taken My Outfit With Him As We First 
 Planned. 
   
   
   
 I Was A Little Troubled, But Set Out Light Loaded For Dubuque, Crossed 
 The River There And Then Alone Across Iowa, Over Wet And Muddy Roads, 
 Till I Fell In With Some Wagons West Of The Desmoines River. They Were 
 From Milwaukee, Owned By A Mr. Blodgett, And I Camped With Them A Few 
 Nights, Till We Got To The Missouri River. 
   
   
   
 I Rushed Ahead The Last Day Or Two And Got There Before Them. There Were 
 A Few California Wagons Here, And Some Campers, So I Put My Pony Out To 
 Grass And Looked Around. I Waded Across The Low Bottom To A Strip Of Dry 
 
 
 
 Chapter 7 Pg 36 
 Land Next To The River, Where There Was A Post Office, Store, And A Few 
 Cabins. I Looked First For A Letter, But There Was None. Then I Began To 
 Look Over The Cards In The Trading Places And Saloons, And Read The 
 Names Written On The Logs Of The Houses, And Everywhere I Thought There 
 Might Be A Trace Of The Friends I Sought. No One Had Seen Or Knew Them. 
 After Looking Half A Day I Waded Back Again To The Pony--Pretty Blue. I 
 Thought First I Would Go Back And Wait Another Year, But There Was A 
 Small Train Near Where I Left The Pony, And It Was Not Considered Very 
 Safe To Go Beyond There Except With A Pretty Good Train. I Sat Down In 
 Camp And Turned The Matter Over In My Mind, And Talked With Chas. Dallas 
 Of Lynn, Iowa, Who Owned The Train. Bennett Had My Outfit And Gun, While 
 I Had His Light Gun, A Small, Light Tent, A Frying Pan, A Tin Cup, One 
 Woolen Shirt And The Clothes On My Back. Having No Money To Get Another 
 Outfit, I About Concluded To Turn Back When Dallas Said That If I Would 
 Drive One Of His Teams Through, He Would Board Me, And I Could Turn My 
 Pony In With His Loose Horses; I Thought It Over, And Finally Put My 
 Things In The Wagon And Took The Ox Whip To Go On. Dallas Intended To 
 Get Provision Here, But Could Not, So We Went Down To St. Jo, Following 
 The River Near The Bluff. We Camped Near Town And Walked In, Finding A 
 Small Train On The Main Emigrant Road To The West. My Team Was One Yoke 
 Of Oxen And One Yoke Of Cows. I Knew How To Drive, But Had A Little 
 Trouble With The Strange Animals Till They Found I Was Kind To Them, And 
 Then They Were All Right. 
   
   
   
 This Was In A Slave State, And Here I Saw The First Negro Auction. One 
 Side Of The Street Had A Platform Such As We Build For A Political 
 Speaker. The Auctioneer Mounted This With A Black Boy About 18 Years 
 Old, And After He Had Told All His Good Qualities And Had The Boy Stand 
 Up Bold And Straight, He Called For Bids, And They Started Him At $500. 
 He Rattled Away As If He Were Selling A Steer, And When Mr. Rubideaux, 
 The Founder Of St. Jo Bid $800, He Went No Higher And The Boy Was Sold. 
 With My New England Notions It Made Quite An Impression On Me. 
   
   
   
 Here Dallas Got His Supplies, And When The Flour And Bacon Was Loaded Up 
 The Ferryman Wanted $50 To Take The Train Across. This Dallas Thought 
 Too High And Went Back Up The River A Day's Drive, Where He Got Across 
 For $30. From This Crossing We Went Across The Country Without Much Of A 
 Road Till We Struck The Road From St. Jo, And Were Soon On The Platte 
 Bottom. 
   
   
   
 We Found Some Fine Strawberries At One Of The Camps Across The Country. 
 We Found Some Hills, But Now The Country Was All One Vast Prairie, Not A 
 Tree In Sight Till We Reached The Platte, There Some Cottonwood And 
 Willow. At The First Camp On The Platte I Rolled Up In My Blanket Under 
 The Wagon And Thought More Than I Slept, But I Was In For It And No 
 Other Way But To Go On. I Had Heard That There Were Two Forts, New Ft. 
 Kearny And Ft. Laramie, On The South Side Of The River, Which We Must 
 Pass Before We Reached The South Pass Of The Rocky Mountains, And Beyond 
 
 
 
 Chapter 7 Pg 37 
 There There Would Be No Place To Buy Medicine Or Food. Our Little Train 
 Of Five Wagons, Ten Men, One Woman And Three Children Would Not Be A 
 Formidable Force Against The Indians If They Were Disposed To Molest Us, 
 And It Looked To Me Very Hazardous, And That A Larger Train Would Be 
 More Safe, For Government Troops Were Seldom Molested On Their Marches. 
   
   
   
 If I Should Not Please Mr. Dallas And Get Turned Off With Only My Gun 
 And Pony I Should Be In A Pretty Bad Shape, But I Decided To Keep Right 
 On And Take The Chances On The Savages, Who Would Get Only My Hair And 
 My Gun As My Contribution To Them If They Should Be Hostile. I Must 
 Confess, However, That The Trail Ahead Did Not Look Either Straight Or 
 Bright To Me, But Hoped It Might Be Better Than I Thought. So I Yoked My 
 Oxen And Cows To The Wagon And Drove On. All The Other Teams Had Two 
 Drivers Each, Who Took Turns, And Thus Had Every Other Day Off For 
 Hunting If They Chose, But I Had To Carry The Whip Every Day And Leave 
 My Gun In The Wagon. 
   
   
   
 When We Crossed Salt Creek The Banks Were High And We Had To Tie A 
 Strong Rope To The Wagons And With A Few Turns Around A Post, Lower Them 
 Down Easily, While We Had To Double The Teams To Get Them Up The Other 
 Side. 
   
   
   
 Night Came On Before Half The Wagons Were Over, And Though It Did Not 
 Rain The Water Rose Before Morning So It Was Ten Feet Deep. We Made A 
 Boat Of One Of The Wagon Beds, And Had A Regular Ferry, And When They 
 Pulled The Wagons Over They Sank Below The Surface But Came Out All 
 Right. We Came To Pawnee Village, On The Platte, A Collection Of Mud 
 Huts, Oval In Shape, And An Entrance Low Down To Crawl In At. A Ground 
 Owl And Some Prairie Dogs Were In One Of Them, And We Suspected They 
 Might Be Winter Quarters For The Indians. 
   
   
   
 Dallas And His Family Rode In The Two-Horse Wagon. Dick Field Was Cook, 
 And The Rest Of Us Drove The Oxen. We Put Out A Small Guard At Night To 
 Watch For Indians And Keep The Stock Together So There Might Be No Delay 
 In Searching For Them. When Several Miles From Ft. Kearney I Think On 
 July 3rd, We Camped Near The River Where There Was A Slough And Much 
 Cottonwood And Willow. Just After Sundown A Horse Came Galloping From 
 The West And Went In With Our Horses That Were Feeding A Little Farther 
 Down. In The Morning Two Soldiers Came From The Fort, Inquiring After 
 The Stray Horse, But Dallas Said He Had Seen None, And They Did Not Hunt 
 Around Among The Willows For The Lost Animal. Probably It Would Be The 
 Easiest Way To Report Back To The Fort--"Indians Got Him." When We 
 Hitched Up In The Morning He Put The Horse On The Off Side Of His Own, 
 And When Near The Fort, He Went Ahead On Foot And Entertained The 
 Officers While The Men Drove By, And The Horse Was Not Discovered. I Did 
 Not Like This Much, For If We Were Discovered, We Might Be Roughly 
 
 
 
 Chapter 7 Pg 38 
 Handled, And Perhaps The Property Of The Innocent Even Confiscated. 
 Really My New England Ideas Of Honesty Were Somewhat Shocked. 
   
   
   
 Reaching The South Platte, It Took Us All Day To Ford The Sandy Stream, 
 As We Had First To Sound Out A Good Crossing By Wading Through 
 Ourselves, And When We Started Our Teams Across We Dare Not Stop A 
 Moment For Fear The Wagons Would Sink Deep Into The Quicksands. We Had 
 No Mishaps In Crossing, And When Well Camped On The Other Side A 
 Solitary Buffalo Made His Appearance About 200 Yards Away And All Hands 
 Started After Him, Some On Foot. The Horsemen Soon Got Ahead Of Him, But 
 He Did Not Seem Inclined To Get Out Of Their Way, So They Opened Fire On 
 Him. He Still Kept His Feet And They Went Nearer, Mr. Rogers, Being On A 
 Horse With A Blind Bridle, Getting Near Enough To Fire His Colt's 
 Revolver At Him, When He Turned, And The Horse, Being Unable To See The 
 Animal Quick Enough To Get Out Of The Way, Suffered The Force Of A 
 Sudden Attack Of The Old Fellow's Horns, And Came Out With A Gash In His 
 Thigh Six Inches Long, While Rogers Went On A Flying Expedition Over The 
 Horse's Head, And Did Some Lively Scrambling When He Reached The Ground. 
 The Rest Of Them Worried Him Along For About Half A Mile, And Finally, 
 After About Forty Shots He Lay Down But Held His Head Up Defiantly, 
 Receiving Shot After Shot With An Angry Shake, Till A Side Shot Laid Him 
 Out. This Game Gave Us Plenty Of Meat, Which Though Tough, Was A 
 Pleasant Change From Bacon. I Took No Part In This Battle Except As An 
 Observer. On Examination It Was Found That The Balls Had Been Many Of 
 Them Stopped By The Matted Hair About The Old Fellow's Head And None Of 
 Them Had Reached The Skull. 
   
   
   
 A Few Days After This We Were Stopped Entirely By A Herd Of Buffaloes 
 Crossing Our Road. They Came Up From The River And Were Moving South. 
 The Smaller Animals Seemed To Be In The Lead, And The Rear Was Brought 
 Up By The Old Cows And The Shaggy, Burly Bulls. All Were Moving At A 
 Smart Trot, With Tongues Hanging Out, And Seemed To Take No Notice Of 
 Us, Though We Stood Within A Hundred Yards Of Them. We Had To Stand By 
 Our Teams And Stock To Prevent A Stampede, For They All Seemed To Have A 
 Great Wonder, And Somewhat Of Fear At Their Relatives Of The Plains. 
 After This We Often Saw Large Droves Of Them In The Distance. Sometimes 
 We Could See What In The Distance Seemed A Great Patch Of Brush, But By 
 Watching Closely We Could See It Was A Great Drove Of These Animals. 
 Those Who Had Leisure To Go Up To The Bluffs Often Reported Large Droves 
 In Sight. Antelopes Were Also Seen, But These Occupied The Higher 
 Ground, And It Was Very Hard To Get Near Enough To Them To Shoot 
 Successfully. Still We Managed To Get A Good Deal Of Game Which Was Very 
 Acceptable As Food. 
   
   
   
 One Prominent Land Mark Along The Route Was What They Called Court House 
 Rock, Standing To The South From The Trail And Much Resembled An Immense 
 Square Building, Standing High Above Surrounding Country. The Farther We 
 Went On The More Plentiful Became The Large Game, And Also Wolves And 
 
 
 
 Chapter 7 Pg 39 
 Prairie Dogs, The First Of Which Seemed To Follow The Buffaloes Closely. 
   
   
   
 About This Time We Met A Odd Looking Train Going East, Consisting Of 
 Five Or Six Mormons From Salt Lake, All Mounted On Small Spanish Mules. 
 They Were Dressed In Buckskin And Moccasins, With Long Spurs Jingling At 
 Their Heels, The Rowels Fully Four Inches Long, And Each One Carried A 
 Gun, A Pistol And A Big Knife. They Were Rough Looking Fellows With 
 Long, Matted Hair, Long Beards, Old Slouch Hats And A Generally Back 
 Woods Get-Up Air In Every Way. They Had An Extra Pack Mule, But The 
 Baggage And Provisions Were Very Light. I Had Heard Much About The 
 Mormons, Both At Nauvoo And Salt Lake, And Some Way Or Other I Could Not 
 Separate The Idea Of Horse Thieves From This Party, And I Am Sure I 
 Would Not Like To Meet Them If I Had A Desirable Mule That They Wanted, 
 Or Any Money, Or A Good Looking Wife. We Talked With Them Half An Hour 
 Or So And Then Moved On. 
   
   
   
 We Occasionally Passed By A Grave Along The Road, And Often A Small Head 
 Board Would State That The Poor Unfortunate Had Died Of Cholera. Many Of 
 These Had Been Torn Open By Wolves And The Blanket Encircling The Corpse 
 Partly Pulled Away. Our Route Led A Few Miles North Of Chimney Rock, 
 Standing On An Elevated Point Like A Tall Column, So Perfect And Regular 
 On All Sides, That From Our Point It Looked As If It Might Be The Work 
 Of The Stone Cutters. Some Of The Party Went To See It And Reported 
 There Was No Way To Ascend It, And That As Far As A Man Could Reach, The 
 Rocks Were Inscribed With The Names Of Visitors And Travelers Who Passed 
 That Way. 
   
   
   
 At Scott's Bluffs, The Bluffs Came Close To The River, So There Was 
 Considerable Hill Climbing To Get Along, The Road In Other Places 
 Finding Ample Room In The Bottom. Here We Found A Large Camp Of The 
 Sioux Indians On The Bank Of A Ravine, On Both Sides Of Which Were Some 
 Large Cottonwood Trees. Away Up In The Large Limbs Platforms Had Been 
 Made Of Poles, On Which Were Laid The Bodies Of Their Dead, Wrapped In 
 Blankets And Fastened Down To The Platform By A Sort Of A Network Of 
 Smaller Poles Tightly Lashed So That They Could Not Be Dragged Away Or 
 Disturbed By Wild Animals. This Seemed A Strange Sort Of Cemetery, But 
 When We Saw The Desecrated Earth-Made Graves We Felt That Perhaps This 
 Was The Best Way, Even If It Was A Savage Custom. 
   
   
   
 These Indians Were Fair-Sized Men, And Pretty Good Looking For Red Men. 
 Some Of Our Men Went Over To Their Camp, And Some Of Their Youths Came 
 Down To Ours, And When We Started On They Seemed Quite Proud That They 
 Had Learned A Little Of The English Language, But The Extent Of Their 
 Knowledge Seemed To Be A Little Learned Of The Ox-Drivers, For They 
 Would Swing Their Hands At The Cattle And Cry Out "Whoa! Haw, G--D 
 D--N." Whether They Knew What Was Meant, I Have My Doubts. They Seemed 
 
 
 
 Chapter 7 Pg 40 
 Pretty Well Provided For And Begged Very Little, As They Are Apt To Do 
 When They Are Hard Pressed. 
   
   
   
 We Saw Also Some Bands Of Pawnee Indians On The Move Across The 
 Prairies. They Would Hitch A Long, Light Pole On Each Side Of A Pony, 
 With The Ends Dragging Behind On The Ground, And On A Little Platform At 
 The Hind End The Children Sat And Were Dragged Along. 
   
   
   
 As We Passed On Beyond Scott's Bluff The Game Began To Be Perceptibly 
 Scarcer, And What We Did Find Was Back From The Traveled Road, From 
 Which It Had Apparently Been Driven By The Passing Hunters. 
   
   
   
 In Time We Reached Ft. Laramie, A Trading Post, Where There Were Some 
 Indian Lodges, And We Noticed That Some Of The Occupants Had Lighter 
 Complexions Than Any Of The Other Indians We Had Seen. They Had Cords Of 
 Dried Buffalo Meat, And We Purchased Some. It Was Very Fat, But Was So 
 Perfectly Cured That The Clear Tallow Tasted As Sweet As A Nut. I 
 Thought It Was The Best Dried Meat I Had Ever Tasted, But Perhaps A Good 
 Appetite Had Something To Do With It. 
   
   
   
 As We Passed Ft. Laramie We Fell In Company With Some U.S. Soldiers Who 
 Were Going To Ft. Hall And Thence To Oregon. We Considered Them Pretty 
 Safe To Travel With And Kept With Them For Some Time, Though Their Rate 
 Of Travel Was Less Than Ours. Among Them Were Some Mormons, Employed As 
 Teamsters, And In Other Ways, And They Told Us There Were Some 
 Missourians On The Road Who Would Never Live To See California. There 
 Had Been Some Contests Between The Missourians And The Mormons, And I 
 Felt Rather Glad That None Of Us Hailed From Pike County. 
   
   
   
 We Turned Into What They Called The Black Hills, Leaving The Platte To 
 The North Of Us. The First Night On This Road We Had The Hardest Rain I 
 Ever Experienced, And The Only One Of Any Account On Our Journey. Our 
 Camp Was On A Level Piece Of Ground On The Bank Of A Dry Creek, Which 
 Soon Became A Very Wet Creek Indeed, For By Morning It Was One Hundred 
 Yards Wide And Absolutely Impassible. It Went Down, However, As Quickly 
 As It Rose, And By Ten O'clock It Was So Low That We Easily Crossed And 
 Went On Our Way. We Crossed One Stream Where There Were Great Drifts Or 
 Piles Of Hail Which Had Been Brought Down By A Heavy Storm From Higher 
 Up The Hills. At One Place We Found Some Rounded Boulders From Six To 
 Eight Inches In Diameter, Which Were Partly Hollow, And Broken Open Were 
 Found To Contain Most Beautiful Crystals Of Quartz, Clear As Purest Ice. 
 The Inside Was Certainly Very Pretty, And It Was A Mystery How It Came 
 There. I Have Since Learned That Such Stones Are Found At Many Points, 
 And That They Are Called Geodes. 
 
 
 
 Chapter 7 Pg 41 
   
   
 We Came Out At The River Again At The Mouth Of Deer Creek, And As There 
 Was Some Pretty Good Coal There Quite Easy To Get, We Made Camp One Day 
 To Try To Tighten Our Wagon Tires, John Rogers Acting As Blacksmith. 
 This Was My First Chance To Reconnoiter, And So I Took My Gun And Went 
 Up The Creek, A Wide, Treeless Bottom. In The Ravines On The South Side 
 Were Beautiful Groves Of Small Fir Trees And Some Thick Brush, Wild Rose 
 Bushes I Think. I Found Here A Good Many Heads And Horns Of Elk, And I 
 Could Not Decide Whether They Had Been Killed In Winter During The Deep 
 Snow, Or Had Starved To Death. 
   
   
   
 There Was A Ferry Here To Cross The River And Go Up Along North Side. 
 Mr. Dallas Bought The Whole Outfit For A Small Sum And When We Were 
 Safely Over He Took With Him Such Ropes As He Wanted And Tied The Boat 
 To The Bank The Road On This Side Was Very Sandy And Led Over And Among 
 Some Rolling Hills. In Talking With The Men Of The U.S. Troops In Whose 
 Company We Still Were, I Gathered Much Information Concerning Our Road 
 Further West. They Said We Were Entirely Too Late To Get Through To 
 California, On Account Of Crossing The Sierra Nevada Mountains, Which, 
 They Said Would Be Covered With Snow By November, Or Even Earlier, And 
 That We Would Be Compelled To Winter At Salt Lake. Some Of The Drivers 
 Overheard Mr. Dallas Telling His Family The Same Thing, And That If He 
 Should Winter At Salt Lake, He Would Discharge His Drivers As Soon As He 
 Arrived, As He Could Not Afford To Board Them All Winter. 
   
   
   
 This Was Bad News For Me, For I Had Known Of The History Of Them At 
 Nauvoo And In Missouri, And The Prospect Of Being Thrown Among Them With 
 No Money To Buy Bread Was A Very Sorry Prospect For Me. From All I Could 
 Learn We Could Not Get A Chance To Work, Even For Our Board There, And 
 The Other Drivers Shared My Fears And Disappointment. In This Dilemma We 
 Called A Council, And Invited The Gentleman In To Have An Understanding. 
 He Came And Our Spokesman Stated The Case To Him, And Our Fears, And 
 Asked Him What He Had To Say To Us About It. He Flew Quite Angry At Us, 
 And Talked Some And Swore A Great Deal More, And The Burden Of His 
 Speech Was:--"This Train Belongs To Me And I Propose To Do With It Just 
 As I Have A Mind To, And I Don't Care A D--N What You Fellows Do Or Say. 
 I Am Not Going To Board You Fellows All Winter For Nothing, And When We 
 Get To Salt Lake You Can Go Where You Please, For I Shall Not Want You 
 Any Longer." We Talked A Little To Him And Under The Circumstances To 
 Talk Was About All We Could Do. He Gave Us No Satisfaction And Left Us 
 Apparently Much Offended That We Had Any Care For Ourselves. 
   
   
   
 Then We Had Some Talk Among Ourselves, At The Time, And From Day To Day 
 As We Moved Along. We Began To Think That The Only Way To Get Along At 
 All In Salt Lake Would Be To Turn Mormons, And None Of Us Had Any Belief 
 Or Desire That Way And Could Not Make Up Our Minds To Stop Our Journey 
 
 
 
 Chapter 7 Pg 42 
 And Lose So Much Time, And If We Were Not Very Favored Travelers Our Lot 
 Might Be Cast Among The Sinners For All Time. 
   
   
   
 We Were Now On The Sweetwater River, And Began To See The Snow On The 
 Rocky Mountains Ahead Of Us, Another Reminder That There Was A Winter 
 Coming And Only A Little More Than Half Our Journey Was Done. We Did Not 
 Feel Very Happy Over It, And Yet We Had To Laugh Once In A While At Some 
 Of The Funny Things That Would Happen. 
   
   
   
 The Government Party We Were With Had Among Them A German Mule Driver 
 Who Had A Deal Of Trouble With His Team, But Who Had A Very Little 
 Knowledge Of The English Language. When The Officers Tried To Instruct 
 Him A Little He Seemed To Get Out Of Patience And Would Say Something 
 Very Like _Sacramento_. We Did Not Know Exactly What This Meant. We Had 
 Heard There Was A River Of That Name Or Something Very Near Like That; 
 And Then Again Some Said That Was The Dutch For Swearing. If This Latter 
 Was The Truth Then He Was A Very Profane Mule Driver When He Got Mad. 
   
   
   
 The Captain Of The Company Had A Very Nice Looking Lady With Him, And 
 They Carried A Fine Wall Tent Which They Occupied When They Went Into 
 Camp. The Company Cook Served Their Meals To Them In The Privacy Of 
 Their Tent, And They Seemed To Enjoy Themselves Very Nicely. Everybody 
 Thought The Captain Was Very Lucky In Having Such An Accomplished 
 Companion, And Journey Along Quietly To The Gold Fields At Government 
 Expense. 
   
   
   
 There Seemed To Be Just A Little Jealousy Between The Captain And The 
 Lieutenant, And One Day I Saw Them Both Standing In Angry Attitude 
 Before The Captain's Quarters, Both Mounted, With Their Carbines Lying 
 Across Their Saddles Before Them. They Had Some Pretty Sharp, Hot Words, 
 And It Looked As If They Both Were Pretty Nearly Warmed Up To The 
 Shooting Point. Once The Lieutenant Moved His Right Hand A Little, And 
 The Captain Was Quick To See It, Shouting;--"Let Your Gun Alone Or I 
 Will Make A Hole Through You," At The Same Time Grasping His Own And 
 Pointing It Straight At The Other Officer. During All This Time The 
 Captain's Lady Stood In The Tent Door, And When She Saw Her Favorite Had 
 The Drop On The Lieutenant She Clapped Her Delicate, Little Hands In A 
 Gleeful Manner:--"Just Look At The Captain! Ain't He Spunky?" And Then 
 She Laughed Long And Loud To See Her Lord Show So Much Military Courage. 
 She Seemed More Pleased At The Affair Than Any One Else. I Don't Know 
 Exactly What The Others Thought, But I Never Could Believe That The Lady 
 And The Captain Were Ever Married. 
   
   
   
 The Lieutenant Was No Coward, But Probably Thinking That Prudence Was 
 
 
 
 Chapter 7 Pg 43 
 The Better Part Of Valor, Refrained From Handling His Gun, And The Two 
 Soon Rode Away In Opposite Directions. 
   
   
   
 We Passed A Lone Rock Standing In The River Bottom On The Sweetwater, 
 Which They Named Independence Rock. It Was Covered With The Names Of 
 Thousands Of People Who Had Gone By On That Road. Some Were Pretty 
 Neatly Chiseled In, Some Very Rudely Scrawled, And Some Put On With 
 Paint. I Spent All The Time I Could Hunting Mr. Bennett's Name, But I 
 Could Not Find It Anywhere. To Have Found His Name, And Thus To Know 
 That He Had Safely Passed This Point Would Have Been A Little 
 Re-Assuring In Those Rather Doubtful Days. Some Had Named The Date Of 
 Their Passing, And Some Of Them Were Probably Pretty Near The Gold 
 Fields At This Time. 
   
   
   
 All Along In This Section We Found Alkali Water Near The Road, Some Very 
 Strong And Dangerous For Man Or Beast To Use. We Traveled On Up The 
 Sweetwater For Some Time, And At Last Came To A Place Where The Road 
 Left The River, And We Had A Long, Hard Hill To Pull Up. When We Reached 
 The Top Of This We Were In The South Pass Of The Rocky Mountains, The 
 Backbone Of The American Continent. To The North Of Us Were Some Very 
 High Peaks White With Snow, And To The South Were Some Lower Hills And 
 Valleys. The Summit Of The Mountains Was Not Quite As Imposing As I 
 Expected, But It Was The Summit, And We Were Soon Surely Moving Down The 
 Western Side, For At Pacific Springs The Water Ran To The Westward, 
 Toward The Pacific Coast. The Next Day We Came To The Nearly Dry Bed Of 
 The River--The Big Sandy. The Country Round About Seemed Volcanic, With 
 No Timber, But Plenty Of Sage Brush, In Which We Were Able To Shoot An 
 Occasional Sage Hen. The River Bed Itself Was Nothing But Sand, And 
 Where There Was Water Enough To Wet It, It Was Very Miry And Hard 
 Traveling Over It. There Are Two Streams, The Big Sandy And Little 
 Sandy, Both Tributaries To Green River, Which We Soon Reached And 
 Crossed. 
   
   
   
 It Was A Remarkable Clear And Rapid Stream And Was Now Low Enough To 
 Ford. One Of The Government Teams Set Out To Make The Crossing At A 
 Point Where It Looked Shallow Enough, But Before The Lead Mules Reached 
 The Opposite Shore, They Lost Their Footing And Were Forced To Swim. Of 
 Course The Wagon Stopped And The Team Swung Round And Tangled Up In A 
 Bad Shape. They Were Unhitched And The Wagon Pulled Back, The Load Was 
 Somewhat Dampened, For The Water Came Into The Wagon Box About A Foot. 
 We Camped Here And Laid By One Day, Having Thus Quite A Little Chance To 
 Look Around. 
   
   
   
 When We Came To The First Water That Flowed Toward The Pacific Coast At 
 Pacific Springs, We Drivers Had Quite A Little Talk About A New Scheme. 
 We Put A Great Many "Ifs" Together And They Amounted To About This:--If 
 
 
 
 Chapter 7 Pg 44 
 This Stream Were Large Enough; If We Had A Boat; If We Knew The Way: If 
 There Were No Falls Or Bad Places; If We Had Plenty Of Provisions; If We 
 Were Bold Enough Set Out On Such A Trip, Etc., We Might Come Out At Some 
 Point Or Other On The Pacific Ocean. And Now When We Came To The First 
 Of The "Ifs," A Stream Large Enough To Float A Small Boat; We Began To 
 Think More Strongly About The Other "Ifs". 
   
   
   
 In The Course Of Our Rambles We Actually Did Run Across The Second "If" 
 In The Shape Of A Small Ferry Boat Filled Up With Sand Upon A Bar, And 
 It Did Not Take Very Long To Dig It Out And Put It Into Shape To Use, 
 For It Was Just Large Enough To Hold One Wagon At A Time. Our Military 
 Escort Intended To Leave Us At This Point, As Their Route Now Bore Off 
 To The North Of Ours. I Had A Long Talk With The Surgeon Who Seemed Well 
 Informed About The Country, And Asked Him About The Prospects. He Did 
 Not Give The Mormons A Very Good Name. He Said To Me:--"If You Go To 
 Salt Lake City, Do Not Let Them Know You Are From Missouri, For I Tell 
 You That Many Of Those From That State Will Never See California. You 
 Know They Were Driven From Missouri, And Will Get Revenge If They Can." 
 Both The Surgeon And The Captain Said The Stream Came Out On The Pacific 
 Coast And That We Had No Obstacles Except Cataracts, Which They Had 
 Heard Were Pretty Bad. I Then Went To Dallas And Told Him What We 
 Proposed Doing And To Our Surprise He Did Not Offer Any Objections, And 
 Offered Me $60 For My Pony. He Said He Would Sell Us Some Flour And 
 Bacon For Provisions Also. 
   
   
   
 We Helped Them In Crossing The River, Which Was Somewhat Difficult, 
 Being Swift, With Boulders In The Bottom But We Got All Safely Over And 
 Then Made The Trade We Had Spoken Of. Dallas Paid Me For My Pony And We 
 Took What Flour And Bacon He Would Let Go. He Gave Us Some Ropes For 
 Head And Stern Lines To Our Boat And A Couple Of Axes, And We Laid 
 These, And Our Provisions In A Pile By The Roadside. Six Of Us Then Gave 
 Up Our Whips. Mr. S. Mcmahon, A Driver, Hesitated For Some Time, But 
 Being Pressed By Dallas For A Decision, At Last Threw Down His Whip And 
 Said:--"I Will Go With The Boys." This Left Dallas With Only One Driver, 
 But He Took A Whip Himself, And With The Aid Of The Children And His 
 Wife Who Drove The Two-Horse Wagon, They Got Along Very Well. I Paid For 
 Such Provisions As We Had Taken, As The Rest Of The Fellows Had Almost 
 No Money. 
   
   
   
 So We Parted Company, The Little Train Slowly Moving On Its Way 
 Westward. Our Military Captain, The Soldier Boys, And The Gay Young Lady 
 Taking The Route To Oregon, And We Sitting On The Bank Of The River 
 Whose Waters Flowed To The Great Pacific. Each Company Wished The Other 
 Good Luck, We Took A Few Long Breaths And Then Set To Work In Earnest To 
 Carry Out Our Plans. 
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 8 Pg 45 
   
   
 About The First Thing We Did Was To Organize And Select A Captain, And, 
 Very Much Against My Wishes, I Was Chosen To This Important Position. 
 Six Of Us Had Guns Of Some Sort, Richard Field, Dallas's Cook, Was Not 
 Armed At All. We Had One Regular Axe And A Large Camp Hatchet, Which Was 
 About The Same As An Axe, And Several Very Small Hatchets Owned By The 
 Men. All Our Worldly Goods Were Piled Up On The Bank, And We Were Alone. 
   
   
   
 An Examination Of The Old Ferry Boat Showed It To Be In Pretty Good 
 Condition, The Sand With Which It Had Been Filled Keeping It Very 
 Perfectly. We Found Two Oars In The Sand Under The Boat, And Looked Up 
 Some Poles To Assist Us In Navigation. Our Cordage Was Rather Scant But 
 The Best We Could Get And All We Could Muster. The Boat Was About Twelve 
 Feet Long And Six Or Seven Feet Wide, Not A Very Well Proportioned 
 Craft, But Having The Ability To Carry A Pretty Good Load. We Swung It 
 Up To The Bank And Loaded Up Our Goods And Then Ourselves. It Was Not A 
 Heavy Load For The Craft, And It Looked As If We Were Taking The Most 
 Sensible Way To Get To The Pacific, And Almost Wondered That Everybody 
 Was So Blind As Not To See It As We Did. 
   
   
   
 This Party Was Composed Of W.L. Manley, M.S. Mcmahon, Charles And Joseph 
 Hazelrig, Richard Field, Alfred Walton And John Rogers. We Untied The 
 Ropes, Gave The Boat A Push And Commenced To Move Down The River With 
 Ease And Comfort, Feeling Much Happier Than We Would Had We Been Going 
 Toward Salt Lake With The Prospect Of Wintering There. 
   
   
   
 At The Mouth Of Ham's Fork We Passed A Camp Of Indians, But We Kept 
 Close To The Opposite Shore To Avoid Being Boarded By Them. They 
 Beckoned Very Urgently For Us To Come Ashore, But I Acted As If I Did 
 Not Understand Them, And Gave Them The Go-By. 
   
   
   
 As We Were Floating Down The Rapid Stream It Became More And More A 
 Rapid, Roaring River, And The Bed Contained Many Dangerous Rocks That 
 Were Difficult To Shun. Each Of Us Had A Setting-Pole, And We Ranged 
 Ourselves Along The Sides Of The Boat And Tried To Keep Ourselves Clear 
 From The Rocks And Dangers. The Water Was Not Very Deep And Made Such A 
 Dashing Noise As The Current Rushed Among The Rocks That One Had To Talk 
 
 
 
 Chapter 8 Pg 46 
 Pretty Loud To Be Heard. As We Were Gliding Along Quite Swiftly, I Set 
 My Pole On The Bottom And Gave The Boat A Sudden Push To Avoid A 
 Boulder, When The Pole Stuck In The Crevice Between Two Rocks, And 
 Instead Of Losing The Pole By The Sudden Jerk I Gave, I Was The One Who 
 Was Very Suddenly Yanked From The Boat By The Spring Of The Pole, And 
 Landed In The Middle Of The River. I Struck Pretty Squarely On My Back, 
 And So Got Thoroughly Wet, But Swam For Shore Amid The Shouts Of The 
 Boys, Who Waved Their Hats And Hurrahed For The Captain When They Saw He 
 Was Not Hurt. I Told Them That Was Nothing As We Were On Our Way To 
 California By Water Any Way, And Such Things Must Be Expected. 
   
   
   
 The Next Day After This I Went On Shore And Sighted A Couple Of 
 Antelope, One Of Which I Shot, Which Gave Us Good Grub, And Good 
 Appetites We Already Had. As Near As We Could Estimate We Floated About 
 Thirty Miles A Day, Which Beat The Pace Of Tired Oxen Considerably. In 
 One Place There Was A Fringe Of Thick Willows Along The Bank, And A 
 Little Farther Back A Perpendicular Bluff, While Between The Two Was A 
 Strip Of Fine Green Grass. As We Were Passing This We Scared Up A Band 
 Of Elk In This Grass Meadow, And They All Took A Run Down The River Like 
 A Band Of Horses. One Of Them Turned Up A Small Ravine With Walls So 
 Steep He Could Not Get Out, So We Posted A Guard At The Entrance, And 
 Three Of Us Went Up The Canon After Him, And After The Others Had Each 
 Fired A Shot, I Fired The Third And Brought Him Down. This Was About The 
 Finest Piece Of Rocky Mountain Beef That One Could See. We Took The 
 Carcass On Board And Floated On Again. 
   
   
   
 Thus Far We Had A Very Pleasant Time, Each Taking His Turn In Working 
 The Boat While The Others Rested Or Slept. About The Fifth Day When We 
 Were Floating Along In Very Gently Running Water, I Had Lay Down To Take 
 A Rest And A Little Sleep. The Mountains Here On Both Sides Of The River 
 Were Not Very Steep, But Ran Gradually For A Mile Or So. While I Was 
 Sleeping The Boat Came Around A Small Angle In The Stream, And All At 
 Once There Seemed To Be A Higher, Steeper Range Of Mountains Right 
 Across The Valley. The Boys Thought The River Was Coming To A Rather 
 Sudden End And Hastily Awoke Me, And For The Life Of Me I Could Not Say 
 They Were Not Right, For There Was No Way In Sight For It To Go To. I 
 Remembered While Looking Over A Map The Military Men Had I Found A Place 
 Named Brown's Hole, And I Told The Boys I Guessed We Were Elected To Go 
 On Foot To California After All, For I Did Not Propose To Follow The 
 River Down Any Sort Of A Hole Into Any Mountain. We Were Floating 
 Directly Toward A Perpendicular Cliff, And I Could Not See Any Hole Any 
 Where, Nor Any Other Place Where It Could Go. Just As We Were Within A 
 Stone's Throw Of The Cliff, The River Turned Sharply To The Right And 
 Went Behind A High Point Of The Mountain That Seemed To Stand Squarely 
 On Edge. This Was Really An Immense Crack Or Crevice, Certainly 2000 
 Feet Deep And Perhaps Much More, And Seemed Much Wider At The Bottom 
 Than It Did At The Top, 2000 Feet Or More Above Our Heads. Each Wall 
 Seemed To Lean In Toward The Water As It Rose. 
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 8 Pg 47 
   
 We Were Now For Some Time Between Two Rocky Walls Between Which The 
 River Ran Very Rapidly, And We Often Had To Get Out And Work Our Boat 
 Over The Rocks, Sometimes Lifting It Off When It Caught. Fortunately We 
 Had A Good Tow Line, And One Would Take This And Follow Along The Edge 
 When It Was So He Could Walk. The Mountains Seemed To Get Higher And 
 Higher On Both Sides As We Advanced, And In Places We Could See Quite A 
 Number Of Trees Overhanging The River, And Away Up On The Rocks We Could 
 See The Wild Mountain Sheep Looking Down At Us. They Were So High That 
 They Seemed A Mile Away, And Consequently Safe Enough. This Was Their 
 Home, And They Seemed Very Independent, As If They Dared Us Fellows To 
 Come And See Them. There Was An Old Cottonwood Tree On Bank With Marks 
 Of An Axe On It, But This Was All The Sign We Saw That Any One Had Ever 
 Been Here Before Us. We Got No Game While Passing Through This Deep 
 Canon And Began To Feel The Need Of Some Fresh Provisions Very Sorely. 
   
   
   
 We Passed Many Deep, Dark Canons Coming Into The Main Stream, And At One 
 Place, Where The Rock Hung A Little Over The River And Had A Smooth 
 Wall, I Climbed Up Above The High Water Mark Which We Could Clearly See, 
 And With A Mixture Of Gunpowder And Grease For Paint, And A Bit Of Cloth 
 Tied To A Stick For A Brush, I Painted In Fair Sized Letters On The 
 Rock, Capt. W.L. Manley, U.S.A. We Did Not Know Whether We Were Within 
 The Bounds Of The United States Or Not, And We Put On All The Majesty We 
 Could Under The Circumstances. I Don't Think The Sun Ever Shone Down To 
 The Bottom Of The Canon, For The Sides Were Literally Sky-High, For The 
 Sky, And A Very Small Portion Of That Was All We Could See. 
   
   
   
 Just Before Night We Came To A Place Where Some Huge Rocks As Large As 
 Cabins Had Fallen Down From The Mountain, Completely Filling Up The 
 River Bed, And Making It Completely Impassible For Our Boat. We Unloaded 
 It And While The Boys Held The Stern Line, I Took Off My Clothes And 
 Pushed The Boat Out Into The Torrent Which Ran Around The Rocks, Letting 
 Them Pay The Line Out Slowly Till It Was Just Right. Then I Sang Out 
 To--"Let Go"--And Away It Dashed. I Grasped The Bow Line, And At The 
 First Chance Jumped Overboard And Got To Shore, When I Held The Boat And 
 Brought It In Below The Obstructions. There Was Some Deep Water Below 
 The Rocks; And We Went Into Camp. While Some Loaded The Boat, Others 
 With A Hook And Line Caught Some Good Fish, Which Resembled Mackerel. 
   
   
   
 While I Was Looking Up Toward The Mountain Top, And Along Down The Rocky 
 Wall, I Saw A Smooth Place About Fifty Feet Above Where The Great Rocks 
 Had Broken Out, And There, Painted In Large Black Letters, Were The 
 Words "Ashley, 1824." This Was The First Real Evidence We Had Of The 
 Presence Of A White Man In This Wild Place, And From This Record It 
 Seems That Twenty-Five Years Before Some Venturesome Man Had Here 
 Inscribed His Name. I Have Since Heard There Were Some Persons In St. 
 Louis Of This Name, And Of Some Circumstances Which May Link Them With 
 This Early Traveler. 
 
 
 
 Chapter 8 Pg 48 
   
   
   
 When We Came To Look Around We Found That Another Big Rock Blocked The 
 Channel 300 Yards Below, And The Water Rushed Around It With A Terrible 
 Swirl. So We Unloaded The Boat Again And Made The Attempt To Get Around 
 It As We Did The Other Rocks. We Tried To Get Across The River But 
 Failed. We Now, All But One, Got On The Great Rock With Our Poles, And 
 The One Man Was To Ease The Boat Down With The Rope As Far As He Could, 
 Then Let Go And We Would Stop It With Our Poles And Push It Out Into The 
 Stream And Let It Go Over, But The Current Was So Strong That When The 
 Boat Struck The Rock We Could Not Stop It, And The Gunwale Next To Us 
 Rose, And The Other Went Down, So That In A Second The Boat Stood 
 Edgewise In The Water And The Bottom Tight Against The Big Rock, And The 
 Strong Current Pinned It There So Tight That We Could No More Move It 
 Than We Could Move The Rock Itself. 
   
   
   
 This Seemed A Very Sudden Ending To Our Voyage And There Were Some Very 
 Rapid Thoughts As To Whether We Would Not Safer Among The Mormons Than 
 Out In This Wild Country, Afoot And Alone. Our Boat Was Surely Lost 
 Beyond Hope, And Something Must Be Done. I Saw Two Pine Trees, About Two 
 Feet Through, Growing On A Level Place Just Below, And I Said To Them 
 That We Must Decide Between Going Afoot And Making Some Canoes Out Of 
 These Pine Trees. Canoes Were Decided On, And We Never Let The Axes 
 Rest, Night Or Day Till We Had Them Completed. While My Working Shift 
 Was Off, I Took An Hour Or Two, For A Little Hunting, And On A Low 
 Divide Partly Grown Over With Small Pines And Juniper I Found Signs, Old 
 And New, Of Many Elk, And So Concluded The Country Was Well Stocked With 
 Noble Game. The Two Canoes, When Completed Were About Fifteen Feet Long 
 And Two Feet Wide, And We Lashed Them Together For Greater Security. 
 When We Tried Them We Found They Were Too Small To Carry Our Load And 
 Us, And We Landed Half A Mile Below, Where There Were Two Other Pine 
 Trees--White Pine--About Two Feet Through, And Much Taller Than The Ones 
 We Had Used. We Set At Work Making A Large Canoe Of These. I Had To 
 Direct The Work For I Was The Only One Who Had Ever Done Such Work. We 
 Worked Night And Day At These Canoes, Keeping A Big Fire At Night And 
 Changing Off To Keep The Axes Busy. This Canoe We Made Twenty-Five Or 
 Thirty Feet Long, And When Completed They Made Me Captain Of It And Into 
 It Loaded The Most Valuable Things, Such As Provisions, Ammunition, And 
 Cooking Utensils. I Had To Take The Lead For I Was The Only Skillful 
 Canoeist In The Party. We Agreed Upon Signals To Give When Danger Was 
 Seen, Or Game In Sight, And Leading Off With My Big Canoe We Set Sail 
 Again, And Went Flying Down Stream. 
   
   
   
 This Rapid Rate Soon Brought Us Out Of The High Mountains And Into A 
 Narrow Valley When The Stream Became More Moderate In Its Speed And We 
 Floated Along Easily Enough. In A Little While After We Struck This 
 Slack Water, As We Were Rounding A Point, I Saw On A Sand Bar In The 
 River, Five Or Six Elk, Standing And Looking At Us With Much Curiosity. 
 I Signaled For Those Behind To Go To Shore, While I Did The Same, And 
 
 
 
 Chapter 8 Pg 49 
 Two Or Three Of Us Took Our Guns And Went Carefully Down Along The Bank, 
 The Thick Brush Hiding Us From Them, Till We Were In Fair Range, Then 
 Selecting Our Game We Fired On Them. A Fine Doe Fell On The Opposite 
 Bank, And A Magnificent Buck Which Rogers And I Selected, Went Below And 
 Crossed The River On Our Side. We Followed Him Down Along The Bank Which 
 Was Here A Flat Meadow With Thick Bunches Of Willows, And Soon Came 
 Pretty Near To Mr. Elk Who Started Off On A High And Lofty Trot. As He 
 Passed An Opening In The Bushes I Put A Ball Through His Head And He 
 Fell. He Was A Monster. Rogers, Who Was A Butcher, Said It Would Weigh 
 Five Hundred Or Six Hundred Pounds. The Horns Were Fully Six Feet Long, 
 And By Placing The Horns On The Ground, Point Downwards, One Could Walk 
 Under The Skull Between Them. We Packed The Meat To Our Canoes, And 
 Staid Up All Night Cutting The Meat In Strips And Drying It, To Reduce 
 Bulk And Preserve It, And It Made The Finest Kind Of Food, Fit For An 
 Epicure. 
   
   
   
 Starting On Again, The River Lost More And More Of Of Its Rapidity As It 
 Came Out Into A Still Wider Valley, And Became Quite Sluggish. We Picked 
 Red Berries That Grew On Bushes That Overhung The Water. They Were Sour 
 And Might Have Been High Cranberries. One Day I Killed An Otter, And 
 Afterward Hearing A Wild Goose On Shore, I Went For The Game And Killed 
 It On A Small Pond On Which There Were Also Some Mallard Duck. I Killed 
 Two Of These. When I Fired, The Ones Not Killed Did Not Fly Away, But 
 Rather Swam Toward Me. I Suppose They Never Before Had Seen A Man Or 
 Heard The Report Of A Gun. On The Shore Around The Place I Saw A Small 
 Bear Track, But I Did Not Have Time To Look For His Bearship, And Left, 
 With The Game Already Killed, And Passed On Down Through This Beautiful 
 Valley. 
   
   
   
 We Saw One Place Where A Large Band Of Horses Had Crossed, And As The 
 Men With Them Must Have Had A Raft, We Were Pretty Sure That The Men In 
 Charge Of Them Were White Men. Another Day We Passed The Mouth Of A 
 Swollen Stream Which Came In From The West Side. The Water Was Thick 
 With Mud, And The Fish, About A Foot Long, Came To The Top, With Their 
 Noses Out Of Water. We Tried To Catch Some, But Could Not Hold Them. One 
 Night We Camped On An Island, And I Took My Gun And Went Over Toward The 
 West Side Where I Killed A Deer. The Boys Hearing Me Shoot, Came Out, 
 Guns In Hand, Thinking I Might Need Help, And I Was Very Glad Of Their 
 Assistance. To Make Our Flour Go As Far As Possible We Ate Very Freely 
 Of Meat, And Having Excellent Appetites It Disappeared Very Fast. 
   
   
   
 It Took Us Two Or Three Days To Pass This Beautiful Valley, And Then We 
 Began To Get Into A Rougher Country Again, The Canons Deeper And The 
 Water More Tumultuous. Mcmahon And I Had The Lead Always, In The Big 
 Canoe. The Mountains Seemed To Change Into Bare Rocks And Get Higher And 
 Higher As We Floated Along. After The First Day Of This The River Became 
 So Full Of Boulders That Many Times The Only Way We Could Do Was To 
 Unload The Canoes And Haul Them Over, Load Up And Go Ahead, Only To 
 
 
 
 Chapter 8 Pg 50 
 Repeat The Same Tactics In A Very Short Time Again. At One Place Where 
 The River Was More Than Usually Obstructed We Found A Deserted Camp, A 
 Skiff And Some Heavy Cooking Utensils, With A Notice Posted Up On An 
 Alder Tree Saying That They Had Found The River Route Impracticable, And 
 Being Satisfied That The River Was So Full Of Rocks And Boulders That It 
 Could Not Be Safely Navigated, They Had Abandoned The Undertaking And 
 Were About To Start Overland To Make Their Way To Salt Lake. I Took Down 
 The Names Of The Parties At The Time In My Diary, Which Has Since Been 
 Burned, But Have Now Forgotten Them Entirely. They Were All Strangers To 
 Me. They Had Taken Left Such Heavy Articles As Could Not Be Carried On 
 Foot. This Notice Rather Disconcerted Us, But We Thought We Had Better 
 Keep On And See For Ourselves, So We Did Not Follow Them, But Kept On 
 Down The Rocky River. We Found Generally More Boulders Than Water, And 
 The Down Grade Of The River Bed Was Heavy. 
   
   
   
 Some Alders And Willows Grew Upon The Bank And Up Quite High On The 
 Mountains We Could See A Little Timber. Some Days We Did Not Go More 
 Than Four Or Five Miles, And That Was Serious Work, Loading And 
 Unloading Our Canoes, And Packing Them Over The Boulders, With Only 
 Small Streams Of Water Curling Around Between Them. We Went Barefoot 
 Most Of The Time, For We Were More Than Half Of The Time In The Water 
 Which Roared And Dashed So Loud That We Could Hardly Heard Each Other 
 Speak. We Kept Getting More And More Venturesome And Skillful, And 
 Managed To Run Some Very Dangerous Rapids In Safety. 
   
   
   
 On The High Peaks Above Our Heads We Could See The Rocky Mountain Sheep 
 Looking Defiantly At Us From Their Mountain Fastnesses, So Far Away They 
 Looked No Larger Than Jack Rabbits. They Were Too Far Off To Try To 
 Shoot At, And We Had No Time To Try To Steal Up Any Nearer For At The 
 Rate We Were Making, Food Would Be The One Thing Needful, For We Were 
 Consuming It Very Fast. Sometimes We Could Ride A Little Ways, And Then 
 Would Come The Rough-And-Tumble With The Rocks Again. 
   
   
   
 One Afternoon We Came To A Sudden Turn In The River, More Than A Right 
 Angle, And, Just Below, A Fall Of Two Feet Or More. This I Ran In 
 Safety, As Did The Rest Who Followed And We Cheered At Our Pluck And 
 Skill. Just After This The River Swung Back The Other Way At A Right 
 Angle Or More, And I Quickly Saw There Was Danger Below And Signaled 
 Them To Go On Shore At Once, And Lead The Canoes Over The Dangerous 
 Rapids. I Ran My Own Canoe Near Shore And Got By The Rapid Safely, 
 Waiting For The Others To Come Also. They Did Not Obey My Signals But 
 Thought To Run The Rapid The Same As I Did. The Channel Here Was 
 Straight For 200 Yards, Without A Boulder In It, But The Stream Was So 
 Swift That It Caused Great, Rolling Waves In The Center, Of A Kind I 
 Have Never Seen Anywhere Else. The Boys Were Not Skillful Enough To 
 Navigate This Stream, And The Suction Drew Them To The Center Where The 
 Great Waves Rolled Them Over And Over, Bottom Side Up And Every Way. The 
 Occupants Of Our Canoe Let Go And Swam To Shore. Fields Had Always Been 
 
 
 
 Chapter 8 Pg 51 
 Afraid Of Water And Had Worn A Life Preserver Every Day Since We Left 
 The Wagons. He Threw Up His Hands And Splashed And Kicked At A Terrible 
 Rate, For He Could Not Swim, And At Last Made Solid Ground. One Of The 
 Canoes Came Down Into The Eddy Below, Where It Lodged Close To The 
 Shore, Bottom Up. Alfred Walton In The Other Canoe Could Not Swim, But 
 Held On To The Gunwale With A Death Grip, And It Went On Down Through 
 The Rapids. Sometimes We Could See The Man And Sometimes Not, And He And 
 The Canoe Took Turns In Disappearing. Walton Had Very Black Hair, And As 
 He Clung Fast To His Canoe His Black Head Looked Like A Crow On The End 
 Of A Log. Sometimes He Would Be Under So Long That We Thought He Must Be 
 Lost, When Up He Would Come Again Still Clinging Manfully. 
   
   
   
 Mcmahon And I Threw Everything Out Of The Big Canoe And Pushed Out After 
 Him. I Told Mc. To Kneel Down So I Could See Over Him To Keep The Craft 
 Off The Rocks, And By Changing His Paddle From Side To Side As Ordered, 
 He Enabled Me To Make Quick Moves And Avoid Being Dashed To Pieces. We 
 Fairly Flew, The Boys Said, But I Stood Up In The Stern And Kept It 
 Clear Of Danger Till We Ran Into A Clear Piece Of River And Overtook 
 Walton Clinging To The Overturned Boat; Mcmahon Seized The Boat And I 
 Paddled All To Shore, But Walton Was Nearly Dead And Could Hardly Keep 
 His Grasp On The Canoe. We Took Him To A Sandy Place And Worked Over Him 
 And Warmed Him In The Sun Till He Came To Life Again, Then Built A Fire 
 And Laid Him Up Near To It To Get Dry And Warm. If The Canoe Had Gone On 
 20 Yards Farther With Him Before We Caught It, He Would Have Gone Into 
 Another Long Rapid And Been Drowned. We Left Walton By The Fire And 
 Crossing The River In The Slack Water, Went Up To Where The Other Boys 
 Were Standing, Wet And Sorry-Looking, Say-That All Was Gone And Lost. 
 Rogers Put His Hand In His Pocket And Pulled Out Three Half Dollars And 
 Said Sadly:--"Boys, This Is All I Am Worth In The World." All The 
 Clothes He Had Were A Pair Of Overalls And A Shirt. If He Had Been 
 Possessed Of A Thousand In Gold He Would Have Been No Richer, For There 
 Was No One To Buy From And Nothing To Buy. I Said To Them: "Boys, We 
 Can't Help What Has Happened, We'll Do The Best We Can. Right Your 
 Canoe, Get The Water Out, And We'll Go Down And See How Walton Is." They 
 Did As I Told Them, And Lo And Behold When The Canoe Rolled Right Side 
 Up, There Were Their Clothes And Blankets Safe And Sound. These Light 
 Things Had Floated In The Canoe And Were Safe. We Now Tried By Joining 
 Hands To Reach Out Far Enough To Recover Some Of The Guns, But By 
 Feeling With Their Feet They Found The Bottom Smooth As Glass And The 
 Property All Swept On Below, No One Knew Where. The Current Was So 
 Powerful That No One Could Stand In It Where It Came Up Above His Knees. 
 The Eddy Which Enabled Us To Save The First Canoe With The Bedding And 
 Clothes Was Caused By A Great Boulder As Large As A House Which Had 
 Fallen From Above And Partly Blocked The Stream. Everything That Would 
 Sink Was Lost. 
   
   
   
 We All Got Into The Two Canoes And Went Down To Walton, Where We Camped 
 And Staid All Night For Walton's Benefit. While We Were Waiting I Took 
 My Gun And Tried To Climb Up High Enough To See How Much Longer This 
 Horrible Canon Was Going To Last, But After Many Attempts, I Could Not 
 
 
 
 Chapter 8 Pg 52 
 Get High Enough To See In Any Direction. The Mountain Was All Bare Rocks 
 In Terraces, But It Was Impossible To Climb From One To The Other, And 
 The Benches Were All Filled With Broken Rocks That Had Fallen From 
 Above. 
   
   
   
 By The Time I Got Back To Camp, Walton Was Dry And Warm And Could Talk. 
 He Said He Felt Better, And Pretty Good Over His Rescue. When He Was 
 Going Under The Water, It Seemed Sometimes As If He Never Would Come To 
 The Top Again, But He Held On And Eventually Came Out All Right. He 
 Never Knew How He Got To Shore, He Was So Nearly Dead When Rescued. 
   
   
   
 The Next Morning Walton Was So Well We Started On. We Were Now Very 
 Poorly Armed. My Rifle And Mcmahon's Shotgun Were All The Arms We Had 
 For Seven Of Us, And We Could Make But A Poor Defence If Attacked By Man 
 Or Beast, To Say Nothing Of Providing Ourselves With Food. The Mountains 
 On Each Side Were Very Bare Of Timber, Those On The East Side 
 Particularly So, And Very High And Barren. Toward Night We Were Floating 
 Along In A Piece Of Slack Water, The River Below Made A Short Turn 
 Around A High And Rocky Point Almost Perpendicular From The Water. There 
 Was A Terrace Along The Side Of This Point About Fifty Feet Up, And The 
 Bench Grew Narrower As It Approached The River. As I Was Coming Down 
 Quite Close Under This Bank I Saw Three Mountain Sheep On The Bench 
 Above, And, Motioning To The Boys, I Ran On Shore And, With My Gun In 
 Hand, Crept Down Toward Them, Keeping A Small Pine Tree Between Myself 
 And The Sheep. There Were Some Cedar Bushes On The Point, And The Pines 
 Grew About Half Way Up The Bank. I Got In As Good A Range As Possible 
 And Fired At One Of Them Which Staggered Around And Fell Down To The 
 Bottom Of The Cliff. I Loaded And Took The Next Largest One Which Came 
 Down The Same Way. The Third One Tried To Escape By Going Down The Bend 
 And Then Creeping Up A Crevice, But It Could Not Get Away And Turned 
 Back, Cautiously, Which Gave Me Time To Load Again And Put A Ball 
 Through It. I Hit It A Little Too Far Back For Instant Death, But I 
 Followed It Up And Found It Down And Helpless, And Soon Secured It. I 
 Hauled This One Down The Mountain, And The Other Boys Had The Two Others 
 Secure By This Time. Mcmahon Was So Elated At My Success That He Said: 
 "Manley, If I Could Shoot As You Do I Would Never Want Any Better 
 Business." And The Other Fellows Said They Guessed We Were Having Better 
 Luck With One Gun Than With Six, So We Had A Merry Time After All. These 
 Animals Were Of A Bluish Color, With Hair Much Finer Than Deer, And 
 Resembled A Goat More Than A Sheep. These Three Were All Females And 
 Their Horns Were Quite Straight, Not Curved Like The Big Males. We Cut 
 The Meat From The Bones And Broke Them Up, Making A Fine Soup Which 
 Tasted Pretty Good. They Were In Pretty Good Order, And The Meat Like 
 Very Good Mutton. 
   
   
   
 We Kept Pushing On Down The River. The Rapids Were Still Dangerous In 
 Many Places, But Not So Frequent Nor So Bad As The Part We Had Gone 
 Over, And We Could See That The River Gradually Grew Smoother As We 
 
 
 
 Chapter 8 Pg 53 
 Progressed. 
   
   
   
 After A Day Or Two We Began To Get Out Of The Canons, But The Mountains 
 And Hills On Each Side Were Barren And Of A Pale Yellow Caste, With No 
 Chance For Us To Climb Up And Take A Look To See If There Were Any 
 Chances For Us Further Along. We Had Now Been Obliged To Follow The 
 Canon For Many Miles, For The Only Way To Get Out Was To Get Out 
 Endwise, Climbing The Banks Being Utterly Out Of The Question. But These 
 Mountains Soon Came To An End, And There Was Some Cottonwood And Willows 
 On The Bank Of The River, Which Was Now So Smooth We Could Ride Along 
 Without The Continual Loading And Unloading We Had Been Forced To 
 Practice For So Long. We Had Begun To Get A Little Desperate At The Lack 
 Of Game, But The New Valley, Which Grew Wider All The Time, Gave Us Hope 
 Again, If It Was Quite Barren Everywhere Except Back Of The Willow 
 Trees. 
   
   
   
 We Were Floating Along Very Silently One Day, For None Of Us Felt Very 
 Much In The Mood For Talking, When We Heard A Distant Sound Which We 
 Thought Was Very Much Like The Firing Of A Gun. We Kept Still, And In A 
 Short Time A Similar Sound Was Heard, Plainer And Evidently Some Ways 
 Down The Stream. Again And Again We Heard It, And Decided That It Must 
 Be A Gun Shot, And Yet We Were Puzzled To Know How It Could Be. We Were 
 Pretty Sure There Were No White People Ahead Of Us, And We Did Not 
 Suppose The Indians In This Far-Off Land Had Any Firearms. It Might Be 
 Barely Possible That We Were Coming Now To Some Wagon Train Taking A 
 Southern Course, For We Had Never Heard That There Were Any Settlements 
 In This Direction And The Barren Country Would Preclude Any Such Thing, 
 As We Viewed It Now. If It Was A Hostile Band We Could Not Do Much With 
 A Rifle And A Shot Gun Toward Defending Ourselves Or Taking The 
 Aggressive. Some Of The Boys Spoke Of Our Scalps Ornamenting A Spear 
 Handle, And Indulged In Such Like Cheerful Talk Which Comforted Us 
 Wonderfully. 
   
   
   
 Finally We Concluded We Did Not Come Out Into That Wild Country To Be 
 Afraid Of A Few Gunshots, And Determined To Put On A Bold Front, Fight 
 If We Had To, Run Away If We Could Not Do Any Better, And Take Our 
 Chances On Getting Scalped Or Roasted. Just Then We Came In Sight Of 
 Three Indian Lodges Just A Little Back From The River, And Now We Knew 
 For Certain Who Had The Guns. Mcmahon And I Were In The Lead As Usual, 
 And It Was Only A Moment Before One Of The Indians Appeared, Gun In 
 Hand, And Made Motions For Us To Come On Shore. A Cottonwood Tree Lay 
 Nearly Across The River, And I Had Gone So Far That I Had To Go Around 
 It And Land Below, But The Other Boys Behind Were Afraid To Do Otherwise 
 Than To Land Right There As The Indian Kept His Gun Lying Across His 
 Arm. I Ran Our Canoe Below To A Patch Of Willows, Where We Landed And 
 Crawled Through The Brush Till We Came In Sight Of The Other Boys, Where 
 We Stood And Waited A Moment To See How They Fared, And Whether Our Red 
 Men Were Friends Or Enemies. There Were No Suspicious Movements On Their 
 
 
 
 Chapter 8 Pg 54 
 Part, So We Came Out And Walked Right Up To Them. There Was Some Little 
 Talk, But I Am Sure We Did Not Understand One Another's Language, And So 
 We Made Motions And They Made Motions, And We Got Along Better. We Went 
 With Them Down To The Tepee, And There We Heard The First Word That Was 
 At All Like English And That Was "Mormonee," With A Sort Of Questioning 
 Tone. Pretty Soon One Said "Buffalo," And Then We Concluded They Were On 
 A Big Hunt Of Some Sort. They Took Us Into Their Lodges And Showed Us 
 Blankets, Knives, And Guns, And Then, With A Suggestive Motion, Said All 
 Was "Mormonee," By Which We Understood They Had Got Them From The 
 Mormons. The Indian In The Back Part Of The Lodge Looked Very Pleasant 
 And His Countenance Showed A Good Deal Of Intelligence For A Man Of The 
 Mountains. I Now Told The Boys That We Were In A Position Where We Were 
 Dependent On Some One, And That I Had Seen Enough To Convince Me That 
 These Indians Were Perfectly Friendly With The Mormons, And That For Our 
 Own Benefit We Had Better Pass Ourselves Off For Mormons, Also. So We 
 Put Our Right Hand To Our Breast And Said "Mormonee," With A Cheerful 
 Countenance, And That Act Conveyed To Them The Belief That We Were 
 Chosen Disciples Of The Great And Only Brigham And We Became Friends At 
 Once, As All Acknowledged. The Fine-Looking Indian Who Sat As King In 
 The Lodge Now, By Motions And A Word Or Two, Made Himself Known As Chief 
 Walker, And When I Knew This I Took Great Pains To Cultivate His 
 Acquaintance. 
   
   
   
 I Was Quite Familiar With The Sign Language Used By All The Indians, And 
 Found I Could Get Along Pretty Well In Making Him Understand And Knowing 
 What He Said. I Asked Him First How Many "Sleeps" Or Days It Was From 
 There To "Mormonee." In Answer He Put Out His Left Hand And Then Put Two 
 Fingers Of His Right Astride Of It, Making Both Go Up And Down With The 
 Same Motion Of A Man Riding A Horse. Then He Shut His Eyes And Laid His 
 Head On His Hand Three Times, By Which I Understood That A Man Could 
 Ride To The Mormon Settlement In Three Sleeps Or Four Days. He Then 
 Wanted To Know Where We Were Going, And I Made Signs That We Were 
 Wishing To Go Toward The Setting Sun And To The Big Water, And I Said 
 "California." The Country Off To The West Of Us Now Seemed An Open, 
 Barren Plain, Which Grew Wider As It Extended West. The Mountains On The 
 North Side Seemed To Get Lower And Smaller As They Extended West, But On 
 The South Or East Side They Were All High And Rough. It Seemed As If We 
 Could See One Hundred Miles Down The River, And Up To The Time We Met 
 The Indians We Thought We Had Got Through All Our Troublesome Navigation 
 And Could Now Sail On, Quietly And Safely To The Great Pacific Ocean And 
 Land Of Gold. 
   
   
   
 When I Told Chief Walker This He Seemed Very Much Astonished, As If 
 Wondering Why We Were Going Down The River When We Wanted To Get West 
 Across The Country. I Asked Him How Many Sleeps It Was To The Big Water, 
 And He Shook His Head, Pointed Out Across The Country And Then To The 
 River And Shook His Head Again; By Which I Understood That Water Was 
 Scarce, Out The Way He Pointed. He Then Led Me Down To A Smooth Sand Bar 
 On The River And Then, With A Crooked Stick, Began To Make A Map In The 
 Sand. First He Made A Long Crooked Mark, Ten Feet Long Or So, And 
 
 
 
 Chapter 8 Pg 55 
 Pointing To The River To Let Me Know That The Mark In The Sand Was Made 
 To Represent It. He Then Made A Straight Mark Across Near The North End 
 Of The Stream, And Showed The Other Streams Which Came Into The Green 
 River Which I Saw At Once Was Exactly Correct. Then He Laid Some Small 
 Stones On Each Side Of The Cross Mark, And Making A Small Hoop Of A 
 Willow Twig, He Rolled It In The Mark He Had Made Across The River, Then 
 Flourished His Stick As If He Were Driving Oxen. Thus He Represented The 
 Emigrant Road. He Traced The Branches Off To The North Where The 
 Soldiers Had Gone, And The Road To California, Which The Emigrants Took, 
 All Of Which We Could See Was Correct. Then He Began To Describe The 
 River Down Which We Had Come. A Short Distance Below The Road He Put 
 Some Small Stones On Each Side Of The River To Represent Mountains. He 
 Then Put Down His Hands, One On Each Side Of The Crooked Mark And Then 
 Raised Them Up Again Saying E-E-E-E-E-E As He Raised Them, To Say That 
 The Mountains There Were Very High. Then He Traced Down The Stream To A 
 Place Below Where We Made Our Canoes; When He Placed The Stone Back From 
 The River Farther, To Show That There Was A Valley There; Then He Drew 
 Them In Close Again Farther Down, And Piled Them Up Again Two Or Three 
 Tiers High, Then Placing Both Fists On Them He Raised Them Higher Than 
 The Top Of His Head, Saying E-E-E-E-E-E And Looking Still Higher And 
 Shaking His Head As If To Say:--"Awful Bad Canon", And Thus He Went On 
 Describing The River Till We Understood That We Were Near The Place 
 Where We Now Were, And Then Pointed To His Tepee, Showing That I 
 Understood Him All Right. It Was All Correct, As I Very Well Knew And 
 Assured Me That He Knew All About The Country. 
   
   
   
 I Became Much Interested In My New Found Friend, And Had Him Continue 
 His Map Down The River. He Showed Two Streams Coming In On The East Side 
 And Then He Began Piling Up Stones On Each Side Of The River And Then 
 Got Longer Ones And Piled Them Higher And Higher Yet. Then He Stood With 
 One Foot On Each Side Of His River And Put His Hands On The Stones And 
 Then Raised Them As High As He Could, Making A Continued E-E-E-E-E-E As 
 Long As His Breath Would Last, Pointed To The Canoe And Made Signs With 
 His Hands How It Would Roll And Pitch In The Rapids And Finely Capsize 
 And Throw Us All Out. He Then Made Signs Of Death To Show Us That It Was 
 A Fatal Place. I Understood Perfectly Plain From This That Below The 
 Valley Where We Now Were Was A Terrible Canon, Much Higher Than Any We 
 Had Passed, And The Rapids Were Not Navigable With Safety. Then Walker 
 Shook His Head More Than Once And Looked Very Sober, And Said "Indiano" 
 And Reaching For His Bow And Arrows, He Drew The Bow Back To Its Utmost 
 Length And Put The Arrow Close To My Breast, Showing How I Would Get 
 Shot. Then He Would Draw His Hand Across His Throat And Shut His Eyes As 
 If In Death To Make Us Understand That This Was A Hostile Country Before 
 Us, As Well As Rough And Dangerous. 
   
   
   
 I Now Had A Description Of The Country Ahead And Believed It To Be 
 Reliable. As Soon As I Could Conveniently After This, I Had A Council 
 With The Boys, Who Had Looked On In Silence While I Was Holding The 
 Silent Confab With The Chief. I Told Them Where We Were And What Chances 
 There Were Of Getting To California By This Route, And That For My Part 
 
 
 
 Chapter 8 Pg 56 
 I Had As Soon Be Killed By Mormans As By Savage Indians, And That I 
 Believed The Best Way For Us To Do Was To Make The Best Of Our Way To 
 Salt Lake. "Now" I Said, "Those Of You Who Agree With Me Can Follow--And 
 I Hope All Will." 
   
   
   
 Mcmahon Said That We Could Not Understand A Word The Old Indian Said, 
 And As To Following His Trails, I Don't Believe A Word Of It, And It 
 Don't Seem Right. 
   
   
   
 He Said He Had A Map Of The Country, And It Looked Just As Safe To Him 
 To Go On Down The River As To Go Wandering Across A Dry And Desolate 
 Country Which We Knew Nothing Of. I Said To Mcmahon--"I Know This Sign 
 Language Pretty Well. It Is Used By Almost All The Indians And Is Just 
 As Plain And Certain To Me As My Talk Is To You. Chief Walker And His 
 Forefathers Were Borne Here And Know The Country As Well As You Know 
 Your Father's Farm, And For My Part, I Think I Shall Take One Of His 
 Trails And Go To Salt Lake And Take The Chances That Way. I Have No 
 Objections To You Going Some Other Way If You Wish To And Think It Is 
 Best". Mcmahon And Fields Concluded They Would Not Follow Me Any 
 Farther. 
   
   
   
 I Then Went To Chief Walker And Had Him Point Out The Trail To 
 "Mormonie" As Well As He Could. He Told Me Where To Enter The Mountains 
 Leading North, And When We Got Part Way He Told Me We Would Come To An 
 Indian Camp, When I Must Follow Some Horse Tracks Newly Made; He Made Me 
 Know This By Using His Hands Like Horse's Forefeet, And Pointed The Way. 
   
   
   
 Some Of The Young Men Motioned For Me To Come Out And Shoot At A Mark 
 With Them, And As I Saw It Would Please Them I Did So And Took Good Care 
 To Beat Them Every Time Too. Then They Wanted To Swap (Narawaup) Guns 
 With Me Which I Declined Doing. After This The Chief Came To Me And 
 Wanted Me To Go And Hunt Buffalo With Them. I Told Him I Had No Horse, 
 And Then He Went And Had A Nice Gray One Brought Up And Told Me I Could 
 Ride Him If I Would Go. He Took His Bow And Arrow And Showed Me How He 
 Could Shoot An Arrow Straight Through A Buffalo Just Back Of His Short 
 Ribs And That The Arrow Would Go Clear Through And Come Out On The Other 
 Side Without Touching A Bone. Those Fellows Were In Fine Spirit, On A 
 Big Hunt, And When Walker Pointed Out His Route To Me He Swung His Hand 
 Around To Salt Lake. 
   
   
   
 They All Spoke The Word Buffalo Quite Plainly. I Took His Strong Bow And 
 Found I Could Hardly Pull It Half Way Out, But I Have No Doubt He Could 
 Do As He Said He Could. I Hardly Knew How To Refuse Going With Him. I 
 Asked Him How Long It Would Be Before He Would Get Around His Long 
 
 
 
 Chapter 8 Pg 57 
 Circuit And Get To Salt Lake, To Which He Replied By Pulverizing Some 
 Leaves In His Hands And Scattering Them In The Air To Represent Snow, 
 Which Would Fall By The Time He Got To "Mormonee". I Shivered As He Said 
 This And By His Actions I Saw That I Understood Him Right. 
   
   
   
 I Told Him I Could Not Go With Him For The Other Boys Would Depend On Me 
 To Get Them Something To Eat, And I Put My Finger Into My Open Mouth To 
 Tell Him This. I Think If I Had Been Alone I Should Have Accepted His 
 Offer And Should Have Had A Good Time. I Gave Them To Understand That We 
 Would Swap (Narawaup) With Them For Some Horses So He Brought Up A Pair 
 Of Nice Two Year-Old Colts For Us. I Offered Him Some Money For Them, He 
 Did Not Want That, But Would Take Clothing Of Almost Any Kind. We Let 
 Them Have Some That We Could Get Along Without, And Some One Let Walker 
 Have A Coat. He Put It On, And Being More Warmly Dressed Than Ever 
 Before, The Sweat Ran Down His Face In Streams. We Let Them Have Some 
 Needles And Thread And Some Odd Notions We Had To Spare. We Saw That 
 Walker Had Some Three Or Four Head Of Cattle With Him Which He Could 
 Kill If They Did Not Secure Game At The Time They Expected. 
   
   
   
 Mcmahon And Field Still Persisted They Would Not Go With Us And So We 
 Divided Our Little Stock Of Flour And Dried Meat With Them As Fairly As 
 Possible And Decided We Would Try The Trail. When Our Plans Were Settled 
 We Felt In Pretty Good Spirits Again, And One Of The Boys Got Up A Sort 
 Of Corn-Stalk Fiddle Which Made A Squeaking Noise And In A Little While 
 There Was A Sort Of Mixed American And Indian Dance Going On In Which 
 The Squaws Joined In And We Had A Pretty Jolly Time Till Quite Late At 
 Night. We Were Well Pleased That These Wild Folks Had Proved Themselves 
 To Be True Friends To Us. 
   
   
   
 The Morning We Were To Start I Told The Boys A Dream I Had In Which I 
 Had Seen That The Course We Had Decided On Was The Correct One, But 
 Mcmahon And Field Thought We Were Foolish And Said They Had Rather Take 
 The Chances Of Going With The Indians, Or Going On Down The River. He 
 Seemed To Place Great Stress On The Fact That He Could Not Understand 
 The Indians. 
   
   
   
 Said He:--"This Indian May Be All Right, And Maybe He Will Lead Us All 
 Into A Dreadful Trap. They Are Treacherous And Revengeful, And For Some 
 Merely Fancied Wrong Done By Us, Or By Some One Else Of Whom We Have No 
 Control Or Knowledge, They May Take Our Scalps, Wipe Us Out Of Existence 
 And No One Will Ever Know What Became Of Us. Now This Map Of Mine Don't 
 Show Any Bad Places On This River, And I Believe We Can Get Down Easily 
 Enough, And Get To California Some Time. Field And I Cannot Make Up Our 
 Minds So Easily As You Fellows. I Believe Your Chances Are Very Poor." 
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 8 Pg 58 
   
 The Boys Now Had Our Few Things Loaded On The Two Colts, For They Had 
 Fully Decided To Go With Me, And I Was Not In The Least Put Back By 
 Mcmahon's Dire Forebodings. We Shook Hands With Quivering Lips As We Each 
 Hoped The Other Would Meet Good Luck, And Find Enough To Eat And All 
 Such Sort Of Friendly Talk, And Then With My Little Party On The One 
 Side And Mcmahon And Field, Whom We Were To Leave Behind, On The Other, 
 We Bowed To Each Other With Bared Heads, And Then We Started Out Of The 
 Little Young Cottonwoods Into The Broad Plain That Seemed To Get Wider 
 And Wider As We Went West. 
   
   
   
 The Mountains On The Northern Side Grew Smaller And Less Steep As We 
 Went West, And On The Other Hand Reached Down The River As Far As We 
 Could See. The Plain Itself Was Black And Barren And For A Hundred Miles 
 At Least Ahead Of Us It Seemed To Have No End. Walker Had Explained To 
 Us That We Must Follow Some Horse Tracks And Enter A Canon Some Miles To 
 The Northwest. He Had Made His Hands Work Like Horses' Feet, Placing 
 Then Near The Ground As If Following A Trail, We Were Not Much More Than 
 A Mile Away When On Looking Back, We Saw Chief Walker Coming Towards Us 
 On A Horse At Full Speed; And Motioning For Us To Stop. This We Did, 
 Though Some Of The Boys Said We Would Surely Be Marched Back And 
 Scalped. But It Was Not For That He Came. He Had Been Watching Us And 
 Saw That We Had Failed To Notice The Tracks Of The Horses He Told Us 
 About So He Rode After Us, And Now Took Us Off Some Little Distance To 
 The Right, Got Off His Horse And Showed Us The Faint Horse Tracks Which 
 We Were To Follow And Said "Mormonie". He Pointed Out To Us The Exact 
 Canon We Were To Enter When We Reached The Hills; And Said After Three 
 "Sleeps" We Would Find An Indian Camp On Top Of The Mountain. He Then 
 Bade Us Good Bye Again And Galloped Back To His Own Camp. 
   
   
   
 We Now Resumed Our Journey, Keeping Watch Of The Tracks More Closely, 
 And As We Came Near The Spurs Of The Mountain Which Projected Out Into 
 The Barren Valley We Crossed Several Well Marked Trails Running Along 
 The Foot Hills, At Right Angles To Our Own. This We Afterwards Learned 
 Was The Regular Trail From Santa Fe To Los Angeles. At Some Big Rocks 
 Further On We Camped For The Night, And Found Water In Some Pools Or 
 Holes In The Flat Rocks Which Held The Rain. 
   
   
   
 Reading People Of To-Day, Who Know So Well The Geography Of The American 
 Continent, May Need To Stop And Think That In 1849 The Whole Region West 
 Of The Missouri River Was Very Little Known, The Only Men Venturesome 
 Enough To Dare To Travel Over It Were Hunters And Trappers Who, By A 
 Wild Life Had Been Used To All The Privations Of Such A Journey, And 
 Shrewd As The Indians Themselves In The Mysterious Ways Of The Trail And 
 The Chase. Even These Fellows Had Only Investigated Certain Portions 
 Best Suited To Their Purpose. 
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 8 Pg 59 
   
 The Indians Here Have The Reputation Of Being Blood Thirsty Savages Who 
 Took Delight In Murder And Torture, But Here, In The Very Midst Of This 
 Wild And Desolate Country We Found A Chief And His Tribe, Walker And His 
 Followers Who Were As Humane And Kind To White People As Could Be 
 Expected Of Any One. I Have Often Wondered At The Knowledge Of This Man 
 Respecting The Country, Of Which He Was Able To Make Us A Good Map In 
 The Sand, Point Out To Us The Impassable Canon, Locate The Hostile 
 Indians, And Many Points Which Were Not Accurately Known By Our Own 
 Explorers For Many Years Afterward. He Undoubtedly Saved Our Little Band 
 From A Watery Grave, For Without His Advice We Had Gone On And On, Far 
 Into The Great Colorado Canon, From Which Escape Would Have Been 
 Impossible And Securing Food Another Impossibility, While Destruction By 
 Hostile Indians Was Among The Strong Probabilities Of The Case. So In A 
 Threefold Way I Have For These More Than Forty Years Credited The Lives 
 Of Myself And Comrades To The Thoughtful Interest And Humane 
 Consideration Of Old Chief Walker. 
   
   
   
 In Another Pool Or Pond Near The One Where We Were Camped I Shot A Small 
 Duck. Big Sage Was Plenty Here For Fuel And We Had Duck For Supper. Our 
 Party Consisted Of Five Men And Two Small Ponies Only Two Years Old, 
 With A Stock Of Provisions Very Small Including That The Old Chief Had 
 Given Us. We Started On In The Morning, Following Our Faint Trail Till 
 We Came To The Canon We Had In View, And Up This We Turned As We Had 
 Been Directed, Finding In The Bottom A Little Running Stream. Timber 
 Began To Appear As We Ascended, And Grass Also. There Were Signs Of Deer 
 And Grouse But We Had No Time To Stop To Hunt, For I Had The Only Gun 
 And While I Hunted The Others Must Lie Idly By. We Reached The Summit At 
 A Low Pass, And Just Above, On The North Side Of The Higher Mountains 
 Were Considerable Banks Of Snow. Following The Chief's Instructions We 
 Left The Trail And Followed Some Horse Tracks Over Rolling Hills, High 
 On The Mountain Side. We Found The Indian Camp Exactly As The Chief Had 
 Described, Consisting Of Two Or Three Lodges. The Men Were All Absent 
 Hunting, But The Women Were Gathering And Baking Some Sort Of A Root 
 Which Looked Like A Carrot. They Made A Pile Of Several Bushels And 
 Covered It With Earth, Then Made A Fire, Treating The Pile Some As A 
 Charcoal Burner Does His Pit Of Coal. When Sufficiently Cooked They Beat 
 Them Up And Made The Material Into Small Cakes Which Were Dried In The 
 Sun. The Dried Cakes Were As Black As Coal And Intended For Winter Use. 
 These Roots Before Roasting Were Unfit For Food, As They Contained A 
 Sort Of Acrid Juice That Would Make The Tongue Smart And Very Sore But 
 There Was A Very Good Rich Taste When Cooked. The Woman Pointed To Our 
 Horses And Said "Walker", So We Knew They Were Aware That We Got Them Of 
 Him, And Might Have Taken Us For Horse Thieves For Aught I Know. As It 
 Was Not Yet Night When We Came To The Camp, We Passed On And Camped On A 
 Clear Mountain Brook Where Grew Some Pine Trees. After A Little Some Of 
 The Indians Belonging To The Camp We Had Passed Came In, Bringing Some 
 Venison, For Which We Traded By Giving Them Some Needles And A Few Other 
 Trinkets. I Beat These Fellows Shooting At A Mark, And Then They Wanted 
 To Trade Guns, Which I Declined. This Piece Of Meat Helped Us Along 
 Considerably With Our Provisions, For Game Was Very Scarce And Only Some 
 Sage Hens Had Come Across Our Trail. One Day I Scared A Hawk Off The 
 
 
 
 Chapter 8 Pg 60 
 Ground, And We Took The Sage Hen He Had Caught And Was Eating, And Made 
 Some Soup Of It. 
   
   
   
 After Being On This Trail Six Or Seven Days We Began To Think Of Killing 
 One Of Our Colts For Food, For We Had Put Ourselves On Two Meals A Day 
 And The Work Was Very Hard; So That Hunger Was All The Time Increasing. 
 We Thought This Was A Pretty Long Road For Walker To Ride Over In Three 
 Sleeps As He Said He Could, And We Began Also To Think There Might Be 
 Some Mistake Somewhere, Although It Had Otherwise Turned Out Just As He 
 Said. On The Eighth Day Our Horse-Tracks Came Out Into A Large Trail 
 Which Was On A Down Grade Leading In A Northward Direction. On The Ninth 
 Day We Came Into A Large Valley, And Near Night Came In Sight Of A Few 
 Covered Wagons, A Part Of A Train That Intended Going On A Little Later 
 Over The Southern Route To Los Angeles But Were Waiting For The Weather 
 To Get A Little Cooler, For A Large Part Of The Route Was Over Almost 
 Barren Deserts. We Were Very Glad To Find These Wagons, For They Seemed 
 To Have Plenty Of Food And The Bountiful Supper They Treated Us To Was 
 The Very Thing We Needed. We Camped Here And Told Them Of The Hardships 
 We Had Passed Through. They Had Hired A Guide, Each Wagon Paying Him Ten 
 Dollars For His Service. Our Little Party Talked Over The Situation 
 Among Ourselves, And Concluded That As We Were Good Walkers We Must 
 Allow Ourselves To Be Used In Any Way So That We Had Grub And Concluded 
 As Many Of Us As Possible Would Try To Get Some Service To Do For Our 
 Board And Walk Along With The Party. John Rogers Had A Dollar And A Half 
 And I Had Thirty Dollars, Which Was All The Money We Had In Our Camp. We 
 Found Out We Were About 60 Miles South Of Salt Lake City. Some Of The 
 Boys Next Day Arranged To Work For Their Board, And The Others Would Be 
 Taken Along If They Would Furnish Themselves With Flour And Bacon. This 
 Part Of The Proposition Fell To Me And Two Others, And So Hazelrig And I 
 Took The Two Colts And Started For The City, Where They Told Us We Could 
 Get All We Needed With Our Little Purse Of Money. We Reached Hobble 
 Creek Before Night, Near Salt Lake Where There Was A Mormon Fort, And 
 Were Also A Number Of Wagons Belonging To Some Prospecting Train. There 
 Seemed To Be No Men About And We Were Looking About Among The Wagons For 
 Some One To Inquire Of, When A Woman Came To The Front Of The Last Wagon 
 And Looked Out At Us, And To My Surprise It Was Mrs. Bennett, Wife Of 
 The Man I Had Been Trying To Overtake Ever Since My Start On This Long 
 Trip. Bennett Had My Entire Outfit With Him On This Trip And Was All The 
 Time Wondering Whether I Would Ever Catch Up With Them. We Stayed Till 
 The Men Came In With Their Cattle Towards Night, And Bennett Was Glad 
 Enough To See Me, I Assure You. We Had A Good Substantial Supper And 
 Then Sat Around The Campfire Nearly All Night Telling Of Our Experience 
 Since Leaving Wisconsin. I Had Missed Bennett At The Missouri River. I 
 Knew Of No Place Where People Crossed The River Except Council Bluff, 
 Here I Had Searched Faithfully, Finding No Trace Of Him, But It Seems 
 They Had Crossed Farther Up At A Place Called Kanesville, A Mormon 
 Crossing, And Followed Up The Platte River On The North Side. Their Only 
 Bad Luck Had Been To Lose A Fine Black Horse, Which Was Staked Out, And 
 When A Herd Of Buffaloes Came Along He Broke His Rope And Followed After 
 Them. He Was Looked For With Other Horses, But Never Found And Doubtless 
 Became A Prize For Some Enterprising Mr. Lo. Who Was Fortunate Enough To 
 Capture Him. Hazelrig And I Told Of Our Experience On The South Side Of 
 
 
 
 Chapter 8 Pg 61 
 The Platte; Why We Went Down Green River; What A Rough Time We Had; How 
 We Were Stopped By The Indians And How We Had Come Across From The 
 River, Arriving The Day Before And Were Now On Our Way To Salt Lake To 
 Get Some Flour And Bacon So We Could Go On With The Train When It 
 Started As They Had Offered To Haul Our Grub For Our Service If We Could 
 Carry Ourselves On Foot. 
   
   
   
 Mr. Bennett Would Not Hear Of My Going On To Salt Lake City, For He Said 
 There Must Be Provisions Enough In The Party And In The Morning We Were 
 Able To Buy Flour And Bacon Of John Philips Of Mineral Point Wis. And Of 
 Wm. Philips His Brother. I Think We Got A Hundred Pounds Of Flour And A 
 Quantity Of Bacon And Some Other Things. I Had Some Money Which I Had 
 Received For My Horse Sold To Dallas, But As The Others Had None I Paid 
 For It All, And Told Hazelrig To Take The Ponies And Go Back To Camp 
 With A Share Of The Provisions And Do The Best He Could. I Had Now My 
 Own Gun And Ammunition, With Some Clothing And Other Items Which I Had 
 Prepared In Wisconsin Before I Started After My Winnebago Pony, And I 
 Felt I Ought To Share The Money I Had With The Other Boys To Help Them 
 As Best I Could. I Felt That I Was Pretty Well Fixed And Had Nothing To 
 Fear. 
   
   
   
 Mr. Bennett Told Me Much Of The Trip On The North Side Of The Platte. He 
 Said They Had Some Cholera, Of Which A Few People Died, And Related How 
 The Outer If Not The Inner Nature Of The Men Changed As They Left 
 Civilization, Law And The Courts Behind Them. Some Who Had Been Raised 
 Together, And Lived Together All Their Lives Without Discord Or Trouble, 
 Who Were Considered Model Men At Home And Just The Right People To Be 
 Connected With In Such An Expedition, Seemed To Change Their Character 
 Entirely Out On These Wild Wastes. When Anything Excited Their 
 Displeasure Their Blood Boiled Over, And Only The Interference Of Older 
 And Wiser Heads On Many Occasions Prevented Bloodshed. Some Dissolved 
 The Solemn Contract They Had Made To Travel Together Systematically And 
 In Order And To Stand, By, Even Unto Death, And When They Reached The 
 Upper Platte, The Journey Only Half Over, Talked Of Going Back, Or 
 Splitting Up The Outfit And Join Others They Had Taken A Fancy To. Some 
 Who Could Not Agree Upon A Just Division Of A Joint Outfit, Thinking One 
 Party Was Trying To Cheat, Would Not Yield But Would Cut Their Wagons In 
 Two Lengthwise Just For Spite So That No Carts Could Be Made And The 
 Whole Vehicle Spoiled For Both Parties. The Ugly Disagreements Were Many 
 And The Cloven Foot Was Shown In Many Ways. Guns Were Often Drawn And 
 Pointed But Some One Would Generally Interfere And Prevent Bloodshed. 
 Others Were Honest And Law Abiding To The Last Degree Beyond Law And 
 Churches, And Would Act As Harmoniously As At Home, Obeying Their Chosen 
 Captain In The Smallest Particular Without Any Grumbling Or Dissension, 
 Doing To Every One As They Would Be Done By. These Were The Pride Of The 
 Train. The Trains Were Most Of Them Organized, And All Along The River 
 Bottom One Was Hardly Ever Out Of Sight Of Some Of The Wagons, All Going 
 West. Buffalo And Antelope Were Plenty And In Great Droves, Followed 
 Always By Wolves Great And Small, Who Were On The Lookout For Crippled 
 Or Dead Animals With Which To Fill Their Hungry Stomachs. Buffalo Meat 
 
 
 
 Chapter 8 Pg 62 
 Was Plenty And Much Enjoyed While Passing This Section Of The Road And 
 This Opportunity Of Replenishing, Enabled The Stock To Last Them Over 
 More Desolate Regions Where Game Was Scarce. 
   
   
   
 After Bennett Had Told His Stories, And I Had Related More Of Our Own 
 Close Escapes I Began To Ask Him Why He Went This Way Which Seemed To Be 
 Very Circuitous And Much Longer Than The Way They Had First Intended To 
 Go. He Said That It Was Too Late In The Season To Go The Straight-Road 
 Safely, For There Was Yet 700 Miles Of Bad Country To Cross And Do The 
 Best They Could It Would Be At The Commencement Of The Rainy Season 
 Before The Sierra Nevada Mountains Could Be Reached And In Those 
 Mountains There Was Often A Snow Fall Of 20 Feet Or More, And Anyone 
 Caught In It Would Surely Perish. If They Tried To Winter At The Base Of 
 The Mountains It Was A Long Way To Get Provisions, And No Assurance Of 
 Wild Game, And This Course Was Considered Very Hazardous For Any One To 
 Undertake. This They Had Learned After Consulting Mountaineers And 
 Others Who Knew About The Regions, And As There Was Nothing Doing Among 
 The Latter Day Saints To Give Employment To Any One, It Was Decided Best 
 To Keep Moving And Go The Southern Route By Way Of Los Angeles. No 
 Wagons Were Reported As Ever Getting Through That Way, But A Trail Had 
 Been Traveled Through That Barren Desert Country For Perhaps A Hundred 
 Years, And The Same Could Be Easily Broadened Into A Wagon Road. 
   
   
   
 After Days Of Argument And Camp-Fire Talks, This Southern Route Was 
 Agreed Upon, And Capt. Hunt Was Chosen As Guide. Capt. Hunt Was A 
 Mormon, And Had More Than One Wife, But He Had Convinced Them That He 
 Knew Something About The Road. Each Agreed To Give Him Ten Dollars To 
 Pilot The Train To San Bernardino Where The Mormon Church Had Bought A 
 Spanish Grant Of Land, And No Doubt They Thought A Wagon Road To That 
 Place Would Benefit Them Greatly, And Probably Gave Much Encouragement 
 For The Parties To Travel This Way. It Was Undoubtedly Safer Than The 
 Northern Mountain Route At This Season Of The Year. It Seemed At Least 
 To Be A New Venture For West-Bound Emigrant Trains, At Least As To 
 Ultimate Success, For We Had No Knowledge Of Any That Had Gone Through 
 Safely. 
   
   
   
 Some Western People Remembered The History Of The Mormons In Illinois 
 And Missouri, And Their Doings There, Feared Somewhat For Their Own 
 Safety Now That They Were So Completely Under Their Power, For They Knew 
 The Mormons To Be Revengeful And It Was Considered Very Unsafe For Any 
 Traveler To Acknowledge He Was From Missouri. Many A One Who Had Been 
 Born There, And Lived There All His Life, Would Promptly Claim Some 
 Other State As His Native Place. I Heard One Mormon Say That There Were 
 Some Missourians On The Plains That Would Never Reach California. "They 
 Used Us Bad," Said He, And His Face Took On A Really Murderous Look. 
   
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 8 Pg 63 
 These Mormons At Salt Lake Were Situated As If On An Island In The Sea, 
 And No Enemy Could Reach Any Adjoining State Or Territory If Brigham 
 Young's Band Of Destroying Angels Were Only Warned To Look After Them. 
   
   
   
 At A Late Hour That Night We Lay Down To Sleep, And Morning Came Clear 
 And Bright. After Breakfast Mr. Bennett Said To Me:--"Now Lewis I Want 
 You To Go With Me; I Have Two Wagons And Two Drivers And Four Yoke Of 
 Good Oxen And Plenty Of Provisions. I Have Your Outfit Yet, Your Gun And 
 Ammunition And Your Two Good Hickory Shirts Which Are Just In Time For 
 Your Present Needs. You Need Not Do Any Work. You Just Look Around And 
 Kill What Game You Can For Us, And This Will Help As Much As Anything, 
 You Can Do." I Was, Of Course Glad To Accept This Offer, And Thanks To 
 Mr. Bennett's Kind Care Of My Outfit, Was Better Fixed Then Any Of The 
 Other Boys. 
   
   
   
 We Inquired Around Among The Other Wagons As To Their Supply Of Flour 
 And Bacon; And Succeeded To Getting Flour From Mr. Philips And Bacon 
 From Some Of The Others, As Much As We Supposed The Other Boys Would 
 Need, Which I Paid For, And When This Was Loaded On The Two Colts 
 Hazelrig Started Back Alone To The Boys In Camp. As I Was So Well 
 Provided For I Gave Him All My Money For They Might Need Some, And I Did 
 Not. 
   
   
   
 The Wagons Which Composed The Intended Train Were Very Much Scattered 
 About, Having Moved Out From Salt Lake At Pleasure, And It Was Said To 
 Be Too Early To Make The Start On The Southern Route, For The Weather On 
 The Hot, Barren Desert Was Said To Grow Cooler A Little Later In The 
 Season, And It Was Only At This Cool Season That The South West Part Of 
 The Desert Could Be Crossed In Safety. The Scattering Members Of The 
 Train Began To Congregate, And Capt. Hunt Said It Was Necessary To Have 
 Some Sort Of System About The Move, And That Before They Moved They Must 
 Organize And Adopt Rules And Laws Which Must Be Obeyed. He Said They 
 Must Move Like An Army, And That He Was To Be A Dictator In All Things 
 Except That In Case Of Necessity A Majority Of The Train Could Rule 
 Otherwise. It Was Thought Best To Get Together And Try A March Out One 
 Day, Then Go In Camp And Organize. 
   
   
   
 This They Did, And At The Camp There Was Gathered One Hundred And Seven 
 Wagons, A Big Drove Of Horses And Cattle, Perhaps Five Hundred In All. 
 The Train Was Divided Into Seven Divisions And Each Division Was To 
 Elect Its Own Captain. Division No. 1 Should Lead The March The First 
 Day, And Their Men Should Take Charge Of The Stock And Deliver Them To 
 The Wagons In The Morning, And Then No. 1 Should Take The Rear, With No. 
 2 In The Lead To Break The Road. The Rear Division Would Not Turn A 
 Wheel Before 10 O'clock The Next Day, And It Would Be About That Time At 
 Night Before They Were In Camp And Unyoked. The Numbers Of Animals 
 
 
 
 Chapter 8 Pg 64 
 Cleaned Out The Feed For A Mile Or Two Each Side Of The Camp And A 
 General Meeting Was Called For The Organization Of The Whole. Mr. L. 
 Granger Got Up So He Could Look Over The Audience And Proceeded To 
 Explain The Plan And To Read A Preamble And Resolutions Which Had Been 
 Prepared As The Basis For Government. I Remember That It Begun 
 Thus:--"This Organization Shall Be Known And Designated As The Sand 
 Walking Company, And Shall Consist Of Seven Divisions Etc," Detailing 
 The Manner Of Marching As We Have Recited. Capt J. Hunt Was Chosen 
 Commander And Guide, And His Orders Must Be Obeyed. All Possible Trouble 
 That We Could Imagine Might Come Was Provided Against In Our Written 
 Agreement, And All Promised To Live Up To It. 
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 9 Pg 65 
 We Moved Off In Good Style From This Camp. After A Day Or Two And Before 
 We Reached What Is Called Little Salt Lake, An Attempt Was Made To Make 
 A Short Cut, To Save Distance. The Train Only Went On This Cut Off A Day 
 Or Two When Capt. Hunt Came Back From The Front And Said They Had Better 
 Turn Back To The Old Trail Again, Which All Did. This Was A Bad Move, 
 The Train Much Broken And Not Easy To Get Them Into Regular Working 
 Order Again. We Were Now Approaching What They Called The Rim Of The 
 Basin. Within The Basin The Water All Ran To The North Or Toward Great 
 Salt Lake, But When We Crossed The Rim, All Was Toward The Colorado 
 River, Through Which It Reached The Pacific Ocean. About This Time We 
 Were Overtaken By Another Train Commanded By Capt. Smith. They Had A Map 
 With Them Made By One Williams Of Salt Lake A Mountaineer Who Was 
 Represented To Know All The Routes Through All The Mountains Of Utah, 
 And This Map Showed A Way To Turn Off From The Southern Route Not Far 
 From The Divide Which Separated The Waters Of The Basin From Those Which 
 Flowed Toward The Colorado, And Pass Over The Mountains, Coming Out In 
 What They Called Tulare Valley, Much Nearer Than By Los Angeles. 
   
   
   
 This Map Was Quite Frequently Exhibited And The Matter Freely Discussed 
 In Camp, Indeed Speeches Were Made In The Interest Of The Cut-Off Route 
 Which Was To Be So Much Shorter. A Clergyman, The Rev. J.W. Brier, Was 
 Very Enthusiastic About This Matter And Discoursed Learnedly And 
 Plausibly About It. The More The Matter Was Talked About The More There 
 Were Who Were Converted To The Belief That The Short Road Would Be The 
 Best. The Map Showed Every Camp On The Road And Showed Where There Was 
 Water And Grass, And As To Obstacles To The Wagons It Was Thought They 
 Could Easily Be Overcome. A General Meeting Was Called For Better 
 Consideration Of The Question. Capt. Hunt Said: "You All Know I Was 
 
 
 
 Chapter 9 Pg 66 
 Hired To Go By Way Of Los Angeles, But If You All Wish To Go And Follow 
 Smith I Will Go Also. But If Even One Wagon Decides To Go The Original 
 Route, I Shall Feel Bound To Go With That Wagon." 
   
   
   
 A Great Many Were Anxious To Get The Opinion Of Capt. Hunt On The 
 Feasibility Of The New Route For He Was A Mountain Man And Could 
 Probably Give Us Some Good Advice. He Finally Consented To Talk Of It, 
 And Said He Really Knew No More Then The Others About This Particular 
 Route, But He Very Much Doubted If A White Man Ever Went Over It, And 
 That He Did Not Consider It At All Safe For Those Who Had Wives And 
 Children In Their Company To Take The Unknown Road. Young Men Who Had No 
 Family Could Possibly Get Through, And Save Time Even If The Road Was 
 Not As Good As Los Angeles Road. But Said He "If You Decide To Follow 
 Smith I Will Go Will Go With You, Even If The Road Leads To Hell." 
   
   
   
 On The Route From Near Salt Lake To This Point We Found The Country To 
 Grow More Barren As We Progressed. The Grass Was Thinner, And Sage Brush 
 Took The Place Of Timber. Our Road Took Us In Sight Of Sevier Lake, And 
 Also, While Going Through The Low Hills, Passed Little Salt Lake, Which 
 Was Almost Dry, With A Beach Around It Almost As White As Snow. It Might 
 Have Had A Little More The Dignity Of A Lake In Wet Weather, But It Was 
 A Rather Dry Affair As We Saw It. 
   
   
   
 At One Point On This Route We Came Into A Long Narrow Valley, Well 
 Covered With Sage Brush, And Before We Had Gone Very Far We Discovered 
 That This Was A Great Place For Long Eared Rabbits, We Would Call Them 
 Jack Rabbits Now. Every One Who Had A Gun Put It Into Service On This 
 Occasion, And There Was Much Popping And Shooting On Every Side. Great 
 Clouds Of Smoke Rolled Up As The Hunters Advanced And The Rabbits Ran In 
 Every Direction To Get Away. Many Ran Right Among The Horses, And Under 
 The Feet Of The Cattle And Under The Wagons, So That The Teamsters Even 
 Killed Some With A Whip. At The End Of The Valley We Went Into Camp, And 
 On Counting Up The Game Found We Had Over 500, Or About One For Every 
 Person In Camp. This Gave Us A Feast Of Fresh Meat Not Often Found. 
   
   
   
 It Was On This Trip That One Of Mr. Bennett's Ox Drivers Was Taken With 
 A Serious Bowel Difficulty, And For Many Days We Thought He Would Die, 
 But He Eventually Recovered. His Name Was Silas Helmer. 
   
   
   
 It Was Really A Serious Moment When The Front Of The Train Reached The 
 Smith Trail. Team After Team Turned To The Right While Now And Then One 
 Would Keep Straight Ahead As Was At First Intended. Capt. Hunt Came Over 
 To The Larger Party After The Division Was Made, And Wished Them All A 
 Hearty Farewell And A Pleasant Happy Journey. My Friend Bennett Whose 
 
 
 
 Chapter 9 Pg 67 
 Fortune I Shared Was Among The Seceders Who Followed The Smith Party. 
 This Point, When Our Paths Diverged Was Very Near The Place Afterward 
 Made Notorious As Mountain Meadows, Where The Famous Massacre Took Place 
 Under The Direction Of The Mormon Generals. Our Route From Here Up To 
 The Mountain Was A Very Pleasant One, Steadily Up Grade, Over Rolling 
 Hills, With Wood, Water And Grass In Plenty. We Came At Last To What 
 Seemed The Summit Of A Great Mountain, About Three Days Journey On The 
 New Trail. Juniper Trees Grew About In Bunches, And My Experience With 
 This Timber Taught Me That We Were On Elevated Ground. 
   
   
   
 Immediately In Front Of Us Was A Canon, Impassible For Wagons, And Down 
 Into This The Trail Descended. Men Could Go, Horses And Mules, Perhaps, 
 But Wagons Could No Longer Follow That Trail, And We Proposed To Camp 
 While Explorers Were Sent Out To Search A Pass Across This Steep And 
 Rocky Canon. Wood And Bunch Grass Were Plenty, But Water Was A Long Way 
 Down The Trail And Had To Be Packed Up To The Camp. Two Days Passed, And 
 The Parties Sent Out Began To Come In, All Reporting No Way To Go 
 Farther With The Wagons. Some Said The Trail On The West Side Of The 
 Canon Could Be Ascended On Foot By Both Men And Mules, But That It Would 
 Take Years To Make It Fit For Wheels. 
   
   
   
 The Enthusiasm About The Smith Cut-Off Had Begun To Die And Now The Talk 
 Began Of Going Back To Follow Hunt. On The Third Morning A Lone Traveler 
 With A Small Wagon And One Yoke Of Oxen, Died. He Seemed To Be On This 
 Journey To Seek To Regain His Health. He Was From Kentucky, But I Have 
 Forgotten His Name. Some Were Very Active About His Wagon And, Some 
 Thought Too Much Attention Was Paid To A Stranger. He Was Decently 
 Buried By The Men Of The Company. 
   
   
   
 This Very Morning A Mr. Rynierson Called The Attention Of The Crowd And 
 Made Some Remarks Upon The Situation. He Said: "My Family Is Near And 
 Dear To Me. I Can See By The Growth Of The Timber That We Are In A Very 
 Elevated Place. This Is Now The Seventh Of November, It Being The Fourth 
 At The Time Of Our Turning Off On This Trail. We Are Evidently In A 
 Country Where Snow Is Liable To Fall At Any Time In The Winter Season, 
 And If We Were To Remain Here And Be Caught In A Severe Storm We Should 
 All Probably Perish. I, For One, Feel In Duty Bound To Seek A Safer Way 
 Than This. I Shall Hitch Up My Oxen And Return At Once To The Old Trail. 
 Boys (To His Teamsters) Get The Cattle And We'll Return." This Was 
 Decisive, And Mr. Rynierson Would Tarry No Longer. Many Others Now 
 Proceeded To Get Ready And Follow, And As Mr. Rynierson Drove Out Of 
 Camp Quite A Respectable Train Fell In Behind Him. As Fast As The 
 Hunters Came In And Reported No Road Available, They Also Yoked Up Their 
 Oxen And Rolled Out. Some Waited Awhile For Companions Yet In The 
 Fields, And All Were About Ready To Move, When A Party Came In With News 
 That The Pass Was Found And No Trouble Could Be Seen Ahead. About 
 Twenty-Seven Wagons Remained When This News Came, And As Their 
 Proprietors Had Brought Good News They Agreed To Travel On Westward And 
 
 
 
 Chapter 9 Pg 68 
 Not Go Back To The Old Trail. 
   
   
   
 Mr. Bennett Had Gone Only A Short Distance Out When He Had The 
 Misfortune To Break The Axle Of His Wagon And He Then Went Back To Camp 
 And Took An Axle Out Of The Dead Man's Wagon And By Night Had It Fitted 
 Into His Own. He Had To Stay Until Morning, And There Were Still A Few 
 Others Who Were Late In Getting A Start, Who Camped There Also. Among 
 These Were J.B. Arcane, Wife And Child; Two Earhart Brothers And Sons 
 And Some Two Or Three Other Wagons. 
   
   
   
 When All Was Ready We Followed The Others Who Had Gone Ahead. The Route 
 Led At First Directly To The North And A Pass Was Said To Be In That 
 Direction. Of The Green River Party Only Rodgers And Myself Remained 
 With This Train. After The Wagons Straightened Out Nicely, A Meeting Was 
 Called To Organize, So As To Travel Systematically. A Feeling Was Very 
 Manifest That Those Without Any Families Did Not Care To Bind Themselves 
 To Stand By And Assist Those Who Had Wives And Children In Their Party 
 And There Was Considerable Debate, Which Resulted In All The Family 
 Wagons Being Left Out Of The Arrangements. 
   
   
   
 A Party Who Called Themselves "The Jayhawkers" Passed Us, And We 
 Followed Along In The Rear, Over Rolling Hills Covered With Juniper 
 Timber, And Small Grassy Valleys Between Where There Was Plenty Of Water 
 And Went Well, For Those Before Us Had Broken Out The Road So We Could 
 Roll Along Very Pleasantly. 
   
   
   
 At The Organization Jim Martin Was Chosen Captain. Those Who Were 
 Rejected Were Rev. J.W. Brier And, His Family, J.B. Arcane And Family, 
 And Mr. A. Bennett And Family, Mr. Brier Would Not Stay Put Out, But 
 Forced Himself In, And Said He Was Going With The Rest, And So He Did. 
 But The Other Families Remained Behind. I Attended The Meeting And Heard 
 What Was Said, But Mr. Bennett Was My Friend And Had Been Faithful To Me 
 And My Property When He Knew Not Where I Was, And So I Decided To Stand 
 By Him And His Wife At All Hazards. 
   
   
   
 As I Had No Team To Drive I Took Every Opportunity To Climb The 
 Mountains Along The Route, Reaching The Highest Elevations Even If They 
 Were Several Miles From The Trail. I Sometimes Remained Out All Night. I 
 Took Mr. Arcane's Field Glass With Me And Was Thus Able To See All There 
 Was Of The Country. I Soon Became Satisfied That Going North Was Not 
 Taking Us In The Direction We Ought To Go. I Frequently Told Them So, 
 But They Still Persisted In Following On. I Went To The Leaders And Told 
 Them We Were Going Back Toward Salt Lake Again, Not Making Any Headway 
 Toward California. They Insisted They Were Following The Directions Of 
 
 
 
 Chapter 9 Pg 69 
 Williams, The Mountaineer; And They Had Not Yet Got As Far North As He 
 Indicated. I Told Them, And Mr. Bennett And Others, That We Must Either 
 Turn West, Or Retrace Our Steps And Get Back Into The Regular Los 
 Angeles Road Again. In The Morning We Held Another Consultation And 
 Decided To Turn West Here, And Leave The Track We Had Been Following. 
   
   
   
 Off We Turned At Nearly Right Angles To Our Former Course, To The West 
 Now, Over A Piece Of Table Land That Gave Us Little Trouble In Breaking 
 Our Own Road. When We Camped, The Oxen Seemed Very Fond Of A White Weed 
 That Was Very Plenty, And Some Borrowed A Good Deal Of Trouble Thinking 
 That Perhaps It Might Be Poison. I Learned Afterwards That This Plant 
 Was The Nutritious White Sage, Which Cattle Eat Freely, With Good 
 Results. We Now Crossed A Low Range And A Small Creek Running South, And 
 Here Were Also Some Springs. Some Corn Had Been Grown Here By The 
 Indians. Pillars Of Sand Stone, Fifteen Feet High And Very Slim Were 
 Round About In Several Places And Looked Strange Enough. The Next Piece 
 Of Table Land Sloped To The East, And Among The Sage Grew Also A Bunch 
 Grass A Foot High, Which Had Seeds Like Broom-Corn Seeds. The Indians 
 Had Gathered The Grass And Made It In Piles Of One Hundred Pounds Or So, 
 And Used It For Food As I Found By Examining Their Camps. 
   
   
   
 One Day I Climbed A High Mountain Where Some Pine Grew, In Order To Get 
 A View Of The Country. As I Neared Its Base I Came To A Flat Rock, 
 Perhaps Fifty Feet Square. I Heard Some Pounding Noise As I Came Near, 
 But What Ever It Was, It Ceased On My Approach. There Were Many Signs Of 
 The Rock Being Used As A Camp, Such As Pine Burrs, Bones Of Various 
 Kinds Of Animals, And Other Remains Of Food Which Lay Every Where About 
 And On The Rock. Near The Center Was A Small Oblong Stone Fitted Into A 
 Hole. I Took It Out And Found It Covered A Fine Well Of Water About 
 Three Feet Deep And Was Thus Protected Against Any Small Animal Being 
 Drowned In It. I Went On Up The Mountain And From The Top I Saw That The 
 Land West Of Us Looked More And More Barren. 
   
   
   
 The Second Night The Brave Jayhawkers Who Had Been So Firm In Going 
 North Hove In Sight In Our Rear. They Had At Last Concluded To Accept My 
 Advice And Had Came Over Our Road Quite Rapidly. We All Camped Together 
 That Night, And Next Morning They Took The Lead Again. After Crossing A 
 Small Range They Came To A Basin Which Seemed To Have No Outlet, And Was 
 Very Barren. Some Of The Boys In Advance Of The Teams Had Passed Over 
 This Elevation And Were Going Quite Rapidly Over The Almost Level Plain 
 Which Sloped Into The Basin, When They Saw Among The Bunches Of Sage 
 Brush Behind Them A Small Party Of Indians Following Their Road, Not 
 Very Far Off, But Still Out Of Bow And Arrow Range. The Boys Were 
 Suddenly Able To Take Much Longer Steps Than Usual And A Little More 
 Rapidly Too, And Swinging Round Toward The Teams As Soon As Possible, 
 For They Already Had Some Fears That An Arrow Might Be Sticking In Their 
 Backs In An Unpleasantly Short Space Of Time, For The Indians Were Good 
 Travelers. When They Came In Sight Of The Wagons, The Indians Vanished 
 
 
 
 Chapter 9 Pg 70 
 As Quickly As If They Had Gone Into A Hole, With No Sign Remaining, 
 Except A Small Dog Which Greatly Resembled A Prairie Wolf, And Kept A 
 Safe Distance Away. No One Could Imagine Where The Fellows Went So 
 Suddenly. 
   
   
   
 We Drove To The West Side Of This Basin And Camped Near The Foot Of A 
 Low Mountain. The Cattle Were Driven Down Into The Basin Where There Was 
 Some Grass, But At Camp We Had Only The Water In Our Kegs. 
   
   
   
 Some Of The Boys Climbed The Mountain On The North But Found No Springs: 
 Coming Down A Canon They Found Some Rain Water In A Basin In The Rocks 
 And All Took A Good Drink. Lew West Lay Down And Swallowed All He Could 
 And Then Told The Boys To Kill Him For He Never Would Feel So Good 
 Again. They Finished The Pool, It Was So Small, Before They Left It. In 
 Going On Down The Canon They Saw An Indian Dodge Behind Some Big Rocks, 
 And Searching, They Found Him In A Cave As Still As A Dead Man. They 
 Pulled Him Out And Made Him Go With Them, And Tried Every Way To Find 
 Out From Him Where They Were And Where Owen's Lake Was, As They Had Been 
 Told The Lake Was On Their Route. But He Proved To Be No Wiser Than A 
 Man Of Mud, And They Led Him Along To Camp, Put A Red Flannel Shirt On 
 Him To Cover His Nakedness, And Made Him Sleep Between Two White Men So 
 He Could Not Get Away Easily. In The Morning They Were More Successful, 
 And He Showed Us A Small Ravine Four Miles Away Which Had Water In It, 
 Enough For Our Use, And We Moved Up And Camped There, While The Boys And 
 The Indian Started Over A Barren, Rocky Mountain, And When Over On The 
 Western Slope They Were Led To A Water Hole On A Steep Rocky Cliff Where 
 No One But An Indian Would Ever Think Of Looking For Water. They Took 
 Out Their Cups And Had A Good Drink All Around, Then Offered The Indian 
 Some, But He Disdained The Civilized Way, And Laying Down His Bow And 
 Arrows Took A Long Drink Directly Out Of The Pool. He Was So Long In 
 Getting A Good Supply That The Boys Almost Forgot Him As They Were 
 Gazing Over The Distant Mountain And Discussing Prospects, Till 
 Attracted By A Slight Noise They Looked And Saw Mr. Indian Going Down 
 Over The Cliffs After The Fashion Of A Mountain Sheep, And In A Few 
 Bounds He Was Out Of Sight. They Could Not Have Killed Him If They Had 
 Tried, The Move So Sudden And Unlooked For. They Had Expected The Fellow 
 To Show Them The Way To Owen's Lake, But Now Their Guide Was Gone, And 
 Left Nothing To Remember Him By Except His Bow And Arrows. So They 
 Returned To Their Wagons Not Much Wiser Than Before. 
   
   
   
 All Kinds Of Game Was Now Very Scarce, And So Seldom Seen That The Men 
 Got Tired Of Carrying Their Guns, And Grew Fearless Of Enemies. A Heavy 
 Rifle Was Indeed Burdensome Over So Long A Road When There Was No 
 Frequent Use For It. The Party Kept Rolling Along As Fast As Possible 
 But The Mountains And Valleys Grew More Barren And Water More Scarce All 
 The Time. When Found, The Water Would Be In Hole At The Outlet Of Some 
 Canon, Or In Little Pools Which Had Filled Up With Rain That Had Fallen 
 On The Higher Ground. Not A Drop Of Rain Had Fallen On Us Since We 
 
 
 
 Chapter 9 Pg 71 
 Started On This Cut-Off, And Every Night Was Clear And Warm. The 
 Elevated Parts Of The Country Seemed To Be Isolated Buttes, With No 
 Running Streams Between Them But Instead, Dry Lakes With A Smooth Clay 
 Bed, Very Light In Color And So Hard That The Track Of An Ox Could Not 
 Be Seen On Its Glittering Surface. At A Distance Those Clay Beds Looked 
 Like Water Shining In The Sun And Were Generally About Three Times As 
 Far As Any One Would Judge, The Air Was So Clear. This Mirage, Or 
 Resemblance To Water Was So Perfect As Often To Deceive Us, And Almost 
 To Our Ruin On One Or Two Occasions. 
   
   
   
 I Took Arcane's Field Glass And Took Pains To Ascend All The High Buttes 
 Within A Day's Walk Of The Road, And This Enabled Me To Get A Good 
 Survey Of The Country North And West. I Would Sometimes Be Gone Two Or 
 Three Days With No Luggage But My Canteen And Gun. I Was Very Cautious 
 In Regard To Indians, And Tried To Keep On The Safe Side Of Surprises. I 
 Would Build A Fire About Dark And Then Travel On Till I Came To A Small 
 Washed Place And Lie Down And Stay Till Morning, So If Mr. Indian Did 
 Come To My Fire He Would Not Find Any One To Kill. One Day I Was Going 
 Up A Wide Ravine Leading To The Summit, And Before I Reached The Highest 
 Part I Saw A Smoke Curl Up Before Me. I Took A Side Ravine And Went 
 Cautiously, Bowed Down Pretty Low So No One Could See Me, And When Near 
 The Top Of The Ridge And About One Hundred Yards Of The Fire I Ventured 
 To Raise Slowly Up And Take A Look To See How Many There Were In Camp: I 
 Could See But Two And As I Looked Across The Ravine An Indian Woman 
 Seemed Looking At Me Also, But I Was So Low She Could Only See The Top 
 Of My Head, And I Sank Down Again Out Of Sight. I Crawled Further Up So 
 As To Get A Better View, And When I Straightened Up Again She Got A Full 
 View Of Me. She Instantly Caught Her Infant Off Its Little Pallet Made 
 Of A Small Piece Of Thin Wood Covered With A Rabbit Skin, And Putting 
 The Baby Under One Arm, And Giving A Smart Jerk To A Small Girl That Was 
 Crying To The Top Of Her Voice, She Bounded Off And Fairly Flew Up The 
 Gentle Slope Toward The Summit, The Girl Following After Very Close. The 
 Woman's Long Black Hair Stood Out As She Rushed Along, Looking Over Her 
 Shoulder Every Instant As If She Expected To Be Slain. The Mother Flying 
 With Her Children, Untrammeled With Any Of The Arts Of Fashion Was The 
 Best Natural Picture I Ever Looked Upon, And Wild In The Extreme. No 
 Living Artist Could Do Justice To The Scene As The Lady Of The Desert, 
 Her Little Daughter And Her Babe, Passed Over The Summit Out Of Sight. I 
 Followed, But When I Reached The Highest Summit, No Living Person Could 
 Be Seen. I Looked The Country Over With My Glass. The Region To The 
 North Was Black Rocky, And Very Mountainous. I Looked Some Time And Then 
 Concluded I Had Better Not Go Any Further That Way, For I Might Be 
 Waylaid And Filled With Arrows At Some Unsuspected Moment. We Saw Indian 
 Signs Almost Every Day, But As None Of Them Ever Came To Our Camp It Was 
 Safe To Say They Were Not Friendly. I Now Turned Back And Examined The 
 Indian Woman's Camp. She Had Only Fire Enough To Make A Smoke. Her 
 Conical Shaped Basket Left Behind, Contained A Few Poor Arrows And Some 
 Cactus Leaves, From Which The Spines Had Been Burned, And There Lay The 
 Little Pallet Where The Baby Was Sleeping. It Was A Bare Looking Kitchen 
 For Hungry Folks. 
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 9 Pg 72 
   
 I Now Went To The Top Of A High Butte And Scanned The Country Very 
 Carefully, Especially To The West And North, And Found It Very Barren. 
 There Were No Trees, No Fertile Valleys Nor Anything Green. Away To The 
 West Some Mountains Stood Out Clear And Plain, Their Summits Covered 
 White With Snow. This I Decided Was Our Objective Point: Very Little 
 Snow Could Be Seen Elsewhere, And Between Me And The Snowy Mountains Lay 
 A Low, Black Rocky Range, And A Wide Level Plain, That Had No Signs Of 
 Water, As I Had Learned Them In Our Trip Thus Far Across The Country. 
 The Black Range Seemed To Run Nearly North And South, And To The North 
 And Northwest The Country Looked Volcanic, Black And Desolate. 
   
   
   
 As I Looked And Thought, I Believed That We Were Much Farther From A 
 Fertile Region Then Most Of Our Party Had Any Idea Of. Such Of Them As 
 Had Read Fremont's Travels, And Most Of Them Going To California Had 
 Fortified Themselves Before Starting By Reading Fremont; Said That The 
 Mountains Were Near California And Were Fertile From Their Very Summits 
 Down To The Sea, But That To The East Of The Mountains It Was A Desert 
 Region For Hundred Of Miles. As I Explained It To Them, And So They Soon 
 Saw For Themselves, They Believed That The Snowy Range Ahead Of Us Was 
 The Last Range To Cross Before We Entered The Long-Sought California, 
 And It Seemed Not Far Off, And Prospect Quite Encouraging. 
   
   
   
 Our Road Had Been Winding Around Among The Buttes Which Looked Like The 
 Indian Baskets Turned Upside Down On The Great Barren Plain. What Water 
 We Found Was In Small Pools In The Wash-Out Places Near The Foothills At 
 The Edge Of The Valley, Probably Running Down The Ravines After Some 
 Storm. There Were Dry Lake Beds Scattered Around Over The Plain, But It 
 Did Not Seem As If There Had Ever Been Volume Of Water Enough Lately To 
 Force Itself Out So Far Into The Plain As These Lakes Were. All The 
 Lakes Appeared About The Same, The Bed White And Glistening In The Sun, 
 Which Made It Very Hard For The Eyes, And So That A Man In Passing Over 
 It Made No Visible Track. It Looked As If It One Time Might Have Been A 
 Smooth Bed Of Plastic Mortar, And Had Hardened In The Sun. It Looked As 
 If There Must Have Been Water There Sometime, But We Had Not Seen A 
 Drop, Or A Single Cloud; Every Day Was Clear And Sunny, And Very Warm, 
 And At Night No Stars Forgot To Shine. 
   
   
   
 Our Oxen Began To Look Bad, For They Had Poor Food. Grass Had Been Very 
 Scarce, And Now When We Unyoked Them And Turned Them Out They Did Not 
 Care To Look Around Much For Something To Eat. They Moved Slowly And 
 Cropped Disdainfully The Dry Scattering Shrubs And Bunches Of Grass From 
 Six Inches To A Foot High. Spending Many Nights And Days On Such Dry 
 Food And Without Water They Suffered Fearfully, And Though Fat And Sleek 
 When We Started From Salt Lake, They Now Looked Gaunt And Poor, And 
 Dragged Themselves Slowly Along, Poor Faithful Servants Of Mankind. No 
 One Knew How Long Before We Might Have To Kill Some Of Them To Get Food 
 To Save Our Own Lives. 
 
 
 
 Chapter 9 Pg 73 
   
   
 We Now Traveled Several Days Down The Bed Of A Broad Ravine, Which Led 
 To A Southwest Direction. There Seemed To Be A Continuous Range Of 
 Mountains On The South, But To The North Was The Level Plain With 
 Scattered Buttes, And What We Had All Along Called Dry Lakes, For Up To 
 This Time We Had Seen No Water In Any Of Them. I Had Carried My Rifle 
 With Me Every Day Since We Took This Route, And Though I Was An 
 Experienced Hunter, A Professional One If There Be Such A Thing, I Had 
 Killed Only One Rabbit, And Where No Game Lived I Got As Hungry As Other 
 Folks. 
   
   
   
 Our Line Soon Brought Us In Sight Of A High Butte Which Stood Apparently 
 About 20 Miles South Of Our Route, And I Determined To Visit And Climb 
 It To Get A Better View Of Things Ahead. I Walked Steadily All Day And 
 Reached The Summit About Dusk. I Wandered Around Among The Big Rocks, 
 And Found A Projecting Cliff Where I Would Be Protected From Enemies, 
 Wind Or Storm, And Here I Made My Camp. While The Light Lasted I 
 Gathered A Small Stock Of Fuel, Which Consisted Of A Stunted Growth Of 
 Sage And Other Small Shrubs, Dry But Not Dead, And With This I Built A 
 Little Fire Indian Fashion And Sat Down Close To It. Here Was A Good 
 Chance For Undisturbed Meditation And Someway I Could Not Get Around 
 Doing A Little Meditating As I Added A New Bit Of Fuel Now And Then To 
 The Small Fire Burning At My Side. I Thought It Looked Dark And 
 Troublesome Before Us. I Took A Stone For A Pillow With My Hat On It For 
 A Cushion, And Lying Down Close Under The Shelving Rock I Went To Sleep, 
 For I Was Very Tired, I Woke Soon From Being Cold, For The Butte Was 
 Pretty High, And So I Busied Myself The Remainder Of The Night In Adding 
 Little Sticks To The Fire, Which Gave Me Some Warmth, And Thus In 
 Solitude I Spent The Night. I Was Glad Enough To See The Day Break Over 
 The Eastern Mountains, And Light Up The Vast Barren Country I Could See 
 On Every Hand Around Me. When The Sun Was Fairly Up I Took A Good Survey 
 Of The Situation, And It Seemed As If Pretty Near All Creation Was In 
 Sight. North And West Was A Level Plain, Fully One Hundred Miles Wide It 
 Seemed, And From Anything I Could See It Would Not Afford A Traveler A 
 Single Drink In The Whole Distance Or Give A Poor Ox Many Mouthfuls Of 
 Grass. On The Western Edge It Was Bounded By A Low, Black And Rocky 
 Range Extending Nearly North And South For A Long Distance And No Pass 
 Though It Which I Could See, And Beyond This Range Still Another One 
 Apparently Parallel To It. In A Due West Course From Me Was The High 
 Peak We Had Been Looking At For A Month, And Lowest Place Was On The 
 North Side, Which We Had Named Martin's Pass And Had Been Trying So Long 
 To Reach. This High Peak, Covered With Snow, Glistened To The Morning 
 Sun, And As The Air Was Clear From Clouds Or Fog, And No Dust Or Haze To 
 Obscure The View, It Seemed Very Near. 
   
   
   
 I Had Learned By Experience That Objects A Day's Walk Distant Seemed 
 Close By In Such A Light, And That When Clear Lakes Appeared Only A 
 Little Distance In Our Front, We Might Search And Search And Never Find 
 
 
 
 Chapter 9 Pg 74 
 Them. We Had To Learn How To Look For Water In This Peculiar Way. In My 
 Wisconsin Travel I Had Learned That When I Struck A Ravine I Must Go 
 Down To Look For Living Water, But Here We Must Invariably Travel Upward 
 For The Water Was Only Found In The High Mountains. 
   
   
   
 Prospects Now Seemed To Me So Hopeless, That I Heartily Wished I Was Not 
 In Duty Bound To Stand By The Women And Small Children Who Could Never 
 Reach A Land Of Bread Without Assistance. If I Was In The Position That 
 Some Of Them Were Who Had Only Themselves To Look After, I Could Pick Up 
 My Knapsack And Gun And Go Off, Feeling I Had No Dependent Ones To Leave 
 Behind. But As It Was I Felt I Should Be Morally Guilty Of Murder If I 
 Should Forsake Mr. Bennett's Wife And Children, And The Family Of Mr. 
 Arcane With Whom I Had Been Thus Far Associated. It Was A Dark Line Of 
 Thought But I Always Felt Better When I Got Around To The Determination, 
 As I Always Did, To Stand By My Friends, Their Wives And Children Let 
 Come What Might. 
   
   
   
 I Could See With My Glass The Train Of Wagons Moving Slowly Over The 
 Plain Toward What Looked To Me Like A Large Lake. I Made A Guess Of The 
 Point They Would Reach By Night, And Then Took A Straight Course For It 
 All Day Long In Steady Travel. It Was Some Time After Dark, And I Was 
 Still A Quarter Of A Mile From The Camp Fires, Where In The Bed Of A 
 Canon I Stepped Into Some Mud, Which Was A Sign Of Water. I Poked Around 
 In The Dark For A While And Soon Found A Little Pool Of It, And Having 
 Been Without A Drop Of It For Two Days I Lay Down And Took A Hasty 
 Drink. It Did Not Seem To Be Very Clear Or Clean, But It Was Certainly 
 Wet, Which Was The Main Thing Just Then. The Next Morning I Went To The 
 Pond Of Water, And Found The Oxen Had Been Watered There. They Stirred 
 Up The Mud A Good Deal And Had Drank Off About All The Clean Part, Which 
 Seemed To Refresh Them Very Much. I Found The People In The Camp On The 
 Edge Of The Lake I Had Seen From The Mountain, And Fortunately It 
 Contained About A Quarter Of An Inch Of Water. They Had Dug Some Holes 
 Here, Which Filled Up, And They Were Using This Water In The Camp. 
   
   
   
 The Ambitious Mountain-Climbers Of Our Party Had By This, Time, 
 Abandoned That Sort Of Work, And I Was Left Alone To Look About And Try 
 To Ascertain The Character Of The Road They Were To Follow. It Was A 
 Great Deal To Do To Look Out For Food For The Oxen And For Water For The 
 Camp, And Besides All This It Was Plain There Were Indians About Even If 
 We Did Not See Them. There Were Many Signs, And I Had To Be Always On 
 The Lookout To Outgeneral Them. When The People Found I Was In Camp This 
 Night They Came Around To Our Wagons To Know What I Had Seen And Found, 
 And What The Prospects Were Ahead. Above All They Wanted To Know How Far 
 It Was, In My Opinion To The End Of Our Journey. I Listened To All Their 
 Inquiries And Told Them Plainly What I Had Seen, And What I Thought Of 
 The Prospect. I Did Not Like Telling The Whole Truth About It For Fear 
 It Might Dampen Their Spirits, But Being Pressed For An Opinion I Told 
 Them In Plain Words That It Would At Least Be Another Month Before Their 
 
 
 
 Chapter 9 Pg 75 
 Journey Would Be Ended. They Seemed To Think I Ought To Be Pretty Good 
 Authority, And If I Was Not Mistaken, The Oxen Would Get Very Poor And 
 Provisions Very Scarce Before We Could Pull Through So Long. I Was Up At 
 Day Break And Found Mr. Bennett Sitting By The Fire. About The First 
 Thing He Said:--"Lewis, If You Please I Don't Want You Hereafter To 
 Express Your Views So Openly And Emphatically As You Did Last Night 
 About Our Prospects. Last Night When I Went To Bed I Found Sarah (His 
 Wife) Crying And When Pressed For The Cause, She Said She Had Heard Your 
 Remarks On The Situation, And That If Lewis Said So It Must Be Correct, 
 For He Knows More About It Than All Of You. She Felt That She And The 
 Children Must Starve." 
   
   
   
 In The Morning Jayhawkers, And Others Of The Train That Were Not 
 Considered Strictly Of Our Own Party, Yoked Up And Started Due West 
 Across The Level Plain Which I Had Predicted As Having No Water, And I 
 Really Thought They Would Never Live To Get Across To The Western 
 Border. Mr. Culverwell And Mr. Fish Stayed With Us, Making Another Wagon 
 In Our Train. We Talked About The Matter Carefully, I Did Not Think It 
 Possible To Get Across That Plain In Less Than Four Or Six Days, And I 
 Did Not Believe There Was A Drop Of Water On The Route. To The South Of 
 Us Was A Mountain That Now Had Considerable Snow Upon Its Summit, And 
 Some Small Pine Trees Also. Doubtless We Could Find Plenty Of Water At 
 The Base, But Being Due South, It Was Quite Off Our Course. The 
 Prospects For Reaching Water Were So Much Better In That Way That We 
 Finally Decided To Go There Rather Than Follow The Jayhawkers On Their 
 Desolate Tramp Over The Dry Plain. 
   
   
   
 So We Turned Up A Canon Leading Toward The Mountain And Had A Pretty 
 Heavy Up Grade And A Rough Bed For A Road. Part Way Up We Came To A High 
 Cliff And In Its Face Were Niches Or Cavities As Large As A Barrel Or 
 Larger, And In Some Of Them We Found Balls Of A Glistening Substance 
 Looking Something Like Pieces Of Varigated Candy Stuck Together. The 
 Balls Were As Large As Small Pumpkins. It Was Evidently Food Of Some 
 Sort, And We Found It Sweet But Sickish, And Those Who Were So Hungry As 
 To Break Up One Of The Balls And Divide It Among The Others, Making A 
 Good Meal Of It, Were A Little Troubled With Nausea Afterwards. I 
 Considered It Bad Policy To Rob The Indians Of Any Of Their Food, For 
 They Must Be Pretty Smart People To Live In This Desolate Country And 
 Find Enough To Keep Them Alive, And I Was Pretty Sure We Might Count 
 Them As Hostiles As They Never Came Near Our Camp. Like Other Indians 
 They Were Probably Revengeful, And Might Seek To Have Revenge On Us For 
 The Injury. We Considered It Prudent To Keep Careful Watch For Them, So 
 They Might Not Surprise Us With A Volley Of Arrows. 
   
   
   
 The Second Night We Camped Near The Head Of The Canon We Had Been 
 Following, But Thus Far There Had Been No Water, And Only Some Stunted 
 Sage Brush For The Oxen, Which They Did Not Like, And Only Ate It When 
 Near The Point Of Starvation. They Stood Around The Camp Looking As 
 
 
 
 Chapter 9 Pg 76 
 Sorry As Oxen Can. During The Night A Stray And Crazy Looking Cloud 
 Passed Over Us And Left Its Moisture On The Mountain To The Shape Of A 
 Coat Of Snow Several Inches Deep. When Daylight Came The Oxen Crowded 
 Around The Wagons, Shivering With Cold, And Licking Up The Snow To 
 Quench Their Thirst. We Took Pattern After Them And Melted Snow To Get 
 Water For Ourselves. 
   
   
   
 By The Looks Of Our Cattle It Did Not Seem As If They Could Pull Much, 
 And Light Loads Were Advisable On This Up Grade. Mr. Bennett Was A 
 Carpenter And Had Brought Along Some Good Tools In His Wagon. These He 
 Reluctantly Unloaded, And Almost Everything Else Except Bedding And 
 Provisions, And Leaving Them Upon The Ground, We Rolled Up The Hills 
 Slowly, With Loads As Light As Possible. 
   
   
   
 Rogers And I Went Ahead With Our Guns To Look Out The Way And Find A 
 Good Camping Place. After A Few Miles We Got Out Of The Snow And Out 
 Upon An Incline, And In The Bright Clear Morning Air The Foot Of The 
 Snowy Part Of The Mountain Seemed Near By And We Were Sure We Could 
 Reach It Before Night. From Here No Guide Was Needed And Rogers And I, 
 With Our Guns And Canteens Hurried On As Fast As Possible, When A Camp 
 Was Found We Were To Raise A Signal Smoke To Tell Them Where It Was. We 
 Were Here, As Before Badly Deceived As To The Distance, And We Marched 
 Steadily And Swiftly Till Nearly Night Before We Reached The Foot Of The 
 Mountain. 
   
   
   
 Here Was A Flat Place In A Table Land And On It A Low Brush Hut, With A 
 Small Smoke Near By, Which We Could Plainly See As We Were In The Shade 
 Of The Mountain, And That Place Lighted Up By The Nearly Setting Sun. We 
 Looked Carefully And Satisfied Ourselves There Was But One Hut, And 
 Consequently But Few People Could Be Expected. We Approached Carefully 
 And Cautiously, Making A Circuit Around So As To Get Between The Hut And 
 The Hill In Case That The Occupants Should Retreat In That Direction. It 
 Was A Long Time Before We Could See Any Entrance To This Wickiup, But We 
 Found It At Last And Approached Directly In Front, Very Cautiously 
 Indeed: We Could See No One, And Thought Perhaps They Were In Ambush For 
 Us, But Hardly Probable, As We Had Kept Closely Out Of Sight. We 
 Consulted A Moment And Concluded To Make An Advance And If Possible 
 Capture Some One Who Could Tell Us About The Country, As We Felt We Were 
 Completely Lost. When Within Thirty Yards A Man Poked Out His Head Out 
 Of A Doorway And Drew It Back Again Quick As A Flash. We Kept Out Our 
 Guns At Full Cock And Ready For Use, And Told Rogers To Look Out For 
 Arrows, For They Would Come Now If Ever. But They Did Not Pull A Bow On 
 Us, And The Red-Man, Almost Naked Came Out And Beckoned For Us To Come 
 On Which We Did. 
   
   
   
 We Tried To Talk With The Fellow In The Sign Language But He Could 
 
 
 
 Chapter 9 Pg 77 
 Understand About As Much As An Oyster. I Made A Little Basin In The 
 Ground And Filled It With Water From Our Canteens To Represent A Lake, 
 Then Pointed In An Inquiring Way West And North, Made Signs Of Ducks And 
 Geese Flying And Squawking, But I Did No Seem To Be Able To Get An Idea 
 Into His Head Of What We Wanted. I Got Thoroughly Provoked At Him And 
 May Have Shown Some Signs Of Anger. During All This Time A Child Or Two 
 In The Hut Squalled Terribly, Fearing I Suppose They Would All Be 
 Murdered. We Might Have Lost Our Scalps Under Some Circumstances, But We 
 Appeared To Be Fully The Strangest Party, And Had No Fear, For The 
 Indian Had No Weapon About Him And We Had Both Guns And Knives. The Poor 
 Fellow Was Shivering With Cold, And With Signs Of Friendship We Fired 
 Off One Of The Guns Which Waked Him Up A Little And He Pointed To The 
 Gun And Said "Walker," Probably Meaning The Same Good Chief Walker Who 
 Had So Fortunately Stopped Us In Our Journey Down Green River. I 
 Understood From The Indian That He Was Not Friendly To Walker, But To 
 Show That He Was All Right With Us He Went Into The Hut And Brought Out 
 A Handful Of Corn For Us To Eat. By The Aid Of A Warm Spring Near By 
 They Had Raised Some Corn Here, And The Dry Stalks Were Standing Around. 
   
   
   
 As We Were About To Leave I Told Him We Would Come Back, Next Day And 
 Bring Him Some Clothes If We Could Find Any To Spare, And Then We 
 Shouldered Our Guns And Went Back Toward The Wagons, Looking Over Our 
 Shoulders Occasionally To See If We Were Followed. We Walked Fast Down 
 The Hill And Reached The Camp About Dark To Find It A Most Unhappy One 
 Indeed. Mrs. Bennett And Mrs. Arcane Were In Heart-Rending Distress. The 
 Four Children Were Crying For Water But There Was Not A Drop To Give 
 Them, And None Could Be Reached Before Some Time Next Day. The Mothers 
 Were Nearly Crazy, For They Expected The Children Would Choke With 
 Thirst And Die In Their Arms, And Would Rather Perish Themselves Than 
 Suffer The Agony Of Seeing Their Little Ones Gasp And Slowly Die. They 
 Reproached Themselves As Being The Cause Of All This Trouble. For The 
 Love Of Gold They Had Left Homes Where Hunger Had Never Come, And Often 
 In Sleep Dreamed Of The Bounteous Tables Of Their Old Homes Only To Be 
 Woefully Disappointed In The Morning. There Was Great Gladness When John 
 Rogers And I Appeared In The Camp And Gave The Mothers Full Canteens Of 
 Water For Themselves And Little Ones, And There Was Tears Of Joy And 
 Thankfulness Upon Their Cheeks As They Blessed Us Over And Over Again. 
   
   
   
 The Oxen Fared Very Hard. The Ground Was Made Up Of Broken Stone, And 
 All That Grew Was A Dry And Stunted Brush Not More Than Six Inches High, 
 Of Which The Poor Animals Took An Occasional Dainty Bite, And Seemed 
 Hardly Able To Drag Along. 
   
   
   
 It Was Only Seven Or Eight Miles To The Warm Spring And All Felt Better 
 To Know For A Certainty That We Would Soon Be Safe Again. We Started 
 Early, Even The Women Walked, So As To Favor The Poor Oxen All We Could. 
 When Within Two Miles Of The Water Some Of The Oxen Lay Down And Refused 
 To Rise Again, So We Had To Leave Them And A Wagon, While The Rest 
 
 
 
 Chapter 9 Pg 78 
 Pushed On And Reached The Spring Soon After Noon. We Took Water And Went 
 Back To The Oxen Left Behind, And Gave Them Some To Drink. They Were 
 Somewhat Rested And Got Up, And We Tried To Drive Them In Without The 
 Wagons, But They Were Not Inclined To Travel Without The Yoke, So We Put 
 It On Them And Hitched To The Wagon Again. The Yoke And The Wagon Seemed 
 To Brace Them Up A Good Deal, And They Went Along Thus Much Better Than 
 When Alone And Scattered About, With Nothing To Lean Upon. 
   
   
   
 The Warm Spring Was Quite Large And Ran A Hundred Yards Or More Before 
 The Water Sank Down Into The Dry And Thirsty Desert. The Dry Cornstalks 
 Of Last Years Crop, Some Small Willows, Sagebrush, Weeds And Grass 
 Suited Our Animals Very Well, And They Ate Better Than For A Long Time, 
 And We Thought It Best To Remain Two Or Three Days To Give Them A Chance 
 To Get Rest. The Indian We Left Here The Evening Before Had Gone And 
 Left Nothing Behind But A Chunk Of Crystallized Rock Salt. He Seemed To 
 Be Afraid Of His Friends. 
   
   
   
 The Range We Had Been Traveling Nearly Parallel With Seemed To Come To 
 An End Here Where This Snow Peak Stood, And Immediately North And South 
 Of This Peak There Seemed To Be A Lower Pass. The Continuous Range North 
 Was Too Low To Hold Snow. In The Morning I Concluded To Go To The Summit 
 Of That Pass And With My Glass Have An Extensive View. Two Other Boys 
 Started With Me, And As We Moved Along The Snow Line We Saw Tracks Of 
 Our Runaway Indian In The Snow, Passing Over A Low Ridge. As We Went On 
 Up Hill Our Boys Began To Fall Behind, And Long Before Night I Could See 
 Nothing Of Them. The Ground Was Quite Soft, And I Saw Many Tracks Of 
 Indians Which Put Me On My Guard. I Reached The Summit And As The Shade 
 Of Its Mountain Began To Make It A Little Dark, I Built A Fire Of Sage 
 Brush, Ate My Grub, And When It Was Fairly Dark, Renewed The Fire And 
 Passed On A Mile, Where In A Small Ravine With Banks Two Feet High I Lay 
 Down Sheltered From The Wind And Slept Till Morning. I Did This To Beat 
 The Indian In His Own Cunning. 
   
   
   
 Next Morning I Reached The Summit About Nine O'clock, And Had The 
 Grandest View I Ever Saw. I Could See North And South Almost Forever. 
 The Surrounding Region Seemed Lower, But Much Of It Black, Mountainous 
 And Barren. On The West The Snow Peak Shut Out The View In That 
 Direction. To The South The Mountains Seemed To Descend For More Than 
 Twenty Miles, And Near The Base, Perhaps Ten Miles Away, Were Several 
 Smokes, Apparently From Camp Fires, And As I Could See No Animals Or 
 Camp Wagons Anywhere I Presumed Them To Be Indians. A Few Miles To The 
 North And East Of Where I Stood, And Somewhat Higher, Was The Roughest 
 Piece Of Ground I Ever Saw. It Stood In Sharp Peaks And Was Of Many 
 Colors, Some Of Them So Red That The Mountain Looked Red Hot, I Imagined 
 It To Be A True Volcanic Point, And Had Never Been So Near One Before, 
 And The Most Wonderful Picture Of Grand Desolation One Could Ever See. 
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 9 Pg 79 
   
 Toward The North I Could See The Desert The Jayhawkers And Their 
 Comrades Had Under Taken To Cross, And If Their Journey Was As 
 Troublesome As Ours And Very Much Longer, They Might By This Time Be All 
 Dead Of Thirst. I Remained On This Summit An Hour Or So Bringing My 
 Glass To Bear On All Points Within My View, And Scanning Closely For 
 Everything That Might Help Us Or Prove An Obstacle To Our Progress. The 
 More I Looked The More I Satisfied Myself That We Were Yet A Long Way 
 From California And The Serious Question Of Our Ever Living To Get There 
 Presented Itself To Me As I Tramped Along Down The Grade To Camp. I Put 
 Down At Least Another Month Of Heavy Weary Travel Before We Could Hope 
 To Make The Land Of Gold, And Our Stock Of Strength And Provisions Were 
 Both Pretty Small For So Great A Tax Upon Them. I Thought So Little 
 About Anything Else That The Indians Might Have Captured Me Easily, For 
 I Jogged Along Without A Thought Of Them. I Thought Of The Bounteous 
 Stock Of Bread And Beans Upon My Father's Table, To Say Nothing About 
 All The Other Good Things, And Here Was I, The Oldest Son, Away Out In 
 The Center Of The Great American Desert, With An Empty Stomach And A Dry 
 And Parched Throat, And Clothes Fast Wearing Out With Constant Wear. And 
 Perhaps I Had Not Yet Seen The Worst Of It. I Might Be Forced To See 
 Men, And The Women And Children Of Our Party, Choke And Die, Powerless 
 To Help Them. It Was A Darker, Gloomier Day Than I Had Ever Known Could 
 Be, And Alone I Wept Aloud, For I Believed I Could See The Future, And 
 The Results Were Bitter To Contemplate. I Hope No Reader Of This History 
 May Ever Be Placed In A Position To Be Thus Tried For I Am Not Ashamed 
 To Say That I Have A Weak Point To Show Under Such Circumstances. It Is 
 Not In My Power To Tell How Much I Suffered In My Lonely Trips, Lasting 
 Sometimes Days And Nights That I Might Give The Best Advice To Those Of 
 My Party. I Believed That I Could Escape At Any Time Myself, But All 
 Must Be Brought Through Or Perish, And With This All I Knew I Must Not 
 Discourage The Others. I Could Tell Them The Truth, But I Must Keep My 
 Worst Apprehensions To Myself Lest They Loose Heart And Hope And Faith 
 Needlessly. 
   
   
   
 I Reached The Camp On The Third Day Where I Found The Boys Who Went Part 
 Way With Me And Whom I Had Out-Walked. I Related To The Whole Camp What 
 I Had Seen, And When All Was Told It Appeared That The Route From The 
 Mountains Westerly Was The Only Route That Could Be Taken, They Told Me 
 Of A Discovery They Had Made Of A Pile Of Squashes Probably Raised Upon 
 The Place, And Sufficient In Number So That Every Person Could Have One. 
 I Did Not Approve Of This For We Had No Title To This Produce, And Might 
 Be Depriving The Rightful Owner Of The Means Of Life. I Told Them Not 
 Only Was It Wrong To Rob Them Of Their Food, But They Could Easily 
 Revenge Themselves On Us By Shooting Our Cattle, Or Scalp Us, By 
 Gathering A Company Of Their Own People Together. They Had No Experience 
 With Red Men And Were Slow To See The Results I Spoke Of As Possible. 
   
   
   
 During My Absence An Ox Had Been Killed, For Some Were Nearly Out Of 
 Provisions, And Flesh Was The Only Means To Prevent Starvation. The Meat 
 Was Distributed Amongst The Entire Camp, With The Understanding That 
 
 
 
 Chapter 9 Pg 80 
 When It Became Necessary To Kill Another It Should Be Divided In The 
 Same Way. Some One Of The Wagons Would Have To Be Left For Lack Of 
 Animals To Draw It. Our Animals Were So Poor That One Would Not Last 
 Long As Food. No Fat Could Be Found On The Entire Carcass, And The 
 Marrow Of The Great Bones Was A Thick Liquid, Streaked With Blood 
 Resembling Corruption. 
   
   
   
 Our Road Led Us Around The Base Of The Mountain; There Were Many Large 
 Rocks In Our Way, Some As Large As Houses, But We Wound Around Among 
 Them In A Very Crooked Way And Managed To Get Along. The Feet Of The 
 Oxen Became So Sore That We Made Moccasins For Them From The Hide Of The 
 Ox That Was Killed, And With This Protection They Got Along Very Well. 
 Our Trains Now Consisted Of Seven Wagons. Bennett Had Two; Arcane Two; 
 Earhart Bros. One. Culverwell, Fish And Others One; And There Was One 
 Other, The Owners Of Which I Have Forgotten. The Second Night We Had A 
 Fair Camp With Water And Pretty Fair Grass And Brush For The Oxen. We 
 Were Not Very Far From The Snow Line And This Had Some Effect On The 
 Country. When Bennett Retired That Night He Put On A Camp Kettle Of The 
 Fresh Beef And So Arranged The Fire That It Would Cook Slowly And Be 
 Done By Daylight For Breakfast. After An Hour Or So Mr. Bennett Went Out 
 To Replenish The Fire And See How The Cooking Was Coming On, And When I 
 Went To Put More Water In The Kettle, He Found That To His 
 Disappointment, The Most Of The Meat Was Gone. I Was Rolled Up In My 
 Blanket Under His Wagon And Awoke When He Came To The Fire And Saw Him 
 Stand And Look Around As If To Fasten The Crime On The Right Party If 
 Possible, But Soon He Came To Me, And In A Whisper Said: "Did You See 
 Anyone Around The Fire After We Went To Bed?" I Assured Him I Did Not, 
 And Then He Told Me Some One Had Taken His Meat. "Do You Think," Said He 
 "That Any One Is So Near Out Of Food As To Be Starving?" "I Know The 
 Meat Is Poor, And Who Ever Took It Must Be Nearly Starving." After A 
 Whispered Conversation We Went To Bed, But We Both Rose At Daylight And, 
 As We Sat By The Fire, Kept Watch Of Those Who Got Up And Came Around. 
 We Thought We Knew The Right Man, But Were Not Sure, And Could Not 
 Imagine What Might Happen If Stealing Grub Should Begin And Continue. It 
 Is A Sort Of Unwritten Law That In Parties Such As Ours, He Who Steals 
 Provisions Forfeits His Life. We Knew We Must Keep Watch And If The 
 Offense Was Repeated The Guilty One Might Be Compelled To Suffer. 
 Bennett Watched Closely And For A Few Days I Kept Closely With The 
 Wagons For Fear There Might Be Trouble. It Was Really The Most Critical 
 Point In Our Experience. After Three Or Four Days All Hope Of Detecting 
 The Criminal Had Passed, And All Danger Was Over Out Of Any Difficulty. 
   
   
   
 One Night We Had A Fair Camp, As We Were Close To The Base Of The Snow 
 Butte, And Found A Hole Of Clear Or What Seemed To Be Living Water. 
 There Were A Few Minnows In It Not Much More Than An Inch Long. This Was 
 Among A Big Pile Of Rocks, And Around These The Oxen Found Some Grass. 
   
   
   
 There Now Appeared To Be A Pass Away To The South As A Sort Of Outlet To 
 
 
 
 Chapter 9 Pg 81 
 The Great Plain Which Lay To The North Of Us, But Immediately West And 
 Across The Desert Waste, Extending To The Foot Of A Low Black Range Of 
 Mountains, Through Which There Seemed To Be No Pass, The Distant Snowy 
 Peak Lay Still Farther On, With Martin's Pass Over It Still A Long Way 
 Off Though We Had Been Steering Toward It For A Month. Now As We Were 
 Compelled To Go West This Impassable Barrier Was In Our Way And If No 
 Pass Could Be Found In It We Would Be Compelled To Go South And Make No 
 Progress In A Westerly Direction. 
   
   
   
 Our Trail Was Now Descending To The Bottom Of What Seemed To Be The 
 Narrowest Part Of The Plain, The Same One The Jayhawkers Had Started 
 Across, Further North, Ten Days Before. When We Reached The Lowest Part 
 Of This Valley We Came To A Running Stream, And, As Dead Grass Could Be 
 Seen In The Bed Where The Water Ran Very Slowly, I Concluded It Only Had 
 Water In It After Hard Rains In The Mountains, Perhaps A Hundred Miles, 
 To The North. This Water Was Not Pure; It Had A Bitter Taste, And No 
 Doubt In Dry Weather Was A Rank Poison. Those Who Partook Of It Were 
 Affected About As If They Had Taken A Big Dose Of Salts. 
   
   
   
 A Short Distance Above This We Found The Trail Of The Jayhawkers Going 
 West, And Thus We Knew They Had Got Safely Across The Great Plain And 
 Then Turned Southward. I Hurried Along Their Trail For Several Miles And 
 Looked The Country Over With Field Glass Becoming Fully Satisfied We 
 Should Find No Water Till We Reached The Summit, Of The Next Range, And 
 Then Fearing The Party Had Not Taken The Precaution To Bring Along Some 
 Water I Went Back To Them And Found They Had None. I Told Them They 
 Would Not See A Drop For The Next Forty Miles, And They Unloaded The 
 Lightest Wagon And Drove Back With Everything They Had Which Would Hold 
 Water, To Get A Good Supply. 
   
   
   
 I Turned Back Again On The Jayhawker's Road, And Followed It So Rapidly 
 That Well Toward Night I Was Pretty Near The Summit, Where A Pass 
 Through This Rocky Range Had Been Found And On This Mountain Not A Tree 
 A Shrub Or Spear Of Grass Could Be Found--Desolation Beyond Conception. 
 I Carried My Gun Along Every Day, But For The Want Of A Chance To Kill 
 Any Game A Single Load Would Remain In My Gun For A Month. Very Seldom A 
 Rabbit Could Be Seen, But Not A Bird Of Any Kind, Not Even A Hawk 
 Buzzard Or Crow Made Their Appearance Here. 
   
   
   
 When Near The Steep Part Of The Mountain, I Found A Dead Ox The 
 Jayhawkers Had Left, As No Camp Could Be Made Here For Lack Of Water And 
 Grass, The Meat Could Not Be Saved. I Found The Body Of The Animal Badly 
 Shrunken, But In Condition, As Far As Putrefaction Was Concerned, As 
 Perfect As When Alive. A Big Gash Had Been Cut In The Ham Clear To The 
 Bone And The Sun Had Dried The Flesh In This. I Was So Awful Hungry That 
 I Took My Sheath Knife And Cut A Big Steak Which I Devoured As I Walked 
 
 
 
 Chapter 9 Pg 82 
 Along, Without Cooking Or Salt. Some May Say They Would Starve Before 
 Eating Such Meat, But If They Have Ever Experienced Hunger Till It 
 Begins To Draw Down The Life Itself, They Will Find The Impulse Of Self 
 Preservation Something Not To Be Controlled By Mere Reason. It Is An 
 Instinct That Takes Possession Of One In Spite Of Himself. 
   
   
   
 I Went Down A Narrow, Dark Canon High On Both Sides And Perpendicular, 
 And Quite So In Many Places. In One Of The Perpendicular Portions It 
 Seemed To Be A Varigated Clay Formation, And A Little Water Seeped Down 
 Its Face. Here The Indians Had Made A Clay Bowl And Fastened It To The 
 Wall So That It Would Collect And Retain About A Quart Of Water, And I 
 Had A Good Drink Of Water, The First One Since Leaving The Running 
 Stream. Near Here I Staid All Night, For Fear Of Indians Who I Firmly 
 Believe Would Have Taken My Scalp Had A Good Opportunity Offered. I 
 Slept Without A Fire, And My Supply Of Meat Just Obtained Drove Hunger 
 Away. 
   
   
   
 In The Morning I Started Down The Canon Which Descended Rapidly And Had 
 A Bed Of Sharp, Volcanic, Broken Rock. I Could Sometimes See An Indian 
 Track, And Kept A Sharp Lookout At Every Turn, For Fear Of Revenge On 
 Account Of The Store Of Squashes Which Had Been Taken. I Felt I Was In 
 Constant Danger, But Could Do Nothing Else But Go On And Keep Eyes Open 
 Trusting To Circumstances To Get Out Of Any Sudden Emergency That Might 
 Arise. 
   
   
   
 As I Recollect This Was Christmas Day And About Dusk I Came Upon The 
 Camp Of One Man With His Wife And Family, The Rev. J.W. Brier, Mrs. 
 Brier And Two Sons. I Inquired For Others Of His Party And He Told Me 
 They Were Somewhere Ahead. When I Arrived At His Camp I Found The 
 Reverend Gentleman Very Cooly Delivering A Lecture To His Boys On 
 Education. It Seemed Very Strange To Me To Hear A Solemn Discourse On 
 The Benefits Of Early Education When, It Seemed To Me, Starvation Was 
 Staring Us All In The Face, And The Barren Desolation All Around Gave 
 Small Promise Of The Need Of Any Education Higher Than The Natural 
 Impulses Of Nature. None Of Us Knew Exactly Where We Were, Nor When The 
 Journey Would Be Ended, Nor When Substantial Relief Would Come. 
 Provisions Were Wasting Away, And Some Had Been Reduced To The Last 
 Alternative Of Subsisting On The Oxen Alone. I Slept By The Fire That 
 Night, Without A Blanket, As I Had Done On Many Nights Before And After 
 They Hitched Up And Drove On In The Morning I Searched The Camp 
 Carefully, Finding Some Bacon Rinds They Had Thrown Away. As I Chewed 
 These And Could Taste The Rich Grease They Contained, I Thought They 
 Were The Sweetest Morsels I Ever Tasted. 
   
   
   
 Here On The North Side Of The Canon Were Some Rolling Hills And Some 
 Small Weak Springs, The Water Of Which When Gathered Together Made A 
 
 
 
 Chapter 9 Pg 83 
 Small Stream Which Ran A Few Yards Down The Canon Before It Lost Itself 
 In The Rocks And Sand. On The Side There Stood What Seemed To Be One 
 Half Of A Butte, With The Perpendicular Face Toward The Canon. Away On 
 The Summit Of The Butte I Saw An Indian, So Far Away He Looked No Taller 
 Than My Finger, And When He Went Out Of Sight I Knew Pretty Well He Was 
 The Very Fellow Who Grew The Squashes. I Thought It Might Be He, At Any 
 Rate. 
   
   
   
 I Now Turned Back To Meet The Teams And Found Them Seven Or Eight Miles 
 Up The Canon, And Although It Was A Down Grade The Oxen Were Barely Able 
 To Walk Slowly With Their Loads Which Were Light, As Wagons Were Almost 
 Empty Except The Women And Children. When Night Came On It Seemed To Be 
 Cloudy And We Could Hear The Cries Of The Wild Geese Passing East. We 
 Regarded This As A Very Good Sign And No Doubt Owen's Lake, Which We 
 Expected To Pass On This Route, Was Not Very Far Off. Around In Those 
 Small Hills And Damp Places Was Some Coarse Grass And Other Growths, But 
 Those Who Had Gone Before Devoured The Best, So Our Oxen Had A Hard Time 
 To Get Anything To Eat. 
   
   
   
 Next Morning I Shouldered My Gun And Followed Down The Canon Keeping The 
 Wagon Road, And When Half A Mile Down, At The Sink Of The Sickly Stream, 
 I Killed A Wild Goose. This Had Undoubtedly Been Attracted Here The 
 Night Before By The Light Of Our Camp Fire. When I Got Near The Lower 
 End Of The Canon, There Was A Cliff On The North Or Right Hand Side 
 Which Was Perpendicular Or Perhaps A Little Overhanging, And At The Base 
 A Cave Which Had The Appearance Of Being Continuously Occupied By 
 Indians. As I Went On Down I Saw A Very Strange Looking Track Upon The 
 Ground. There Were Hand And Foot Prints As If A Human Being Had Crawled 
 Upon All Fours. As This Track Reached The Valley Where The Sand Had Been 
 Clean Swept By The Wind, The Tracks Became More Plain, And The Sand Had 
 Been Blown Into Small Hills Not Over Three Or Four Feet High. I Followed 
 The Track Till It Led To The Top Of One Of These Small Hills Where A 
 Small Well-Like Hole Had Been Dug And In This Excavation Was A Kind Of 
 Indian Mummy Curled Up Like A Dog. He Was Not Dead For I Could See Him 
 Move As He Breathed, But His Skin Looked Very Much Like The Surface Of A 
 Well Dried Venison Ham. I Should Think By His Looks He Must Be 200 Or 
 300 Years Old, Indeed He Might Be Adam's Brother And Not Look Any Older 
 Than He Did. He Was Evidently Crippled. A Climate Which Would Preserve 
 For Many Days Or Weeks The Carcass Of An Ox So That An Eatable Round 
 Stake Could Be Cut From It, Might Perhaps Preserve A Live Man For A 
 Longer Period Than Would Be Believed. 
   
   
   
 I Took A Good Long Look At The Wild Creature And During All The Time He 
 Never Moved A Muscle, Though He Must Have Known Some One Was In The Well 
 Looking Down At Him. He Was Probably Practicing On One Of The Directions 
 For A Successful Political Career Looking Wise And Saying Nothing. At 
 Any Rate He Was Not Going To Let His Talk Get Him Into Any Trouble. He 
 Probably Had A Friend Around Somewhere Who Supplied His Wants. I Now 
 
 
 
 Chapter 9 Pg 84 
 Left Him And Went Farther Out Into The Lowest Part Of The Valley. I 
 Could Look To The North For Fifty Miles And It Seemed To Rise Gradually 
 In That Direction. To The South The View Was Equally Extended, And Down 
 That Way A Lake Could Be Seen. The Valley Was Here Quite Narrow, And The 
 Lofty Snow-Capped Peak We Had Tried So Hard To Reach For The Past Two 
 Months Now Stood Before Me. Its East Side Was Almost Perpendicular And 
 Seemed To Reach The Sky, And The Snow Was Drifting Over It, While Here 
 The Day Sun Was Shining Uncomfortably Hot. I Believe This Mountain Was 
 Really Miles From Its Base To Its Summit, And That Nothing Could Climb 
 It On The Eastern Side Except A Bird And The Only Bird I Had Seen For 
 Two Months Was The Goose I Shot. I Looked Every Day For Some Sort Of 
 Game But Had Not Seen Any. 
   
   
   
 As I Reached The Lower Part Of The Valley I Walked Over What Seemed To 
 Be Boulders Of Various Sizes, And As I Stepped From One To Another The 
 Tops Were Covered With Dirt And They Grew Larger As I Went Along. I 
 Could See Behind Them And They Looked Clear Like Ice, But On Closer 
 Inspection Proved To Be Immense Blocks Of Rock Salt While The Water 
 Which Stood At Their Bases Was The Strongest Brine. After This Discovery 
 I Took My Way Back To The Road Made By The Jayhawkers And Found It Quite 
 Level, But Sandy. Following This I Came To A Campfire Soon After Dark At 
 Which E. Doty And Mess Were Camped. As I Was Better Acquainted I Camped 
 With Them. They Said The Water There Was Brackish And I Soon Found Out 
 The Same Thing For Myself. It Was A Poor Camp; No Grass, Poor Water And 
 Scattering, Bitter Sage Brush For Food For The Cattle. It Would Not Do 
 To Wait Long Here, And So They Hurried On. 
   
   
   
 I Inquired Of Them About Martin's Pass, As They Were Now Quite Near It, 
 And They Said It Was No Pass At All, Only The Mountain Was A Little 
 Lower Than The One Holding The Snow. No Wagon Could Get Over It, And The 
 Party Had Made Up Their Minds To Go On Foot, And Were Actually Burning 
 Their Wagons As Fuel With Which To Dry The Meat Of Some Of The Oxen 
 Which They Had Killed. They Selected Those Which Were Weakest And Least 
 Likely To Stand The Journey, And By Drying It The Food Was Much 
 Concentrated. They Were To Divide The Provisions Equally And It Was 
 Agreed Thereafter Every One Must Lookout For Himself And Not Expect Any 
 Help From Anyone. If He Used Up His Own Provisions, He Had No Right To 
 Expect Anyone Else To Divide With Him. Rice, Tea And Coffee Were 
 Measured Out By The Spoonful And The Small Amount Of Flour And Bacon 
 Which Remained Was Divided Out As Evenly As Possible. Everything Was To 
 Be Left Behind But Blankets And Provisions For The Men Were Too Weak To 
 Carry Heavy Packs And The Oxen Could Not Be Relied On As Beasts Of 
 Burden And It Was Thought Best Not To Load Them So As To Needlessly 
 Break Them Down. 
   
   
   
 When These Fellows Started Out They Were Full Of Spirit, And The Frolic 
 And Fun Along The Platte River Was Something Worth Laughing At But Now 
 They Were Very Melancholy And Talked In The Lowest Kind Of Low Spirits. 
 
 
 
 Chapter 9 Pg 85 
 One Fellow Said He Knew This Was The Creator's Dumping Place Where He 
 Had Left The Worthless Dregs After Making A World, And The Devil Had 
 Scraped These Together A Little. Another Said This Must Be The Very 
 Place Where Lot's Wife Was Turned Into A Pillar Of Salt, And The Pillar 
 Been Broken Up And Spread Around The Country. He Said If A Man Was To 
 Die He Would Never Decay On Account Of The Salt. Thus The Talk Went On, 
 And It Seemed As If There Were Not Bad Words Enough In The Language To 
 Properly Express Their Contempt And Bad Opinion Of Such A Country As 
 This. They Treated Me To Some Of Their Meat, A Little Better Than Mine, 
 And Before Daylight In The Morning I Was Headed Back On The Trail To 
 Report The Bad News I Had Learned Of The Jayhawkers. 
   
   
   
 About Noon I Met Two Of Our Camp Companions With Packs On Their Backs 
 Following The Wagon Trail, And We Stopped And Had A Short Talk. They 
 Were Oldish Men Perhaps 50 Years Old, One A Mr. Fish Of Indiana And 
 Another Named Gould. They Said They Could Perhaps Do As Well On Foot As 
 To Follow The Slow Ox Teams, But When I Told Them What Those Ahead Of 
 Them Were Doing, And How They Must Go, They Did Not Seem To Be Entirely 
 Satisfied, As What They Had On Their Backs Would Need To Be Replenished, 
 And No Such Chance Could Be Expected. They Had An Idea That The End Of 
 The Journey Was Not As Far Off As I Predicted. Mr. Fish Had A Long 
 Nicely Made, Whiplash Wound Around His Waist, And When I Asked Him Why 
 He Carried Such A Useless Thing, Which He Could Not Eat, He Said Perhaps 
 He Could Trade It Off For Something To Eat. After We Had Set On A Sand 
 Hill And Talked For Awhile, We Rose And Shook Each Other By The Hand, 
 And Bade Each Other Good Bye With Quivering Lips. There Was With Me A 
 Sort Of Expression I Could Not Repel That I Should Never See The Middle 
 Aged Men Again. 
   
   
   
 As My Road Was Now Out And Away From The Mountains, And Level, I Had No 
 Fear Of Being Surprised By Enemies, So Walked On With Eyes Downcast, 
 Thinking Over The Situation, And Wondering What Would Be The Final 
 Outcome. If I Were Alone, With No One To Expect Me To Help Them, I Would 
 Be Out Before Any Other Man, But With Women And Children In The Party, 
 To Go And Leave Them Would Be To Pile Everlasting Infamy On My Head. The 
 Thought Almost Made Me Crazy But I Thought It Would Be Better To Stay 
 And Die With Them, Bravely Struggling To Escape Than To Forsake Them In 
 Their Weakness. 
   
   
   
 It Was Almost Night Before I Reached Our Camp, And Sitting Around Our 
 Little Fire I Told, In The Most Easy Way I Could The Unfavorable News Of 
 The Party In Advance. They Seemed To Look To Me As A Guide And Adviser, 
 I Presume Because I Took Much Pains To Inform Myself On Every Point And 
 My Judgment Was Accepted With Very Little Opposing Opinion, They Moved 
 As I Thought Best. During My Absence From Camp For The Two Days The 
 Indians Had Shot Arrows Into Three Of Our Oxen, And One Still Had An 
 Arrow In His Side Forward Of The Hip Which Was A Dangerous Place. To Be 
 Sure And Save Him For Ourselves We Killed Him. Some Were A Little Afraid 
 
 
 
 Chapter 9 Pg 86 
 To Eat The Meat Thinking Perhaps The Arrow Might Be Poisoned, But I 
 Agreed That They Wanted Meat Themselves And Would Not Do That. I Told 
 Them If They Got A Shot Themselves It Would Be Very Likely To Be A 
 Poisoned Arrow And They Must Take The Most Instant Measures To Cut It 
 Out Before It Went Into The Blood. So We Ventured To Dry The Meat And 
 Take It With Us. 
   
   
   
 Now I Said To The Whole Camp "You Can See How You Have Displeased The 
 Red Men, Taking Their Little Squashes, And When We Get Into A Place That 
 Suits Them For That Purpose, They May Meet Us With A Superior Force And 
 Massacre Us, Not Only For Revenge But To Get Our Oxen And Clothing." I 
 Told Them We Must Ever Be On Guard Against A Surprise, As The Chances 
 Were Greatly Against Us. 
   
   
   
 We Pulled The Arrows Out Of The Other Oxen, And They Seemed To Sustain 
 No Great Injury From The Wounds. This Little Faint Stream Where We 
 Camped Has Since Been Named As Furnace Creek And Is Still Known As Such. 
 It Was Named In 1862 By Some Prospectors Who Built What Was Called An 
 Air Furnace On A Small Scale To Reduce Some Ore Found Near By, Which 
 They Supposed To Contain Silver, But I Believe It Turned Out To Be Lead 
 And Too Far From Transportations To Be Available. 
   
   
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 10 Pg 87 
   
 Bennett And Arcane Now Concluded Not To Wait For Me To Go Ahead And 
 Explore Out A Way For Them To Follow, As I Had Done For A Long Time, But 
 To Go Ahead As It Was Evidently The Best Way To Turn South And Make Our 
 Own Road, And Find The Water And Passes All For Ourselves. So They 
 Hitched Up And Rolled Down The Canon, And Out Into The Valley And Then 
 Turned Due South. We Had Not Gone Long On This Course Before We Saw That 
 We Must Cross The Valley And Get Over To The West Side. To Do This We 
 Must Cross Through Some Water, And For Fear The Ground Might Be Miry, I 
 Went To A Sand Hill Near By And Got A Mesquite Stick About Three Feet 
 Long With Which To Sound Out Our Way. I Rolled Up My Pants Pulled Off My 
 Moccasins And Waded In, Having The Teams Stand Still Till I Could Find 
 Out Whether It Was Safe For Them To Follow Or Not By Ascertaining The 
 Depth Of The Water And The Character Of The Bottom. 
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 10 Pg 88 
 The Water Was Very Clear And The Bottom Seemed Uneven, There Being Some 
 Deep Holes. Striking My Stick On The Bottom It Seemed Solid As A Rock, 
 And Breaking Off A Small Projecting Point I Found It To Be Solid Rock 
 Salt. As The Teams Rolled Along They Scarcely Roiled The Water. It 
 Looked To Me As If The Whole Valley Which Might Be A Hundred Miles Long 
 Might Have Been A Solid Bed Of Rock Salt. Before We Reached This Water 
 There Were Many Solid Blocks Of Salt Lying Around Covered With A Little 
 Dirt On The Top. 
   
   
   
 The Second Night We Found A Good Spring Of Fresh Water Coming Out From 
 The Bottom Of The Snow Peak Almost Over Our Heads. The Small Flow From 
 It Spread Out Over The Sand And Sank In A Very Short Distance And There 
 Was Some Quite Good Grass Growing Around. 
   
   
   
 This Was A Temporary Relief, But Brought Us Face To Face With Stranger 
 Difficulties And A More Hopeless Outlook. 
   
   
   
 There Was No Possible Way To Cross This High Steep Range Of Mountains 
 Anywhere To The North And The Jayhawkers Had Abandoned Their Wagons And 
 Burned Them, And We Could No Longer Follow On The Trail They Made. It 
 Seemed That There Was No Other Alternative But For Us To Keep Along The 
 Edge Of The Mountain To The South And Search For Another Pass. Some Who 
 Had Read Fremont's Travels Said That The Range Immediately West Of Us 
 Must Be The One He Described, On The West Side Of Which Was A Beautiful 
 Country, Of Rich Soil And Having Plenty Of Cattle, And Horses, And 
 Containing Some Settlers, But On The East All Was Barren, Dry, Rocky, 
 Sandy Desert As Far As Could Be Seen. We Knew This Eastern Side Answered 
 Well The Description And Believed That This Was Really The Range 
 Described, Or At Least It Was Close By. 
   
   
   
 We Had To Look Over The Matter Very Carefully And Consider All The 
 Conditions And Circumstances Of The Case. We Could See The Mountains 
 Were Lower To The South, But They Held No Snow And Seemed Only Barren 
 Rocks Piled Up In Lofty Peaks, And As We Looked It Seemed The Most 
 God-Forsaken Country In The World. 
   
   
   
 We Had Been In The Region Long Enough To Know The Higher Mountains 
 Contained Most Water, And That The Valleys Had Bad Water Or None At All, 
 So That While The Lower Altitudes To The South Gave Some Promise Of 
 Easier Crossing It Gave Us No Promise Of Water Or Grass, Without Which 
 We Must Certainly Perish. In A Certain Sense We Were Lost. The Clear 
 Night And Days Furnished Us With The Mean Of Telling The Points Of 
 Compass As The Sun Rose And Set, But Not A Sign Of Life In Nature's Wide 
 Domain Had Been Seen For A Month Or More. A Vest Pocketful Of Powder And 
 
 
 
 Chapter 10 Pg 89 
 Shot Would Last A Good Hunter Till He Starved To Death For There Was Not 
 A Living Thing To Shoot Great Or Small. 
   
   
   
 We Talked Over Our Present Position Pretty Freely, And Every One Was 
 Asked To Speak His Unbiased Mind, For We Knew Not Who Might Be Right Or 
 Who Might Be Wrong, And Some One Might Make A Suggestion Of The Utmost 
 Value. We All Felt Pretty Much Downhearted. Our Civilized Provisions 
 Were Getting So Scarce That All Must Be Saved For The Women And 
 Children, And The Men Must Get Along Some Way On Ox Meat Alone. It Was 
 Decided Not A Scrap Of Anything That Would Sustain Life Must Go To 
 Waste. The Blood, Hide And Intestines Were All Prepared In Some Way For 
 Food. This Meeting Lasted Till Late At Night. If Some Of Them Had Lost 
 Their Minds I Should Not Have Been Surprised, For Hunger Swallows All 
 Other Feelings. A Man In A Starving Condition Is A Savage. He May Be As 
 Blood-Shed And Selfish As A Wild Beast, As Docile And Gentle As A Lamb, 
 Or As Wild And Crazy As A Terrified Animal, Devoid Of Affection, Reason 
 Or Thought Of Justice. We Were None Of Us As Bad As This, And Yet There 
 Was A Strange Look In The Eyes Of Some Of Us Sometimes, As I Saw By 
 Looking Round, And As Others No Doubt Realized For I Saw Them Making 
 Mysterious Glances Even In My Direction. 
   
   
   
 Morning Came And All Were Silent. The Dim Prospect Of The Future Seemed 
 To Check Every Tongue. When One Left A Water Hole He Went Away As If In 
 Doubt Whether He Would Ever Enjoy The Pleasure Of Another Drop. Every 
 Camp Was Sad Beyond Description, And No One Can Guide The Pen To Make It 
 Tell The Tale As It Seemed To Us. When Our Morning Meal Of Soup And Meat 
 Was Finished, Bennett's Two Teams, And The Two Of Arcane's Concluded 
 Their Chances Of Life Were Better If They Could Take Some Provisions And 
 Strike Out On Foot, And So They Were Given What They Could Carry, And 
 They Arranged Their Packs And Bade Us A Sorrowful Good Bye Hoping To 
 Meet Again On The Pacific Coast. There Were Genuine Tears Shed At The 
 Parting And I Believe Neither Party Ever Expected To See Each Other In 
 This Life Again. 
   
   
   
 Bennett's Two Men Were Named Silas Helmer And S.S. Or C.C. Abbott, But I 
 Have Forgotten The Names Of Arcane's Men. Mr. Abbott Was From New York, 
 A Harness Maker By Trade, And He Took His Circular Cutting Knife With 
 Him, Saying It Was Light To Carry And The Weapon He Should Need. One Of 
 Them Had A Gun. They Took The Trail Taken By The Jayhawkers. All The 
 Provisions They Could Carry Besides Their Blankets Could Not Last Them 
 To Exceed 10 Days, And I Well Knew They Could Hardly Get Off The Desert 
 In That Time. Mr. Abbott Was A Man I Loved Fondly. He Was Good Company 
 In Camp, And Happy And Sociable. He Had Shown No Despondency At Any Time 
 Until The Night Of The Last Meeting And The Morning Of The Parting. His 
 Chances Seemed To Me To Be Much Poorer Than My Own, But I Hardly Think 
 He Realized It. When In Bed I Could Not Keep My Thoughts Back From The 
 Old Home I Had Left, Where Good Water And A Bountiful Spread Were Always 
 Ready At The Proper Hour. I Know I Dreamed Of Taking A Draft Of Cool, 
 
 
 
 Chapter 10 Pg 90 
 Sweet Water From A Full Pitcher And Then Woke Up With My Mouth And 
 Throat As Dry As Dust. The Good Home I Left Behind Was A Favorite Theme 
 About The Campfire, And Many A One Told Of The Dream Pictures, Natural 
 As Life, That Came To Him Of The Happy Eastern Home With Comfort And 
 Happiness Surrounding It, Even If Wealth Was Lacking. The Home Of The 
 Poorest Man On Earth Was Preferable To This Place. Wealth Was Of No 
 Value Here. A Hoard Of Twenty Dollar Gold Pieces Could Now 
 Stand Before Us The Whole Day Long With No Temptation To Touch A Single 
 Coin, For Its Very Weight Would Drag Us Nearer Death. We Could Purchase 
 Nothing With It And We Would Have Cared No More For It As A Thing Of 
 Value Than We Did The Desert Sands. We Would Have Given Much More For 
 Some Of The Snow Which We Could See Drifting Over The Peak Of The Great 
 Snow Mountains Over Our Heads Like A Dusty Cloud. 
   
   
   
 Deeming It Best To Spare The Strength As Much As Possible, I Threw Away 
 Everything I Could, Retaining Only My Glass, Some Ammunition, Sheath 
 Knife And Tin Cup. No Unnecessary Burden Could Be Put On Any Man Or 
 Beast, Lest He Lie Down Under It, Never To Rise Again. Life And Strength 
 Were Sought To Be Husbanded In Every Possible Way. 
   
   
   
 Leaving This Camp Where The Water Was Appreciated We Went Over A Road 
 For Perhaps 8 Miles And Came To The Mouth Of A Rocky Canon Leading Up 
 West To The Summit Of The Range. This Canon Was Too Rough For Wagons To 
 Pass Over. Out In The Valley Near Its Mouth Was A Mound About Four Feet 
 High And In The Top Of This A Little Well That Held About A Pailful Of 
 Water That Was Quite Strong Of Sulphur. When Stirred It Would Look Quite 
 Black. About The Mouth Of The Well Was A Wire Grass That Seemed To 
 Prevent It Caving In. It Seems The Drifting Sand Had Slowly Built This 
 Little Mound About The Little Well Of Water In A Curious Way. We Spent 
 The Night Here And Kept A Man At The Well All Night To Keep The Water 
 Dipped Out As Fast As It Flowed, In Order To Get Enough For Ourselves 
 And Cattle. The Oxen Drank This Water Better Than They Did The Brackish 
 Water Of The Former Camp. 
   
   
   
 The Plain Was Thinly Scattered With Sage Brush, And Up Near The Base Of 
 The Mountain Some Greasewood Grew In Little Bunches Like Currant Bushes. 
   
   
   
 The Men With Wagons Decided They Would Take This Canon And Follow It Up 
 To Try To Get Over The Range, And Not Wait For Me To Go Ahead And 
 Explore, As They Said It Took Too Much Time And The Provisions, 
 Consisting Now Of Only Ox Meat Were Getting More Precarious Every Day. 
 To Help Them All I Could And If Possible To Be Forewarned A Little Of 
 Danger, I Shouldered My Gun And Pushed On Ahead As Fast As I Could. The 
 Bottom Was Of Sharp Broken Rock, Which Would Be Very Hard For The Feet 
 Of The Oxen, Although We Had Rawhide Moccasins For Them For Some Time, 
 And This Was The Kind Of Foot-Gear I Wore Myself. I Walked On As Rapidly 
 
 
 
 Chapter 10 Pg 91 
 As I Could, And After A Time Came To Where The Canon Spread Out Into A 
 Kind Of Basin Enclosed On All Sides But The Entrance, With A Wall Of 
 High, Steep Rock, Possible To Ascend On Foot But Which Would Apparently 
 Bar The Further Progress Of The Wagons, And I Turned Back Utterly 
 Disappointed. I Got On An Elevation Where I Could Look Over The Country 
 East And South, And It Looked As If There Was Not A Drop Of Water In Its 
 Whole Extent, And There Was No Snow On The Dark Mountains That Stretched 
 Away To The Southward And It Seemed To Me As If Difficulties Beset Me On 
 Every Hand. I Hurried Back Down The Canon, But It Was Nearly Dark Before 
 I Met The Wagons. By A Mishap I Fell And Broke The Stock Of My Gun, Over 
 Which I Was Very Sorry, For It Was An Excellent One, The Best I Ever 
 Owned. I Carried It In Two Pieces To The Camp And Told Them The Way Was 
 Barred, At Which They Could Hardly Endure Their Disappointment. They 
 Turned In The Morning, As The Cattle Had Nothing To Eat Here And No 
 Water, And Not Much Of Any Food Since Leaving The Spring; They Looked 
 Terribly Bad, And The Rough Road Coming Up Had Nearly Finished Them. 
 They Were Yoked Up And The Wagons Turned About For The Return. They Went 
 Better Down Hill, But It Was Not Long Before One Of Bennett's Oxen Lay 
 Down, And Could Not Be Persuaded To Rise Again. This Was No Place To 
 Tarry In The Hot Sun, So The Ox Was Killed And The Carcass Distributed 
 Among The Wagons. So Little Draft Was Required That The Remaining Oxen 
 Took The Wagon Down. When Within Two Or Three Miles Of The Water Hole 
 One Of Arcane's Oxen Also Failed And Lay Down, So They Turned Him Out 
 And When He Had Rested A Little He Came On Again For A While, But Soon 
 Lay Down Again. 
   
   
   
 Arcane Took A Bucket Of Water Back From Camp And After Drinking It And 
 Resting Awhile The Ox Was Driven Down To The Spring. 
   
   
   
 This Night We Had Another Meeting To Decide Upon Our Course And 
 Determine What To Do. At This Meeting No One Was Wiser Than Another, For 
 No One Had Explored The Country And Knew What To Expect. The Questions 
 That Now Arose Were "How Long Can We Endure This Work In This Situation? 
 How Long Will Our Oxen Be Able To Endure The Great Hardship On The Small 
 Nourishment They Receive? How Long Can We Provide Ourselves With Food?" 
   
   
   
 We Had A Few Small Pieces Of Dry Bread. This Was Kept For The Children 
 Giving Them A Little Now And Then. Our Only Food Was In The Flesh Of The 
 Oxen, And When They Failed To Carry Themselves Along We Must Begin To 
 Starve. It Began To Look As If The Chances Of Leaving Our Bones To 
 Bleach Upon The Desert Were The Most Prominent Ones. 
   
   
   
 One Thing Was Certain We Must Move Somewhere At Once. If We Stay Here We 
 Can Live As Long As The Oxen Do, And No Longer, And If We Go On It Is 
 Uncertain Where To Go, To Get A Better Place. We Had Guns And Ammunition 
 To Be Sure, But Of Late We Had Seen No Living Creature In This Desert 
 
 
 
 Chapter 10 Pg 92 
 Wild. Finally Mr. Bennett Spoke And Said:-- 
   
   
   
 "Now I Will Make You A Proposition. I Propose That We Select Two Of Our 
 Youngest, Strongest Men And Ask Them To Take Some Food And Go Ahead On 
 Foot To Try To Seek A Settlement, And Food, And We Will Go Back To The 
 Good Spring We Have Just Left And Wait For Their Return. It Will Surely 
 Not Take Them More Than Ten Days For The Trip, And When They Get Back We 
 Shall Know All About The Road And Its Character And How Long It Will 
 Take Us To Travel It. They Can Secure Some Other Kind Of Food That Will 
 Make Us Feel Better, And When The Oxen Have Rested A Little At The 
 Spring We Can Get Out With Our Wagons And Animals And Be Safe. I Think 
 This Is The Best And Safest Way." 
   
   
   
 "Now What Do You All Say?" After A Little Discussion All Seemed To Agree 
 That This Was The Best, And Now It Remained To Find The Men To Go. No 
 One Offered To Accept The Position Of Advance Messengers. Finally Mr. 
 Bennett Said He Knew One Man Well Enough To Know That He Would Come Back 
 If He Lived, And He Was Sure He Would Push His Way Through. "I Will Take 
 Lewis (Myself) If He Will Consent To Go." I Consented, Though I Knew It 
 Was A Hazardous Journey, Exposed To All Sorts Of Things, Indians, 
 Climate And Probable Lack Of Water, But I Thought I Could Do It And 
 Would Not Refuse. John Rogers A Large Strong Tennessee, Man Was Then 
 Chosen As The Other One And He Consented Also. 
   
   
   
 Now Preparations Began, Mr. Arcane Killed The Ox Which Had So Nearly 
 Failed, And All The Men Went To Drying And Preparing Meat. Others Made 
 Us Some New Mocassins Out Of Rawhide, And The Women Made Us Each A 
 Knapsack. 
   
   
   
 Our Meat Was Closely Packed, And One Can Form An Idea How Poor Our 
 Cattle Were From The Fact That John And I Actually Packed Seven-Eighths 
 Of All The Flesh Of An Ox Into Our Knapsacks And Carried It Away. They 
 Put In A Couple Of Spoonfuls Of Rice And About As Much Tea. This Seemed 
 Like Robbery To The Children, But The Good Women Said That In Case Of 
 Sickness Even That Little Bit Might Save Our Lives. I Wore No Coat Or 
 Vest, But Took Half Of A Light Blanket, While Rogers Wore A Thin Summer 
 Coat And Took No Blanket. We Each Had A Small Tin Cup And A Small Camp 
 Kettle Holding A Quart. Bennett Had Me Take His Seven-Shooter Rifle, And 
 Rogers Had A Good Double Barreled Shot Gun. We Each Had A Sheath Knife, 
 And Our Hats Were Small Brimmed, Drab Affairs Fitting Close To The Head 
 And Not Very Conspicuous To An Enemy As We Might Rise Up From Behind A 
 Hill Into Possible Views. We Tried On Our Packs And Fitted The Straps A 
 Little So They Would Carry Easy. They Collected All The Money There Was 
 In Camp And Gave It To Us. Mr. Arcane Had About $30 And Others Threw In 
 Small Amounts From Forty Cents Upward. We Received All Sorts Of Advice. 
 Capt. Culverwell Was An Old Sea Faring Man And Was Going To Tell Us How 
 
 
 
 Chapter 10 Pg 93 
 To Find Our Way Back, But Mr. Bennett Told The Captain That He Had Known 
 Lewis As A Hunter For Many Years, And That If He Went Over A Place In 
 The Daytime He Could Find His Way Back At Night Every Time. Others 
 Cautioned Us About The Indians And Told Us How To Manage. Others Told Us 
 Not To Get Caught In Deep Snow Which We Might Find On The Mountains. 
   
   
   
 This Advice We Received In All The Kindness In Which It Was Given, And 
 Then We Bade Them All Good Bye. Some Turned Away, Too Much 
 Affected To Approach Us And Others, Shook Our Hands With Deep Feeling, 
 Grasping Them Firmly And Heartily Hoping We Would Be Successful And Be 
 Able To Pilot Them Out Of This Dreary Place Into A Better Land. Every 
 One Felt That A Little Food To Make A Change From The Poor Dried Meat 
 Would Be Acceptable. Mr. And Mrs. Bennett And J.B. Arcane And Wife Were 
 The Last To Remain When The Others Had Turned Away. They Had Most Faith 
 In The Plan And Felt Deeply. Mrs. Bennett Was The Last, And She Asked 
 God To Bless Us And Bring Some Food To Her Starving Children. 
   
   
   
 We Were So Much Affected That We Could Not Speak And Silently Turned 
 Away And Took Our Course Again Up The Canyon We Had Descended The Night 
 Before. 
   
   
   
 After A While We Looked Back And When They Saw Us Turn Around, All The 
 Hats And Bonnets Waved Us A Final Parting. 
   
   
   
 Those Left In The Camp Were Asabel, Bennett And Sarah His Wife, With 
 Three Children, George, Melissa, And Martha; J.B. Arcane And Wife With 
 Son Charles. The Youngest Children Were Not More Than Two Years Old. 
 There Were Also The Two Earhart Brothers, And A Grown Son, Capt. 
 Culverwell, And Some Others I Cannot Recall; Eleven Grown People In All, 
 Besides A Mr. Wade, His Wife And Three Children Who Did Not Mingle With 
 Our Party, But Usually Camped A Little Distance Off, Followed Our Trail, 
 But Seemed To Shun Company. We Soon Passed Round A Bend Of The Canon, 
 And Then Walked On In Silence. 
   
   
   
 We Both Of Us Meditated Some Over The Homes Of Our Fathers, But Took New 
 Courage In View Of The Importance Of Our Mission And Passed On As Fast 
 As We Could. 
   
   
   
 By Night We Were Far Up The Mountain, Near The Perpendicular Rough Peak, 
 And Far Above Us On A Slope We Could See Some Bunches Of Grass And Sage 
 Brush. We Went To This And Found Some Small Water Holes. No Water Ran 
 From Them They Were So Small. Here We Staid All Night. It Did Not Seem 
 
 
 
 Chapter 10 Pg 94 
 Very Far To The Snowy Peak To The North Of Us. Just Where We Were Seemed 
 The Lowest Pass, For To The South Were Higher Peaks And The Rocks Looked 
 As If They Were Too Steep To Be Got Over. 
   
   
   
 Through This Gap Came A Cold Breeze, And We Had To Look Round To Get A 
 Sheltered Place In Which To Sleep. We Lay Down Close Together, Spoon 
 Fashion, And Made The Little Blanket Do As Cover For The Both Of Us. In 
 The Morning We Filled Our Canteens, Which We Had Made By Binding Two 
 Powder Cans Together With Strips Of Cloth, And Started For The Summit 
 Near By. From This Was The Grandest Sight We Ever Beheld. Looking East 
 We Could See The Country We Had Been Crawling Over Since November 4th. 
 "Just Look At The Cursed Country We Have Come Over!" Said Rogers As He 
 Pointed Over It. To The North Was The Biggest Mountain We Ever Saw, 
 Peaks On Peaks And Towering Far Above Our Heads, And Covered With Snow 
 Which Was Apparently Everlasting. 
   
   
   
 This Mountain Seemed To Have Very Few Trees On It, And In Extent, As It 
 Reached Away To The North Seemed Interminable. South Was A Nearly Level 
 Plain, And To The West I Thought I Could Dimly See A Range Of Mountains 
 That Held A Little Snow Upon Their Summits, But On The Main Range To The 
 South There Was None. It Seemed To Me The Dim Snowy Mountains Must Be As 
 Far As 200 Miles Away, But Of Course I Could Not Judge Accurately. After 
 Looking At This Grand, But Worthless Landscape Long Enough To Take In 
 Its Principal Features We Asked Each Other What We Supposed The People 
 We Left Behind Would Think To See Mountains So Far Ahead. We Knew That 
 They Had An Idea That The Coast Range Was Not Very Far Ahead, But We Saw 
 At Once To Go Over All These Mountains And Return Within The Limits Of 
 Fifteen Days Which Had Been Agreed Upon Between Us, Would Probably Be 
 Impossible, But We Must Try As Best We Could, So Down The Rocky Steep We 
 Clambered And Hurried On Our Way. In Places The Way Was So Steep That We 
 Had To Help Each Other Down, And The Hard Work Made Us Perspire Freely 
 So That The Water Was A Prime Necessity. In One Place Near Here, We 
 Found A Little Water And Filled Our Canteens, Besides Drinking A Good 
 Present Supply. There Were Two Low, Black Rocky Ranges Directly Ahead Of 
 Us Which We Must Cross. 
   
   
   
 When Part Way Down The Mountain A Valley Or Depression Opened Up In That 
 Direction Up Which It Seemed As If We Could Look A Hundred Miles. Near 
 By And A Short Distance North Was A Lake Of Water And When We Reached 
 The Valley We Crossed A Clear Stream Of Water Flowing Slowly Toward The 
 Lake. 
   
   
   
 Being In Need Of Water, We Rushed Eagerly To It And Prepared To Take A 
 Big Drink, But The Tempting Fluid Was As Salt As Brine And Made Our 
 Thirst All The More Intolerable. Nothing Grew On The Bank Of This Stream 
 And The Bed Was Of Hard Clay, Which Glistened In The Sun. 
 
 
 
 Chapter 10 Pg 95 
   
   
   
 We Now Began The Ascent Of The Next Ridge, Keeping A Westernly Course, 
 And Walked As Fast As We Could Up The Rough Mountain Side. We Crossed 
 The Head Of A Canon Near The Summit About Dark, And Here We Found A 
 Trail, Which From Indications We Knew To Be That Of The Jayhawkers, Who 
 Had Evidently Been Forced To The Southward Of The Course They Intended 
 To Take. They Had Camped Here And Had Dug Holes In The Sand In Search Of 
 Water, But Had Found None. 
   
   
   
 We Staid All Night Here And Dug Around In Some Other Places In The 
 Bottom Of The Canon, In The Hope To Have Better Luck Than They Did, But 
 We Got No Water Anywhere. 
   
   
   
 We Seemed Almost Perishing For Want Of Water, The Hard Exercise Made Us 
 Perspire So Freely. In The Morning We Started On, And Near The Summit We 
 Came To The Dead Body Of Mr. Fish, Laying In The Hot Sun, As There Was 
 No Material Near Here With Which His Friends Could Cover The Remains. 
 This Mr. Fish Was The Man Who Left Camp Some Two Weeks Before In Company 
 With Another And Who Carried The Long Whiplash Wound About His Body, In 
 Hope He Could Somewhere Be Able To Trade It For Bread. No Doubt In This 
 Very Place Where He Breathed His Last, His Bones Still Lie. 
   
   
   
 As We Came In Sight Of The Next Valley, We Could See A Lake Of Water 
 Some Distance South Of Our Western Course. 
   
   
   
 We Had Followed The Jayhawkers Trail Thus Far, But As We Found No Water 
 In Small Holes In The Rocks As We Were Likely To Do When We Were The 
 First To Pass, We Decided To Take A New Route In The Hope To Find A 
 Little Water In This Way, For We Had No Hope Of Finding It In Any Other. 
 This Valley We Now Crossed Seemed To Come To An End About Ten Miles To 
 The North Of Us. To The South It Widened Out, Enclosing The Lake Spoken 
 Of. This Valley Was Very Sandy And Hard To Walk Over. When About Halfway 
 Across We Saw Some Ox Tracks Leading Toward The Lake, And In The Hope We 
 Might Find The Water Drinkable We Turned Off At Right Angles To Our 
 Course And Went That Way Also. Long Before We Reached The Water Of The 
 Lake, The Bottom Became A Thin, Slimy Mud Which Was Very Hard On Our 
 Mocassins. When We Reached The Water We Found It To Be Of A Wine Color, 
 And So Strongly Alkaline As To Feel Slippery To The Touch, And Under Our 
 Feet. 
   
   
   
 This Side Trip, Had Cost Us Much Exertion And Made Us Feel More Thirsty 
 Than Ever. 
 
 
 
 Chapter 10 Pg 96 
   
   
   
 We Turned Now West Again, Making For A Canon, Up Which We Passed In The 
 Hope We Should At Some Turn Find A Little Basin Of Rain Water In Some 
 Rock. We Traveled In It Miles And Miles, And Our Mouths Became So Dry We 
 Had To Put A Bullet Or A Small Smooth Stone In And Chew It And Turn It 
 Around With The Tongue To Induce A Flow Of Saliva. If We Saw A Spear Of 
 Green Grass On The North Side Of A Rock, It Was Quickly Pulled And Eaten 
 To Obtain The Little Moisture It Contained. 
   
   
   
 Thus We Traveled Along For Hours, Never Speaking, For We Found It Much 
 Better For Our Thirst To Keep Our Mouths Closed As Much As Possible, And 
 Prevent The Evaporation. The Dry Air Of That Region Took Up Water As A 
 Sponge Does. We Passed The Summit Of This Ridge Without Finding Any 
 Water, And On Our Way Down The Western Side We Came To A Flat Place 
 Where There Was An Indian Hut Made Of Small Brush. We Now Thought There 
 Surely Must Be Some Water Near And We Began A Thorough Search. The Great 
 Snow Mountain Did Not Seem Far Off, But To The South And Southwest A 
 Level Or Inclined Plain Extended For A Long Distance. Our Thirst Began 
 To Be Something Terrible To Endure, And In The Warm Weather And Hard 
 Walking We Had Secured Only Two Drinks Since Leaving Camp. 
   
   
   
 We Were So Sure That There Must Be Water Near Here That We Laid Our 
 Knapsacks Down By The Little Hut And Looked Around In Every Possible 
 Place We Could Think Of. Soon It Got Dark And Then We Made A Little Fire 
 As A Guide And Looked Again. Soon The Moon Arose And Helped Us Some, And 
 We Shouted Frequently To Each Other So As Not To Get Lost. 
   
   
   
 We Were So Nearly Worn Out That We Tried To Eat A Little Meat, But After 
 Chewing A Long Time, The Mouth Would Not Moisten It Enough So We Could 
 Swallow, And We Had To Reject It. It Seemed As If We Were Going To Die 
 With Plenty Of Food In Our Hand, Because We Could Not Eat It. 
   
   
   
 We Tried To Sleep But Could Not, But After A Little Rest We Noticed A 
 Bright Star Two Hours Above The Horizon, And From The Course Of The Moon 
 We Saw The Star Must Be Pretty Truly West Of Us. We Talked A Little, And 
 The Burden Of It Was A Fear That We Could Not Endure The Terrible Thirst 
 A While Longer. The Thought Of The Women And Children Waiting For Our 
 Return Made Us Feel More Desperate Than If We Were The Only Ones 
 Concerned. We Thought We Could Fight To The Death Over A Water Hole If 
 We Could Only Secure A Little Of The Precious Fluid. No One Who Has Ever 
 Felt The Extreme Of Thirst Can Imagine The Distress, The Dispair, Which 
 It Brings. I Can Find No Words, No Way To Express It So Others Can 
 Understand. 
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 10 Pg 97 
   
 The Moon Gave Us So Much Light That We Decided We Would Start On Our 
 Course, And Get As Far As We Could Before The Hot Sun Came Out, And So 
 We Went On Slowly And Carefully In The Partial Darkness, The Only Hope 
 Left To Us Being That Our Strength Would Hold Out Till We Could Get To 
 The Shining Snow On The Great Mountain Before Us. We Reached The Foot Of 
 The Range We Were Descending About Sunrise. There Was Here A Wide Wash 
 From The Snow Mountain, Down Which Some Water Had Sometime Run After A 
 Big Storm, And Had Divided Into Little Rivulets Only Reaching Out A 
 Little Way Before They Had Sunk Into The Sand. 
   
   
   
 We Had No Idea We Could Now Find Any Water Till We At Least Got Very 
 Near The Snow, And As The Best Way To Reach It We Turned Up The Wash 
 Although The Course Was Nearly To The North. The Course Was Up A Gentle 
 Grade And Seemed Quite Sandy And Not Easy To Travel. It Looked As If 
 There Was An All Day Walk Before Us, And It Was Quite A Question If We 
 Could Live Long Enough To Make The Distance. There Were Quite Strong 
 Indications That The Water Had Run Here Not So Very Long Ago, And We 
 Could Trace The Course Of The Little Streams Round Among Little Sandy 
 Islands. A Little Stunted Brush Grew Here But It Was So Brittle That The 
 Stems Would Break As Easy As An Icicle. 
   
   
   
 In Order To Not Miss A Possible Bit Of Water We Separated And Agreed 
 Upon A General Course, And That If Either One Found Water He Should Fire 
 His Gun As A Signal. After About A Mile Or So Had Been Gone Over I Heard 
 Roger's Gun And Went In His Direction. He Had Found A Little Ice That 
 Had Frozen Under The Clear Sky. It Was Not Thicker Than Window Glass. 
 After Putting A Piece In Our Mouths We Gathered All We Could And Put It 
 Into The Little Quart Camp Kettle To Melt. We Gathered Just A Kettle 
 Full, Besides What We Ate As We Were Gathering, And Kindled A Little 
 Fire And Melted It. 
   
   
   
 I Can But Think How Providential It Was That We Started In The Night For 
 In An Hour After The Sun Had Risen That Little Sheet Of Ice Would Have 
 Melted And The Water Sank Into The Sand. Having Quenched Our Thirst We 
 Could Now Eat, And Found That We Were Nearly Starved Also. In Making 
 This Meal We Used Up All Our Little Store Of Water, But We Felt 
 Refreshed And Our Lives Renewed So That We Had Better Courage To Go On. 
   
   
   
 We Now Took Our Course West Again Taking A Bee Line For A Bluff That Lay 
 A Little To The South Of The Big Snow Mountain. On And On We Walked Till 
 The Dark Shadow Of The Great Mountain In The Setting Sun Was Thrown 
 About Us, And Still We Did Not Seem More Than Half Way To The Bluff 
 Before Us. 
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 10 Pg 98 
   
   
 All The Way Had Been Hill And Very Tiresome Walking. There Was 
 Considerable Small Brush Scattered About, Here And There, Over This 
 Steeply Inclined Plain. 
   
   
   
 We Were Still Several Miles From The Base Of This Largest Of The 
 Mountains And We Could Now See That It Extended West For Many Miles. The 
 Buttes To The South Were Low, Black And Barren, And To The West As Far 
 As We Could See There Were No Mountains With Any Snow. As The Sun Got 
 Further Down We Could See A Small Smoke Curling Up Near The Base Of The 
 Mountain, And We Thought It Must Be Some Signal Made By The Indians, As 
 We Had Often Seen Them Signal In That Way, But We Stopped And Talked The 
 Matter Over, And As We Were Yet A Long Way From The Bluff Which Had Been 
 Our Objective Point, We Concluded We Would Investigate The Smoke Signal 
 A Little Closer. So We Set Off Toward It In The Dusk And Darkness And 
 When Within About A Mile We Found We Were In A Tract That Had Been 
 Somewhat Beaten. Feeling With My Fingers I Was Quite Sure I Could 
 Distinguish Ox Tracks, And Then Was Quite Sure That We Had Overtaken The 
 Jayhawkers, Or At Least Were On Their Trail. And Then I Thought Perhaps 
 They Had Fallen Among The Indians, Who Now Might Be Feasting On Their 
 Oxen And It Became Necessary To Use Great Caution In Approaching The 
 Little Smoke. 
   
   
   
 We Took A Circuitous Route And Soon Saw That The Persons Were On A 
 Little Bench Above Us And We Kept Very Cautious And Quiet, Listening For 
 Any Sounds That Might Tell Us Who They Were. 
   
   
   
 If They Were Indians We Should Probably Hear Some Of Their Dogs, But We 
 Heard None, And Kept Creeping Closer And Closer, Till We Were Within 
 Fifty Yards Without Hearing A Sound To Give Us Any Idea Of Who They 
 Were. 
   
   
   
 We Decided To Get Our Guns At Full Cock And Then Hail The Camp, Feeling 
 That We Had A Little The Advantage Of Position. We Hailed And Were 
 Answered In English. "Don't Shoot" Said We And They Assured Us They Had 
 No Idea Of Such A Thing, And Asked Us To Come In. We Found Here To Our 
 Surprise, Ed Doty, Tom Shannon, L.D. Stevens, And Others Whom I Do Not 
 Recollect, The Real Jayhawkers. They Gave Us Some Fresh Meat For Supper, 
 And Near The Camp Were Some Water Holes That Answered Well For Camp 
 Purposes. 
   
   
   
 Here An Ox Had Given Out And They Had Stopped Long Enough To Dry The 
 Meat, While The Others Had Gone On A Day Ahead. 
 
 
 
 Chapter 10 Pg 99 
   
   
   
 Coming Around The Mountain From The North Was Quite A Well Defined 
 Trail, Leading To The West And They Said They Were Satisfied Some One 
 Lived At The End Of It, And They Were Going To Follow It If It Lead To 
 Mexico Or Anywhere Else. They Said That Mr. Brier And His Family Were 
 Still On Behind, And Alone. Every One Must Look Out For Himself Here, 
 And We Could Not Do Much For Another In Any Way. 
   
   
   
 We Inquired Of Them About The Trail Over Which They Had Come, And Where 
 They Had Found Water, And We Told Them Of Our Experience In This 
 Respect. We Then Related How Our Train Could Not Go Over The Mountains 
 With Wagons, How They Had Returned To The Best Spring, And That We 
 Started To Go Through To The Settlements To Obtain Relief While They 
 Waited For Our Return. We Explained To Them How They Must Perish Without 
 Assistance. If We Failed To Get Through, They Could Probably Live As 
 Long As The Oxen Lasted And Would Then Perish Of Starvation. We Told 
 Them How Nearly We Came To The Point Of Perishing That Very Morning, Of 
 Thirst, And How We Were Saved By Finding A Little Patch Of Ice In An 
 Unexpected Place, And Were Thus Enabled To Come On Another Days Travel. 
   
   
   
 These Men Were Not As Cheerful As They Used To Be And Their Situation 
 And Prospects Constantly Occupied Their Minds. They Said To Us That If 
 The Present Trail Bore Away From The Mountain And Crossed The Level 
 Plain, That There Were Some Of Them Who Could Not Possibly Get Along 
 Safely To The Other Side. Some Were Completely Discouraged, And Some 
 Were Completely Out Of Provisions And Dependent On Those Who Had Either 
 Provisions Or Oxen Yet On Hand. An Ox Was Frequently Killed, They Said, 
 And No Part Of It Was Wasted. At A Camp Where There Was No Water, For 
 Stewing, A Piece Or Hide Would Be Prepared For Eating By Singeing Off 
 The Hair And Then Roasting In The Fire. The Small Intestines Were Drawn 
 Through The Fingers To Clean Them, And These When Roasted Made Very Fair 
 Food. 
   
   
   
 They Said They Had Been Without Water For Four Or Five Days At A Time 
 And Came Near Starving To Death, For It Was Impossible To Swallow Food 
 When One Became So Thirsty. They Described The Pangs Of Hunger As 
 Something Terrible And Not To Be Described. They Were Willing To Give Us 
 Any Information We Desired And We Anxiously Received All We Could, For 
 On Our Return We Desired To Take The Best Possible Route, And We Thus 
 Had The Experience Of Two Parties Instead Of One. They Told Us About The 
 Death Of Mr. Fish And Mr. Isham, And Where We Would Find Their Bodies If 
 We Went Over Their Trail. 
   
   
   
 In The Morning We Shouldered Our Packs Again And Took The Trail Leading 
 
 
 
 Chapter 10 Pg 100 
 To The West, And By Night We Had Overtaken The Advance Party Of The 
 Jayhawkers, Camped In A Canon Where There Was A Little Water, Barely 
 Sufficient For Their Use. We Inquired Why They Did Not Take The Trail 
 Leading More Directly West At The Forks, And They Said They Feared It 
 Would Lead Them Into Deep Snow Which Would Be Impassible. They Said They 
 Considered The Trail They Had Taken As Altogether The Safest One. 
   
   
   
 We Met Bennett And Arcane's Teamsters, And As We Expected They Were 
 Already Out Of Grub And No Way To Get Anymore. When The Party Killed An 
 Ox They Had Humbly Begged For Some Of The Poorest Parts, And Thus Far 
 Were Alive. They Came To Us And Very Pitifully Told Us They Were 
 Entirely Out, And Although An Ox Had Been Killed That Day They Had Not 
 Been Able To Get A Mouthful. We Divided Up Our Meat And Gave Them Some 
 Although We Did Not Know How Long It Would Be Before We Would Ourselves 
 Be In The Same Situation. 
   
   
   
 Thus Far We Had Not Seen Anything To Shoot, Big Or Little Although We 
 Kept A Sharp Lookout. 
   
   
   
 The Whole Camp Was Silent, And All Seemed To Realize Their Situation. 
 Before Them Was A Level Plain Which Had The Appearance Of Being So Broad 
 As To Take Five Or Six Days To Cross. Judging By The Look From The Top 
 Of The Mountain As We Came Over, There Was Little To Hope For In The Way 
 Of Water. We Thought It Over Very Seriously. All The Water We Could 
 Carry Would Be Our Canteens Full, Perhaps Two Drinks Apiece And The Poor 
 Meat Had So Little Nourishment That We Were Weak And Unable To Endure 
 What We Once Could. 
   
   
   
 We Were Alone, Rogers And I, In Interest At Any Rate, Even If There Were 
 Other Men About. For The Time It Really Seemed As If There Was Very 
 Little Hope For Us And I Have Often Repeated The Following Lines As Very 
 Closely Describing My Own Feelings At That Time. 
   
   
   
   
     Oh Hands, Whose Loving, Gentle Grasp I Loosed. 
   When First This Weary Journey Was Begun. 
     If I Could Feel Your Touch As Once I Could. 
   How Gladly Would I Wish My Work Undone. 
   
   
   
   _Harriet Keynon_. 
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 10 Pg 101 
   
   
 During The Evening, I Had A Talk With Capt. Asa Haines, In Which He Said 
 He Left A Good Home In Illinois, Where He Had Everything He Could Wish 
 To Eat, And Every Necessary Comfort, And Even Some To Spare, And Now He 
 Felt So Nearly Worn Out That He Had Many Doubts Whether He Could Live To 
 Reach The Mountains, On The Other Side. He Was So Deeply Impressed That 
 He Made Me Promise To Let His Wife And Family Know How I Found Him And 
 How He Died, For He Felt Sure He Would Never See The California Mines. I 
 Said I Might Not Get Through Myself, But He Thought We Were So Young And 
 Strong That We Would Struggle Through. He Said If He Could Only Be Home 
 Once More He Would Be Content To Stay. This Was The General Tenor Of The 
 Conversation. There Was No Mirth, No Jokes, And Every One Seemed To Feel 
 That He Was Very Near The End Of His Life, And Such A Death As Stood 
 Before Them, Choking, Starving In A Desert Was The Most Dreary Outlook I 
 Ever Saw. 
   
   
   
 This Camp Of Trouble, Of Forlorn Hope, On The Edge Of A Desert 
 Stretching Out Before Us Like A Small Sea, With No Hope For Relief 
 Except At The End Of A Struggle Which Seemed Almost Hopeless, Is More 
 Than Any Pen Can Paint, Or At All Describe. The Writer Had Tried It 
 Often. Picture To Yourself, Dear Reader The Situation And Let Your Own 
 Imagination Do The Rest. It Can Never Come Up To The Reality. 
   
   
   
 In The Morning, As Rogers And I Were About To Start, Several Of The 
 Oldest Men Came To Us With Their Addresses And Wished Us To Forward Them 
 To Their Families If We Ever Got Within The Reach Of Mails. These Men 
 Shed Tears, And We Did Also As We Parted. We Turned Silently Away And 
 Again Took Up Our March. 
   
   
   
 As We Went Down The Canon We Came To One Place Where It Was So Narrow, 
 That A Man Or A Poor Ox Could Barely Squeeze Through Between The Rocks, 
 And In A Few Miles More Reached The Open Level Plain. When Three Or Four 
 Miles Out On The Trail And Not Far From The Hills We Came To A Bunch Of 
 Quite Tall Willows. The Center Of The Bunch Had Been Cut Out And The 
 Branches Woven In So As To Make A Sort Of Corral. In The Center Of This 
 Was A Spring Of Good Water And Some Good Grass Growing Around. This Was 
 Pretty Good Evidence That Some One Had Been Here Before. We Took A Good 
 Drink And Filled Our Canteens Anew, For We Did Not Expect To Get Another 
 Drink For Two Or Three Days At Least. 
   
   
   
 We Took The Trail Again And Hurried On As The Good Water Made Us Feel 
 Quite Fresh. After A Few Miles We Began To Find The Bones Of Animals, 
 Some Badly Decayed And Some Well Preserved. All The Heads Were Those Of 
 Horses, And It Puzzled Us To Know Where They Came From. As We Passed 
 Along We Noticed The Trail Was On A Slight Up Grade And Somewhat 
 
 
 
 Chapter 10 Pg 102 
 Crooked. If We Stepped Off From It The Foot Sank In About Two Inches In 
 Dirt Finer Than The Finest Flour. The Bones Were Scattered All Along, 
 Sometimes The Bones Of Several Animals Together. Was It The Long Drive, 
 Poison Water, Or What? It Was Evident They Had Not Been Killed But Had 
 Dropped Along The Way. 
   
   
   
 It Was A Dreary Trail At Best, And These Evidences Of Death Did Not Help 
 To Brighten It In The Least. We Wondered Often Where It Led To And What 
 New Things Would Be Our Experience. After Walking Fast All Day We Came 
 To Quite An Elevation, Where We Could Stand And Look In All Directions. 
 The Low Black Range Where We Left The Jayhawkers Was In Sight, And This 
 Spur Of The Great Snowy Mountains Extended A Long Way To The South, And 
 Seemed To Get Lower And Lower, Finally Ending In Low Rocky Buttes, A 
 Hundred Miles Away. Some May Think This Distance Very Far To See, But 
 Those Who Have Ever Seen The Clear Atmosphere Of That Region Will Bear 
 Me Out In These Magnificent Distances. Generally A Mountain Or Other 
 Object Seen At A Distance Would Be Three Or Four Times As Far Off As One 
 Would Judge At First Sight, So Deceptive Are Appearances There. The 
 Broad South End Of The Great Mountain Which We First Saw The Next 
 Morning After We Left The Wagons, Was Now Plain In Sight, And Peak After 
 Peak Extending Away To The North, All Of Them White With Snow. Standing 
 Thus Out In The Plain We Could See The Breadth Of The Mountain East And 
 West, And It Seemed As Though It Must Have Been Nearly A Hundred Miles. 
 The South End Was Very Abrupt And Sank As One Into A Great Plain In 
 Which We Stood, Twenty Miles From The Mountain's Base. 
   
   
   
 To The Northwest We Could See A Clay Lake, Or At Least That Was What We 
 Called It, And A Line Of Low Hills Seemed To Be An Extension Of The 
 Mountain In A Direction Swinging Around To The South To Enclose This 
 Thirsty, Barren Plain Before Us, Which Was Bounded By Mountains Or Hills 
 On These Sides. To The South This Range Seemed To Get Higher, And We 
 Could See Some Snow Capped Mountains To The South Of Our Westerly 
 Course. The Low Mountains As Those Seen In The Northwest Direction Is 
 The Same Place Now Crossed By The Southern Pacific Railroad, And Known 
 As The Tehachipi Pass, The Noted Loop, In Which The Railroad Crosses 
 Itself, Being On The West Slope And Ft. Tejon Being On The Same Range A 
 Little Further South Where The Sierra Nevada Mountains And The Coast 
 Range Join. The First Mountain Bearing Snow, South Of Our Course Was 
 Probably What Is Known As Wilson's Peak, And The High Mountains Still 
 Farther South, The San Bernardino Mountains. There Were No Names There 
 Known To Us Nor Did We Know Anything Of The Topography Of The Country 
 Except That We Supposed A Range Of Mountains Was All That Separated Us 
 From California. 
   
   
   
 We Were Yet In The Desert, And If We Kept Our Due West Course, We Must 
 Cross Some Of The Snow Before Us Which If Steep Gave Us Some Doubts 
 Whether We Could Get Through Or Not. 
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 10 Pg 103 
   
   
 We Did Not Know Exactly What The People Left Behind Would Do If We Were 
 Gone Longer Than We Intended, But If They Started On It Was Quite Plain 
 To Us They Would Be Lost, And As Seven Days Had Already Passed We Were 
 In Serious Trouble For Fear We Could Not Complete The Trip In The Time 
 Allotted To Us. We Surveyed The Plain And Mountains To Learn Its 
 Situation And Then Started, On Following Our Trail. As We Went On We 
 Seemed To Be Coming To Lower Ground, And Near Our Road Stood A Tree Of A 
 Kind We Had Not Seen Before. The Trunk Was About Six Or Eight Inches 
 Through And Six Or Eight Feet High With Arms At The Top Quite As Large 
 As The Body, And At The End Of The Arms A Bunch Of Long, Stiff Bayonet 
 Shaped Leaves. 
   
   
   
 It Was A Brave Little Tree To Live In Such A Barren Country. As We 
 Walked On These Trees Were More Plenty And Some Were Much Larger Than 
 The First. As We Came To The Lowest Part Of The Valley There Seemed To 
 Be Little Faint Water Ways Running Around Little Clouds Of Stunted 
 Shrubs, But There Was No Signs That Very Much Water Ever Run In Them. We 
 Thought That These Were The Outlet Of The Big Sandy Lake Which Might Get 
 Full Of Water And Overflow Through These Channels After Some Great 
 Storm. 
   
   
   
 As This Low Ground Was Quite Wide We Lost Our Trail In Crossing It, And 
 We Separated As We Went Along, Looking To Find It Again, Till Nearly 
 Dark When We Looked For A Camping Place. Fortunately We Found A Little 
 Pond Of Rain Water, And Some Of Our Strange Trees That Were Dead Gave Us 
 Good Material For A Fire, So That We Were Very Comfortable Indeed, 
 Having Both Drink And Fire. 
   
   
   
 Starting On Again Our Course Was Now Ascending Slightly, And We Came 
 Across More And More Of The Trees, And Larger Ones Than At First. We Saw 
 Some That Seemed To Have Broken Down With Their Own Weight. The Bayonet 
 Shaped Leaves Seemed To Fall Off When Old And The Stalk Looked So Much 
 Like An Old Overgrown Cabbage Stump That We Name Them "Cabbage Trees," 
 But Afterward Learned They Were A Species Of Yucca. We Were Much Worried 
 At Loosing Our Trail And Felt That It Would Be Quite Unsafe To Try To 
 Cross The Mountain Without Finding It Again, So We Separated, Rogers 
 Going Northwest, And I Southwest, Agreeing To Swing Round So As To Meet 
 Again About Noon, But When We Met, Neither Of Us Had Found A Trail, And 
 We Were Still About 10 Miles From The Foothills. Rogers Said He Had 
 Heard Some Of The People Say That The Trail Leading From Salt Lake To 
 Los Angeles Crossed Such A Mountain In A Low Pass, With Very High 
 Mountains On Each Side, And He Supposed That The High Mountain To The 
 South Must Be The One Where The Trail Crossed, But As This Would Take Us 
 Fully Fifty Miles South Of Our Course As We Supposed It Was We Hesitated 
 About Going There, And Concluded We Would Try The Lowest Place In The 
 Mountain First, And If We Failed We Could Then Go And Try Roger's Route, 
 
 
 
 Chapter 10 Pg 104 
 More To The South. 
   
   
   
 So We Pushed On, Still Keeping A Distance Apart To Look Out For The 
 Trail, And Before Night, In The Rolling Hills, We Saw Here And There 
 Faint Traces Of It, Which Grew Plainer As We Went Along, And About 
 Sundown We Reached Some Water Holes And From Some Old Skulls Of Oxen 
 Lying Around The Ground Showing That It Had At Some Previous Time Been A 
 Camping Ground. We Found Some Good Large Sage Brush Which Made A Pretty 
 Good Fire, And If We Could Have Had A Little Fresh Meat To Roast We 
 Thought We Were In A Good Position For Supper. But That Poor Meat Was 
 Pretty Dry Food. However It Kept Us Alive, And We Curled Up Together And 
 Slept, For The Night Was Cool, And We Had To Make The Little Blanket Do 
 Its Best. We Thought We Ought To Find A Little Game, But We Had Not Seen 
 Any To Shoot Since We Started. 
   
   
   
 In The Morning The Trail Led Us Toward The Snow, And As We Went Along, A 
 Brave Old Crow Surprised Us By Lighting On A Bush Near The Trail, And We 
 Surprised Him By Killing Him With A Charge Of Shot. "Here's Your Fresh 
 Meat," Said Rogers As He Put It Into His Knapsack To Cook For Supper, 
 And Marched On. As We Approached The Summit We Could See, On The High 
 Mountains South Of Us, Some Trees, And When We Came Near The Highest 
 Part Of Our Road There Were Some Juniper Trees Near It, Which Was Very 
 Encouraging. We Crossed Over Several Miles Of Hard Snow, But It 
 Moistened Up Our Moccassins And Made Them Soft And Uncomfortable. After 
 We Had Turned Down The Western Slope We Killed A Small Hawk. "Here's 
 Your Meat" Said I, As The Poor Thin Fellow Was Stowed Away For Future 
 Grub, To Cook With The Crow. 
   
   
   
 When We Got Out Of The Snow We Had Lost The Trail Again But The Hills On 
 The Sides Were Covered With Large Brush, And On A Higher Part Of The 
 Mountain South, Were Some Big Trees, And We Began To Think The Country 
 Would Change For The Better Pretty Soon. We Followed Down The Ravine For 
 Many Miles, And When This Came Out Into A Larger One, We Were Greatly 
 Pleased At The Prospect, For Down The Latter Came A Beautiful Little 
 Running Brook Of Clear Pure Water, Singing As It Danced Over The Stones, 
 A Happy Song And Telling Us To Drink And Drink Again, And You May Be 
 Sure We Did Drink, For It Had Been Months And Months Since We Had Had 
 Such Water, Pure, Sweet, Free From The Terrible Alkali And Stagnant 
 Taste That Had Been In Almost Every Drop We Had Seen. Rogers Leveled His 
 Shot Gun At Some Birds And Killed A Beautiful One With A Top Knot On His 
 Head, And Colors Bright All Down His Neck. It Was A California Quail. We 
 Said Birds Always Lived Where Human Beings Did, And We Had Great Hopes 
 Born To Us Of A Better Land. I Told John That If The Folks Were Only 
 There Now I Could Kill Game Enough For Them. 
   
   
   
 We Dressed Our Three Birds And Got Them Boiling In The Camp Kettle, And 
 
 
 
 Chapter 10 Pg 105 
 While They Were Cooking Talked Over The Outlook Which Was So Flattering 
 That Our Tongues Got Loose And We Rattled Away In Strange Contrast To 
 The Ominous Silence Of A Week Ago. While Eating Our Stew Of Crow And 
 Hawk, We Could See Willows Alders And Big Sage Brush Around And We Had 
 Noticed What Seemed To Be Cottonwoods Farther Down The Canon, And Green 
 Trees On The Slope Of The Mountain. We Were Sure We Were On The Edge Of 
 The Promised Land And Were Quite Light Hearted, Till We Began To Tell Of 
 Plans To Get The Good People Out Who Were Waiting For Us Beside The 
 Little Spring In The Desert. We Talked Of Going Back At Once, But Our 
 Meat Was Too Near Gone, And We Must Take Them Something To Encourage 
 Them A Little And Make Them Strong For The Fearful Trip. As To These 
 Birds--The Quail Was As Superb A Morsel As Ever A Man Did Eat; The Hawk 
 Was Pretty Fair And Quite Good Eating; But That Abominable Crow! His 
 Flesh Was About As Black As His Feathers And Full Of Tough And Bony 
 Sinews. We Concluded We Did Not Want Any More Of That Kind Of Bird, And 
 Ever Since That Day, When I Have Heard People Talk Of "Eating Crow" As A 
 Bitter Pill, I Think I Know All About It From Experience. 
   
   
   
 There Seemed To Be No Other Way For Us But To Push On In The Morning And 
 Try To Obtain Some Relief For The Poor Women And Children And Then Get 
 Back To Them As Fast As Ever We Could, So We Shouldered Our Packs And 
 Went On Down The Canon As Fast As We Could. We Came Soon To Evergreen 
 Oaks And Tall Cottonwoods, And The Creek Bottom Widened Out To Two 
 Hundred Yards. There Were Trees On The South Side And The Brush Kept 
 Getting Larger And Larger. There Was A Trail Down This Canon, But As It 
 Passed Under Fallen Trees We Knew It Could Not Have Been The Same One We 
 Had Been Following On The Other Side Of The Summit, And When We 
 Discovered A Bear Track In A Soft Place We Knew Very Well It Was Not A 
 Trail Intended For Human Beings, And We Might Be Ordered Out Almost Any 
 Moment. 
   
   
   
 On The High Bold Grassy Point About Four Hundred Yards We Saw Two Horses 
 That Held Their Heads Aloft And Gave A Snort, Then Galloped Away Out Of 
 Sight. About 10 O'clock I Felt A Sudden Pain In My Left Knee, Keen And 
 Sharp, And As We Went Along It Kept Growing Worse. I Had To Stop Often 
 To Rest, And It Was Quite Plain That If This Increased Or Continued I 
 Was Sure Enough Disabled, And Would Be Kept From Helping Those Whom We 
 Had Left. Nerved With The Idea We Must Get Help To Them, And That Right 
 Soon, I Hobbled Along As Well As I Could, But Soon Had To Say To Rogers 
 That He Had Better Go On Ahead And Get Help And Let Me Come On As Best I 
 Could, For Every Moment Of Delay Was A Danger Of Death To Our Party Who 
 Trusted Us To Get Them Help. Rogers Refused To Do This, He Said He Would 
 Stay With Me And See Me Out, And That He Could Not Do Much Alone, And 
 Had Better Wait Till I Got Better. So We Worked Along Through The 
 Tangled Brush, Being Many Times Compelled To Wade The Stream To Get 
 Along, And This Made Our Moccasins Soft And Very Uncomfortable To Wear. 
 I Endured The Pain All Day, And We Must Have Advanced Quite A Little 
 Distance In Spite Of My Lameness, But I Was Glad When Night Came And We 
 Camped In The Dark Brushy Canon, Having A Big Fire Which Made Me Quite 
 Comfortable All Night, Though It Was Quite Cold, And We Had To Keep 
 
 
 
 Chapter 10 Pg 106 
 Close Together So As To Use The Blanket. I Felt A Little Better In The 
 Morning And After Eating Some Of Our Poor Dried Meat, Which Was About As 
 Poor As Crow, And I Don't Know But A Little Worse, We Continued On Our 
 Way. 
   
   
   
 The Tangle Got Worse And Worse As We Descended, And At Times We Walked 
 In The Bed Of The Stream In Order To Make More Headway, But My Lameness 
 Increased And We Had To Go Very Slow Indeed. About Noon We Came To What 
 Looked Like An Excavation, A Hole Four Feet Square Or More It Looked To 
 Be, And On The Dirt Thrown Out Some Cottonwood Trees Had Grown, And One 
 Of The Largest Of These Had Been Cut Down Sometime Before. This Was The 
 First Sign Of White Men We Had Seen And It Was Evidently An Attempt At 
 Mining, No One Knows How Long Ago. It Encouraged Us At Any Rate, And We 
 Pushed On Through Brush And Briers, Tangles Of Wild Rose Bushes And 
 Bushes Of Every Sort, Till All Of A Sudden We Came Out Into An Open 
 Sandy Valley, Well Covered With Sage Brush And Perhaps A Hundred Yards 
 Wide; Probably More. 
   
   
   
 The Hills On The South Side Had On Them Some Oak Trees And Grassy Spots, 
 But The North Side Was Thickly Covered With Brush. Our Beautiful Little 
 Brook That Had Kept Us Company Soon Sank Into The Dry Sand Out Of Sight, 
 And We Moved Rather Slowly Along Every Little While We Spoke Of The 
 Chances Of Wagons Ever Getting Through The Road We Had Come, And The 
 Hope That My Lameness Might Not Continue To Retard Our Progress In 
 Getting Back To The Place Of Our Starting, That The Poor Waiting People 
 Might Begin To Get Out Of The Terrible Country They Were In And Enjoy As 
 We Had Done, The Beautiful Running Stream Of This Side Of The Mountain. 
 If I Did Not Get Better The Chances Were That They Would Perish, For 
 They Never Could Come Through Alone, As The Distance Had Proved Much 
 Greater Than We Had Anticipated, And Long Dry Stretches Of The Desert 
 Were More Than They Would Be Prepared For. As It Was We Feared Greatly 
 That We Had Consumed So Much Time They Would Get Impatient And Start Out 
 And Be Lost. 
   
   
   
 I Continued To Hobble Along Down The Barren Valley As Well As I Could 
 And Here And There Some Tracks Of Animals Were Discovered, But We Could 
 Not Make Out Whether They Were Those Of Domestic Cattle Or Elk. Soon, On 
 The Side Of A Hill, Rather High Up A Pack Of Prairie Wolves Were 
 Snarling Around The Carcass Of Some Dead Animal, And This Was Regarded 
 As Another Sign That More And Better Meat Could Be Found, For These 
 Animals Only Live Where Some Sort Of Game Can Be Found, And They Knew 
 Better Than We That It Was Not For Their Health To Go Into The Barren 
 Desert. 
   
   
   
 Before Us Now Was A Spur From The Hills That Reached Nearly Across Our 
 Little Valley And Shut Out Further Sight In That Direction And When We 
 
 
 
 Chapter 10 Pg 107 
 Came To It We Climbed Up Over It To Shorten The Distance. When The 
 Summit Was Reached A Most Pleasing Sight Filled Our Sick Hearts With A 
 Most Indescribable Joy. I Shall Never Have The Ability To Adequately 
 Describe The Beauty Of The Scene As It Appeared To Us, And So Long As I 
 Live That Landscape Will Be Impressed Upon The Canvas Of My Memory As 
 The Most Cheering In The World. There Before Us Was A Beautiful Meadow 
 Of A Thousand Acres, Green As A Thick Carpet Of Grass Could Make It, And 
 Shaded With Oaks, Wide Branching And Symmetrical, Equal To Those Of An 
 Old English Park, While All Over The Low Mountains That Bordered It On 
 The South And Over The Broad Acres Of Luxuriant Grass Was A Herd Of 
 Cattle Numbering Many Hundreds If Not Thousands. They Were Of All Colors 
 Shades And Sizes. Some Were Calmly Lying Down In Happy Rumination, 
 Others Rapidly Cropping The Sweet Grass, While The Gay Calves Worked Off 
 Their Superfluous Life And Spirit In Vigorous Exercise Or Drew Rich 
 Nourishment In The Abundant Mother's Milk. All Seemed Happy And Content, 
 And Such A Scene Of Abundance And Rich Plenty And Comfort Bursting Thus 
 Upon Our Eyes Which For Months Had Seen Only The Desolation And Sadness 
 Of The Desert, Was Like Getting A Glimpse Of Paradise, And Tears Of Joy 
 Ran Down Our Faces. If Ever A Poor Mortal Escapes From This World Where 
 So Many Trials Come, And Joys Of A Happy Heaven Are Opened Up To Him, 
 The Change Cannot Be Much More That This Which Was Suddenly Opened To Us 
 On That Bright Day Which Was Either One Of The Very Last Of December 
 1849 Or The First Of January 1850, I Am Inclined To Think It Was The 
 Very Day Of The New Year, But In Our Troubles, The Accuracy Of The 
 Calendar Was Among The Least Of Our Troubles. If It Was, As I Believe 
 The Beginning Of The Year, It Was Certainly A Most Auspicious One And 
 One Of The Most Hopeful Of My Life. 
   
   
   
 And _Now If The Others Were Only Here_, Was The Burden Of Our Thought, 
 And A Serious Awakening From The Dream Of Beauty And Rich Plenty Spread 
 Out Before Us. This Ring-Streaked And Speckled Herd Might Be Descended 
 Directly From Jacob's Famous Herd, Blessed Of The Lord, And While We 
 Could Not Keep Our Thoughts From Some Sad Doubts As To The Fate Of Those 
 Whom We Had Left Behind, We Tried To Be Generally Hopeful And Courageous 
 And Brightened Up Our Steps To Prepare For A Relief And Return To The 
 Hot Dry Plain Beyond The Mountains Where They Were Awaiting Us, No Doubt 
 With Much Tribulation. 
   
   
   
 I Now Thought Of Myself And My Failing Knee And We Sat Down Under The 
 Shade Of An Oak To Rest, And After A Little, Better Feeling Seemed To 
 Come. Down By A Deep Gully Cut By The Rains A Yearling Steer Was 
 Feeding, And I Took The Rifle And Crawled Down Near Him And Put First 
 One Ball Through Him, And Then Another, Before He Fell Dead On The Other 
 Side Of The Wash, When We Sprang With All The Agility Of A Deer. We 
 Quickly Got Some Good Meat And Had It Roasted And Eaten Almost Quicker 
 Than Can Be Told. We Hardly Realized How Near Starved We Were Till We 
 Had Plenty Before Us Again. We Ate Till We Were Satisfied For Once, And 
 For The First Time In Many Long Dreary Weeks. We Kindled A Fire And 
 Commenced Drying The Meat, One Sleeping While The Other Kept The Fire, 
 And Changing Off Every Few Hours. What A Rest That Was! One Who Has 
 
 
 
 Chapter 10 Pg 108 
 Never Been Nearly Worn Out And Starved, Down Nearly To The Point Of 
 Death Can Never Know What It Is To Rest In Comfort. No One Can Tell. It 
 Was Like A Dream, A Sweet, Restful Dream Where Troubles Would Drown 
 Themselves In Sleep. How We Felt The Strength Come Back To Us With That 
 Food And The Long Draughts Of Pure Clear Water. 
   
   
   
 The Miserable Dried Meat In Our Knapsacks Was Put Away And This Splendid 
 Jerked Beef Put In Its Place. The Wolves Came To Our Camp And Howled In 
 Dreadful Disappointment At Not Getting A Meal. Rogers Wanted Me To Shoot 
 The Miserable Howlers, But I Let Them Have Their Concert Out, And 
 Thought Going Without Their Breakfast Must Be Punishment Enough For 
 Them. As Our Moccasins Were Worn Out We Carefully Prepared Some Sinews 
 From The Steer And Made New Foot Gear From The Green Hide Which Placed 
 Us In Shape For Two Or Three Week's Walking. 
   
   
   
 The Morning Was Clear And Pleasant. We Had Our Knapsacks Filled With 
 Good Food We Had Prepared, And Were Enjoying The Cool Breeze Which Came 
 Up The Valley, When We Heard Faintly The Bark Of A Dog, Or At Least We 
 Thought We Did. If This Were True There Must Be Some One Living Not Very 
 Far Away And We Felt Better. I Was Still Very Lame And As We Started 
 Along The Walking Seemed To Make It Worse Again, So That It Was All I 
 Could Do To Follow John On The Trail Down The Valley. As We Went Along A 
 Man And Woman Passed Us Some Distance On The Left, And They Did Not Seem 
 To Notice Us, Though We Were In Plain Sight. They Were Curiously 
 Dressed. The Woman Had No Hoops Nor Shoes, And A Shawl Wound About Her 
 Neck And One End Thrown Over Her Head, Was A Substitute Bonnet. The Man 
 Had Sandals On His Feet, With White Cotton Pants, A Calico Shirt, And A 
 Wide Rimmed, Comical, Snuff-Colored Hat. We At Once Put Them Down As 
 Spaniards, Or Then Descendants Of Mexico, And If What We Had Read About 
 Them In Books Was True, We Were In A Set Of Land Pirates, And Blood 
 Thirsty Men Whom We Might Have Occasion To Be Aware Of. We Had Never 
 Heard A Word Of Spanish Spoken, Except Perhaps A Word Or Two Upon The 
 Plains Which Some Fellow Knew, And How We Could Make Ourselves Known And 
 Explain Who We Were Was A Puzzle To Us. 
   
   
   
 Difficulties Began To Arise In Our Minds Now We Were In An Apparent Land 
 Of Plenty, But In Spite Of All We Went Along As Fast As My Lame Knee 
 Would Permit Me To Do. A House On Higher Ground Soon Appeared In Sight. 
 It Was Low, Of One Story With A Flat Roof, Gray In Color, And Of A 
 Different Style Of Architecture From Any We Had Ever Seen Before. There 
 Was No Fence Around It, And No Animals Or Wagons In Sight, Nor Person To 
 Be Seen. As We Walked Up The Hill Toward It I Told John Our Moccasins 
 Made Of Green Hide Would Betray Us As Having Recently Killed An Animal, 
 And As These People Might Be The Owners And Detain Us By Having Us 
 Arrested For The Crime, And This Would Be Especially Bad For Us Just 
 Now. We Determined To Face The People, And Let The Fact Of Our Close 
 Necessities Be A Sufficient Excuse For Us, If We Could Make Them 
 Understand Our Circumstances. 
 
 
 
 Chapter 10 Pg 109 
   
   
   
 As We Came Near The House No Person Was Seen, But A Mule Tied To A Post 
 Told Us There Was Some One About, And A Man Soon Made An Appearance, 
 Dressed About The Same Style As The One We Had Passed A Short Time 
 Before. As We Came Near We Saluted Him, Bidding Him Good Morning, And He 
 In Turn Touched His Hat Politely, Saying Something In Reply Which We 
 Were Not Able To Understand. I Showed Him That I Was Lame, And Taking 
 Out Some Money Pointed To The Mule, But He Only Shook His Head And Said 
 Something I Could Not Comprehend. Rogers Now Began Looking Around The 
 House, Which Was Built Of Sun-Dried Bricks About One By Two Feet In 
 Size, And One End Was Used As A Storehouse. As He Looked In, A Man Came 
 To Him And Wanted A Black, Patent Leather Belt Which Rogers Wore, Having 
 A Watch-Pocket Attached To It. He Offered A Quart Or More Of Coarse Corn 
 Meal, And Rogers Made The Trade. 
   
   
   
 We Tried To Inquire Where We Were Or Where Ought To Go, But Could Get No 
 Satisfactory Answer From The Man, Although When We Spoke San Francisco 
 He Pointed To The North. This Was Not Very Satisfactory To Us And We 
 Seemed As Badly Lost As Ever, And Where Or Which Way To Go We Did Not 
 Seem Very Successful In Finding Out. So We Concluded To Go On A Little 
 Way At Least, And I Hobbled Off In The Direction He Pointed, Which Was 
 Down The Hill And Past A Small, Poorly Fenced Field Which Was Sometimes 
 Cultivated, And Across The Stream Which Followed Down The Valley. 
 Passing On A Mile Or Two We Stopped On A Big Patch Of Sand To Rest. 
   
   
   
 I Told Rogers I Did Not Think This Course Would Lead Us To Any Place In 
 A Month, And Just Now A Delay Was Ruinous To Us And To Those Who Were 
 Waiting For Us, And It Would Not Do For Us To Go Off To The North To 
 Find A Settlement. While I Was Expressing My Opinion On Matters And 
 Things, Rogers Had Wet Up A Part Of His Meal With Water And Put It To 
 Bake On The Cover Of His Camp Kettle. There Was A Fair Sized Cake For 
 Each Of Us, And It Was The First Bread Of Any Kind We Had Eaten For 
 Months, Being A Very Acceptable Change From An Exclusively Meat Diet. 
 Looking Up The Valley We Could See A Cloud Of Dust, Thick And High, And 
 Soon Several Men On Horseback Who Came At A Rushing Gallop. I Told 
 Rogers They Were After Us, And Believed Them To Be A Murderous Set Who 
 Might Make Trouble For Us. I Hastily Buried Our Little Store Of Money In 
 The Sand, Telling Him That If They Got Us, They Would Not Get Our Money. 
 Putting Our Guns Across Our Laps In An Easy Position We Had Them Cocked 
 And Ready For Business, And Our Knives Where We Could Get Them Handy, 
 And Awaited Their Arrival. 
   
   
   
 They Came On With A Rush Until Within A Short Distance And Halted For 
 Consultation Just Across The Creek, After Which One Of Them Advanced 
 Toward Us And As He Came Near Us We Could See He Was A White Man, Who 
 Wished Us Good Evening In Our Own Language. We Answered Him Rather 
 
 
 
 Chapter 10 Pg 110 
 Cooly, Still Sitting In The Sand And He No Doubt Saw That We Were A 
 Little Suspicious Of The Crowd. He Asked Us Where We Were From, And We 
 Told Him Our Circumstances And Condition And That We Would Like To 
 Secure Some Means Of Relief For The People We Had Left In The Desert, 
 But Our Means Were Very Limited And We Wanted To Do The Best We Could. 
 He Said We Were About 500 Miles From San Francisco, Not Far From 100 
 Miles From The Coast And Thirty Miles From Los Angeles. We Were Much 
 Afraid We Would Not Be Able To Get Anything Here, But He Told Us To Go 
 Across The Valley To A Large Live Oak Tree Which He Pointed Out, And 
 Said We Would Find An American There, And We Should Wait There Till 
 Morning. He Said He Would Go Back And Stay At The House We Had Passed, 
 And Would Do What He Could To Assist Us To Go To Los Angeles Where We 
 Could Get Some Supplies. Then He Rode Away, And As We Talked It Over We 
 Saw No Way But To Follow The Directions Of Our Newfound Friend. 
   
   
   
 It Seemed Now That My Lameness Had Indeed Been A Blessing. If I Had Been 
 Able To Walk We Would Now Have Been Well On Toward The Seashore, Where 
 We Could Have Found No Such Friend As This Who Had Appeared To Us. The 
 Way Seemed Clearer To Us, But The Time For Our Return Was Almost Up And 
 There Was No Way Of Getting Back In Fifteen Days As We Had Agreed Upon, 
 So There Was Great Danger To Our People Yet. It Seemed Very Likely To 
 Take Us Twenty Four Or Thirty Days At Best, And While They Probably Had 
 Oxen Enough To Provide Them Food For So Long A Time They Might Take A 
 Notion To Move On, Which Would Be Fatal. 
   
   
   
 At The Big Live Oak Tree We Found An American Camper, Who Was On His Way 
 To The Gold Mines. He Was Going A New Route And Said The Mines Could Be 
 Reached Much Quicker Than By Going Up The Coast By Way Of San Francisco. 
 A New Company With Wagons Was Soon To Start Out To Break The Road, And 
 When They Crossed The East End Of The Valley He Would Follow Them. I 
 Think This Man's Name Was Springer. He Had Come By Way Of The Santa Fe 
 Route, And The People Of Los Angeles Had Told Him This Route Was An Easy 
 One Being Often Traveled By Saddle Horses, And If The Company Could Make 
 It Possible For Wagons They Could Have All The Cattle They Wanted To 
 Kill Along The Road As Their Pay For Doing The Work. Our New Friend Lay 
 Down Early, And As He Saw We Were Scant In Blankets He Brought Some To 
 Us For Our Use, Which Were Most Thankfully Received. 
   
   
   
 As Soon As We Were Alone Rogers Mixed Up Some More Of The Meal Which We 
 Baked In Our Friend's Frying Pan, And We Baked And Ate And Baked And Ate 
 Again, For Our Appetites Were Ravenous, And The Demand Of Our Stomachs 
 Got The Better Of The Judgment Of Our Brains. 
   
   
   
 It Was Hard To Find Time To Sleep, We Were So Full Of The Plans About 
 The Way, Which We Must Manage To Get Relief For The People. We Had Many 
 Doubts If Animals Could Ever Come Over The Route We Had Come Over, From 
 
 
 
 Chapter 10 Pg 111 
 Deliberation We Decided That By Selecting A Route With That Idea In Our 
 Minds, We Could Get Mules And Perhaps Horses Over The Country. We 
 Perhaps Could Go More To The North And Take The Jayhawkers Trail, But 
 This Would Take Us Fully A Hundred Miles Farther And Four Or Five Days 
 Longer, At The Best, And Every Moment Of Delay Was To Be Carefully 
 Avoided As A Moment Of Danger To Our Friends. 
   
   
   
 Thus Again, Our Sleep Was Troubled From Another Cause. Being So Long 
 Unaccustomed To Vegetable Food, And Helped On, No Doubt, By Our Poor 
 Judgment In Gauging The Quantity Of Our Food, We Were Attacked By Severe 
 Pains In The Stomach And Bowels, From Which We Suffered Intensely. We 
 Arose Very Early And With A Very Light Breakfast, For The Sickness 
 Admonished Us, We Started Back For The House We Had First Passed, At 
 Which Our Friend On Horseback, Said He Would Spend The Night And Where 
 We Were To Meet Him This Morning. He Said He Could Talk Spanish All 
 Right And Would Do All He Could To Help Us. 
   
   
   
 Our Suffering And Trouble Caused Us To Move Very Slowly, So That It Was 
 Nine Or Ten O'clock Before We Reached The House, And We Found They Had 
 Two Horses All Ready For Us To Go To Los Angeles. There Were No Saddles 
 For Us, But We Thought This Would Be A Good Way To Cure My Lameness. The 
 People Seemed To Be Friends To Us In Every Way. We Mounted, Having Our 
 Packs On Our Backs, And Our Guns Before Us, And With A Friendly Parting 
 To The People Who Did Not Go, All Four Of Us Started On A Trip Of Thirty 
 Miles To The Town Of Los Angeles. 
   
   
   
 When We Reached The Foot Of The Mountain Which Was Very Steep But Not 
 Rocky, John And I Dismounted And Led Our Animals To The Top, Where We 
 Could See A Long Way West, And South, And It Looked Supremely Beautiful. 
 We Could Not Help Comparing It To The Long Wide, Desert We Had Crossed, 
 And John And Myself Said Many Times How We Wished The Folks Were Here To 
 Enjoy The Pleasant Sight, The Beautiful Fertile Picture. 
   
   
   
 There Appeared To Be One Quite Large House In Sight, And Not Far Off, 
 Which The Man Told Us Was The Mission Of San Fernando, A Roman Catholic 
 Church And Residence For Priests And Followers. The Downward Slope Of 
 The Mountain Was As Steep As The Other Side And Larger, And John And I 
 Did Not Attempt To Mount Till We Were Well Down On The Level Ground 
 Again, But The Other Two Men Rode Up And Down Without Any Trouble. We 
 Would Let Our Leaders Get Half A Mile Or So Ahead Of Us And Then Mount 
 And Put Our Horses To A Gallop Till We Overtook Them Again. We Had 
 Walked So Long That Riding Was Very Tiresome To Us, And For Comfort 
 Alone We Would Have Preferred The Way On Foot, But We Could Get Along A 
 Little Faster, And The Frequent Dismounting Kept Us From Becoming Too 
 Lame From Riding. 
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 10 Pg 112 
   
   
 We Passed The Mission About Noon Or A Little After, And A Few Miles 
 Beyond Met A Man On Horseback Who Lived Up To The North About A Hundred 
 Miles. His Name Was French And He Had A Cattle Range At A Place Called 
 Tejon (Tahone). Our Friends Told Him Who We Were, And What Assistance We 
 Needed. Mr. French Said He Was Well Acquainted In Los Angeles And Had 
 Been There Some Time, And That All The Travelers Who Would Take The 
 Coast Route Had Gone, Those Who Had Come By Way Of Salt Lake Had Got In 
 From Two To Four Weeks Before, And A Small Train Which Had Come The 
 Santa Fe Route Was Still Upon The Road. He Said Los Angeles Was So Clear 
 Of Emigrants That He Did Not Think We Could Get Any Help There At The 
 Present Time. 
   
   
   
 "Now," Said Mr. French--"You Boys Can't Talk Spanish And It Is Not Very 
 Likely You Will Be Able To Get Any Help. Now I Say, You Boys Turn Back 
 And Go With Me And I Will Give You The Best I Have, I Will Let You Have 
 A Yoke Of Gentle Oxen, Or More If You Need Them, And Plenty Of Beans, 
 Which Are Good Food For I Live On Them; Besides This I Can Give An 
 Indian Guide To Help You Back. Will That Do?" After A Moment We Said We 
 Doubted If Oxen Could Be Got Over The Road, And If They Were Fat Now 
 They Would Soon Get Poor, And Perhaps Not Stand It As Well As The Oxen 
 Which Had Became Used To That Kind Of Life, And Of Those They Had In 
 Camp All They Needed. We Wanted To Get Something For The Women And 
 Children To Ride, For We Knew They Must Abandon The Wagons, And Could 
 Not Walk So Far Over That Dry, Rough Country. "Well," Said Mr. 
 French:--"I Will Stop At The Place You Were This Morning--I Know Them 
 Well--And They Are Good Folks, And I Am Sure When I Tell Them What You 
 Want They Will Help You If They Possibly Can. This Looks To Me To Be The 
 Most Sensible Course." After Talking An Hour Our Two Companions Advised 
 Us That The Proposition Of Mr. French Seemed The Most Reasonable One 
 That Appeared. But For Us To Go Clear Back To His Range Would Take Up So 
 Much Valuable Time That We Were Almost Afraid Of The Delay Which Might 
 Mean The Destruction Of Our Friends. French Said He Had A Pack Saddle, 
 With Him Taking It Home, And We Could Put It On One Of Our Horses, And 
 When We Came Back To Los Angeles Could Leave It At A Certain Saloon Or 
 Place He Named And Tell Them It Belonged To Him And To Keep It For Him. 
 I Have Forgotten The Name Of The Man Who Kept The Saloon. We Agreed To 
 This, And Bidding Our Two Companions Farewell, We Turned Back Again With 
 Mr. French. 
   
   
   
 When Night Came We Were Again At The Mission We Had Passed On The Way 
 Down. We Were Kindly Treated Here, For I Believe Mr. French Told Them 
 About Us. They Sent An Indian To Take Our Horses, And We Sat Down Beside 
 The Great House. There Were Many Smaller Houses, And Quite A Large Piece 
 Of Ground Fenced In By An Adobe Wall. The Roof Of The Buildings Was Like 
 That Of Our Own Buildings In Having Eaves On Both, Sides, But The 
 Covering Was Of Semi Circular Tiles Made And Burned Like Brick. Rows Of 
 These Were Placed Close Together, The Hollow Sides Up, And Then Another 
 Course Over The Joints, Placed With The Round Side Up, Which Made A Roof 
 
 
 
 Chapter 10 Pg 113 
 That Was Perfectly Waterproof, But Must Have Been Very Heavy. These 
 Tiles Were About Two Feet Long. All The Surroundings, And General Make 
 Up Of The Place Were New To Us And Very Wonderful. They Gave Us Good 
 Dried Meat To Eat And Let Us Sleep In The Big House On The Floor, Which 
 Was As Hard As Granite, And We Turned Over A Great Many Times Before 
 Daylight, And Were Glad When Morning Came. We Offered To Pay Them, But 
 They Would Take Nothing From Us, And We Left Leading Our Horses Over The 
 Steep Mountain, And Reaching The House Again Late In The Day. They 
 Turned Our Horses Loose And Seemed Disposed To Be Very Friendly And 
 Disposed To Do For Us What They Could. 
   
   
   
 We Were Very Tired And Sat Down By The Side Of The House And Rested, 
 Wondering How We Would Come Out With Our Preparations. They Were Talking 
 Together, But We Could Not Understand A Word. A Dark Woman Came Out And 
 Gave Each Of Us A Piece Of Cooked Squash. It Seemed To Have Been Roasted 
 In The Ashes And Was Very Sweet And Good. These Were All Signs Of 
 Friendship And We Were Glad Of The Good Feeling. We Were Given A Place 
 To Sleep In The House, In A Store Room On A Floor Which Was Not Soft. 
 This Was The Second House We Had Slept In Since Leaving Wisconsin, And 
 It Seemed Rather Pent-Up To Us. 
   
   
   
 In The Morning We Were Shown A Kind Of Mill Like A Coffee Mill, And By 
 Putting In A Handful Of Wheat From A Pile And Giving The Mill A Few 
 Turns We Were Given To Understand We Should Grind Some Flour For 
 Ourselves. We Went To Work With A Will, But Found It, Hard, Slow Work. 
   
   
   
 After A Little, Our Dark Woman Came And Gave Us Each A Pancake And A 
 Piece Of Meat, Also Another Piece Of Roasted Squash, For Our Breakfast, 
 And This, We Thought, Was The Best Meal We Had Ever Eaten. The Lady 
 Tried To Talk To Us But We Could Not Understand The Words, And I Could 
 Convey Ideas To Her Better By The Sign Language Than Any Other Way. She 
 Pointed Out The Way From Which We Came And Wanted To Know How Many Day's 
 Travel It Might Be Away, And I Answered By Putting My Hand To My Head 
 And Closing My Eyes, Which Was Repeated As Many Times As There Had Been 
 Nights On Our Journey, At Which She Was Much Surprised That The Folks 
 Were So Far Away. She Then Place Her Hand Upon Her Breast And Then Held 
 It Up, To Ask How Many Women There Were, And I Answered Her By Holding 
 Up Three Fingers, At Which She Shrugged Her Shoulders And Shook Her 
 Head. Then Pointing To A Child By Her Side, Four Or Five Years Old, And 
 In The Same Way Asked How Many Children, I Answered By Holding Up Four 
 Fingers, And She Almost Cried, Opening Her Mouth In Great Surprise, And 
 Turned Away. 
   
   
   
 I Said To Rogers That She Was A Kind, Well Meaning Woman, And That Mr. 
 French Had No Doubt Told Her Something Of Our Story. Aside From Her Dark 
 Complexion Her Features Reminded Me Of My Mother, And At First Sight Of 
 
 
 
 Chapter 10 Pg 114 
 Her I Thought Of The Best Woman On Earth My Own Far Off Mother, Who 
 Little Knew The Hardships We Had Endured. We Went To Work Again At The 
 Mill And After A While The Woman Came Again And Tried To Talk And To 
 Teach Us Some Words Of Her Own Language. She Place Her Finger On Me And 
 Said _Ombre_ And I Took Out My Little Book And Wrote Down _Ombre_ As 
 Meaning Man, And In The Same Way She Taught Me That _Mujer_, Was Woman; 
 _Trigo_, Wheat; _Frijoles_, Beans; _Carne_, Meat; _Calazasa_, Pumpkin; 
 _Caballo_, Horse; _Vaca_, Cow; _Muchacho_, Boy, And Several Other Words 
 In This Way. 
   
   
   
 I Got Hold Of Many Words Thus To Study, So That If I Ever Came Back I 
 Could Talk A Little And Make Myself Understood As To Some Of The Common 
 Objects And Things Of Necessary Use. Such Friendly, Human Acts Shown To 
 Us Strangers, Were Evidences Of The Kindest Disposition. I Shall Never 
 Forget The Kindness Of Those Original Californians. When In Walker's 
 Camp And Finding He Was Friendly To Mormonism We Could Claim That We 
 Were Also Mormons, But The Good People Though Well Known Catholics, Did 
 Not So Much As Mention The Fact Nor Inquire Whether We Favored That Sect 
 Or Not. We Were Human Beings In Distress And We Represented Others Who 
 Were Worse Even Than We, And Those Kind Acts And Great Good Will, Were 
 Given Freely Because We Were Fellow Human Beings. 
   
   
   
 The Provisions We Prepared Were, A Sack Of Small Yellow Beans; A Small 
 Sack Of Wheat, A Quantity Of Good Dried Meat, And Some Of The Coarse, 
 Unbolted Flour We Had Made At The Mills. They Showed Us How To Properly 
 Pack The Horse, Which Was A Kind Of Work We Had Not Been Use To, And We 
 Were Soon Ready For A Start. I Took What Money We Had And Put It On A 
 Block, Making Signs For Them To Take What The Things Were Worth. They 
 Took $30, And We Were Quite Surprised To Get Two Horses, Provisions, 
 Pack-Saddles And Ropes, Some Of The Latter Made Of Rawhide And Some Of 
 Hair, So Cheaply, But We Afterward Learned That The Mares Furnished Were 
 Not Considered Of Much Value, And We Had Really Paid A Good Fair Price 
 For Everything. To Make It Easy For Us They Had Also Fixed Our Knapsacks 
 On The Horses. 
   
   
   
 The Good Lady With The Child, Came Out With Four Oranges And Pointed To 
 Her Own Child And Then To The East, Put Them In The Pack Meaning We 
 Should Carry Them To The Children. With A Hearty Good Bye From Them, And 
 A Polite Lifting Of Our Hats To Them We Started On Our Return, Down 
 Toward The Gentle Decline Of The Creek Bottom, And Then Up The Valley, 
 The Way We Came. Toward Night We Came To A Wagon Road Crossing The 
 Valley, And As We Well Knew We Could Not Go Up The Tangled Creek Bed 
 With Horses We Took This Road To The North, Which Took A Dry Ravine For 
 Its Direction, And In Which There Was A Pack Trail, And This The Wagons 
 Were Following. We Kept On The Trail For A Few Miles, And Overtook Them 
 In Their Camp, And Camped With Them Over Night. We Told Them We 
 Considered Our Outfit Entirely Too Small For The Purpose Intended, Which 
 Was To Bring Two Women And Four Children Out Of The Desert, But That 
 
 
 
 Chapter 10 Pg 115 
 Being The Best We Could Get, We Were Taking This Help To Them And Hoped 
 To Save Their Lives. Our Mission Became Well Known And One Man Offered 
 To Sell Us A Poor Little One-Eyed Mule, Its Back All Bare Of Covering 
 From The Effect Of A Great Saddle Sore That Had Very Recently Healed. He 
 Had Picked It Up Somewhere In Arizona Where It Had Been Turned Out To 
 Die, But It Seemed The Beast Had Enough Of The Good Santa Ana Stock In 
 It To Bring It Through And It Had No Notion Of Dying At The Present 
 Time, Though It Was Scarcely More Than A Good Fair Skeleton, Even Then. 
 The Beast Became Mine At The Price Of $15, And The People Expressed 
 Great Sympathy With Us And The Dear Friends We Were Going To Try To 
 Save. 
   
   
   
 Another Man Offered A Little Snow-White Mare, As Fat As Butter, For $15, 
 Which I Paid, Though It Took The Last Cent Of Money I Had. This Little 
 Beauty Of A Beast Was Broken To Lead At Halter, But Had Not Been Broken 
 In Any Other Way. Rogers Said He Would Ride Her Where He Could, And 
 Before She Got To The Wagons She Would Be As Gentle As A Lamb. He Got A 
 Bridle And Tried Her At Once, And Then There Was A Scene Of Rearing, 
 Jumping And Kicking That Would Have Made A Good Buffalo Bill Circus In 
 These Days. No Use, The Man Could Not Be Thrown Off, And The Crowd 
 Cheered And Shouted To Rogers To--"Hold Her Level." 
   
   
   
 After Some Bucking And Backing On The Part Of The Mare And A Good Deal 
 Of Whipping And Kicking On The Part Of The Man, And A Good Many Furious 
 Clashes In Lively, But Very Awkward Ways, The Little Beast Yielded The 
 Point, And Carried Her Load Without Further Trouble. 
   
   
   
 The People Gave Us A Good Supper And Breakfast, And One Man Came And 
 Presented Us With 25 Pounds Of Unbolted Wheat Flour. They Were Of Great 
 Assistance To Us In Showing Us How To Pack And Sack Our Load, Which Was 
 Not Heavy And Could Be Easily Carried By Our Two Animals Which We Had At 
 First. However We Arranged A Pack On The Mule And This Gave Me A Horse 
 To Ride And A Mule To Lead, While Rogers Rode His Milk-White Steed And 
 Led The Other Horse. Thus We Went Along And Following The Trail Soon 
 Reached The Summit From Which We Could See Off To The East A Wonderful 
 Distance, Probably 200 Miles, Of The Dry And Barren Desert Of Hill And 
 Desolate Valley Over Which We Had Come. 
   
   
   
 The Trail Bearing Still To The North From This Point, We Left And Turned 
 Due East Across The Country, And Soon Came To A Beautiful Lake Of Sweet 
 Fresh Water Situated Well Up Toward The Top Of The Mountain. This Lake 
 Is Now Called Elizabeth Lake. Here We Watered Our Animals And Filled Our 
 Canteens, Then Steered A Little South Of East Among The Cabbage Trees, 
 Aiming To Strike The Rain Water Hole Where We Had Camped As We Came 
 Over. We Reached The Water Hole About Noon And Here Found The Jayhawkers 
 Trail, Which We Took. They Had Evidently Followed Us And Passed Down The 
 
 
 
 Chapter 10 Pg 116 
 Same Brushy Canon While We Having Taken A Circuitous Route To The North, 
 Had Gone Around There. Getting Water Here For Ourselves And Horses, We 
 Went Back To The Trail And Pushed On As Fast As The Animals Could Walk, 
 And As We Now Knew Where We Could Get Water, We Kept On Till After Dark, 
 One Of Us Walking To Keep The Trail, And Some Time In The Night Reached 
 The Willow Corral I Have Spoken Of Before. There Was Good Water Here, 
 But The Jayhawker's Oxen Had Eaten All The Grass That Grew In The Little 
 Moist Place Around, And Our Animals Were Short Of Feed. One Of Us Agreed 
 To Stand Guard The Fore Part Of The Night And The Other Later, So That 
 We Might Not Be Surprised By Indians And Lose Our Animals. I Took The 
 First Watch And Let The Blaze Of The Fire Go Out So As Not To Attract 
 Attention And As I Sat By The Dull Coals And Hot Ashes I Fell Asleep. 
 Rogers Happened To Wake And See The Situation, And Arose And Waked Me 
 Again Saying That We Must Be More Careful Or The Indians Would Get Our 
 Horses. You May Be Sure I Kept Awake The Rest Of My Watch. 
   
   
   
 Next Day We Passed The Water Holes At The Place Where We Had So 
 Stealthily Crawled Up To Doty's Camp When Coming Out. These Holes Held 
 About Two Pails Of Water Each, But No Stream Run Away From Them. Our 
 Horses Seemed To Want Water Badly For When They Drank They Put Their 
 Head In Up To Their Eyes And Drank Ravenously. 
   
   
   
 Thirty Miles From Here To The Next Water, Doty Had Told Us, And Night 
 Overtook Us Before We Could Reach It, So A Dry Camp Was Made. Our Horses 
 Began Now To Walk With Drooping Heads And Slow, Tired Steps, So We 
 Divided The Load Among Them All And Walked Ourselves. The Water, When 
 Reached Proved So Salt The Horses Would Not Drink It, And As Doty Had 
 Told Us The Most Water Was Over The Mountain Ahead Of Us, We Still 
 Followed Their Trail Which Went Up A Very Rocky Canon In Which It Was 
 Hard Work For The Horses To Travel. The Horses Were All Very Gentle Now 
 And Needed Some Urging To Make Them Go. Roger's Fat Horse No Longer 
 Tried To Unseat Its Rider Or Its Pack, But Seemed To Be The Most 
 Downhearted Of The Train. The Little Mule Was The Liveliest, Sharpest 
 Witted Animal Of The Whole. She Had Probably Traveled On The Desert 
 Before And Knew Better How To Get Along. She Had Learned To Crop Every 
 Spear Of Grass She Came To, And Every Bit Of Sage Brush That Offered A 
 Green Leaf Was Given A Nip. She Would Sometimes Leave The Trail And Go 
 Out To One Side To Get A Little Bunch Of Dry Grass, And Come Back And 
 Take Her Place Again As If She Knew Her Duty. The Other Animals Never 
 Tried To Do This. The Mule Was Evidently Better Versed In The Art Of 
 Getting A Living Than The Horses. 
   
   
   
 Above The Rough Bed Of The Canon The Bottom Was Gravelly And Narrow, And 
 The Walls On Each Side Nearly Perpendicular. Our Horses Now Poked Slowly 
 Along And As We Passed The Steep Wall Of The Canon The White Animal Left 
 The Trail And Walked With Full Force, Head First, Against The Solid 
 Rock. She Seemed To Be Blind, And Though We Went Quickly To Her And Took 
 Off The Load She Carried, She Had Stopped Breathing By The Time We Had 
 
 
 
 Chapter 10 Pg 117 
 It Done. Not Knowing How Far It Was To Water, Nor How Soon Some Of Our 
 Other Horses Might Fall, We Did Not Tarry, But Pushed On As Well As We 
 Could, Finding No Water. We Reached The Summit And Turned Down A Ravine, 
 Following The Trail, And About Dark Came To The Water They Had Told Us 
 About, A Faint Running Stream Which Came Out Of A Rocky Ravine And Sank 
 Almost Immediately In The Dry Sand. There Was Water Enough For Us, But 
 No Grass. It Seemed As If The Horses Were Not Strong Enough To Carry A 
 Load, And As We Wanted To Get Them Through If Possible, We Concluded To 
 Bury The Wheat And Get It On Our Return. We Dug A Hole And Lined It 
 With Fine Sticks, Then Put In The Little Bag And Covered It With Dry 
 Brush, And Sand Making The Surface As Smooth As If It Had Never Been 
 Touched, Then Made Our Bed On It. The Whole Work Was Done After Dark So 
 The Deposit Could Not Be Seen By The Red Men And We Thought We Had Done 
 It Pretty Carefully. 
   
   
   
 Next Morning The Little Mule Carried All The Remaining Load, The Horses 
 Bearing Only Their Saddles, And Seemed Hardly Strong Enough For That. 
 There Was Now Seven Or Eight Miles Of Clean Loose Sand To Go Over, 
 Across A Little Valley Which Came To An End About Ten Miles North Of Us, 
 And Extended South To The Lake Where We Went For Water On Our Outward 
 Journey And Found It Red Alkali. Near The Eastern Edge Of The Valley We 
 Turned Aside To Visit The Grave Of Mr. Isham, Which They Had Told Us Of. 
 They Had Covered His Remains With Their Hands As Best They Could, Piling 
 Up A Little Mound Of Sand Over It. Our Next Camp Was To Be On The Summit 
 Of The Range Just Before Us, And We Passed The Dead Body Of Mr. Fish, We 
 Had Seen Before, And Go On A Little To A Level Sandy Spot In The Ravine 
 Just Large Enough To Sleep On. This Whole Range Is A Black Mass Rocky 
 Piece Of Earth, So Barren That Not A Spear Of Grass Can Grow, And Not A 
 Drop Of Water In Any Place. We Tied Our Horses To Rocks And There They 
 Staid All Night, For If Turned Loose There Was Not A Mouthful Of Food 
 For Them To Get. 
   
   
   
 In The Morning An Important Question Was To Be Decided, And That Was 
 Whether We Should Continue To Follow The Jayhawker's Trail Which Led Far 
 To The North To Cross The Mountain, Which Stood Before Us, A Mass Of 
 Piled-Up Rocks So Steep That It Seemed As If A Dog Could Hardly Climb 
 It. Our Wagons Were Nearly Due East From This Point Over The Range, And 
 Not More Than Fifty Miles Away, While To Go Around To The North Was 
 Fully A Hundred Miles, And Would Take Us Four Or Five Days To Make. As 
 We Had Already Gone So Long We Expected To Meet Them Any Day Trying To 
 Get Out, And If We Went Around We Might Miss Them. They Might Have All 
 Been Killed By Indians Or They Might Have Already Gone. We Had Great 
 Fears On Their Account. If They Had Gone North They Might Have Perished 
 In The Snow. 
   
   
   
 The Range Was Before Us, And We Must Get To The Other Side In Some Way. 
 We Could See The Range For A Hundred Miles To The North And Along The 
 Base Some Lakes Of Water That Must Be Salt. To The South It Got Some 
 
 
 
 Chapter 10 Pg 118 
 Lower, But Very Barren And Ending In Black, Dry Buttes. The Horses Must 
 Have Food And Water By Night Or We Must Leave Them To Die, And All 
 Things Considered It Seemed To Be The Quickest Way To Camp To Try And 
 Get Up A Rough Looking Canon Which Was Nearly Opposite Us On The Other 
 Side. So We Loaded The Mule And Made Our Way Down The Rocky Road To The 
 Ridge, And Then Left The Jayhawker's Trail, Taking Our Course More South 
 So As To Get Around A Salt Lake Which Lay Directly Before Us. On Our Way 
 We Had To Go Close To A Steep Bluff, And Cross A Piece Of Ground That 
 Looked Like A Well Dried Mortar Bed, Hard And Smooth As Ice, And Thus 
 Got Around The Head Of A Small Stream Of Clear Water, Salt As Brine. We 
 Now Went Directly To The Mouth Of The Canon We Had Decided To Take, And 
 Traveled Up Its Gravelly Bed. The Horses Now Had To Be Urged Along 
 Constantly To Keep Them Moving And They Held Their Heads Low Down As 
 They Crept Along Seemingly So Discouraged That They Would Much Rather 
 Lie Down And Rest Forever Than Take Another Step. We Knew They Would Do 
 This Soon In Spite Of All Our Urging, If We Could Not Get Water For 
 Them. The Canon Was Rough Enough Where We Entered It, And A Heavy Up 
 Grade Too, And This Grew More And More Difficult As We Advanced, And The 
 Rough Yellowish, Rocky Walls Closed In Nearer And Nearer Together As We 
 Ascended. 
   
   
   
 A Perpendicular Wall, Or Rather Rise, In The Rocks Was Approached, And 
 There Was A Great Difficulty To Persuade The Horses To Take Exertion To 
 Get Up And Over The Small Obstruction, But The Little Mule Skipped Over 
 As Nimbly As A Well-Fed Goat, And Rather Seemed To Enjoy A Little 
 Variety In The Proceedings. After Some Coaxing And Urging The Horses 
 Took Courage To Try The Extra Step And Succeeded All Right, When We All 
 Moved On Again, Over A Path That Grew More And More Narrow, More And 
 More Rocky Under Foot At Every Moment. We Wound Around Among And Between 
 The Great Rocks, And Had Not Advanced Very Far Before Another 
 Obstruction, That Would Have Been A Fall Of About Three Feet Had Water 
 Been Flowing In The Canon, Opposed Our Way. A Small Pile Of Lone Rocks 
 Enabled The Mule To Go Over All Right, And She Went On Looking For Every 
 Spear Of Grass, And Smelling Eagerly For Water, But All Our Efforts Were 
 Not Enough To Get The Horses Along Another Foot. It Was Getting Nearly 
 Night And Every Minute Without Water Seemed An Age. We Had To Leave The 
 Horses And Go On. We Had Deemed Them Indispensable To Us, Or Rather To 
 The Extrication Of The Women And Children, And Yet The Hope Came To Us 
 That The Oxen Might Help Some Of Them Out As A Last Resort. We Were Sure 
 The Wagons Must Be Abandoned, And Such A Thing As Women Riding On The 
 Backs Of Oxen We Had Never Seen, Still It Occurred To Us As Not 
 Impossible And Although Leaving The Horses Here Was Like Deciding To 
 Abandon All For The Feeble Ones, We Saw We Must Do It, And The New Hope 
 Arose To Sustain Us For Farther Effort. We Removed The Saddles And 
 Placed Them On A Rock, And After A Few Moments Hesitation, Moments In 
 Which Were Crowded Torrents Of Wild Ideas, And Desperate Thoughts, That 
 Were Enough To Drive Reason From Its Throne, We Left The Poor Animals To 
 Their Fate And Moved Along. Just As We Were Passing Out Of Sight The 
 Poor Creatures Neighed Pitifully After Us, And One Who Has Never Heard 
 The Last Despairing, Pleading Neigh Of A Horse Left To Die Can Form No 
 Idea Of Its Almost Human Appeal. We Both Burst Into Tears, But It Was No 
 Use, To Try To Save Them We Must Run The Danger Of Sacrificing 
 
 
 
 Chapter 10 Pg 119 
 Ourselves, And The Little Party We Were Trying So Hard To Save. 
   
   
   
 We Found The Little Mule Stopped By A Still Higher Precipice Or 
 Perpendicular Rise Of Fully Ten Feet. Our Hearts Sank Within Us And We 
 Said That We Should Return To Our Friends As We Went Away, With Our 
 Knapsacks On Our Backs, And The Hope Grew Very Small. The Little Mule 
 Was Nipping Some Stray Blades Of Grass And As We Came In Sight She 
 Looked Around To Us And Then Up The Steep Rocks Before Her With Such A 
 Knowing, Intelligent Look Of Confidence, That It Gave Us New Courage. It 
 Was A Strange Wild Place. The North Wall Of The Canon Leaned Far Over 
 The Channel, Overhanging Considerably, While The South Wall Sloped Back 
 About The Same, Making The Wall Nearly Parallel, And Like A Huge Crevice 
 Descending Into The Mountain From Above In A Sloping Direction. 
   
   
   
 We Decided To Try To Get The Confident Little Mule Over This 
 Obstruction, Gathering All The Loose Rocks We Could We Piled Them Up 
 Against The South Wall, Beginning Some Distance Below, Putting Up All 
 Those In The Bed Of The Stream And Throwing Down Others From Narrow 
 Shelves Above We Built A Sort Of Inclined Plane Along The Walls 
 Gradually Rising Till We Were Nearly As High As The Crest Of The Fall. 
 Here Was A Narrow Shelf Scarcely Four Inches Wide And A Space Of From 
 Twelve To Fifteen Feet To Cross To Reach The Level Of The Crest. It Was 
 All I Could Do To Cross This Space, And There Was No Foundation To 
 Enable Us To Widen It So As To Make A Path For An Animal. It Was Forlorn 
 Hope But We Made The Most Of It. We Unpacked The Mule And Getting All 
 Our Ropes Together, Made A Leading Line Of It. Then We Loosened And 
 Threw Down All The Projecting Points Of Rocks We Could Above The Narrow 
 Shelf, And Every Piece That Was Likely To Come Loose In The Shelf 
 Itself. We Fastened The Leading Line To Her And With One Above And One 
 Below We Thought We Could Help Her To Keep Her Balance, And If She Did 
 Not Make A Misstep On That Narrow Way She Might Get Over Safely. Without 
 A Moments Hesitation The Brave Animal Tried The Pass. Carefully And 
 Steadily She Went Along, Selecting A Place Before Putting Down A Foot, 
 And When She Came To The Narrow Ledge Leaned Gently On The Rope, Never 
 Making A Sudden Start Or Jump, But Cautiously As A Cat Moved Slowly 
 Along. There Was Now No Turning Back For Her. She Must Cross This Narrow 
 Place Over Which I Had To Creep On Hands And Knees, Or Be Dashed Down 
 Fifty Feet To A Certain Death. When The Worst Place Was Reached She 
 Stopped And Hesitated, Looking Back As Well As She Could. I Was Ahead 
 With The Rope, And I Called Encouragingly To Her And Talked To Her A 
 Little. Rogers Wanted To Get All Ready And He Said, "Holler" At Her As 
 Loud As He Could And Frighten Her Across, But I Thought The Best Way To 
 Talk To Her Gently And Let Her Move Steadily. 
   
   
   
 I Tell You, Friends, It Was A Trying Moment. It Seemed To Be Weighed 
 Down With All The Trails And Hardships Of Many Months. It Seemed To Be 
 The Time When Helpless Women And Innocent Children Hung On The Trembling 
 Balance Between Life And Death. Our Own Lives We Could Save By Going 
 
 
 
 Chapter 10 Pg 120 
 Back, And Sometimes It Seemed As If We Would Perhaps Save Ourselves The 
 Additional Sorrow Of Finding Them All Dead To Do So At Once. I Was So 
 Nearly In Despair That I Could Not Help Bursting In Tears, And I Was Not 
 Ashamed Of The Weakness. Finally Rogers Said, "Come Lewis" And I Gently 
 Pulled The Rope, Calling The Little Animal, To Make A Trial. She Smelled 
 All Around And Looked Over Every Inch Of The Strong Ledge, Then Took One 
 Careful Step After Another Over The Dangerous Place. Looking Back I Saw 
 Rogers With A Very Large Stone In His Hand, Ready To "Holler" And 
 Perhaps Kill The Poor Beast If She Stopped. But She Crept Along Trusting 
 To The Rope To Balance, Till She Was Half Way Across, Then Another Step 
 Or Two, When Calculating The Distance Closely She Made A Spring And 
 Landed On A Smooth Bit Of Sloping Rock Below, That Led Up To The Highest 
 Crest Of The Precipice, And Safely Climbed To The Top, Safe And Sound 
 Above The Falls. The Mule Had No Shoes And It Was Wonderful How Her 
 Little Hoofs Clung To The Smooth Rock. We Felt Relieved. We Would Push 
 On And Carry Food To The People; We Would Get Them Through Some Way; 
 There Could Be No More Hopeless Moment Than The One Just Past, And We 
 Would Save Them All. 
   
   
   
 It Was The Work Of A Little While To Transfer The Load Up The Precipice, 
 And Pack The Mule Again, When We Proceeded. Around Behind Some Rocks 
 Only A Little Distance Beyond This Place We Found A Small Willow Bush 
 And Enough Good Water For A Camp. This Was A Strange Canon. The Sun 
 Never Shown Down To The Bottom In The Fearful Place Where The Little 
 Mule Climbed Up, And The Rocks Had A Peculiar Yellow Color. In Getting 
 Our Provisions Up The Precipice, Rogers Went Below And Fastened The Rope 
 While I Pulled Them Up. Rogers Wished Many Times We Had The Horses Up 
 Safely Where The Mule Was, But A Dog Could Hardly Cross The Narrow Path 
 And There Was No Hope. Poor Brutes, They Had Been Faithful Servants, And 
 We Felt Sorrowful Enough At Their Terrible Fate. 
   
   
   
 We Had Walked Two Days Without Water, And We Were Wonderfully Refreshed 
 As We Found It Here. The Way Up This Canon Was Very Rough And The Bed 
 Full Of Sharp Broken Rocks In Loose Pieces Which Cut Through The Bottoms 
 Of Our Moccasins And Left Us With Bare Feet Upon The Acute Points And 
 Edges. I Took Off One Of My Buckskin Leggins, And Gave It To Rogers, And 
 With The Other One For Myself We Fixed The Moccasins With Them As Well 
 As We Could, Which Enabled Us To Go Ahead, But I Think If Our Feet Had 
 Been Shod With Steel Those Sharp Rocks Would Have Cut Through. 
   
   
   
 Starting Early We Made The Summit About Noon, And From Here We Could See 
 The Place Where We Found A Water Hole And Camped The First Night After 
 We Left The Wagons. Down The Steep Canon We Turned, The Same One In 
 Which We Had Turned Back With The Wagons, And Over The Sharp Broken 
 Pieces Of Volcanic Rock That Formed Our Only Footing We Hobbled Along 
 With Sore And Tender Feet. We Had To Watch For The Smoothest Place For 
 Every Step, And Then Moved Only With The Greatest Difficulty. The 
 Indians Could Have Caught Us Easily If They Had Been Around For We Must 
 
 
 
 Chapter 10 Pg 121 
 Keep Our Eyes On The Ground Constantly And Stop If We Looked Up And 
 Around. But We At Last Got Down And Camped On Some Spot Where We Had Set 
 Out Twenty-Five Days Before To Seek The Settlements. Here Was The Same 
 Little Water Hole In The Sand Plain, And The Same Strong Sulphur Water 
 Which We Had To Drink The Day We Left. The Mule Was Turned Loose 
 Dragging The Same Piece Of Rawhide She Had Attached To Her When We 
 Purchased Her, And She Ranged And Searched Faithfully For Food Finding 
 Little Except The Very Scattering Bunches Of Sage Brush. She Was 
 Industrious And Walked Around Rapidly Picking Here And There, But At 
 Dark Came Into Camp And Lay Down Close To Us To Sleep. 
   
   
   
 There Was No Sign That Any One Had Been Here During Our Absence, And If 
 The People Had Gone To Hunt A Way Out, They Must Either Have Followed 
 The Jayhawker's Trail Or Some Other One. We Were Much Afraid That They 
 Might Have Fallen Victims To The Indians. Remaining In Camp So Long It 
 Was Quite Likely They Had Been Discovered By Them And It Was Quite 
 Likely They Had Been Murdered For The Sake Of The Oxen And Camp 
 Equipage. It Might Be That We Should Find The Hostiles Waiting For Us 
 When We Reached The Appointed Camping Place, And It Was Small Show For 
 Two Against A Party. Our Mule And Her Load Would Be A Great Capture For 
 Them. We Talked A Great Deal And Said A Great Many Things At That Camp 
 Fire For We Knew We Were In Great Danger, And We Had Many Doubts About 
 The Safety Of Our People, That Would Soon Be Decided, And Whether For 
 Joy Or Sorrow We Could Not Tell. 
   
   
   
 From This Place, As We Walked Along, We Had A Wagon Road To Follow, In 
 Soft Sand, But Not A Sign Of A Human Footstep Could We See, As We 
 Marched Toward This, The Camp Of The Last Hope. We Had The Greatest 
 Fears The People Had Given Up Our Return And Started Out For Themselves 
 And That We Should Follow On, Only To Find Them Dead Or Dying. My Pen 
 Fails Me As I Try To Tell The Feelings And Thoughts Of This Trying Hour. 
 I Can Never Hope To Do So, But If The Reader Can Place Himself In My 
 Place, His Imagination Cannot Form A Picture That Shall Go Beyond 
 Reality. 
   
   
   
 We Were Some Seven Or Eight Miles Along The Road When I Stopped To Fix 
 My Moccasin While Rogers Went Slowly Along. The Little Mule Went On 
 Ahead Of Both Of Us, Searching All Around For Little Bunches Of Dry 
 Grass, But Always Came Back To The Trail Again And Gave Us No Trouble. 
 When I Had Started Up Again I Saw Rogers Ahead Leaning On His Gun And 
 Waiting For Me, Apparently Looking At Something On The Ground. As I Came 
 Near Enough To Speak I Asked What He Had Found And He Said--"Here Is 
 Capt. Culverwell, Dead." He Did Not Look Much Like A Dead Man. He Lay 
 Upon His Back With Arms Extended Wide, And His Little Canteen, Made Of 
 Two Powder Flasks, Lying By His Side. This Looked Indeed As If Some Of 
 Our Saddest Forebodings Were Coming True. How Many More Bodies Should We 
 Find? Or Should We Find The Camp Deserted, And Never Find A Trace Of The 
 Former Occupants. 
 
 
 
 Chapter 10 Pg 122 
   
   
 We Marched Toward Camp Like Two Indians, Silent And Alert, Looking Out 
 For Dead Bodies And Live Indians, For Really We More Expected To Find 
 The Camp Devastated By Those Rascals Than To Find That It Still 
 Contained Our Friends. To The East We Could Plainly See What Seemed To 
 Be A Large Salt Lake With A Bed That Looked As If Of The Finest, Whitest 
 Sand, But Really A Wonder Of Salt Crystal. We Put The Dreary Steps 
 Steadily One Forward Of Another, The Little Mule The Only Unconcerned 
 One Of The Party, Ever Looking For An Odd Blade Of Grass, Dried In The 
 Hot Dry Wind, But Yet Retaining Nourishment, Which She Preferred. 
   
   
   
 About Noon We Came In Sight Of The Wagons, Still A Long Way Off, But In 
 The Clear Air We Could Make Them Out, And Tell What They Were, Without 
 Being Able To See Anything More. Half A Mile Was The Distance Between Us 
 And The Camp Before We Could See Very Plainly, As They Were In A Little 
 Depression. We Could See The Covers Had Been Taken Off, And This Was An 
 Ominous Sort Of Circumstance To Us, For We Feared The Depredations Of 
 The Indians In Retaliation For The Capture Of Their Squashes. They Had 
 Shot Our Oxen Before We Left And They Have Slain Them This Time And The 
 People Too. 
   
   
   
 We Surely Left Seven Wagons. Now We Could See Only Four And Nowhere The 
 Sign Of An Ox. They Must Have Gone Ahead With A Small Train, And Left 
 These Four Standing, After Dismantling Them. 
   
   
   
 No Signs Of Life Were Anywhere About, And The Thought Of Our Hard 
 Struggles Between Life And Death To Go Out And Return, With The 
 Fruitless Results That Now Seemed Apparent Was Almost More Than Human 
 Heart Could Bear. When Should We Know Their Fate? When Should We Find 
 Their Remains, And How Learn Of Their Sad History If We Ourselves Should 
 Live To Get Back Again To Settlements And Life? If Ever Two Men Were 
 Troubled, Rogers And I Surely Passed Through The Furnace. 
   
   
   
 We Kept As Low And As Much Out Of Sight As Possible, Trusting Very Much 
 To The Little Mule That Was Ahead, For We Felt Sure She Would Detect 
 Danger In The Air Sooner Than We, And We Watched Her Closely To See How 
 She Acted. She Slowly Walked Along Looking Out For Food, And We Followed 
 A Little Way Behind, But Still No Decisive Sign To Settle The Awful 
 Suspense In Which We Lived And Suffered. We Became More And More 
 Convinced That They Had Taken The Trail Of The Jayhawkers, And We Had 
 Missed Them On The Road, Or They Had Perished Before Reaching The Place 
 Where We Turned From Their Trail. 
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 10 Pg 123 
   
 One Hundred Yards Now To The Wagons And Still No Sign Of Life, No 
 Positive Sign Of Death, Though We Looked Carefully For Both. We Fear 
 That Perhaps There Are Indians In Ambush, And With Nervous Irregular 
 Breathing We Counsel What To Do. Finally Rogers Suggested That He Had 
 Two Charges In His Shot Gun And I Seven In The Coll's Rifle, And That I 
 Fire One Of Mine And Await Results Before We Ventured Any Nearer, And If 
 There Are Any Of The Red Devils There We Can Kill Some Of Them Before 
 They Get To Us. And Now Both Closely Watching The Wagons I Fired The 
 Shot. Still As Death And Not A Move For A Moment, And Then As If By 
 Magic A Man Came Out From Under A Wagon And Stood Up Looking All Around, 
 For He Did Not See Us. Then He Threw Up His Arms High Over His Head And 
 Shouted--"The Boys Have Come. The Boys Have Come!" Then Other Bare Heads 
 Appeared, And Mr. Bennett And Wife And Mr. Arcane Came Toward Us As Fast 
 As Ever They Could. The Great Suspense Was Over And Our Hearts Were 
 First In Our Mouths, And Then The Blood All Went Away And Left Us Almost 
 Fainting As We Stood And Tried To Step. Some Were Safe Perhaps All Of 
 Those Nearest Us, And The Dark Shadow Of Death That Had Hovered Over Us, 
 And Cast What Seemed A Pall Upon Every Thought And Action, Was Lifted 
 And Fell Away A Heavy Oppression Gone. Bennett And Arcane Caught Us In 
 Their Arms And Embraced Us With All Their Strength, And Mrs. Bennett 
 When She Came Fell Down On Her Knees And Clung To Me Like A Maniac In 
 The Great Emotion That Came To Her, And Not A Word Was Spoken. If They 
 Had Been Strong Enough They Would Have Carried Us To Camp Upon Their 
 Shoulders. As It Was They Stopped Two Or Three Times, And Turned As If 
 To Speak, But There Was Too Much Feeling For Words, Convulsive Weeping 
 Would Choke The Voice. 
   
   
   
 All Were A Little Calmer Soon, And Bennett Soon Found Voice To Say:--"I 
 Know You Have Found Some Place, For You Have A Mule," And Mrs. Bennett 
 Through Her Tears, Looked Staringly At Us As She Could Hardly Believe 
 Our Coming Back Was A Reality, And Then Exclaimed:--"Good Boys! O, You 
 Have Saved Us All! God Bless You Forever! Such Boys Should Never Die!" 
 It Was Some Time Before They Could Talk Without Weeping. Hope Almost 
 Died Within Them, And Now When The First Bright Ray Came It Almost 
 Turned Reason From Its Throne. A Brighter Happier Look Came To Them Than 
 We Had Seen, And Then They Plied Us With Questions The First Of Which 
 Was:--"Where Were You?" 
   
   
   
 We Told Them It Must Be 250 Miles Yet To Any Part Of California Where We 
 Could Live. Then Came The Question;--"Can We Take Our Wagons?" "You Will 
 Have To Walk," Was Our Answer, For No Wagons Could Go Over That Unbroken 
 Road That We Had Traveled. As Rapidly And Carefully As We Could We Told 
 Them Of Our Journey, And The Long Distance Between The Water Holes; That 
 We Had Lost No Time And Yet Had Been Twenty Six Days On The Road; That 
 For A Long Distance The Country Was About As Dry And Desolate As The 
 Region We Had Crossed East Of This Camp. We Told Them Of The Scarcity Of 
 Grass, And All The Reasons That Had Kept Us So Long Away From Them. 
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 10 Pg 124 
   
 We Inquired After The Others Whom We Had Left In Camp When We Went Away, 
 And We Were Told All They Knew About Them. Hardly Were We Gone Before 
 They Began To Talk About The State Of Affairs Which Existed. They Said 
 That As They Had Nothing To Live On But Their Oxen It Would Be Certain 
 Death To Wait Here And Eat Them Up, And That It Would Be Much Better To 
 Move On A Little Every Day And Get Nearer And Nearer The Goal Before The 
 Food Failed. Bennett Told Them They Would Know Surely About The Way When 
 The Boys Returned, And Knowing The Road Would Know How To Manage And 
 What To Expect And Work For, And Could Get Out Successfully. But The 
 General Opinion Of All But Mr. Bennett And Mr. Arcane And Their Families 
 Was, As Expressed By One Of Them:--"If Those Boys Ever Get Out Of This 
 Cussed Hole, They Are D----D Fools If They Ever Come Back To Help 
 Anybody." 
   
   
   
 Some Did Not Stay More Than A Week After We Were Gone, But Took Their 
 Oxen And Blankets And Started On. They Could Not Be Content To Stay Idly 
 In Camp With Nothing To Occupy Their Minds Or Bodies. They Could See 
 That An Ox When Killed Would Feed Them Only A Few Days, And That They 
 Could Not Live Long On Them, And It Stood Them In Hand To Get Nearer The 
 Western Shore As The Less Distance The More Hope While The Meat Lasted. 
 Bennett Implored Them To Stay As He Was Sure We Would Come Back, And If 
 The Most Of Them Deserted Him He Would Be Exposed To The Danger Of The 
 Indians, With No Hope Of A Successful Resistance Against Them. 
   
   
   
 But The Most Seemed To Think That To Stay Was To Die, And It Would Be 
 Better To Die Trying To Escape Than To Set Idly Down To Perish. These 
 Men Seemed To Think Their First Duty Was To Save Themselves, And If 
 Fortunate, Help Others Afterward, So They Packed Their Oxen And Left In 
 Separate Parties, The Last Some Two Weeks Before. They Said That Capt. 
 Culverwell Went With The Last Party. I Afterward Learned That He Could 
 Not Keep Up With Them And Turned To Go Back To The Wagons Again, And 
 Perished, Stretched Out Upon The Sand As We Saw Him, Dying All Alone, 
 With No One To Transmit His Last Words To Family Or Friends. Not A 
 Morsel To Eat, And The Little Canteen By His Side Empty. A Sad And 
 Lonely Death Indeed! 
   
   
   
 There Was No End To The Questions About The Road We Had To Answer, For 
 This Was Uppermost On Their Minds, And We Tried To Tell Them And Show 
 Them How We Must Get Along On Our Return. We Told Them Of The Great Snow 
 Mountains We Had Seen All To The North Of Our Road, And How Deep The 
 Snow Appeared To Be, And How Far West It Extended. We Told Them Of The 
 Black And Desolate Ranges And Buttes To The South, And Of The Great Dry 
 Plains In The Same Direction. We Told Them Of The Jayhawkers Trail; Of 
 Fish's Dead Body; Of The Salt Lake And Slippery Alkali Water To Which We 
 Walked, Only To Turn Away In Disappointment; Of The Little Sheets Of Ice 
 Which Saved Our Lives; Of Doty's Camp And What We Knew Of Those Gone 
 Before; Of The Discouraged Ones Who Gave Us Their Names To Send Back To 
 
 
 
 Chapter 10 Pg 125 
 Friends; Of The Hawk And Crow Diet; Of My Lameness; Of The Final Coming 
 Out Into A Beautiful Valley, In The Midst Of Fat Cattle And Green 
 Meadows, And The Trouble To Get The Help Arranged On Account Of Not 
 Knowing The Language To Tell The People What We Needed. They Were Deeply 
 Impressed That My Lameness Had Been A Blessing In Disguise, Or We Would 
 Have Gone On To The Coast And Consumed More Time Than We Did In Walking 
 Slowly To Favor The Cripple Knee. Our Sad Adventures And Loss Of The 
 Horses In Returning Was Sorrowfully Told And We Spoke Of The Provisions 
 We Had Been Able To Bring On The Little Mule Which Had Clambered Over 
 The Rocks Like A Cat; That We Had A Little Flour And Beans, And Some 
 Good Dried Meat With Fat On It Which We Hoped Would Help To Eke Out The 
 Poorer Fare And Get Them Through At Last. They Were So Full Of 
 Compliments That We Really Began To Think We Had Been Brought Into The 
 World On Purpose To Assist Some One, And The One Who Could Forecast All 
 Things Had Directed Us, And All Our Ways, So That We Should Save Those 
 People And Bring Them To A Better Part Of God's Footstool, Where Plenty 
 Might Be Enjoyed, And The Sorrows Of The Desert Forgotten. It Was 
 Midnight Before We Could Get Them All Satisfied With Their Knowledge Of 
 Our Experience. 
   
   
   
 [Illustation: Leaving Death Valley.--The Manly Party On Foot After 
 Leaving Their Wagons.] 
   
   
   
 It Was Quite A Treat To Us To Sleep Again Between Good Blankets, 
 Arranged By A Woman's Hand, And It Was Much Better Resting Than The 
 Curled Up, Cramped Position We Had Slept In While Away, With Only The 
 Poor Protection Of The Half Blanket For Both Of Us, In Nights That Were 
 Pretty Chilly. 
   
   
   
 We Had Plenty Of Water Here, And There Being No Fear Of The Mule Going 
 Astray We Turned Her Loose. As The Party Had Seen No Indians During Our 
 Absence We Did Not Concern Ourselves Much About Them. At Breakfast We 
 Cautioned Them About Eating Too Much Bread, Remembering, Our Own 
 Experience In That Way. 
   
   
   
 They Said They Had About Given Up Our Coming Back A Week Before, And Had 
 Set About Getting Ready To Try To Move On Themselves. Bennett Said He 
 Was Satisfied That They Never Could Have Got Through Alone After What We 
 Had Told Them Of The Route And Its Dangers. He Said He Knew It Now That 
 Not One Of Them Would Have Lived If They Had Undertaken The Journey 
 Alone Without Knowledge Of The Way. 
   
   
   
 They Had Taken Off The Covers Of The Wagons To Make Them Into Houses For 
 The Oxen, So They Could Be Used As Pack Animals. The Strong Cloth Had 
 
 
 
 Chapter 10 Pg 126 
 Been Cut Into Narrow Strips And Well Made Into Breast Straps And 
 Breeching, For The Cattle Were So Poor And Their Hide So Loose It Was 
 Almost Impossible To Keep Anything On Their Backs. They Had Emptied The 
 Feathers Out Of The Beds To Get The Cloth To Use, And Had Tried To Do 
 Everything That Seemed Best To Do To Get Along Without Wagons. The Oxen 
 Came Up For Water, And The Mule With Them. They Looked Better Than When 
 We Left, But Were Still Poor. They Had Rested For Some Time And Might 
 Feel Able To Go Along Willingly For A Few Days At Least. I Was Handy 
 With The Needle, And Helped Them To Complete The Harness For The Oxen, 
 While Bennett And John Went To The Lake To Get A Supply Of Salt To Take 
 Along, A Most Necessary Article With Our Fresh Meat. I Looked Around A 
 Little At Our Surroundings, And Could See The Snow Still Drifting Over 
 The Peak Of The Snowy Mountain As We Had Seen It Farther East, Where We 
 Were Ourselves Under The Burning Sun. This Was Now Pretty Near February 
 First, Or Midwinter. The Eastern Side Of This Great Mountain Was Too 
 Steep To Be Ascended, And No Sign Of A Tree Could Be Seen On The Whole 
 Eastern Slope. The Range Of Mountains On The East Side Of This Narrow 
 Valley Were Nearly All The Volcanic, Barren In The Extreme, And The 
 Roughest Of All The Mountains We Had Ever Seen. I Had Now Looked Pretty 
 Thoroughly, And Found It To Be Pretty Nearly A Hundred Miles Long, And 
 This Was The Only Camp I Had Seen Where Water Could Be Had. 
   
   
   
 When Mrs. Bennet Was Ready To Show Me What To Do On The Cloth Harness, 
 We Took A Seat Under The Wagon, The Only Shady Place And Began Work. The 
 Great Mountain, I Have Spoken Of As The Snow Mountain Has Since Been 
 Known As Telescope Peak, Reported To Be 11,000 Feet High. It Is In The 
 Range Running North And South And Has No Other Peak So High. Mrs. 
 Bennett Questioned Me Closely About The Trip, And Particularly If I Had 
 Left Anything Out Which I Did Not Want Her To Know. She Said She Saw Her 
 Chance To Ride Was Very Slim, And She Spoke Particularly Of The 
 Children, And That It Was Impossible For Them To Walk. She Said Little 
 Martha Had Been Very Sick Since We Had Been Gone, And That For Many Days 
 They Had Expected Her To Die. They Had No Medicine To Relieve Her And 
 The Best They Could Do Was To Select The Best Of The Ox Meat, And Make A 
 Little Soup Of It And Feed Her, They Had Watched Her Carefully For Many 
 Days And Nights, Expecting They Would Have To Part With Her Any Time And 
 Bury Her Little Body In The Sands. Sometimes It Seemed As If Her Breath 
 Would Stop, But They Had Never Failed In Their Attentions, And Were At 
 Last Rewarded By Seeing Her Improve Slowly, And Even To Relish A Little 
 Food, So That If No Relapse Set In They Had Hopes To Bring Her Through. 
 They Brought The Little One And Showed Her To Me, And She Seemed So 
 Different From What She Was When We Went Away. Then She Could Run About 
 Camp Climb Out And In The Wagons, And Move About So Spry That She 
 Reminded One Of A Quail. Now She Was Strangely Misshapen. Her Limbs Had 
 Lost All The Flesh And Seemed Nothing But Skin And Bones, While Her Body 
 Had Grown Corpulent And Distended, And Her Face Had A Starved Pinched 
 And Suffering Look, With No Healthy Color In It. 
   
   
   
 She Told Me Of Their Sufferings While We Were Gone, And Said She Often 
 Dreamed She Saw Us Suffering Fearfully For Water, And Lack Of Food And 
 
 
 
 Chapter 10 Pg 127 
 Could Only Picture To Herself As Their Own Fate, That They Must Leave 
 The Children By The Trail Side, Dead, And One By One Drop Out Themselves 
 In The Same Way. She Said She Dreamed Often Of Her Old Home Where Bread 
 Was Plenty, And Then To Awake To Find Her Husband And Children Starving 
 Was A Severe Trial Indeed, And The Contrast Terrible. She Was Anxious To 
 Get Me To Express An Opinion As To Whether I Thought We Could Get The 
 Oxen Down The Falls Where We Had So Much Trouble. 
   
   
   
 I Talked To Her As Encouragingly As I Could, But She Did Not Cheer Up 
 Much And Sobbed And Wept Over Her Work Most All The Time. It Was Not 
 Possible To Encourage Her Much, The Outlook Seemed So Dark. Mrs. Arcane 
 Sat Under Another Wagon And Said Nothing, But She Probably Heard All We 
 Had To Say, And Did Not Look As If Her Hopes Were Any Brighter. Bennett 
 And Rogers Soon Returned With A Supply Of Salt And Said The Whole Shore 
 Of The Lake Was A Winrow Of It, That Could Be Shoveled Up In Enormous 
 Quantities. 
   
   
   
 We Now In A Counsel Of The Whole, Talked Over The Matter, And The Way 
 Which Seemed Most Promising. If We Went By The Jayhawkers Trail, There 
 Was A Week Of Solid Travel To Get Over The Range And Back South Again As 
 Far As A Point Directly Opposite Our Camp, And This Had Taken Us Only 
 Three Days To Come Over As We Had Come. The Only Obstacle In The Way Was 
 The Falls, And When We Explained That There Was Some Sand At The Bottom 
 Of Them, Bennett Said He Thought We Could Get Them Over Without Killing 
 Them, And That, As We Knew Exactly Where The Water Was, This Was The 
 Best Trail To Take. Arcane Was Quite Of The Same Opinion, The Saving Of 
 A Week Of Hard And Tiresome Travel Being In Each Case The Deciding 
 Reason. They Then Explained To Me What They Had Decided On Doing If We 
 Had Not Come Back. They Had Selected Two Oxen For The Women To Ride One 
 To Carry Water And One To Carry The Four Children. There Were No Saddles 
 But Blankets Enough To Make A Soft Seat, And They Proposed To Put A Band 
 Or Belt Around The Animals For Them To Hold On By, And The Blankets 
 Would Be Retained In Place By Breast And Breeching Straps Which We Had 
 Made. They Had Found Out That It Was Very Difficult To Keep A Load Of 
 Any Kind Upon An Ox, And Had Devised All This Harness To Meet The 
 Trouble. 
   
   
   
 Bennett Had One Old Bridle Ox Called Old Crump, Which Had Been Selected 
 To Carry The Children, Because He Was Slow And Steady. How In The World 
 Do You Expect It To Keep The Children On?--Said I. "Well"--Said Bennett, 
 With A Sort Of Comical Air, About The First Relief From The Sad Line Of 
 Thought That Had Possessed Us All--"We Have Taken Two Strong Hickory 
 Shirts, Turned The Sleeves Inside, Sewed Up The Necks, Then Sewed The 
 Two Shirts Together By The Tail, And When These Are Placed On The Ox 
 They Will Make Two Pockets For The Youngest Children, And We Think The 
 Two Others Will Be Able To Cling To His Back With The Help Of A Band 
 Around The Body Of The Ox To Which They Can Cling To, With Their Hands." 
 Now If Old Crump Went Steady And Did Not Kick Up And Scatter Things, He 
 
 
 
 Chapter 10 Pg 128 
 Thought This Plan Would Operate First Rate. Now As To The Mule They 
 Proposed As We Knew How To Pack The Animal, That We Should Use Her To 
 Pack Our Provisions So They Would Go Safe. 
   
   
   
 From A Piece Of Hide Yet Remaining John And I Made Ourselves Some New 
 Moccasins, And Were All Ready To Try The Trip Over Our Old Trail For Now 
 The Third Time, And The Last, We Hoped. 
   
   
   
 Mrs. Bennett And Mrs. Arcane Had Taken Our Advice, And In Cooking Had 
 Not Put Too Much Of The Flour Or Beans Into The Soup For The Children 
 And They Had Gotten Along Nicely, And Even Began To Smile A Little With 
 Satisfaction After A Full Meal. They Got Along Better Than John And I 
 Did When We Got Hold Of The First Nutritions After Our Arrival On The 
 Other Side. 
   
   
   
 We Must Leave Everything Here We Can Get Along Without. No Clothing 
 Except That On Our Backs. Only A Camp Kettle In Which To Make Soup, A 
 Tin Cup For Each One, And Some Knives And Spoons Which Each Happen To 
 Have. Each One Had Some Sort Of A Canteen For Water, Which We Must Fill 
 Up At Every Opportunity, And We Decided To Carry A Shovel Along, So We 
 Might Bury The Body Of Capt. Culverwell, And Shovel Up A Pile Of Sand At 
 The Falls To Enable Us To Get The Oxen Over. Every Ox Had A Cloth Halter 
 On His Head, So He Might Be Led, Or Tied Up At Night When We Had A Dry 
 Camp, And They Would Most Assuredly Wander Off If Not Secured. Old Crump 
 Was Chosen To Lead The Train, And Rogers Was To Lead Him. We Had Made An 
 Extra Halter For This Old Fellow, And Quite A Long Strip Of Bed Ticking 
 Sewed Into A Strap To Lead Him By. 
   
   
   
 This Packing Business Was A New Idea, And A Hard Matter To Get Anything 
 Firmly Fixed On Their Backs. 
   
   
   
 We Had Made Shoulder Straps, Hip Straps, Breast Straps And Breeching As 
 The Correct Idea For A Harness. The Only Way We Could Fasten The Band 
 Around The Animals Was For One To Get On Each Side And Pull It As Tight 
 As Possible Then Tie A Knot, As We Had No Buckles Or Ring In Our 
 Harness. 
   
   
   
 The Loads Of The Oxen Consisted Of Blankets And Bedding And A Small, 
 Light Tent Of Their Sheeting About Four By Six Feet In Size. We Rose 
 Early And Worked Hard Till About The Middle Of The Forenoon Getting All 
 Things Ready. They Had Been In A State Of Masterly Inactivity So Long In 
 This One Camp That They Were Anxious To Leave It Now Forever. Only In 
 
 
 
 Chapter 10 Pg 129 
 Progress Was There Hope, And This Was Our Last And Only Chance. We Must 
 Succeed Or Perish. We Loaded The Animals From The Wagons, And Some Of 
 The Oxen Seemed Quite Afraid At This New Way Of Carrying Loads. Old 
 Crump Was Pretty Steady, And So Was The One With The Two Water Kegs One 
 On Each Side But The Other Oxen Did Not Seem To Think They Needed Any 
 Blankets On These Warm Days. 
   
   
   
 Mrs. Arcane Was From A City, And Had Fondly Conveyed Thus Far Some 
 Articles Of Finery, Of Considerable Value And Much Prized. She Could Not 
 Be Persuaded To Leave Them Here To Deck The Red Man's Wife, And Have Her 
 Go Flirting Over The Mountains With, And As They Had Little Weight She 
 Concluded She Would Wear Them And This Perhaps Would Preserve Them. So 
 She Got Out Her Best Hat And Trimmed It Up With Extra Ribbon Leaving 
 Some With Quite Long Ends To Stream Out Behind. Arcane Brought Up His Ox 
 Old Brigham, For He Had Been Purchased At Salt Lake And Named In Honor 
 Of The Great Mormon Saint. 
   
   
   
 Mrs. Arcane Also Dressed Her Little Boy Charlie Up In His Best Suit Of 
 Clothes, For She Thought They Might As Well Wear Them Out As To Throw 
 Them Away. She Made One Think Of A Fairy In Gay And Flying Apparel. In 
 The Same Way All Selected Their Best And Most Serviceable Garments, For 
 It Was Not Considered Prudent To Carry Any Load, And Poor Clothes Were 
 Good Enough To Leave For Indians. We Set It Down As A Principle That We 
 Must Save Ourselves All We Could, For It Would Be A Close Contested 
 Struggle With Us And Death, At The Very Best, And We Wanted To Get All 
 The Advantage For Ourselves We Could. As We Were Making The Preparations 
 The Women Grew More Hopeful, As It Seemed As If Something Was Really 
 Going To Be Accomplished. 
   
   
   
 Bennett And Arcane Were Emphatic In Their Belief And Expressions That We 
 Would Succeed, "I Know It--Don't You Sally?" Said Bennett Very 
 Cheerfully, But After All Mrs. Bennett Could Not Answer Quite As 
 Positively, But Said "I Hope So."--Mrs. Bennett's Maiden Name Was Sarah 
 Dilley, Which I Mention Here As I May Otherwise Forget It Afterward. She 
 Realized That Hers Was No Easy Place To Ride, That They Would Have Hard 
 Fare At Best, And That It Must Be Nearly Or Quite A Month Before They 
 Could Reach A Fertile Spot On Which To Place Her Feet. One Could Easily 
 See That The Future Looked Quite A Little Dark To Her, On Account Of Her 
 Children, As A Mother Naturally Would. 
   
   
   
 High Overhead Was The Sun, And Very Warm Indeed On That Day In The Fore 
 Part Of February 1850, When The Two Children Were Put On Old Crump To 
 See If He Would Let Them Ride. The Two Small Children Were Placed In The 
 Pockets On Each Side, Face Outward, And They Could Stand Or Sit As They 
 Should Choose. George And Melissa Were Placed On Top And Given Hold Of 
 The Strap That Was To Steady Them In Their Place. I Now Led Up Mrs. 
 
 
 
 Chapter 10 Pg 130 
 Bennett's Ox And Mr. Bennett Helped His Wife To Mount The Animal, On 
 Whose Back As Soft A Seat As Possible Had Been Constructed. Mrs. Arcane 
 In Her Ribbons Was Now Helped To Her Seat On The Back Of Old Brigham And 
 She Carefully Adjusted Herself To Position, And Arranged Her Dress And 
 Ornaments To Suit, Then Took Hold Of The Strap That Served To Hold On By 
 As There Were No Bridles On These Two. 
   
   
   
 Rogers Led The March With His Ox; Bennett And I Started The Others 
 Along, And Arcane Followed With Old Crump And The Children. Bennett And 
 Arcane Took Off Their Hats And Bade The Old Camp Good Bye. The Whole 
 Procession Moved, And We Were Once More Going Toward Our Journey's End 
 We Hoped. The Road Was Sandy And Soft, The Grade Practically Level, And 
 Everything Went Well For About Four Miles, When The Pack On One Of The 
 Oxen Near The Lead Got Loose And And Turned Over To One Side, Which He 
 No Sooner Saw Thus Out Of Position, Then He Tried To Get Away From It By 
 Moving Sidewise. Not Getting Clear Of The Objectionable Load In This Way 
 He Tried To Kick It Off, And Thus Really Got His Foot In It, Making 
 Matters Worse Instead Of Better. Then He Began A Regular Waltz And 
 Bawled At The Top Of His Voice In Terror. Rogers Tried To Catch Him But 
 His Own Animal Was So Frisky That He Could Not Hold Him And Do Much 
 Else, And The Spirit Of Fear Soon Began To Be Communicated To The Others 
 And Soon The Whole Train Seemed To Be Taken Crazy. 
   
   
   
 They Would Jump Up High And Then Come Down, Sticking Their Fore Feet As 
 Far As Possible Into The Sand After Which, With Elevated Tails, And 
 Terrible Plunges Would Kick And Thrash And Run Till The Packs Came Off, 
 When They Stopped Apparently Quite Satisfied. Mrs. Bennett Slipped Off 
 Her Ox As Quick As She Could, Grabbed Her Baby From The Pocket On Old 
 Crump, And Shouting To Melissa And George To Jump, Got Her Family Into 
 Safe Position In Pretty Short Order. Arcane Took His Charley From The 
 Other Pocket And Laid Him On The Ground, While He Devoted His Own 
 Attention To The Animals. Mrs. Arcane's Ox Followed Suit, And Waltzed 
 Around In The Sand, Bawled At Every Turn, Fully As Bad As Any Of The 
 Others, But Mrs. Arcane Proved To Be A Good Rider, And Hard To Unseat, 
 Clinging Desperately To Her Strap As She Was Tossed Up And Down, And 
 Whirled About At A Rate Enough To To Make Any One Dizzy. Her Many Fine 
 Ribbons Flew Out Behind Like The Streamers From A Mast-Head, And The 
 Many Fancy Fixin's She Had Donned Fluttered In The Air In Gayest 
 Mockery. Eventually She Was Thrown However, But Without The Least Injury 
 To Herself, But Somewhat Disordered In Raiment. When I Saw Bennett He 
 Was Standing Half Bent Over Laughing In Almost Hysterical Convulsion At 
 The Entirely Impromptu Circus Which Had So Suddenly Performed An Act Not 
 On The Program. Arcane Was Much Pleased And Laughed Heartily When He Saw 
 No One Was Hurt. We Did Not Think The Cattle Had So Much Life And So 
 Little Sense As To Waste Their Energies So Uselessly. The Little Mule 
 Stepped Out One Side And Looked On In Amazement, With Out Disarranging 
 Any Article Of Her Load. 
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 10 Pg 131 
 Mrs. Bennett, Carrying Her Baby And Walking Around To Keep Out Of The 
 Way, Got Very Much Exhausted, And Sat Down On The Sand, Her Face As Red 
 As If The Blood Were About To Burst Through The Skin, And Perspiring 
 Freely. We Carried A Blanket And Spread Down For Her While We Gathered 
 In The Scattered Baggage. Then The Oxen Were Got Together Again, And 
 Submitted To Being Loaded Up Again As Quietly As If Nothing Had 
 Happened. Myself And The Women Had To Mend The Harness Considerably, And 
 Arcane And His Ox Went Back For Some Water, While Rogers And Bennett 
 Took The Shovel And Went Ahead About A Mile To Cover Up The Body Of 
 Capt. Culverwell, For Some Of The Party Feared The Cattle Might Be 
 Terrified At Seeing It. All This Took So Much Time That We Had To Make A 
 Camp Of It Right Here. 
   
   
   
 We Put The Camp Kettle On Two Stones, Built A Fire, Put In Some Beans 
 And Dried Meat Cut Very Fine, Which Cooked Till Arcane Came With More 
 Water, Which Was Added, And Thickened With A Little Of The Unbolted 
 Flour, Making A Pretty Good And Nutritious Soup Which We All Enjoyed. We 
 Had To Secure The Animals, For There Was Neither Grass Nor Water For 
 Them, And We Thought They Might Not Be In So Good Spirits Another Day. 
   
   
   
 We Had Little Trouble In Packing Up Again In The Morning, And Concluded 
 To Take A Nearer Route To The Summit, So As To More Quickly Reach The 
 Water Holes Where Rogers And I Camped On Our First Trip Over The 
 Country. This Would Be A Hard Rocky Road On Its Course Leading Up A 
 Small Rocky Canon, Hard On The Feet Of The Oxen, So They Had To Be 
 Constantly Urged On, As They Seemed Very Tender Footed. They Showed No 
 Disposition To Go On A Spree Again And So Far As Keeping The Loads On, 
 Behaved Very Well Indeed. The Women Did Not Attempt To Ride But Followed 
 On, Close After Old Crump And The Children Who Required Almost Constant 
 Attention, For In Their Cramped Position They Made Many Cries And 
 Complaints. To Think Of It, Two Children Cramped Up In Narrow Pockets, 
 In Which They Could Not Turn Around, Jolted And Pitched Around Over The 
 Rough Road, Made Them Objects Of Great Suffering To Themselves And 
 Anxiety And Labor On The Part Of The Mothers. 
   
   
   
 Mrs. Bennett Said She Would Carry Her Baby If She Could, But Her Own 
 Body Was So Heavy For Her Strength That She Could Not Do It. Bennett, 
 Rogers And Myself Hurried The Oxen All We Could, So That We Could Reach 
 The Water, And Let Bennett Go Back With Some To Meet The Rest And 
 Refresh Them For The End Of The Day's March, And He Could Take Poor 
 Little Martha From The Pocket And Carry Her In His Arms, Which Would Be 
 A Great Relief To Her. Arcane Also Took His Child When He Met Them, 
 Throwing Away His Double Barrel Gun, Saying:--"I Have No Use For You." 
   
   
   
 When The Women Reached Camp We Had Blankets Already Spread Down For 
 Them, On Which They Cast Themselves, So Tired As To Be Nearly Dead. They 
 
 
 
 Chapter 10 Pg 132 
 Were So Tired And Discouraged They Were Ready To Die, For They Felt They 
 Could Not Endure Many Days Like This. 
   
   
   
 We Told Them This Was The First Day And They Were Not Used To Exercise 
 Therefore More Easily Tired Than After They Became A Little Used To It. 
 We Told Them Not To Be Discouraged, For We Knew Every Water Hole, And 
 All The Road Over Which We Would Pilot Them Safely. They Would Not 
 Consent To Try Riding Again, After Their Circus Experience, And Mrs. 
 Arcane Said Her Limbs Ached So Much She Did Not Think She Could Even Go 
 On The Next Day. They Had Climbed Over The Rocks All Day, And Were Lame 
 And Sore, And Truly Thought They Could Not Endure Such Another Day. The 
 Trail Had Been More Like Stairs Than A Road In Its Steep Ascent, And Our 
 Camp Was At A Narrow Pass In The Range. The Sky Was Clear And Cloudless, 
 As It Had Been For So Long For Thus Far Upon This Route No Rain Had 
 Fallen, And Only Once A Little Snow, That Came To Us Like Manna In The 
 Desert. For Many Days We Had Been Obliged To Go Without Water Both We 
 And Our Cattle, And Over The Route We Had Come We Had Not Seen Any Signs 
 Of A White Man's Presence Older Than Our Own. I Have No Doubt We Were 
 The First To Cross The Valley In This Location, A Visible Sink Hole In 
 The Desert. 
   
   
   
 The Women Did Not Recover Sufficient Energy To Remove Their Clothing, 
 But Slept As They Were, And Sat Up And Looked Around With Uncombed Hair 
 In The Morning, Perfect Pictures Of Dejection. We Let Them Rest As Long 
 As We Could, For Their Swollen Eyes And Stiffened Joints Told How Sadly 
 Unprepared They Were To Go Forward At Once. The Sun Came Out Early And 
 Made It Comfortable, While A Cool And Tonic Breeze, Came Down From The 
 Great Snow Mountain The Very Thing To Brace Them Up After A Thorough 
 Rest. 
   
   
   
 The Slope To The East Was Soon Met By A High Ridge And Between This And 
 The Main Mountain Was A Gentle Slope Scattered Over With Sage Brush, And 
 A Few Little Stools Of Bunch Grass Here And There Between. This Gave Our 
 Oxen A Little Food And By Dipping Out The Water From The Holes And 
 Letting Them Fill Up Again We Managed To Get Water For Camp Use And To 
 Give The Animals Nearly All They Wanted. 
   
   
   
 While Waiting For The Women Bennett And Arcane Wanted To Go Out And Get 
 A Good View Of The Great Snowy Mountain I Had Told Them So Much About. 
 The Best Point Of View Was Near Our Camp, Perhaps Three Or Four Hundred 
 Yards Away, And I Went With Them. This Place Where We Now Stood Was 
 Lower Than The Mountains Either North Or South, But Were Difficult To 
 Climb, And Gave A Good View In Almost Every Direction, And There, On The 
 Back Bone Of The Ridge We Had A Grand Outlook, But Some Parts Of It 
 Brought Back Doleful Recollections. They Said They Had Traveled In Sight 
 Of That Mountain For Months And Seen Many Strange Formations, But Never 
 
 
 
 Chapter 10 Pg 133 
 One Like This, As Developed From This Point. It Looked To Be 
 Seventy-Five Miles To Its Base, And To The North And West There Was A 
 Succession Of Snowy Peaks That Seemed To Have No End. Bennett And Arcane 
 Said They Never Before Supposed America Contained Mountains So Grand 
 With Peaks That So Nearly Seemed To Pierce The Sky. Nothing Except A 
 Bird Could Ever Cross Such Steep Ranges As That One. 
   
   
   
 West And South It Seemed Level, And Low, Dark And Barren Buttes Rose 
 From The Plain, But Never High Enough To Carry Snow, Even At This Season 
 Of The Year. I Pointed Out To Them The Route We Were To Follow, Noting 
 The Prominent Points, And It Could Be Traced For Fully One Hundred And 
 Twenty-Five Miles From The Point On Which We Stood. This Plain, With Its 
 Barren Ranges And Buttes Is Now Known As The Mojave Desert. This Part Of 
 The View They Seemed To Study Over, As If To Fix Every Point And Water 
 Hole Upon Their Memory. We Turned To Go To Camp, But No One Looked Back 
 On The Country We Had Come Over Since We First Made Out The Distant Snow 
 Peak, Now So Near Us, On November 4th 1849. The Only Butte In This 
 Direction That Carried Snow Was The One Where We Captured The Indian And 
 Where The Squashes Were Found. 
   
   
   
 The Range Next East Of Us Across The Low Valley Was Barren To Look Upon 
 As A Naked, Single Rock. There Were Peaks Of Various Heights And Colors, 
 Yellow, Blue Firery Red And Nearly Black. It Looked As If It Might 
 Sometime Have Been The Center Of A Mammoth Furnace. I Believe This Range 
 Is Known As The Coffin's Mountains. It Would Be Difficult To Find Earth 
 Enough In The Whole Of It To Cover A Coffin. 
   
   
   
 Just As We Were Ready To Leave And Return To Camp We Took Off Our Hats, 
 And Then Overlooking The Scene Of So Much Trial, Suffering And Death 
 Spoke The Thought Uppermost Saying:--"_Good Bye Death Valley!"_ Then 
 Faced Away And Made Our Steps Toward Camp. Even After This In Speaking 
 Of This Long And Narrow Valley Over Which We Had Crossed Into Its Nearly 
 Central Part, And On The Edge Of Which The Lone Camp Was Made, For So 
 Many Days, It Was Called Death Valley. 
   
   
   
 Many Accounts Have Been Given To The World As To The Origin Of The Name 
 And By Whom It Was Thus Designated But Ours Were The First Visible 
 Footsteps, And We The Party Which Named It The Saddest And Most Dreadful 
 Name That Came To Us First From Its Memories. 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 11 Pg 134 
   
 Out Of Death Valley We Surely Were. To Rogers And I, The Case Seemed 
 Hopeful, For We Had Confidence In The Road And Believed All Would Have 
 Power To Weather Difficulties, But The Poor Women--It Is Hard To Say 
 What Complaints And Sorrows Were Not Theirs. They Seemed To Think They 
 Stood At Death's Door, And Would About As Soon Enter, As To Take Up A 
 Farther March Over The Black, Desolate Mountains And Dry Plains Before 
 Them, Which They Considered Only A Dreary Vestibule To The Dark Door 
 After All. They Even Had An Idea That The Road Was Longer Than We Told 
 Them, And They Never Could Live To March So Far Over The Sandy, Rocky 
 Roads. The First Day Nearly Satisfied Them That It Was No Use To Try, 
 Rogers And I Counted Up The Camps We Ought To Reach Each Day And In This 
 Way Could Pretty Near Convince Them Of Time That Would Be Consumed In 
 The Trip. We Encouraged Them In Every Way We Could; Told Them We Had 
 Better Get Along A Little Every Day And Make Ourselves A Little Nearer 
 The Promised Land, And The Very Exercise Would Soon Make Them Stronger 
 And Able To Make A Full Day's March. 
   
   
   
 John And I Told Them We Felt In Much Better Spirits Now Than We Did When 
 We Set Out Alone, And Now That Nothing But The Arrows Of An Indian Could 
 Stop Us. We Said To Them. "We Are Not Going To Leave You Two Ladies Out 
 Here To Die For There Is Not A Sign Of A Grave To Put You In,--" And It 
 Was A Pretty Tough Place To Think Of Making One. We Told Them Of The 
 Beautiful Flowery Hillsides Over The Other Side And Begged Them To Go 
 Over There To Die, As It Would Be So Much Better And Easier To Perform 
 The Last Sad Rites There Instead Of Here On The Top Of The Dismal 
 Mountain. It Seemed Quite Like A Grim Joke, But It Produced A Reaction 
 That Turned The Tide Of Thoughts And Brought More Courage. We Only Laid 
 Out The March For This Day As Far As The Falls And After A Little 
 Prepared To Move. The Cattle Seemed To Have Quit Their Foolishness, And 
 They Were Loaded Without Trouble. The Children Fitted Into The Pockets 
 Better Than Usual, And The Mothers With Full Canteens Strapped Across 
 Their Shoulders Picked Out Soft Places On Which To Place Their Poor 
 Blistered Feet At Every Step. They Walked As If They Were Troubled With 
 Corns On Every Toe And On Their Heels Into The Bargain, And Each Foot 
 Was So Badly Affected, That They Did Not Know On Which One To Limp. But 
 Still They Moved, And We Were Once More On Our Way Westward. They Often 
 Stopped To Rest, And Arcane Waited For Them With Old Crump, While They 
 Breathed And Complained Awhile And Then Passed On Again. 
   
   
   
   
   
   
 The Route Was First Along The Foot Of The High Peak, Over Bare Rocks And 
 We Soon Turned South Somewhat So As To Enter The Canon Leading Down To 
 
 
 
 Chapter 11 Pg 135 
 The Falls. The Bottom Of This Was Thick With Broken Rock, And The Oxen 
 Limped And Picked Out Soft Places About As Bad As The Women Did. A Pair 
 Of Moccasins Would Not Last Long In Such Rocks And We Hoped To Get Out 
 Of Them Very Soon. Rogers And I Hurried Along, Assisting Arcane And His 
 Party As Much As We Could, While Bennett Staid Behind And Assisted The 
 Women As Much As Possible, Taking Their Arms, And By This Means They 
 Also Reached Camp An Hour Behind The Rest. 
   
   
   
 A Kettle Of Hot Steaming Soup, And Blankets All Spread Out On Which To 
 Rest, Was The Work Rogers And I Had Done To Prepare For Them, And They 
 Sank Down On The Beds Completely Exhausted. The Children Cried Some But 
 Were Soon Pacified And Were Contented To Lie Still. A Good Supper Of Hot 
 Soup Made Them Feel Much Better All Around. 
   
   
   
 The First Thing Bennett And Arcane Did Was To Look Round And See The 
 Situation At The Falls, And See If The Obstacle Was Enough To Stop Our 
 Progress, Or If We Must Turn Back And Look For A Better Way. They Were 
 In Some Doubt About It, But Concluded To Try And Get The Animals Over 
 Rather Than To Take The Time To Seek Another Pass, Which Might Take A 
 Week Of Time. We Men All Went Down To The Foot Of The Fall, And Threw 
 Out All The Large Rocks, Then Piled Up All The Sand We Could Scrape 
 Together With The Shovel, Till We Had Quite A Pile Of Material That 
 Would Tend To Break A Fall. We Arranged Everything Possible For A Forced 
 Passage In The Morning, And The Animals Found A Few Willows To Browse 
 And A Few Bunches Of Grass Here And There, Which Gave Them A Little 
 Food, While The Spring Supplied Them With Enough Water To Keep Them From 
 Suffering With Thirst. 
   
   
   
 Early In The Morning We Took Our Soup Hastily And With Ropes Lowered Our 
 Luggage Over The Small Precipice, Then The Children, And Finally All The 
 Ropes Were Combined To Make A Single Strong One About Thirty Feet Long. 
 They Urged One Of The Oxen Up To The Edge Of The Falls, Put The Rope 
 Around His Horns, And Threw Down The End To Me, Whom They Had Stationed 
 Below. I Was Told To Pull Hard When He Started So That He Might Not 
 Light On His Head And Break His Neck. We Felt This Was A Desperate 
 Undertaking, And We Fully Expected To Lose Some Of Our Animals, But Our 
 Case Was Critical And We Must Take Some Chances. Bennett Stood On One 
 Side Of The Ox, And Arcane On The Other, While Big Rogers Was Placed In 
 The Rear To Give A Regular Tennessee Boost When The Word Was Given. "Now 
 For It," Said Bennett, And As I Braced Out On The Rope Those Above Gave 
 A Push And The Ox Came Over, Sprawling, But Landed Safely, Cut Only A 
 Little By Some Angular Stones In The Sand Pile. "Good Enough," Said Some 
 One And I Threw The Rope Back For Another Ox. "We'll Get 'Em All Over 
 Safely" Said Arcane, "If Lewis Down There, Will Keep Them From Getting 
 Their Necks Broken." Lewis Pulled Hard Every Time, And Not A Neck Was 
 Broken. The Sand Pile Was Renewed Every Time And Made As High And Soft 
 As Possible, And Very Soon All Our Animals Were Below The Falls. The 
 Little Mule Gave A Jump When They Pushed Her And Lighted Squarely On Her 
 
 
 
 Chapter 11 Pg 136 
 Feet All Right. With The Exception Of One Or Two Slight Cuts, Which Bled 
 Some, The Oxen Were All Right And We Began Loading Them At Once. 
   
   
   
 Bennett And Arcane Assisted Their Wives Down Along The Little Narrow 
 Ledge Which We Used In Getting Up, Keeping Their Faces Toward The Rocky 
 Wall, And Feeling Carefully For Every Footstep. Thus They Worked Along 
 And Landed Safely By The Time We Had The Animals Ready For A March. We 
 Had Passed Without Disaster, The Obstacle We Most Feared, And Started 
 Down The Rough Canon, Hope Revived, And We Felt We Should Get Through. 
 After Winding Around Among The Great Boulders For A Little While We Came 
 To The Two Horses We Had Left Behind, Both Dead And Near Together. We 
 Pointed To The Carcasses, And Told Them Those Were The Horses We Brought 
 For The Women To Ride, And That Is The Way They Were Cheated Out Of 
 Their Passage. The Bodies Of The Animals Had Not Been Touched By Bird Or 
 Beast. The Canon Was Too Deep And Dark For Either Wolves Or Buzzards To 
 Enter, And Nothing Alive Had Been Seen By Us In The Shape Of Wild Game 
 Of Any Sort. Firearms Were Useless Here Except For Defence Against 
 Indians, And We Expected No Real Trouble From Them. 
   
   
   
 From What We Could See, It Was My Opinion That No General Rain Ever Fell 
 In That Region. There Was Some Evidence That Water Had At Times Flowed 
 Down Them Freely After Cloud Bursts, Or Some Sudden Tempest, But The 
 Gravel Was So Little Worn That It Gave No Evidence Of Much Of A Stream. 
   
   
   
 We Hurried On As Rapidly As Possible So As To Get Into The Jayhawker's 
 Beaten Trail Which Would Be A Little Easier To Follow. When We Reached 
 The Lowest Part Of The Valley We Had To Turn South To Get Around A 
 Little, Slow Running Stream Of Salt Water, That Moved North And Emptied 
 Into A Salt Lake. No Source Of The Stream Could Be Seen From This Point, 
 But When We Reached A Point Where We Could Cross, We Had A Smooth, Hard 
 Clay Bed To March Over. It Seemed To Have Been, Some Day, A Bed Of 
 Mortar, But Now Baked Hard, And The Hoofs Of The Oxen Dented Into It No 
 More Than Half An Inch. On Our Left Hand Was A Perpendicular Cliff, 
 Along Which We Traveled For Quite A Little Way. The Range Of Mountains 
 Now Before Us To Cross Was Black, Nothing But Rocks, And Extremely 
 Barren, Having No Water In It That We Knew Of, So When We Reached The 
 Summit We Camped, Tied All Our Animals To Rocks, Where They Lay Down And 
 Did Not Rise Till Morning. The Women Were So Tired They Were Over Two 
 Hours Late, And We Had The Fire Built, The Soup Cooked And The Beds 
 Made. As We Did Not Stop At Noon All Were Very Hungry, And Ate With A 
 Relish. The Poor Animals Had To Go Without Either Grass Or Water. When 
 Old Crump And The Party Came In The Men Were Carrying The Babies, And 
 Their Wives Were Clinging To Their Arms, Scarcely Able To Stand. When 
 They Reached The Beds They Fell At Full Length On Them, Saying Their 
 Feet And Limbs Ached Like The Tooth Ache. It Seemed To Be Best For Them 
 To Rest A Little Before Eating. Mrs. Bennett Said That The Only 
 Consolation Was That The Road Was Getting Shorter Every Day, But Were It 
 Not For The Children She Would Sooner Die Than Follow The Trail Any 
 
 
 
 Chapter 11 Pg 137 
 Farther. Their Soup Was Carried To Them In The Bed, And They Were 
 Covered Up As They Lay, And Slept Till Morning. This Day's Walk Was The 
 Hardest One Yet, And Probably The Longest One Of The Whole Journey, But 
 There Was No Other Place Where We Could Find A Place Large Enough To 
 Make A Camp And Free Enough Of Rocks So That A Bed Could Be Made. 
   
   
   
 Rogers And I Had The Kettle Boiling Early, And Put In The Last Of The 
 Meat, And Nearly All That Was Left Of The Flour. At The Next Camp An Ox 
 Must Be Killed. Just As It Was Fairly Light I Went About 200 Yards South 
 Where The Dead Body Of Mr. Fish Lay, Just As He Died More Than A Month 
 Before. The Body Had Not Been Disturbed And Looked Quite Natural. He Was 
 From Oscaloosa, Iowa. 
   
   
   
 The Folks Arose Very Reluctantly This Morning, And Appeared With Swollen 
 Eyes And Uncombed Hair, For There Was No Means Of Making A Toilet, 
 Without A Drop Of Water, Except What We Had Used In Getting Breakfast. 
 We Set The Soup Kettle Near The Foot Of The Bed So The Women Could Feed 
 The Children And Themselves. Now As We Loaded The Oxen, It Was Agreed 
 That Rogers And I Should Go Ahead With All But Old Crump, And Get In 
 Camp As Soon As Possible, And They Were To Follow On As Best They Could. 
 There Was A Little Water Left In The Canteens Of Bennett And Arcane, To 
 Be Given Only To The Children, Who Would Cry When Thirsty, The Very 
 Thing To Make Them Feel The Worst. 
   
   
   
 We Were To Kill An Ox When We Reached Camp, And As Each Of The Men Had 
 An Equal Number On The Start Each Was To Furnish One Alternately And No 
 Disputing About Whose Were Better Or Stronger, In Any Emergency. 
   
   
   
 Our Road Now Led Down The Western Slope Of The Mountain, And Loose, 
 Hard, Broken Rocks Were Harder On The Feet Of Our Animals Than Coming 
 Up, And Our Own Moccasins Were Wearing Through. The Cattle Needed Shoes 
 As Well As We. Any One Who Has Never Tried It Can Imagine How Hard It Is 
 To Walk With Tender Feet Over Broken Rock. It Was Very Slow Getting 
 Along At The Best, And The Oxen Stumbled Dreadfully In Trying To Protect 
 Their Sore Feet. At The Foot Of The Mountain We Had Several Miles Of 
 Soft And Sandy Road. The Sun Shone Very Hot, And With No Water We 
 Suffered Fearfully. A Short Way Out In The Sandy Valley We Pass Again 
 The Grave Of Mr. Isham, Where He Had Been Buried By His Friends. He Was 
 From Rochester, N.Y. He Was A Cheerful, Pleasant Man, And During The 
 Forepart Of The Journey Used His Fiddle At The Evening Camps To Increase 
 The Merriment Of His Jolly Companions. In Those Days We Got No Rain, See 
 No Living Animals Of Any Kind Except Those Of Our Train, See Not A Bird 
 Nor Insect, See Nothing Green Except A Very Stunted Sage, And Some Dwarf 
 Bushes. We Now Know That The Winter Of 1849-50 Was One Of The Wettest 
 Ever Seen In California, But For Some Reason Or Other None Of The Wet 
 Clouds Ever Came To This Portion Of The State To Deposit The Most 
 
 
 
 Chapter 11 Pg 138 
 Scattering Drops Of Moisture. 
   
   
   
 Quite A Long Way From The Expected Camp The Oxen Snuffed The Moisture, 
 And Began To Hurry Towards It With Increased Speed. A Little While 
 Before It Did Not Seem As If They Had Ambition Enough Left To Make A 
 Quick Move, But As We Approached The Water Those Which Had No Packs 
 Fairly Trotted In Their Haste To Get A Drink. This Stream Was A Very 
 Small One, Seeping Out From A Great Pile Of Rocks, And Maintaining 
 Itself Till It Reached The Sands, Where It Disappeared Completely. A Few 
 Tufts Of Grass Grew Along The Banks, Otherwise Everything Surrounding 
 Was Desolate In The Extreme. 
   
   
   
 As Soon As We Could Get The Harness Off The Oxen, We Went To Look For 
 Our Little Buried Sack Of Wheat, Which We Were Compelled To Leave And 
 Hide On Our Way Out. We Had Hidden It So Completely, That It Took Us 
 Quite A Little While To Strike Its Bed But After Scratching With Our 
 Hands Awhile, We Hit The Spot, And Found It Untouched. Although The Sand 
 In Which It Was Buried Seemed Quite Dry, Yet The Grain Had Absorbed So 
 Much Moisture From It, That The Sack Was Nearly Bursting. It Was Emptied 
 On A Blanket, And Proved To Be Still Sound And Sweet. 
   
   
   
 Our First Work Now Was To Kill An Ox And Get Some Meat To Cook For Those 
 Who Were Coming Later. We Got The Kettle Over Boiling With Some Of The 
 Wheat In It, For The Beans Were All Gone. We Killed The Ox Saving The 
 Blood To Cook. Cutting The Meat All Off The Bones, We Had It Drying Over 
 A Fire As Soon As Possible, Except What We Needed For This Meal And The 
 Next. Then We Made A Smooth Place In The Soft Sand On Which To Spread 
 The Blankets, The First Good Place We Had Found To Sleep Since Leaving 
 Death Valley. 
   
   
   
 The Next Job Was To Make Moccassins For Ourselves And For The Oxen, For 
 It Was Plain They Could Not Go On Another Day Barefooted. We Kept Busy 
 Indeed, Attending The Fires Under The Meat And Under The Kettle, Besides 
 Our Shoemaking, And Were Getting Along Nicely About Sundown, When Old 
 Christian Crump Appeared In Sight Followed By The Women And The Rest Of 
 The Party. The Women Were Just As Tired As Ever And Dropped Down On The 
 Blankets The First Thing. "How Many Such Days As This Can We 
 Endure?"--They Said. We Had Them Count The Days Gone By, And Look Around 
 To See The Roughest Part Of The Road Was Now Behind Them. They Said That 
 Only Five Days Had Passed, And That Two Thirds Of The Distance Still 
 Remained Untraveled, And They Knew They Could Never Endure Even Another 
 Five Day's Work Like The Last. We Told Them To Be Brave, And Be 
 Encouraged, For We Had Been Over The Road And Knew What It Was, And That 
 We Felt Sure Of Being Able To Do It Nicely. They Were Fed In Bed As 
 Usual, And There They Lay Till Morning. We Men Went To Making Moccasins 
 From The Green Hide, And When We Had Cut Out Those For The Men And Women 
 
 
 
 Chapter 11 Pg 139 
 The Balance Of The Hide Was Used In Preparing Some Also For The Oxen, 
 Particularly The Worst Ones, For If I Remember Correctly There Was Not 
 Enough To Go Round. 
   
   
   
 The Morning Came, Bright And Pleasant, As All Of Them Were, And Just 
 Warm Enough For Comfort In The Part Of The Day. The Women Were As Usual, 
 And Their Appearance Would Remind One Quite Strongly Of Half-Drowned 
 Hens Which Had Not Been Long Out Of Trouble. Hair Snarled, Eyes Red, 
 Nose Swollen, And Out Of Fix Generally. They Did Not Sleep Well So Much 
 Fatigued, For They Said They Lived Over Their Hard Days In Dreams At 
 Night, And When They Would Close Their Eyes And Try To Go To Sleep, The 
 Visions Would Seem To Come To Them Half Waking And They Could Not Rest. 
   
   
   
 There Was Now Before Us A Particularly Bad Stretch Of The Country As It 
 Would Probably Take Us Four Or Five Days To Get Over It, And There Was 
 Only One Water Hole In The Entire Distance. This One Was Quite Salt, So 
 Much So That On Our Return Trip The Horses Refused To Drink It, And The 
 Little White One Died Next Day. Only Water For One Day's Camp Could Be 
 Carried With Us, And That Was For Ourselves Alone And Not For The 
 Animals. 
   
   
   
 When The Moccasins Were Finished In The Morning We Began To Get Our 
 Cattle Together When It Was Discovered That Old Brigham Was Gone, And 
 The General Belief Was That The Indians Had Made A Quiet Raid On Us And 
 Got Away With The Old Fellow. We Circled Around Till We Found His Track 
 And Then Arcane Followed It While We Made Ready The Others. Arcane Came 
 In With The Stray Namesake Of The Polygamous Saint About This Time 
 Shouting:--"I've Got Him--No Indians." The Ox Had Got Into The Wash 
 Ravine Below Camp And Passed Out Of Sight Behind, In A Short Time. He 
 Had Been As Easily Tracked As If He Walked In Snow. There Was Larger 
 Sage Brush In The Wash Than Elsewhere, And No Doubt Brigham Had Thought 
 This A Good Place To Seek For Some Extra Blades Of Grass. 
   
   
   
 Immediately South Of This Camp Now Known As Providence Springs, Is The 
 Salt Lake To Which Rogers And I Went On The First Trip And Were So Sadly 
 Disappointed In Finding The Water Unfit To Use. 
   
   
   
 As Soon As Ready We Started Up The Canon, Following The Trail Made By 
 The Jayhawkers Who Had Proceeded Us, And By Night Had Reached The 
 Summit, But Passed Beyond, A Short Distance Down The Western Slope, 
 Where We Camped In A Valley That Gave Us Good Large Sage Brush For Our 
 Fires, And Quite A Range For The Oxen Without Their Getting Out Of 
 Sight. This Being At Quite A High Elevation We Could See The Foot As 
 Well As The Top, Of The Great Snow Mountain, And Had A General Good View 
 
 
 
 Chapter 11 Pg 140 
 Of The Country. 
   
   
   
 This Proved To Be The Easiest Day's March We Had Experienced, And The 
 Women Complained Less Than On Any Other Night Since Our Departure. Their 
 Path Had Been Comparatively Smooth, And With The New Moccasins Their 
 Feet Had Been Well Protected, They Had Come Through Pretty Nicely. We 
 Told Them They Looked Better, And If They Would Only Keep Up Good 
 Courage They Would Succeed And Come Out All Right To The Land Where 
 There Was Plenty Of Bread And Water, And When Safely Out, They Might 
 Make Good Resolutions Never To Get In Such A Trap Again. Mrs. Bennett 
 Said Such A Trip Could Never Be Done Over Again, And But For The Fact 
 That Rogers And I Had Been Over The Road, And That She Believed All We 
 Had Said About It; She Never Would Have Had The Courage To Come Thus 
 Far. Now, For The Children's Sake, She Wished To Live, And Would Put 
 Forth Any Effort To Come Through All Right. 
   
   
   
 The Next Day We Had A Long Canon To Go Down, And In It Passed The Dead 
 Body Of The Beautiful White Mare Rogers Had Taken Such A Fancy To. The 
 Body Had Not Decomposed, Nor Had It Been Disturbed By Any Bird Or Beast. 
 Below This Point The Bed Of The Canon Was Filled With Great Boulders, 
 Over Which It Was Very Difficult To Get The Oxen Along. Some Of Them Had 
 Lost Their Moccasins And Had To Suffer Terribly Over The Rocks. 
   
   
   
 Camp Was Made At The Salt Water Hole, And Our Wheat And Meat Boiled In 
 It Did Not Soften And Get Tender As It Did In Fresh Water. There Was 
 Plenty Of Salt Grass Above; But The Oxen Did Not Eat It Any More Than 
 The Horses Did, And Wandered Around Cropping A Bite Of The Bitter Brush 
 Once In Awhile, And Looking Very Sorry. This Was Near The Place Where 
 Rogers And I Found The Piece Of Ice Which Saved Our Lives. The Women Did 
 Not Seriously Complain When We Reached This Camp, But Little Charley 
 Arcane Broke Out With A Bad Looking Rash All Over His Body And As He 
 Cried Most Of The Time It No Doubt Smarted And Pained Him Like A Mild 
 Burn. Neither His Mother Nor Any One Else Could Do Anything For Him To 
 Give Him Any Relief. We Had No Medicines, And If He Or Any One Should 
 Die, All We Could Do Would Be To Roll The Body In A Blanket And Cover It 
 With A Light Covering Of Sand. 
   
   
   
 From This Camp To The Next Water Holes At The Base Of The Great Snow 
 Mountain, It Was At Least 30 Miles, Level As To Surface, And With A 
 Light Ascending Grade. The Jayhawkers Had Made A Well Marked Trail, And 
 It It Was Quite Good Walking. The Next Camp Was A Dry One, Both For 
 Ourselves And The Oxen, Nothing But Dry Brush For Them, And A Little 
 Dried Meat For Ourselves, But For All This The Women Did Not Complain So 
 Very Much. They Were Getting Use To The Work And Grew Stronger With The 
 Exercise. They Had Followed Old Crump And The Children Every Day With 
 The Canteens Of Water And A Little Dried Meat To Give Them If They Cried 
 
 
 
 Chapter 11 Pg 141 
 Too Much With Hunger, And Arcane Had Led His Ox Day After Day With A 
 Patience That Was Remarkable, And There Was No Bad Temper Shown By Any 
 One. This Was The Way To Do, For If There Were Any Differences, There 
 Was No Tribunal To Settle Them By. 
   
   
   
 In All This Desert Travel I Did Not Hear Any Discontent And Serious 
 Complaint, Except In One Case, And That Was At The Jayhawker's Camp, 
 Where They Burned Their Wagons At The End Of The Wagon Road, In Death 
 Valley. Some Could Not Say Words Bad Enough To Express Their Contempt, 
 And Laid All The Trouble Of Salt Water To Lot's Wife. Perhaps She Was In 
 A Better Position To Stand The Cursing Than Any Of The Party Present. 
   
   
   
 The Next Day We Reached The Water Holes At The Place Where Rogers And I 
 Stole Up To Camp Fire In The Evening, Supposing It To Be Indians, But 
 Finding There Capt. Doty And His Mess, A Part Of The Jayhawker's Band. 
 By Dipping Carefully From These Holes They Filled Again, And Thus, 
 Although There Was No Flow From Them We Gradually Secured What Water We 
 Needed For The Camp, Which Was A Small Amount After So Long A Time 
 Without. There Was Some Low Brush Here Called Greasewood, Which Grew 
 About As High As Currant Bushes, And Some Distance Up The Mountain The 
 Oxen Could Find Some Scattery Bunch Grass, Which, On The Whole, Made 
 This Camp A Pretty Good One. The Women, However, Were Pretty Nearly 
 Exhausted, And Little Charley Arcane Cried Bitterly All Day And Almost 
 All Night. All Began To Talk More And Feel More Hopeful Of Getting 
 Through. The Women Began To Say That Every Step Brought Them So Much 
 Nearer To The House We Had Told Them About On The Other Side And Often 
 Said The Work Was Not So Very Hard After All. Really It Was Not So Bad 
 Travelling As We Had At First. We Were Now Nine Days From The Wagons. 
 "Are We Half Way?" Was The Question They Began To Ask. We Had To Answer 
 Them That More Than One Half The Hard Days Were Over, If One Half The 
 Distance Had Not Been Traveled, And With The Better Walking And Getting 
 Hardened To The Work, They Would Get Over The Last Half Better Than The 
 First. One Thing Was A Little Hard. All Of Our Beans And Flour Had Been 
 Used Up, And Now The Wheat Was About Gone Also. We Had Cooked It, And It 
 Seemed Best, Trying To Build Up Our Strength, Where It Was Most Needed 
 For The Greatest Trials, And Now We Thought They Would Be Able To Get 
 Along On The Meat. We Had Reached The Base Of The Great Snow Mountain. 
 It Seems Strange With The Mass Of Snow Resting Above, And Which Must Be 
 Continually Thawing More Or Less, No Ravines Or Large Streams Of Water 
 Were Produced Flowing Down This Side. It Seemed Dry All Around Its Base, 
 Which Is Is Very Singular, With The Snow So Near. 
   
   
   
 We Had Now Our Barren Canon To Go Down, And Right Here Was The Big Trail 
 Coming Down From The North, Which We Took And Followed. We Said All 
 These Good Things About The Road, And Encouraged The People All We Could 
 To Keep In Good Spirits And Keep Moving. We Told Them We Thought We Knew 
 How To Manage To Get Them Safe Over The Road If They Only Fully 
 Endeavored To Do It. We Were All Quite Young, And Not In The Decline Of 
 
 
 
 Chapter 11 Pg 142 
 Life As Were Most Of Them Who Had Perished By The Way. No Reader Can 
 Fully Realize How Much We Had To Say And Do To Keep Up Courage, And It 
 Is To This More Than Anything Else That We Did Which Kept Up The Lagging 
 Energies And Inspired The Best Exertion. I Don't Know But We Painted 
 Some Things A Little Brighter Than They Were, And Tried To Hide Some Of 
 The Most Disheartening Points Of The Prospects Ahead, For We Found The 
 Mind Had Most To Do With It After All. We Have No Doubt That If We Had 
 Not Done All We Could To Keep Up Good Courage, The Women Would Have 
 Pined Away And Died Before Reaching This Far. Whenever We Stopped 
 Talking Encouragingly, They Seemed To Get Melancholy And Blue. 
   
   
   
 There Was Some Pretty Good Management To Be Exercised Still. The Oxen 
 Were Gradually Growing Weaker, And We Had To Kill The Weakest One Every 
 Time, For If The Transportation Of Our Food Failed, We Should Yet Be 
 Open To The Danger Of Starvation. As It Was, The Meat On Their Frames 
 Was Very Scarce, And We Had To Use The Greatest Economy To Make It Last 
 And Waste Nothing. We Should Now Have To Kill One Of Our Oxen Every Few 
 Days, As Our Other Means Of Subsistence Had Been So Completely Used Up. 
 The Women Contracted A Strange Dislike To This Region And Said They 
 Never Wanted To See Any Part Of It Again. 
   
   
   
 As The Sun Showed Its Face Over The Great Sea Of Mountains Away To The 
 East Of Death Valley, And It Seemed To Rise Very Early For Winter Season 
 We Packed Up And Started West On The Big Trail. Rogers And I Took The 
 Oxen And Mule And Went On, Leaving The Others To Accompany Old Crump And 
 His Little Charges. Arcane Had Found It Best To Carry Charley On His 
 Back, As It Relieved The Burning Sensation, Caused By The Eruption On 
 His Skin, Which Was Aggravated By The Close Quarters Of The Pockets. 
 Thus Leaving The Pockets Unbalanced, Bennett Had To Carry His Baby Also. 
 This Made It Harder For Them, But Every One Tried To Be Just As 
 Accommodating As They Could And Each One Would Put Himself To Trouble To 
 Accommodate Or Relieve Others. 
   
   
   
 Rogers And I Made Camp When We Reached The Proper Place Which Was Some 
 Distance From The Mountain, On A Perfectly Level Plain Where There Was 
 No Water, No Grass, Nothing But Sage Brush Would Grow On The Dry And 
 Worthless Soil. We Let The Oxen Go And Eat As Much Of This As They 
 Chose, Which Was Very Little And Only Enough To Keep Them From Absolute 
 Starvation. The Great Trail Had A Branch Near Here That Turned North, 
 And Went Up A Ravine That Would Seem To Reach The Snow In A Little 
 While. This Was Believed To Be Impassable At This Time Of Year. This 
 Route Is Known As Walker's Pass, Leading Over A Comparatively Low Ridge, 
 And Coming Out The South Fork Of The Kern River. 
   
   
   
 We Made Our Camp Here Because It Was As Long A March As The Women Could 
 Make, And, For A Dry One, Was As Good A Location As We Could Find. The 
 
 
 
 Chapter 11 Pg 143 
 Cool Breeze Came Down From The Snow To The North Of Us, Not So Very Many 
 Miles Away, And After A Little It Became Uncomfortably Cold. We Gathered 
 Greasewood Bushes And Piled Them Up To Make A Wind-Break For Our Heads. 
 The Oxen, Even, Would Come And Stand Around The Fire, Seeming Greatly To 
 Enjoy The Warm Smoke, Which Came From Burning The Greasewood Brush, 
 Which By The Way, Burns About The Best Of Any Green Wood. When We Were 
 Ready To Lie Down We Tied The Animals To Bunches Of Brush, And They Lay 
 Contentedly Till Morning. 
   
   
   
 To The North Of Us, A Few Miles Away We Could See Some Standing, Columns 
 Of Rock, Much Reminding One Of The Great Stone Chimney Of The Boiler 
 House At Stanford Jr., University; Not Quite So Trim And Regular In 
 Exterior Appearance, But Something In That Order. We Reckon The Only 
 Students In The Vicinity Would Be Lizards. 
   
   
   
 When The Women Arrived In Camp They Were Very Tired, But Encouraged 
 Themselves That They Were Much Nearer The Promised Land Than They Were 
 In The Morning. Mrs. Bennett Said She Was Very Careful Never To Take A 
 Step Backward, And To Make Every Forward One Count As Much As Possible. 
 "That's A Good Resolution, Sally," Said Mr Bennett. "Stick To It And We 
 Will Come Out By And Bye." 
   
   
   
 From Near This Camp We Have A Low Range Of Mountains To Cross, A Sort Of 
 Spur Or Offshoot Of The Great Snow Mountain That Reaches Out Twenty 
 Miles Or More To The Southeast, And Its Extremity Divides Away Into What 
 Seems From Our Point Of View A Level Plain. We Had Attained Quite An 
 Elevation Without Realizing It, So Gradual Had Been The Ascent, And Our 
 Course Was Now Down A Steep Hillside And Into A Deep Canon. In Its Very 
 Bottom We Found A Small Stream Of Water Only A Few Yards Long, And Then 
 It Sank Into The Sands. Not A Spear Of Grass Grew There, And If Any Had 
 Grown It Had Been Eaten By The Cattle Which Had Gone Before. This Was 
 The Same Place, Where Rogers And I Had Overtaken The Advance Portion Of 
 The Jayhawkers When We Were On Our Outward Trip In Search Of Relief, And 
 Where Some Of The Older Men Were So Discouraged That They Gave Us Their 
 Home Addresses In Illinois So That We Could Notify Their Friends Of 
 Their Precarious Situation, And If They Were Never Otherwise Heard From 
 They Could Be Pretty Sure They Had Perished From Thirst And Starvation 
 When Almost At Their Journey's End. 
   
   
   
 The Scenes Of This Camp On That Occasion Made So Strong An Impression On 
 My Memory That I Can Never Forget It. There Were Poor Dependent Fellows 
 Without A Morsel To Eat Except Such Bits Of Poor Meat As They Could Beg 
 From Those Who Were Fortunate Enough To Own Oxen. Their Tearful 
 Pleadings Would Soften A Heart Of Stone. We Shared With Some Of Them 
 Even When We Did Not Know The Little Store Upon Our Backs Would Last Us 
 Through. Our Oxen Here Had Water To Drink, But Nothing More. It Might Be 
 
 
 
 Chapter 11 Pg 144 
 A Little More Comfortable To Drink And Starve, Than Both Choke And 
 Starve, But These Are No Very Pleasant Prospects In Either One. 
   
   
   
 Both Ourselves And The Oxen Were Getting Barefoot And Our Feet Very 
 Tender. The Hill We Had Just Come Down Was Very Rough And Rocky And Our 
 Progress Very Slow, Every Step Made In A Selected Spot. We Could Not 
 Stop Here To Kill An Ox And Let The Remainder Of Them Starve, But Must 
 Push On To Where The Living Ones Could Get A Little Food. We Fastened 
 The Oxen And The Mule To Keep Them From Wandering, And Slept As Best We 
 Could. The Women And Children Looked Worse Than For Some Time, And Could 
 Not Help Complaining. One Of The Women Held Up Her Foot And The Sole Was 
 Bare And Blistered. She Said They Ached Like Toothache. The Women Had 
 Left Their Combs In The Wagons, And Their Hair Was Getting Seriously 
 Tangled. Their Dresses Were Getting Worn Off Pretty Nearly To Their 
 Knees, And Showed The Contact With The Ground That Sometimes Could Not 
 Be Avoided. They Were In A Sad Condition So Far As Toilet And Raiment 
 Were Concerned. Life Was In The Balance, However, And Instead Of Talking 
 Over Sad Things, We Talked Of The Time When We Would Reach The Little 
 Babbling Brook Where Rogers And I Took Such Long Draughts Of Clear, 
 Sweet Water And The Waiter At Our Dinner Gave Us The Choice Of _Crow_, 
 _Hawk_ Or _Quail_, And Where We Took A Little Of All Three. 
   
   
   
 [Illustation: Pulling The Oxen Down The Precipice.] 
   
   
   
 In The Morning We Were Off Again Down The Canon, Limping Some As We Trod 
 Its Coarse Gravelly Bed With Our Tender Feet And Stiffened Joints, But 
 Getting Limbered Up A Little After A Bit, And Enduring It Pretty Well. 
 We Set Out To Try To Reach The Bunch Of Willows Out On The Level Plain, 
 Where The Cattle Could Get Some Water And Grass, But Night Overtook Us 
 At The Mouth Of The Canon, And We Were Forced To Go Into Camp. This 
 Canon Is Now Called Red Canon. This Was On An Elevated Plain, With A 
 Lake Near By, But As We Had Been So Often Deceived By Going To The Lake 
 For Water, And Finding Them Salt In Every Instance, Or Poison On Account 
 Of Strong Alkali, We Did Not Take The Trouble To Go And Try This One. 
   
   
   
 Near Us Was Some Coarse Grass And Wet Ground Where We Found Water Enough 
 For Our Moderate Use, And The Oxen, By Perseverance, Could Get Something 
 To Eat And Drink. After Supper We Were Out Of Meat And We Would Have To 
 Kill An Ox To Get Some Food For Breakfast. In The Night A Storm Came On, 
 Much To Our Surprise, For We Had Seen None Since The Night On The 
 Mountain East Of Death Valley More Than Two Months Before. We Tried To 
 Fix Up A Shelter To Protect The Children And Ourselves, But Were Not 
 Very Successful. We Tried To Use Our Guns For Tent Poles, But Could Not 
 Keep Them In Place. We Laid Down As Close As Pigs In Cold Weather, And 
 Covered Up As Best We Could, But Did Not Keep Dry, And Morning Found Us 
 Wet To The Skin, Cold And Shivering. We Gathered Big Sage Brush For A 
 
 
 
 Chapter 11 Pg 145 
 Fire In The Morning, And The Tracks Of Our Nearly Bare Feet Could Be 
 Plainly Seen In The Snow Which Lay Like A Blanket Awhile Over The 
 Ground, About Two Inches Deep. Some Lay In Bed And We Warmed Blankets 
 Before The Fire And Put Over Them To Keep Them Comfortable Till The Sun 
 Should Rise And Warm The Air. We Selected An Ox And Brought Him Up 
 Before The Fire Where I Shot Him, And Soon There Was Meat Roasting Over 
 The Fire And Blood Cooking In The Camp Kettle. We Had Nothing To Season 
 The Blood Pudding With But Salt, And It Was Not Very Good, But Answered 
 To Sustain Life. We Ate A Hasty Meal, Then Packed Our Animals And 
 Started For The Willow Patch About Four Miles Away. The Snow Was About 
 Gone. 
   
   
   
 I Staid In Camp To Keep It Till They Could Get Through To The Willows 
 And Some One To Come Back With The Mule To Carry Forward The Portion Of 
 Meat That Could Not Be Taken At First. We Intended To Dry It At The 
 Willows, And Then We Could Carry It Along As Daily Food Over The Wide 
 Plain We Had Yet To Cross. Having Carried The Meat Forward, We Made A 
 Rack Of Willows And Dried It Over The Fire, Making Up A Lot Of Moccasins 
 For The Barefooted Ones While We Waited. We Were Over Most Of The Rocky 
 Road, We Calculated That Our Shoemaking Would Last Us Through. This Was 
 A Very Pleasant Camp. The Tired Ones Were Taking A Rest. No One Needed 
 It More Than Our Women And Children, Who Were Tired Nearly Out. They 
 Were In Much Better Condition To Endure Their Daily Hardships Than When 
 They Started Out, And A Little Rest Would Make Them Feel Quite Fresh 
 Again. They Understood That This Was Almost On The Western Edge Of This 
 Desert Country And This Gave Them Good Hope And Courage. 
   
   
   
 This Wonderful Spot In The Level Plain, With A Spring Of Pure Water 
 Making An Oasis Of Green Willows And Grass Has Been Previously Spoken Of 
 As:--"A Spring Of Good Water, And A Little Willow Patch In A Level 
 Desert Away From Any Hill." In All Our Wanderings We Had Never Seen The 
 Like Before. No Mountaineer Would Ever Think Of Looking Here For Water, 
 Much Less Ever Dream Of Finding A Lone Spring Away Out In The Desert, 
 Several Miles From The Mountain's Base. Where The Range We Just Came 
 Through Leaves The Mother Mountain Stands A Peak, Seemingly Alone, And 
 Built Up Of Many Colored Rocks, In Belts, And The Whole Looks As If 
 Tipped With Steel. 
   
   
   
 Arcane's Boy Charley Still Suffered From His Bogus Measles Or Whatever 
 Else His Disorder Might Be, And Bennett's Little Martha Grew More Quiet 
 And Improved Considerably In Health, Though Still Unable To Walk, And 
 Still Abdominally Corpulent. The Other Two Children George And Melissa 
 Seemed To Bear Up Well And Loved To Get Off And Walk In Places Where The 
 Trail Was Smooth And Level. Bennett, Arcane And Old Crump Usually 
 Traveled With The Same Party As The Women, And As Each Of Them Had A 
 Small Canteen To Carry Water, They Could Attend To The Wants Of The 
 Children And Keep Them From Worrying And Getting Sick From Fretfulness. 
 They Often Carried The Two Younger Ones On Their Backs To Relieve And 
 
 
 
 Chapter 11 Pg 146 
 Rest Them From Their Cramped Position On The Ox. 
   
   
   
 Arcane Used To Say He Expected The Boys--Meaning Rogers And I--Would Try 
 To Surprise The Party By Letting Them Get Very Near The House Before 
 They Knew How Near They Were. "Be Patient Mr. Arcane," Said We, "We Can 
 Tell You Just How Many Camps There Must Be Before We Reach It, And We 
 Won't Fool You Or Surprise You In Any Way." "Well," Said He. "I Was 
 Almost In Hopes You Would, For I Like To Be Disappointed In That Way." 
 "What Do You Think The Folks Will Say When We Tell Them That Our Little 
 Mule Packed Most Of The Meat Of An Ox Four Miles From One Camp To 
 Another?" "What Will They Say When We Tell Them That The Oxen Were So 
 Poor That There Was No Marrow In The Great Thigh Bones?" Instead Of 
 Marrow There Was A Thick Dark Liquid Something Like Molasses In 
 Consistency, But Streaked With Different Colors Which Made It Look Very 
 Unwholesome. Arcane Said The Whole Story Was So Incredible, That He 
 Never Should Fight Anyone, Even If He Should Tell Him He Lied When He 
 Related The Strange Sad Truth. He Said He Had No Doubt Many A One Would 
 Doubt Their Story, It Was So Much Beyond What People Had Ever Seen Or 
 Heard Of Before, And They Might Be Accused Of Very Strong Romancing In 
 The Matter. 
   
   
   
 They All Felt More Like Talking; For We Were Thus Far Safe And Sound, 
 And Though There Was A Desperate Struggle Of Seventy-Five Miles Or More, 
 From This Place To The Next Water In The Foot-Hills. Possibly The Snow 
 Storms Had Left A Little In Some Of The Pools, But We Made No 
 Calculations On Any. The Promised Land We Had So Steadily Been 
 Approaching, And Now Comparatively So Near, Gave Us Great Hope, Which 
 Was Better Than Food And Drink To Give Us Strength. 
   
   
   
 There Were Surely Two Camps Between This And The Little Pond John And I 
 Found, Among The Cabbage Trees, And Not More Than Six By Ten Feet 
 Square. As We Worked Away At Our Foot-Wear We Talked More In An Hour 
 Than We Had In A Whole Day Before. We Were Slowly Leaving Death Valley 
 Behind Us With Its Sad Memories And Sufferings. We Were Leaving Behind 
 The Dead Bodies Of Several Who Had Traveled With Us And Been Just As 
 Strong And Hopeful As We. We Had Left Behind Us All In Our Possession In 
 That Terrible Spot, And Simply With Our Lives We Hoped To Escape, And 
 Trust To Providence And Humanity On The Other Side. Arcane Now Admitted 
 That They Could Not Have Got Along Half As Well, If We Had Not Gone 
 Ahead And Looked Out The Land. It Was Such A Gain To Know Exactly Where 
 The Next Water Hole Was, So It Could Be Steered For And Struggled 
 Toward. He Even Went So Far As To Say They Would Have No Chance Alone, 
 And That As He Now Saw The Road, He Was Sure They Have Would All 
 Perished Even Before Reaching As Far As This. We Had Strong Hopes Of The 
 Morrow, When We Would Be All Rested, All Were Shod, And Would Make Every 
 Footstep Count In Our Western Progress. 
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 11 Pg 147 
   
 It Seems Quite A Strange Occurrence That The Only Two Storms We Had Had 
 Since We Turned Westward On This Route, Nov. 4th, Were Snow Storms, And 
 That Both Had Come While We Were Asleep, So That All Our Days Were 
 Cloudless. Sometimes The Sun Was Uncomfortably Warm Even In The Heart Of 
 The Winter. One Would Have Naturally Expected That The Great Rainfall 
 All Over The California Coast In The Winter Of 1849-50, And The Deep 
 Snows That Came In The Sierra Nevada Mountains The Same Winter, Would 
 Have Extended Southerly The Few Hundred Miles That Separated The Two 
 Places. Modern Science Has Shown The Tracks Of The Storms And Partially 
 Explains The Reasons For This Dry And Barren Nature Of This Region. When 
 Rains Do Come They Are So Out Of The Regular Order, That They Are Called 
 Cloud-Bursts Or Waterspouts, And The Washes In The Canons And Their 
 Mouths Show How Great Has Been The Volume Of Water That Sometimes Rushed 
 Down The Slope. If Clouds At A Warm Or Moderate Temperature Float 
 Against These Snow Peaks All The Water They Contain Is Suddenly 
 Precipitated. The Country Is An Arid One And Unless Wealth Should Appear 
 In The Shape Of Mines, The Country Can Never Be Inhabited. We Considered 
 Ourselves Very Fortunate In Finding The Little Pools And Holes Of Water 
 Which Kept Us Alive. It Was Not Very Good Drinking Water, But To Us 
 Thirsty Folks It Was A Blessing And We Never Passed It By On Account Of 
 Any Little Stagnant Bitter Taste. Salt Water We Could Not Drink Of 
 Course, Though We Sometimes Used It To Cook With. 
   
   
   
 We Were As Well Prepared Next Morning As Possible For A Move, And The 
 Long Walk Before Us, The Last One Between Us And The Fertile Land. They 
 All Talked Of How Delighted They Would Be To See Once More A Running 
 Brook, Green Grass And Trees, And Such Signs Of Life As They Had Seen 
 And Been Used To In The Good Land They Had Left Behind. The Women Said 
 They Could Endure The March Of Four Or Five Days, If When All Over, They 
 Could Sleep Off The Terrible Fatigue And For Once Drink All The Pure 
 Sweet Water They Could Desire. No More Forced Marches. No More Grey 
 Road, Stretching Out Its Dusty Miles As Far As The Eye Could Reach. The 
 Ladies Thought The Oxen Would Be As Happy As Themselves, And The Little 
 Mule, The Most Patient One Of The Whole Train Deserved A Life Of Ease 
 For Her Valuable Services. This Little Black, One-Eyed Lady Wandered 
 Here And There At Will Seeking For Grass, But Never Going Astray Or 
 Getting Far Enough From The Track To Alarm Us In The Least. She Seldom 
 Drank Much Water, Was Always Ready, Never Got Foot-Sore, And Seemed Made 
 Expressly For Such A Life And For Such A Desert. 
   
   
   
 A Good Kettleful Of Soup For Breakfast, Dried Meat Fixed In Packages, 
 Kegs And Canteens Filled With Water, And We Were Ready For An Advance. 
   
   
   
 There Is One Less Ox To Lead, And Very Little Load For Those We Have, 
 Still The Load Is All Such Poor Weak Fellows Ought To Bear. Old Crump 
 Was Not Thus Favored By A Gradually Lightened Load. He Bore The Same 
 Four Children Every Day, Faithfully, Carefully, With Never A Stumble Nor 
 
 
 
 Chapter 11 Pg 148 
 Fall, As Though Fully Aware Of The Precious Nature Of His Burden. 
   
   
   
 In This New March John And I Took The Oxen And Pushed On As Usual, 
 Leaving The Families To Follow On, At A Slower Pace, The Trail We Made. 
 The Trail Was Slightly Inclined. The Bushes Stunted At The Best, Getting 
 Smaller As We Proceeded, And The Horse Bones, New And Ancient Are Now 
 Thickly Scattered Along The Way. The Soil Is Different From That We Have 
 Had. We Can See The Trail, Winding Gently Here And There, Swept Clean By 
 The Wind, And The Surface Is Hard And Good; But When The Mule Gets The 
 Least Bit Off Of It She Sinks Six Inches Deep Into The Soft Sand, And 
 The Labor Of Walking Is Immense. I Stepped Out To Examine The Peculiar 
 Soil, And Found It Finer Than Superfine Flour. It Was Evident That A 
 Strong Wind Would Lift It In Vast Clouds Which Might Even Darken The 
 Sky, But We Were Fortunate In This Respect, For During All The Time We 
 Were On This Peculiar Soil, There Was No Wind At All, And We Escaped A 
 Sand-Storm, A Sort Of Storm As Peculiar To This Region As Are Blizzards 
 To Some Of The States Of The Great West. 
   
   
   
 Our First Night's Camp Was Out On The Barren Waterless Plain, Now Known 
 As The Mojave Desert. There Were No Shrubs Large Enough To Make A Fire 
 Of, And Nothing To Tie Our Cattle To, So We Fastened All Our Animals 
 Together To Keep Them From Scattering And Getting Lost. We Ate A Little 
 Dry Meat And Drank Sparingly Of The Water, For Our Scanty Stock Was To 
 Last Us Another Day, When We Might Reach Prospective Water Holes. 
 Starting Early, John And I Took All But Old Crump And The Other 
 Travelers, And Hurried On To Try And Find The Water Holes As Early As 
 Possible. We, As Well As The Oxen Were Very Dry, For We Left All The 
 Water We Had With The Party, For The Children, For They Cannot Endure 
 The Thirst As The Older People Can. We Reached The Camping Place Before 
 Night. Quite A Time Before We Reached It, The Cattle Seemed To Scent The 
 Water And Quickened Their Pace, So We Were Confident It Had Not Dried 
 Up. We Got Ahead Of The Oxen And Kept There Until We Reached The Little 
 Pond And Then Guarded It To Keep Them From Wading Into It, In Their 
 Eagerness To Reach Some Drink. They All Satisfied Their Thirst, And Then 
 We Removed The Harness, Built A Fire Of The Dead Cabbage Trees Which We 
 Found Round About, Laid Down The Beds And Arranged Them Neatly, And Had 
 All Nicely Done Before The Rear Guard Came Up, In Charge Of Captain 
 Crump. The Party Was Eager For Water And All Secured It. It Was Rain 
 Water And No Doubt Did Not Quench Thirst As Readily As Water From Some 
 Living Spring Or Brook. There Was Evidence That There Had Been A Recent 
 Shower Or Snow To Fill This Depression Up For Our Benefit. The 
 Jayhawkers Had Passed Not More Than A Half Mile North Of This Spot, But 
 No Sign Appeared That They Had Found It, And It Was Left To Sustain The 
 Lives Of The Women And Children. 
   
   
   
 It Often Occurs To Me That Many May Read Incredulously When I Speak Of 
 Our Party Eating The Entire Flesh Of An Ox In Four Or Five Days. To Such 
 I Will Say That One Cannot Form An Idea How Poor An Ox Will Get When 
 
 
 
 Chapter 11 Pg 149 
 Nearly Starved So Long. Months Had Passed Since They Had Eaten A 
 Stomachful Of Good Nutritious Food. The Animals Walked Slowly With Heads 
 Down Nearly Tripping Themselves Up With Their Long, Swinging Legs. The 
 Skin Loosely Covered The Bones, But All The Flesh And Muscles Had Shrunk 
 Down To The Smallest Space. The Meat Was Tough And Stringy As Basswood 
 Bark, And Tasted Strongly Of Bitter Sage Brush The Cattle Had Eaten At 
 Almost Every Camp. At A Dry Camp The Oxen Would Lie Down And Grate Their 
 Teeth, But They Had No Cud To Chew. It Looked Almost Merciless To Shoot 
 One Down For Food, But There Was No Alternative. We Killed Our Poor 
 Brute Servants To Save Ourselves. Our Cattle Found A Few Bunches Out 
 Among The Trees At This Camp And Looked Some Better In The Morning. They 
 Had Secured Plenty Of Water And Some Grass. 
   
   
   
 Young Charlie Arcane Seemed To Grow Worse Rather Than Better. His Whole 
 Body Was Red As Fire, And He Screamed With The Pain And Torment Of The 
 Severe Itching. Nothing Could Be Done To Relieve Him, And If His 
 Strength Lasted Till We Could Get Better Air, Water And Food He Might 
 Recover, But His Chances Were Very Poor. 
   
   
   
 Not Much Rest At This Camp For In The Morning We Aimed To Start Early 
 And Reach The Water In The Foothills. We Thought We Could Do It If We 
 Started Early, Walked Rapidly And Took No Resting Spell At Noon. Such A 
 Poor Soil As This We Were Anxious To Get Away From, And Walk Once More 
 On A Soil That Would Grow Something Besides Stunted Sage Brush. From All 
 Appearances The Jayhawkers Were Here In About The Same Predicament 
 Rogers And I Were When We Lost The Trail. By Their Tracks We Could See 
 They Had Scattered Wide And There Was No Road Left For Us To Follow, And 
 They Had Evidently Tried To Follow Our Former Tracks. Having No Trail To 
 Follow We Passed On As Best We Could And Came To A Wide Piece Of Land On 
 Which Were Growing A Great Many Cabbage Trees. The Soil Was Of The 
 Finest Dust With No Grit In It, And Not Long Before A Light Shower Had 
 Fallen, Making It Very Soft And Hard To Get Along In With The Moccasins. 
 The Women Had To Stop To Rest Frequently, So Our Progress Was Very Slow. 
 Rogers And I Had Feet About As Hard As Those Of The Oxen, So We Removed 
 Our Moccasins And Went Barefoot, Finding We Could Get Along Much Easier 
 In That Way, But The Others Had Such Tender Feet They Could Not Endure 
 The Rough Contact With The Brush And Mud. Only A Few Miles Had Been Made 
 Before The Women Were So Completely Tired Out That We Had To Stop And 
 Eat Our Little Bit Of Dried Meat And Wait Till Morning. The Little Mule 
 Now Carried All Our Stock Of Food, And The Precious Burden Lightened 
 Every Day. This Delay Was Not Expected, But We Had To Endure It And Bear 
 It Patiently, For There Was A Limit To Strength Of The Feeble Ones Of 
 Our Party. We Had Therefore To Make Another Barren Camp. Relief Seemed 
 So Near At Hand We Kept Good Courage And Talked Freely Of The Happy 
 Ending Which Would Soon Come. If We Had Any Way To Set A Good Table We 
 Would Feast And Be Merry Like The Prodigal Son, But At Any Rate We Shall 
 Be Safe If We Can Reach The Fertile Shore. 
   
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 11 Pg 150 
 When The Sun Went Down We Tied The Mule And Oxen To Cabbage Trees, And 
 Shortly After Dusk Lay Down Ourselves, For We Had Enjoyed A Good Fire 
 Made Of The Trunks Of Cabbage Trees, The First Really Comfortable One In 
 A Long Time. The Air Was Cooler Here, For We Were On Higher Ground, And 
 There Was Some Snow On The Range Of Mountains Before Us, Which Sent 
 These Cool Breezes Down To Us, A Change Of Climate Quite Pleasing. 
   
   
   
 For Breakfast In The Morning We Had Only Dried Meat Roasted Before The 
 Fire, Without Water, And When We Started Each One Put A Piece In His Or 
 Her Pocket To Chew On During The Day As We Walked Along. As We Went 
 Ahead The Ground Grew Dryer And The Walking Much Improved. The Morning 
 Overhead Was Perfectly Lovely, As Away East, Across The Desert The Sun 
 Early Showed His Face To Us. Not A Cloud Anywhere, Not Even Over The 
 Tops Of The High Peaks Where Great White Masses Sometimes Cluster But 
 Dissolve As Soon As They Float Away, And There Was Not Wind Enough To Be 
 Perceptible. We Remarked The Same Lack Of Animal Life Which We Had 
 Noticed On Our First Passage Over This Section, Seeing Not A Rabbit, 
 Bird, Or Living Thing We Could Use For Food. Bennett Had The Same Load 
 In His Gun He Put There When We Left The Wagons, And All The Powder I 
 Had Burned Was That Used In Killing The Oxen We Had Slain Whenever It 
 Became Necessary To Provide For Our Barren Kitchen. 
   
   
   
 As We Approached The Low Foot-Hills The Trail Became Better Travelled 
 And Better To Walk In, For The Jayhawkers Who Had Scattered, Every One 
 For Himself Apparently, In Crossing The Plain, Seemed Here To Have Drawn 
 Together And Their Path Was Quite A Beaten One. We Saw From This That 
 They Followed The Tracks Made By Rogers And Myself As We Made Our First 
 Trip Westward In Search Of Bread. Quite A Little Before The Sun Went Out 
 Of Sight In The West We Reached Our Camping Place In The Lower Hills At 
 The Eastern Slope Of A Range We Must Soon Cross. Here Was Some Standing 
 Water In Several Large Holes, That Proved Enough For Our Oxen, And They 
 Found Some Large Sage Brush And Small Bushes Round About, On Which They 
 Browsed And Among Which They Found A Few Bunches Of Grass. Lying About 
 Were Some Old Skulls Of Cattle Which Had Sometime Been Killed, Or Died. 
 These Were The First Signs Of The Sort We Had Seen Along This Route. 
 They Might Have Been Killed By Indians Who Doubtless Used This Trail. 
   
   
   
 The Next Day In Crossing The Range Before Us, We Reached The Edge Of The 
 Snow, Which The Sun Had Softened, And We Dare Not Attempt To Cross. 
 Early In The Morning, When It Was Frozen Hard The Cattle Could Travel It 
 Very Well. The Snow Belt Was Five Or Six Miles Wide, And The Snow Two Or 
 Three Feet Deep. This Was A Very Good Camping Place Except That We Had 
 To Melt Snow For All Our Water, But This Being Coarse And Icy It Was Not 
 A Great Job As We Found Enough Dry Juniper Trees And Twigs To Make A 
 Very Good Fire. Here We Also Had To Kill Another Ox. This One In Its 
 Turn Was Arcane's, And Left Him Only Two, And Bennett Three, But We 
 Think That If We Have No Accident We Shall Get Them Along With Us Till 
 We Can Get Other Food, As They Have Very Light Loads To Pack. When The 
 
 
 
 Chapter 11 Pg 151 
 Ox Is Killed And The Meat Prepared The Mule Has, For A Time, A Larger 
 Load Than All The Oxen Have, But Seems Content And Nips A Bite Of Food 
 Whenever It Can See A Chance Anywhere Along The Road, Giving Us No More 
 Trouble Than A Dog. And By The Way, I Think I Have Not Mentioned Our 
 Faithful Camp Dog, A Worthy Member Of Our Party Who Stood Watch Always 
 And Gave Us A Sure Alarm If Anything Unusual Happened Anywhere About. He 
 Was Perhaps Only One Of A Hundred That Tried To Cross The Plains And Had 
 To Be Abandoned When They Reached The Upper Platte, Where The Alkali 
 Dust Made Their Feet So Sore They Could Not Travel, And As They Could 
 Not Be Hauled On Wagons They Were Left Behind. But This Dog Cuff Did Not 
 Propose To Be Left Behind To Starve, And Crippled Along After Us, We 
 Doing All We Could For Him, And Proved As Tough As The Best Of Us. 
 Bennett And I Had Trained Him As A Hunting Dog In The East, And He Was 
 Very Knowing And Handy In Every Particular. 
   
   
   
 We Were Out Of This Camp At Daylight. Very Little Rest For Some Of Us, 
 But We Must Make The Best Of The Cool Morning While The Snow Is Hard, 
 And So Move On As Soon As We Can See The Way. As It Gets Lighter And The 
 Sun Comes Up Red And Hot Out Of The Desert We Have A Grand View Of The 
 Great Spread Of The Country To South And Of The Great Snow Mountain To 
 The North And East, The Peak Standing Over The Place Where We Left Our 
 Wagons Nineteen Days Before, On The Edge Of Death Valley. The Glare Of 
 The Snow On The Sun Makes Us Nearly Blind, But We Hurry On To Try To 
 Cross It Before It Becomes So Soft As To Slump Under Our Feet. It Is Two 
 Or Three Feet In The Deepest Places, And Probably Has Been Three Times 
 As Deep When Freshly Fallen, But It Is Now Solid And Icy. Our Rawhide 
 Moccasins Protect Our Feet From Cold, And Both We And The Animals Got 
 Along Fairly Well, The Oxen Breaking Through Occasionally As The Snow 
 Softened Up, But Generally Walking On The Top As We Did Ourselves. The 
 Snow Field Reached Much Farther Down The Western Slope Than We Had 
 Hoped, Much Farther Than On The Eastern Side. Before We Got Out Of It, 
 We Saw The Track Of Some Animal Which Had Crossed Our Route, But As It 
 Had Been Made Some Days Before And Now Could Be Seen Only As Some Holes 
 In The Surface, We Could Not Determine What Sort Of An Animal It Was. 
   
   
   
 A Mile Or Two Down The Hill We Were At Last Out Of The Snow, And A 
 Little Farther On We Came To The Little Babbling Brook Rogers And I Had 
 So Long Painted In The Most Refreshing Colors To The Tired Women, With 
 Water, Wood And Grass On Every Hand, The Three Greatest Blessings Of A 
 Camper's Life. Here Was Where Rogers And I Had Cooked And Eaten Our Meat 
 Of Crow, Quail And Hawk, Pretty Hard Food, But Then, The Blessed Water! 
   
   
   
 There It Danced And Jumped Over The Rocks Singing The Merriest Song One 
 Ever Heard, As It Said--Drink, Drink Ye Thirsty Ones Your Fill--The 
 Happiest Sweetest Music To The Poor Starved, Thirsty Souls, Wasted Down 
 Almost To Haggard Skeletons. O! If Some Poet Of Wildest Imagination 
 Could Only Place Himself In The Position Of Those Poor Tired Travelers 
 To Whom Water In Thick Muddy Pools Had Been A Blessing, Who Had Eagerly 
 
 
 
 Chapter 11 Pg 152 
 Drank The Fluid Even When So Salt And Bitter Us To Be Repulsive, And Now 
 To See The Clear, Pure Liquid, Distilled From The Crystal Snow, 
 Abundant, Free, Filled With Life And Health--And Write It In Words--The 
 Song Of That Joyous Brook And Set It To The Music That It Made As It 
 Echoed In Gentle Waves From The Rocks And Lofty Walls, And With The 
 Gentle Accompaniment Of Rustling Trees--A Soft Singing Hush, Telling Of 
 Rest, And Peace, And Happiness. 
   
   
   
 New Life Seemed To Come To The Dear Women. "O! What A Beautiful Stream!" 
 Say They, And They Dip In A Tin Cup And Drink, Then Watch In Dreaming 
 Admiration The Water As It Goes Hurrying Down; Then Dip And Drink Again, 
 And Again Watch The Jolly Rollicking Brook As If It Were The Most 
 Entertaining Thing In The Whole Wide Earth. "Why Can't Such A Stream As 
 That Run Out Of The Great Snow Mountain In The Dry Death Valley?" Say 
 They--"So We Could Get Water On The Way." 
   
   
   
 The Men Have Felt As Glad As Any Of Them, But Have Gathered Wood And 
 Made A Fire, And Now A Camp Kettle Of Cut Up Meat Is Boiling For Our 
 Supper. It Was Not Yet Night, But We Must Camp In So Beautiful A Place 
 As This, And Though The Food Was Poor, We Were Better Off Than We Had 
 Been Before. 
   
   
   
 Bennett Proposed That I Take The Mule And Go Back To Where We Saw The 
 Track Of The Animal In The Snow And Follow It In Hope That We Might Get 
 Some Game For We Had An Idea It Might Be An Elk Or Bear Or Some Large 
 Game, Good To Kill And Give Us Better Meat: So I Saddled The Mule And 
 Took The Trail Back Till I Came To The Track, Then Followed It As Best I 
 Could, For It Was Very Dull And Gave Me No Idea What It Was. I Traced 
 Out Of The Snow And Then In A Blind Way Through Bushes As High As The 
 Mule's Back--Chaparral We Called It Now--Among Which I Made My Way With 
 Difficulty. I Could Now See That The Track Was Made By An Ox Or 
 Cow--Perhaps An Elk--I Could Not Tell For Sure It Was So Faint. This 
 Chaparral Covered A Large Piece Of Table Land, And I Made My Way Through 
 It, Following The Track For A Mile Or Two, Till I Came To The 
 Top Of A Steep Hill Sloping Down Into A Deep Canon And A Creek, On The 
 Bank Of Which Grew Sycamore And Alder Trees, With Large Willows. I 
 Stopped Here Some Minutes To See If I Could See Or Hear The Movement Of 
 Of Anything. Across The Creek I Could See A Small Piece Of Perhaps Half 
 An Acre Of Natural Meadow, And In It Some Small Bunches Of Sycamore 
 Trees. After A Little I Discovered Some Sort Of A Horned Animal There, 
 And I Reckoned This Was Good Enough Game For Me To Try And Capture, So 
 Led The Mule Out To One Side And Down The Hill Near The Creek, Then Tied 
 Her, And Crept Along The Bank, About Four Feet High, Toward The Little 
 Meadow. When About Right, As I Thought, I Climbed Up Behind A Bunch Of 
 Sycamores, And When I Slowly And Cautiously Raised Up I Was Within Fifty 
 Yards Of A Cow Or Steer Of Some Sort Which I Could Dimly See. I Put A 
 Ball Square In Its Forehead And It Fell Without A Struggle. I Loaded 
 Again Quick As Possible, And There Saw Two Other Smaller Cattle Stepping 
 
 
 
 Chapter 11 Pg 153 
 Very High As Though Terrified, But Not Aware Of The Nature Or Location 
 Of The Danger. I Gave A Low Whistle And One Of Them Looked Toward Me 
 Long Enough For Me To Put A Ball In It. The Third One Was Now Behind A 
 Clump Of Sycamores, And I Soon Saw Its Face Through A Little Opening Not 
 More Than Three Inches Wide. I Made A Shot, And Wounded It, And Then 
 Rushed Up And Gave It A Fatal One. 
   
   
   
 I Examined My Game And Found The First One Was A Poor Old Cow, But The 
 Others Were Yearlings, One Of Them Very Fat And Nice, And I Soon Had The 
 Hind Quarters Skinned Out, And All The Fat I Could Find, Which Made A 
 Big Load For The Mule. It Was Now Almost Dark, And The Next Problem Was 
 To Get Back To Camp Again. The Brushy Hills Would Be Terrible To Cross 
 With A Load Of Meat, And By The Way The Ground Lay I Concluded Our Camp 
 Was On This Same Creek Farther Down. 
   
   
   
 The Only Way That Seemed At All Feasible Was To Follow The Course Of The 
 Stream If Possible, Rather Than Return The Course Over Which I Had Come. 
 There Were So Many Bushes And Trees Along The Bank That I Had To Take To 
 The Bed And Follow In The Water, And As It Was Rocky And Rough, And So 
 Dark I Could Not See Well How To Step, I Stumbled Into Holes And Pools 
 Up To My Waist, Wet As A Rat. Coming To A Small Open Place I Decided I 
 Had Better Camp For The Night And Not Attempt Further Progress In The 
 Darkness, And The Decision Was Hastened By Dark Clouds, Which Began To 
 Gather And A Few Sprinkles Of Rain Began To Come. There Was A Good Patch 
 Of Grass For The Mule, But All Was Uncomfortable For Me, With The 
 Prospect For A Rainy Night, But As Wood Was Plenty I Decided To Make A 
 Fire And Take The Chances. I Looked For Matches And Scratched One. No 
 Go--They Were Damp, And Scratch As Careful And Quickly As I Could, There 
 Was No Answering Spark Or Flame, And Darkness Reigned Supreme. A Camp 
 Without A Fire In This Wet Place Was Not To Be Thought Of, So I 
 Concluded I Might As Well Be Slowly Working My Way Down Along The 
 Stream, Through Thick Brush And Cold Water, As To Sit Here In The Cold 
 And Wait. 
   
   
   
 So The Little Mule And I Started On, Wading The Creek In Thick Darkness, 
 Getting Only The Most Dim Reflected Light From The Sky Through Now And 
 Then An Opening In The Trees. I Did Not Know Then How Easy It Was For A 
 Grizzly To Capture Myself, The Mule And Meat And Have Quite A Variety 
 For Supper. But The Grizzly Stayed At Home And We Followed On Through 
 Brambles And Hard Brush, Through Which It Was Almost Impossible To Force 
 One's Way. As It Turned Out, I Was Not In The Track Of The Storm And Did 
 Not Suffer Much From It. Soon The Canon Grew Wider, And I Could Make Out 
 On The Right Hand A Piece Of Table Land Covered With Brush That Seemed 
 Easier To Get Through Than The Creek Bed. 
   
   
   
 The Hill Up To The Table Land Was Very Steep, But Not More Than Fifty 
 
 
 
 Chapter 11 Pg 154 
 Yards High, And When The Mule Tried To Get Up She Got Along Very Well 
 Till Near The Top, When She Slipped In The Wet Earth And Never Stopped 
 Till She Reached The Bottom And Lay Down. She Was Helped Up To Her Feet 
 Again And We Tried It In Another Place, I Holding Her From Slipping When 
 She Stopped To Rest, And At Last We Reached The Top. The Mule Started 
 On, Seeming To Follow A Trail, But I Could Not See Whether There Was A 
 Trail Or Not, So Thick Was The Darkness, But There Was Evidently 
 Something Of The Kind, For The Brush Was Two Or Three Feet High And Very 
 Thick. 
   
   
   
 After Proceeding Some Distance The Mule Stopped And Did Not Seem To Wish 
 To Go Any Farther. I Was Pretty Sure There Was Something In Front Of Her 
 That Blocked The Way, And So Worked My Way Through The Brush And 
 Carefully Past Her. I Could Partly See And Partly Hear Something Just 
 Ahead, And In A Moment Found It Was Our Good Faithful Cuff, And No 
 Frightful Spook At All. The Good Fellow Had Discovered Our Approach And 
 Came Out To Meet Us, And I Am Sure The Mule Was As Glad As I Was To See 
 Him. He Crawled Through The Brush And Smelled At The Mule's Load And 
 Then Went Forward In The Trail, Which We Followed. It Was A Long Time 
 After Midnight When We Reached Camp. There Was A Good Fire Burning, But 
 All Were Asleep Till I Led The Mule Up To The Fire And Called Out--"Wake 
 Up," When They Were Most Of Them On Their Feet In A Minute Without 
 Stopping To Dress, For All Had Slept A Long Time Without Taking Off 
 Their Clothes. 
   
   
   
 John Took Charge Of The Mule And Unloaded It, Telling Me To Get Into His 
 Warm Bed. I Took Off My Wet Clothes And Told Him To Dry Them, And Then 
 Got Between The Dry, Warm Blankets In Greatest Comfort. Daylight Came 
 Very Quickly, It Seemed To Me, And Before I Finally Rose, The Sun Had 
 Been Up Some Hours Before Me. Before I Fell Asleep I Could Hear The 
 Women Say, As They Cut Off The Pieces Of Meat To Roast--"See The Fat! 
 Only See How Nice It Is!" Quickly Roasted On The Coals They Ate The 
 Delicate Morsels With A Relish And, Most Of All, Praised The Sweet Fat. 
 "We Like To Have It All Fat," Said They, Showing How Their System Craved 
 The Nourishment The Poor Starved Beef Could Not Give. No One Went To Bed 
 After I Came, But All Sat And Roasted Meat And Ate Till They Were 
 Satisfied. 
   
   
   
 This Sporting Trip Was Quite Different From Deer Hunting In Wisconsin, 
 And Nothing Like Looking For Game In Death Valley Where Nothing Lived. 
 It Was The Hardest Night's Work That Ever Came To Me In Many A Day, And 
 Not The Wild Sport I Generally Looked For When On The Chase. I Felt 
 Pretty Well When I Got Up, And A Chunk Of My Last Night's Prize Which 
 Had Been Toasted For Me Was Eaten With A Relish, For It Was The Best Of 
 Meat And I, Of Course, Had A First Class Appetite. I Had To Tell Them My 
 Last Hunting Story, And Was Much Praised As A Lucky Boy. 
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 11 Pg 155 
   
 We Would Not Be Compelled To Kill Any More Of Our Poor Oxen In Order To 
 Live. So Far We Had Killed Six Of Them, And There Were Five Left. Our 
 Present Situation Was Much Appreciated, Compared With That Of A Few Days 
 Ago When We Were Crawling Slowly Over The Desert, Hungry, Sore-Footed 
 And Dry, When To Lie Was Far Easier Than To Take Steps Forward. We Felt 
 Like Rejoicing At Our Deliverance And There Was No Mourning Now For Us. 
 The Surrounding Hills And Higher Mountains Seemed More Beautiful To Us. 
 They Were Covered With Green Trees And Brush, Not A Desert Place In 
 Sight. The Clear Little Singing Brook Ran Merrily On Its Way, The 
 Happiest, Brightest Stream In All My Memory. Wild Birds Came Near Us 
 Without Fear, And Seemed Very Friendly. All Was Calm, And The Bright 
 Sunshine Exactly Warm Enough So That No One Could Complain Of Heat Or 
 Cold. 
   
   
   
 When Ready To Move It Was Announced That I Had Lost My Saddle Blanket In 
 My Adventure, So They Substituted Another One And I Took The Back Track 
 To The Place Where The Mule Slipped Down The Bank, And There I Found It. 
 I Soon Overtook Them Again Just As They Were Going To Camp On Mrs. 
 Bennett's Account, As She Had Been Suddenly Taken Sick With Severe Pain 
 And Vomiting, Something As Rogers And I Had Been After Eating Our First 
 California Corn Meal. The Rich, Fat Meat Was Too Strong For Her Weak 
 Stomach. 
   
   
   
 Arcane All Along Had An Idea That Rogers And I Meant To Surprise Them By 
 Leading Them To Believe The House We Had Visited Was Quite A Distance 
 Off, And Then To So Manage It That It Should Appear Upon Their Sight 
 Suddenly. We Assured Them It Would Take Two Or More Camps Before We 
 Could Get There, And If Mrs. Bennett Did Not Soon Recover, Even More 
 Than That. Our Camp Here Was Under A Great Live Oak, The Ground Deep 
 Covered With Dry Leaves, And Near By A Beautiful Meadow Where Our Cattle 
 And Mule Ate, Drank And Rested, The Oxen Chewing Their Cud With Such An 
 Air Of Comfort As Had Not Come To Them Since Leaving Their Far-Off 
 Eastern Pastures. They Seemed As Much Pleased As Any One. They Would Lie 
 Down And Rest And Eat At The Same Time In Perfectly Enjoyable Laziness. 
   
   
   
 Here We All Rested And Washed Such Clothes As We Could Do Without Long 
 Enough To Dry, And Washed Our Faces And Hands Over And Over Again To 
 Remove The Dirt Which Had Been Burned And Sweated In So Completely As 
 Not To Come Off Readily. We Sat On The Bank Of The Brook With Our Feet 
 Dangling In The Water, A Most Refreshing Bath, And They Too Began To 
 Look Clean Again. We Often Saw Tracks Of The Grizzly Bear About, But In 
 Our Ignorance Had No Fear Of Them, For We Did Not Know They Were A 
 Dangerous Animal. An Owl Came And Hooted In The Night, But That Was The 
 Only Challenge Any Wild Beast Or Bird Gave To Our Peaceful And Restful 
 Camp. We Were Out Of The Dreadful Sands And Shadows Of Death Valley, Its 
 Exhausting Phantoms, Its Salty Columns, Bitter Lakes And Wild, Dreary 
 Sunken Desolation. If The Waves Of The Sea Could Flow In And Cover Its 
 
 
 
 Chapter 11 Pg 156 
 Barren Nakedness, As We Now Know They Might If A Few Sandy Barriers Were 
 Swept Away, It Would Be Indeed, A Blessing, For In It There Is Naught Of 
 Good, Comfort Or Satisfaction, But Ever In The Minds Of Those Who Braved 
 Its Heat And Sands, A Thought Of A Horrid Charnel House, A Corner Of The 
 Earth So Dreary That It Requires An Exercise Of Strongest Faith To 
 Believe That The Great Creator Ever Smiled Upon It As A Portion Of His 
 Work And Pronounced It "Very Good." We Had Crossed The Great North 
 American Continent, From A Land Of Plenty, Over Great Barren Hills And 
 Plains, To Another Mild And Beautiful Region, Where, Though Still In 
 Winter Months, We Were Basking In The Warmth And Luxuriance Of Early 
 Summer. We Thought Not Of The Gold We Had Come To Win. We Were Dead 
 Almost, And Now We Lived. We Were Parched With Thirst, And Now The 
 Brightest Of Crystal Streams Invited Us To Stoop And Drink. We Were 
 Starved So That We Had Looked At Each Other With Maniac Thoughts, And 
 Now We Placed In Our Mouth The Very Fat Of The Land. We Had Seen Our 
 Cattle Almost Perishing; Seen Them Grow Gaunt And Tottering; Seen Them 
 Slowly Plod Along With Hanging Heads And Only The Supremacy Of Human 
 Will Over Animal Instinct Had Kept Them From Lying Down Never To Rise 
 Again. Now They Were In Pastures Of Sweet Grass, Chewing The Cud Of 
 Content And Satisfaction. Life Which Had Been A Burden Grew Sweet To Us, 
 And Though It May Be That Our Words Of Praise To Him, Whose Will Was To 
 Deliver Us Out Of The Jaws Of Death, Were Not Set Nor Formal, Yet His 
 All-Seeing Eye Saw The Truth In Our Hearts, And Saw There The Fullest 
 Expression Of Our Gratitude And Thankfulness. Who Shall Say The Thanks 
 That Arose Were Less Acceptable, Because Not Given On Bended Knees 
 Before Gilded Altars? 
   
   
   
 Though Across The Desert And Evidently In The Long Promised Land Our 
 Troubles And Trials Were Not Through By Any Means, But Evidently We Were 
 Out Of Danger. Our Lives Seemed To Be Secure, And We Were Soon To Meet 
 With Settlers Who Would No Doubt Extend To Us The Hand Of Human 
 Sympathy. Many Long Miles Yet Remained Between Us And The Rivers In 
 Whose Sands Were Hidden The Tiny Grains Of Gold We Came To Seek. 
   
   
   
 The Rest In The Lovely Camp Had Answered To Cause Mrs. Bennett To Feel 
 Quite Well Again By The Next Morning, And We Made Ready To Proceed. We 
 Had The Trail Of The Jayhawkers To Follow, So The Vines, Brambles And 
 Tangles Which Had Perplexed Rogers And Myself In Our First Passage Were 
 Now Somewhat Broken Down, And We Could Get Along Very Well Without 
 Further Clearing Of The Road Until The Hills Came Down So Close On Both 
 Sides That There Was No Room Except In The Very Bed Of The Stream. There 
 Was No Other Way, So We Waded Among After The Oxen As Best We Could. 
 Sometimes The Women Fell Down, For A Rawhide Moccasin Soaked Soft In 
 Water Was Not A Very Comfortable Or Convenient Shoe, However It Might Be 
 Adapted To Hot, Dry Sands. The Creek Was Shaded And The Water Quite 
 Cool. The Trail, Such As It Was, Crossed The Creek Often And Generally 
 Was Nothing Else Than The Stream Itself. The Constant Wading, And Wet, 
 Cold Clothing Caused The Women To Give Out Soon And We Selected The 
 First Dry Suitable Place Which Offered Food For The Oxen, As A Place To 
 Camp. 
 
 
 
 Chapter 11 Pg 157 
   
   
 Wood Was Plenty And Dry, So A Good Fire Was Soon Burning, And The Poor 
 Women, Wet To The Waist And Even Higher, Were Standing Before It, 
 Turning Round And Round To Get Warm And Dry. Someone Remarked That They 
 Resembled Geese Hanging Before The Fire To Roast, As They Slowly 
 Revolved, And It Was All Owing To Their Fatigue That The Suggester Did 
 Not Receive Merited Punishment Then And There At Their Hands. As They 
 Got A Little Dry And Comfortable They Remarked That Even An Excess Of 
 Water Like This Was Better Than The Desert Where There Was None At All, 
 And As To Their Looks, There Were No Society People About To Point Their 
 Fingers At Them, And When They Reached A Settled Country They Hoped To 
 Have A Chance To Change Their Clothes, And Get Two Dresses Apiece, And 
 That These Would Be Long Enough To Hide Their Knees Which These Poor 
 Tatters Quite Failed To Do. One Remarked That She Was Sure She Had Been 
 Down In The Brook A Dozen Times And That She Did Not Consider Cold Water 
 Baths So Frequently Repeated Were Good For The Health. 
   
   
   
 Young Charley Arcane Had Been Getting Better For Some Days. No Medicine 
 Had Been Given Him, And It Was No Doubt The Change Of Air And Water That 
 Had Begun To Effect A Cure. Arcane Had A Hard Time Of It To Keep The 
 Brush From Pulling George And Melissa Off Of Old Crump Into The Water. 
 It Was Indeed One Of The Hardest Day's Work Of The Whole Journey, But No 
 One Was Low Spirited, And All Felt Very Well. The Camping Place Was In A 
 Deep Canon, Surrounded By Thick Brush, So That No Wind Came In To Chill 
 Us. Everybody Was Cook And Nobody Was Boss. Not A Cent Of Money Among 
 Us, Nor Any Chance To Use Any If We Had Possessed It. We Had Nice, 
 Sweet, Fat Meat, Cooked Rare Or Well Done As Each One Preferred, And No 
 Complaints About The Waiters. The Conditions Were So Favorable, Compared 
 With The Terrible Death Valley And Its Surroundings That Every One 
 Remarked About It, And No One Felt In The Least Like Finding Fault With 
 The Little Inconveniences We Were Forced To Put Up With. It Might Cure 
 An Inveterate Fault-Finder To Take A Course Of Training In The Desert. 
   
   
   
 The Next Day We Did Not Wade Half As Much, And After A Few Hours Of 
 Travel We Suddenly Emerged From The Brush Into A Creek Bottom Which Was 
 Much Wider, With Not A Tree To Obstruct Our Way. The Soil Was Sandy And 
 Covered More Or Less With Sage Brush, And The Stream Which Had Been 
 Strong And Deep Enough To Make Us Very Wet Now Sank Entirely Out Of 
 Sight In The Sandy Bottom. The Hills Were Thinly Timbered On The Left 
 Side But Quite Brushy On The Right, And We Could See The Track Of Cattle 
 In The Sand. No Signs Of Other Animals, But Some Small Birds Came Near, 
 And Meadow Larks Whistled Their Tune, Quite Familiar To Us, But Still 
 Sounding Slightly Different From The Song Of The Same Bird In The East. 
 High In The Air Could Be Seen A Large Sailing Hawk Or Buzzard. 
   
   
   
 We Stopped To Rest At Noon And Noticed That The Water Ran A Little In 
 
 
 
 Chapter 11 Pg 158 
 The Creek Bed; But, By The Time We Were Ready To Start We Found None 
 With Which To Fill Our Canteens. No Doubt This Water Was Poured Into The 
 Canon Somewhere Near The Place Where We Killed The Three Cattle, And We 
 Had Got Out Of It Before The Flood Came Down. It Was Astonishing To See 
 How The Thirsty Sand Drank Up The Quite Abundant Flow. 
   
   
   
 The Next Day We Came Down To The Point Of Hill That Nearly Crossed The 
 Valley, And We Crossed The Low Ridge Rather Than Make A Longer Trip To 
 Get Around By Way Of The Valley. As We Reached The Summit There Appeared 
 Before Us As Beautiful A Rural Picture As One Ever Looked Upon. A Large 
 Green Meadow, Of A Thousand Acres, More Or Less; Its Southwest Side 
 Bounded By Low Mountains, At The Base Of Which Oak Trees Were Plenty, 
 But No Brush Or Undergrowth. It Was Like A Grand Old Park, Such As We 
 Read Of In English Tales. All Over The Meadow Cattle Of All Sorts And 
 Sizes Grazed, The "Ring-Streaked And Speckled" Of Old Jacob's Breed 
 Being Very Prominent. Some Lazily Cropped The Grass; Some Still More 
 Lazily Reclined And Chewed Their Cud; While Frisky Calves Exercised 
 Their Muscles In Swift Races And Then Secured Their Dinner From Anxious 
 Mothers. We Camped At Once And Took The Loads From All The Animals That 
 They Might Feed In Comfort On The Sweet Grass That Lay Before Them. 
   
   
   
 We Tarried Here Perhaps Two Hours, Till The Cattle Stopped Eating, And 
 Amply Enjoyed The Scene. Never Again Would Any One Of The Party Go Back 
 Over That Dreary Desert, They Said, And Everyone Wondered Why All Places 
 Could Not Be As Green And Beautiful As This One. I Cannot Half Tell How 
 We Felt And Acted, Nor What We Said In Our Delight Over This Picture Of 
 Plenty. The Strong Contrasts Created Strong Impressions, And The Tongues 
 So Long Silent In Our Dry And Dreary Trouble Were Loosened To Say 
 Everything The Heart Inspired. Think As Much As You Can; You Cannot 
 Think It All. 
   
   
   
 We Felt Much Better After Our Rest, And The Oxen Seemed Stronger And 
 Better Able, As Well As More Willing To Carry Their Loads, So We Soon 
 Prepared To Move On Down The Valley, Toward The House We Had Spoken Of 
 As The Goal We Were To Reach. It Was Now The 7th Day Of March 1850, And 
 This Date, As Well As The 4th Day Of November 1849 Will Always Remain An 
 Important One In Memory. On The Last Named Day We Left The Trail To Take 
 The Unfortunate Cut-Off, And For Four Long Months We Had Wandered And 
 Struggled In Terrible Hardship. Every Point Of That Terrible Journey Is 
 Indelibly Fixed Upon My Memory And Though Seventy-Three Years Of Age On 
 April 6th 1893 I Can Locate Every Camp, And If Strong Enough Could 
 Follow That Weary Trail From Death Valley To Los Angeles With Unerring 
 Accuracy. The Brushy Canon We Have Just Described Is Now Occupied By The 
 Southern Pacific Railroad, And The Steep And Narrow Ridge Pierced By A 
 Tunnel, Through Which The Trains Pass. The Beautiful Meadow We So Much 
 Admired Has Now Upon Its Border A Railroad Station, Newhall, And At The 
 Proper Season Some Portion Of It Is Covered With Thousands Of Trays Of 
 Golden Apricots, Grown In The Luxuriant Orchards Just Beyond The Hills 
 
 
 
 Chapter 11 Pg 159 
 Toward The Coast, And Here Drying In The Bright Summer Sun. The Cattle 
 In The Parti-Colored Coats Are Gone, But One Who Knows The Ground Can 
 See Our Picture. 
   
   
   
 Loaded Up Again We Start Down The Beautiful Grassy Valley, The Women 
 Each With A Staff In Hand, And Everything Is New And Strange To Us. 
 Rogers And I Know That We Will Soon Meet People Who Are Strangers To Us; 
 Who Speak A Strange Language Of Which We Know Nothing, And How We, 
 Without A Dollar, Are To Proceed To Get Our Food And Things We Need, Are 
 Questions We Cannot Answer Nor Devise Any Easy Way To Overcome. The 
 Mines Are Yet Five Hundred Miles Away, And We Know Not Of Any Work For 
 Us To Do Nearer. Our Lives Have Been Given Back To Us, And Now Comes The 
 Problem Of How To Sustain Them Manfully And Independently As Soon As 
 Possible. If Worse Comes To Worst We Can Walk To San Francisco, Probably 
 Kill Enough Game On The Way And Possibly Reach The Gold Mines At Last, 
 But The Way Was Not Clear. We Must Trust Much To Luck And Fortune And 
 The Ever Faithful Providence Which Rarely Fails Those Who Truly Try To 
 Help Themselves. 
   
   
   
 We Began To Think Some Very Independent Thoughts. We Had A Mule To Carry 
 Our Camp Kettle And Meat. Our Cattle Were Now Beginning To Improve And 
 Would Soon Get Fat; These Could Carry Our Blankets And Odd Loads, While 
 Old Crump The Christian Could Still Carry The Children; Bennett And I 
 Knew How To Hunt, And Had Good Rifles; So We Could Still Proceed, And We 
 Determined That, Come What May, _We Will Be Victorious_. 
   
   
   
 These Were Some Of The Plans We Talked Over At Our Camps And Resting 
 Places, And As We Walked Along. If We Could Get The Two Families Fixed 
 In Some Way So They Could Do Without Rogers And I, We Could Strike For 
 The Mines Quite Rapidly And No Doubt Soon Get Ourselves On Good Footing. 
 We Were Younger Than The Rest And Could Endure More Hardship. We Decide 
 To Remain Together Till We Get To Los Angeles, And Then See What Is 
 Best. 
   
   
   
 We Reached Our Camping Place At The Foot Of The Hill, About A Hundred 
 Yards From The House We Have So Long Striven To Reach. Here We Unloaded 
 In The Shade Of A Large Willow Tree, And Scarcely Had We Removed The 
 Harness From The Oxen When The Good Lady Of The House And Her Little 
 Child Came Down To See Us. She Stood For A Moment And Looked Around Her 
 And At The Two Small Children On The Blankets, And We Could Hear Her 
 Murmur _Mucha Pobre_ (Very Poor.) She Could See Our Ragged Clothes And 
 Dirty Faces And Everything Told Her Of Our Extreme Destitution. After 
 Seeing Our Oxen And Mule Which Were So Poor She Said To Herself "_Flaco, 
 Flaco_" (So Thin.) She Then Turned To Us, Rogers And I, Whom She Had 
 Seen Before, And As Her Lively Little Youngster Clung To Her Dress, As 
 If In Fear Of Such Queer Looking People As We Were, She Took An Orange 
 
 
 
 Chapter 11 Pg 160 
 From Her Pocket And Pointing To The Children Of Our Party, Wanted To 
 Know If We Had Given Them The Four Oranges She Sent To Them By Us. We 
 Made Signs That We Had Done As She Requested, When She Smiled And Said 
 "_Buenos Muchachos_" (Good Boys.) In All This Talk Neither Could Say A 
 Word The Other Could Understand, And The Conversation Was Carried On By 
 Signs. 
   
   
   
 Arcane Said To Her--"Me Catholic" Which She Seemed Partly To Comprehend 
 And Seemed More Friendly. About This Time Two Men Rode Up And Took A 
 Look At Us. Arcane, Who Was A Mason, Gave The Masonic Sign, As He Told 
 Me Afterward, But Neither Of Them Recognized It. We Used Such Words Of 
 Spanish As I Had Taken Down In My Pass Book And Committed To Memory And 
 By Motions In Addition To These Made Them Understand Something Of The 
 State Of Affairs And That Mr. French Who Had Assisted Us Before Had Told 
 Us We Could Get Some Meat (_Carne_) From Them. These Men Were Finely 
 Mounted, Wore Long Leggins Made Of Hide, Dressed With The Hair On, Which 
 Reached To Their Hips, Stiff Hats With A Broad Rim, And Great Spurs At 
 Their Heels. Each Had A Coil Of Braided Rawhide Rope On The Pommel Of 
 The Saddle, And All These Arrangements Together Made A Very Dashing 
 Outfit. 
   
   
   
 They Seemed To Understand What We Had Said To Them, For They Rode Off 
 With A Rush And Came Back In A Short Time, Leading A Fine, Fat 
 Two-Year-Old Heifer. When Near Our Camp The Rider Who Was Behind Threw 
 His _Riata_ And Caught Both Hind Feet Of The Animal When By A Sudden 
 Movement Of The Horses The Heifer Was Thrown. One Of Them Dismounted, 
 And At The Command The Horse Backed Up And Kept The Rope Tight While The 
 Man Went Up To The Prostrate Beast And Cut Its Throat. As Soon As It Had 
 Ceased Struggling, They Loosened Their Ropes And Coiled Them Up: They 
 Came To Us And Pointed To The Dead Heifer In A Way Which Said--"Help 
 Yourselves." 
   
   
   
 We Were Much Gratified At The Generosity Of The People, And At Once 
 Dressed The Animal As It Lay, Cutting Off Some Good Fat Pieces Which We 
 Roasted Over The Fire And Ate With A Relish. It Seemed As If Meat Never 
 Tasted So Good As That Did Sweet, Fragrant, And Juicy. If Some French 
 Cook Could Only Cook A Steak That Would Smell And Taste To His Customers 
 As That Meal Tasted To Us, His Art Would Be Perfect. We Separated A Hind 
 Quarter And Hung It To A Tree, And When The Lady Came Back We Told Her 
 That The Piece We Had Selected Was Enough For Our Present Use, So She 
 Caused The Remainder With The Hide To Be Taken To The House. Toward 
 Night They Drove Up A Lot Of Cows And Calves And Other Cattle Into Their 
 Cattle Yard Or Corral, As It Is Called All Over California, A Stockade 
 Of Strong Oak Posts Set Deep In The Ground And Close Together, Enclosing 
 A Space Of About Half An Acre. The Horsemen Now Rode In And Began To 
 Catch The Calves With Their Ropes. It Seemed As If They Were Able To 
 Throw A Rope Over A Calf's Head Or Around Either Leg They Desired, With 
 Better Aim, And At As Great A Distance As One Could Shoot A Colt's 
 
 
 
 Chapter 11 Pg 161 
 Revolver, And We Saw At Once That A Good Raw-Hide Rope, In The Hands Of 
 An Experienced Man And Well-Trained Horse, Was A Weapon In Many Respects 
 Superior To Firearms Of Any Kind. A Man Near The Gate Loosened The Ropes 
 And Pushed The Calves Into A Separate Corral Till They Had As Many As 
 They Desired. 
   
   
   
 Rogers Watched The Circus Till It Was Over And Then Returned To Camp, 
 Meeting On The Way Bennett And Arcane, With Their Wives And Children, 
 Carrying Some Blankets, For The Good Lady Had Invited Them To Come Up To 
 The House And Sleep. They Said We Could Go Down And Keep Camp If Old Dog 
 Cuff Was Willing, For They Had Left Him Guarding The Property. He Was 
 Pleased Enough To Have Us Come And Keep Him Company, And We Slept 
 Nicely, Disturbed Only A Little By The Barking Of The House Dogs And The 
 Hooting Of An Owl That Came To Visit Our Tree. 
   
   
   
 The People Came Back To Camp In The Morning And Had Their Experience To 
 Relate. Their Hosts First Baked Some Kind Of Flapjacks And Divided Them 
 Among Their Guests; Then Gave Them Beans Seasoned Hot With Pepper: Also 
 Great Pieces Of Squash Cooked Before The Fire, Which They Said Was 
 Delicious And Sweet--More Than Good. Then Came A Dish Of Dried Meat 
 Pounded Fine, Mixed With Green Peppers And Well Fried In Beef Tallow. 
 This Seemed To Be The Favorite Dish Of The Proprietors, But Was A Little 
 Too Hot For Our People. They Called It _Chili Cum Carne_--Meat With 
 Pepper--And We Soon Found This To Be One Of The Best Dishes Cooked By 
 The Californians. The Children Were Carefully Waited On And Given 
 Special Attention To By These Good People, And It Was Nearly Ten O'clock 
 Before The Feast Was Over: Then The Household Had Evening Worship By 
 Meeting In Silence, Except A Few Set Words Repeated By Some In Turn, The 
 Ceremony Lasting Half An Hour Or More. Then They Came And Wished Them 
 _Buenos Noches_ In The Most Polite Manner And Left Them To Arrange Their 
 Blankets On The Floor And Go To Sleep. 
   
   
   
 The Unaccustomed Shelter Of A Roof And The Restless Worrying Of The 
 Children, Who Required Much Attention, For The Change Of Diet Had About 
 The Same Effect On Them As On Rogers And Myself When We First Partook Of 
 The California Food, Gave Them Little Sleep, But Still They Rested And 
 Were Truly Grateful For The Most Perfect Hospitality Of These Kind 
 Hearted People. 
   
   
   
 In The Morning The Two Horsemen And Two Indians Went To The Corral, When 
 The Riders Would Catch A Cow With Their Ropes And Draw Her Head Up To A 
 Post, Binding It Fast, While An Indian Took A Short Piece Of Rope And 
 Closely Tied The Hind Legs Together Above The Gambrel Joint, Making The 
 Tail Fast Also. They Had A Large Bucket And Several Gourds. The Indians 
 Then Milked The Cows They Had Made Fast, Getting From A Pint To Two 
 Quarts From Each One, Milking Into A Gourd And Pouring Into The Bucket 
 
 
 
 Chapter 11 Pg 162 
 Till They Had All They Desired. The Calves Were Separated The Night 
 Before So They Could Secure Some Milk. Cows Were Not Trained To Stand 
 And Be Milked As They Were At Home. Setting Down The Bucket Of Milk 
 Before Us, With Some Small Gourds For Dippers, We Were Invited To Drink 
 All We Wished. This Was A Regular Banquet To Us, For Our Famished 
 Condition And Good Appetites Made Food Relish Wonderfully. 
   
   
   
 When We Made A Sign Of Wishing To Pay Them For Their Great Kindness They 
 Shook Their Heads And Utterly Refused. It Was Genuine Sympathy And 
 Hospitality On Their Part, And None Of Us Ever Forgot It; The Sight Of A 
 Native Californian Has Always Brought Out Thoughts Of These Good People, 
 And Respect And Thankfulness To The Race. This Rancho, At Which We Were 
 So Kindly Entertained Was Called San Francisquito, Or Little San 
 Francisco Rancho. 
   
   
   
 This Morning Mr. Arcane, With Our Assistance, Made An Arrangement With 
 These People To Give Them His Two Oxen; And They Were To Take Him And 
 His Wife And Child, To The Sea-Shore, At A Place Called San Pedro, From 
 Which Place He Hoped, In Some Way, To Get Passage To San Francisco In A 
 Sailing Vessel. He Had No Money, And No Property To Sell, Except Perhaps 
 His Spy-Glass, Worth About Ten Dollars. With This Poor Prospect Before 
 Him He Started For The Sea. He Bade Bennett's Folks Good-Bye, Then Came 
 To Me And Put A Light Gold Ring On My Finger, Saying That It And His 
 Interest In The Little Mule Were Mine. Then He Gave His Silver Watch To 
 Rogers And Said It Was All He Had To Give Him, But If He Had A Million 
 Dollars, He Would Divide, And Still Think It A Small Compensation For 
 The Faithful Services We Had Rendered Him. "I Can Never Repay You," Said 
 He, "For I Owe You A Debt That Is Beyond Compensation. You Have Saved 
 Our Lives, And Have Done It When You Knew You Could Get Nothing For It. 
 I Hope We Will Meet Again, And When We Do You Will Be Welcome. If You 
 Hear Of Me Anywhere, Come And See Me, For I Want To Tell My Friends Who 
 Manly And Rogers Are, And How You Helped Us. Good Bye!" There Were Tears 
 In His Eyes, Voice Full Of Emotion, And The Firm Clasp Of His Hand Told 
 How Earnest He Was, And That He Felt More Than He Could Speak. 
   
   
   
 He Helped Mrs. Arcane On Her Horse, Then Gave Charlie To Her, And, Amid 
 Waving Hands And Many _Adios_ From Our New-Found Friends, With Repeated 
 "Good Byes" From The Old Ones, They Rode Away. Mrs. Arcane Could Hardly 
 Speak When She Bade Us Farewell, She Was So Much Affected. They Had 
 About Sixty Miles To Ride To Reach The Sea, And As She Rode On A Man's 
 Saddle, And Was Unused To Riding, I Knew She Would Be Sadly Wearied 
 Before She Reached The Coast. 
   
   
   
 Our Little Train Now Seemed Much Smaller. Three Oxen And A Mule Were All 
 Our Animals, And The Adults Must Still Walk, As They Had Done On Our 
 Desert Route. But We Were Comparatively Happy, For We Had Plenty Of Good 
 
 
 
 Chapter 11 Pg 163 
 Meat To Eat, Plenty Of Sweet Water To Drink, And Our Animals Were 
 Contented And Improving Every Day; Grass And Water Seemed Plenty 
 Everywhere. We Put Our Luggage On The Oxen And The Mule, Loaded The 
 Children On Old Crump As We Had Done Before, And Were Ready To Move 
 Again. Our Good Friends Stood Around And Smiled Good-Naturedly At Our 
 Queer Arrangements, And We, Not Knowing How To Say What Our Hearts Would 
 Prompt Us To, Shook Their Hands And Said Good Bye In Answer To Their 
 "_Adios Amigos_" As We Moved Away, Waving Hands To Each Other. 
   
   
   
 The Men Then Detained Me A Little While To Ask Me More About The Road We 
 Had Come Over, How Far It Was, And How Bad The Indians Were, And Other 
 Particulars. I Told Him By Signs That We Had Been Twenty-Two Days On The 
 Road, And That The _Indianos_, As They Called Them, Had Not Troubled Us, 
 But That There Was Very Little Grass Or Water In All That Land. He Made 
 A Sort Of Map On The Ground And Made Me Understand He Would Like To Go 
 Back And Try To Bring Out The Wagons We Had Left Behind, And He Wanted 
 Me To Go Back With Him And Help Him. I Explained To Him By The Map He 
 Had Made, And One Which I Made Myself, That I Considered It Impossible 
 To Bring Them Over. He Seemed Much Disappointed, And With A Shrug Of His 
 Shoulders Said "_Mucho Malo_" (Very Bad) And Seemed To Abandon The Idea 
 Of Getting A Yankee Wagon. They Very Much Admired An American Wagon, For 
 Their Own Vehicles Were Rude Affairs, As I Shall Bye-And-Bye Describe. 
 We Bade Each Other Many _Adios_, And I Went On My Way, Soon Catching Up 
 With The Little Party. We Had Been Informed That It Was Ten Leagues, Or 
 Thirty Miles To Los Angeles, Whither We Were Now Headed. 
   
   
   
 We Had Now Been A Whole Year On The Road Between Wisconsin And 
 California, Much Of The Time With The Ground For A Bed, And Though Our 
 Meals Had Been Sometimes Scanty And Long Between, Very Few Of Us Had 
 Missed One On Account Of Sickness. Some, Less Strong Than We, Had Lain 
 Down To Perish, And Had Been Left Behind, Without Coffin Or Grave; But 
 We Were Here, And So Far Had Found Food To Nourish Us In Some Degree 
 With Prospects Now Of Game In The Future If Nothing Better Offered. We 
 Still Talked Of Going To The Gold Mines On Foot, For With Good Food And 
 Rest Our Courage Had Returned, And We Wanted To Succeed. 
   
   
   
 Our Camp This Night Was In A Nice Watering Place, Where Dry Oak Wood Was 
 Plenty And Grass Abundant. It Was At The Foot Of The San Fernando 
 Mountain, Not Rocky, As We Had Found Our Road Some Time Before, But 
 Smooth And Covered With Grass. It Was Rather Steep To Climb, But An 
 Infant Compared With The Great Mountains So Rough And Barren, We Had 
 Climbed On Our Way From Death Valley. Our Present Condition And State Of 
 Mind Was An Anomalous One. We Were Happy, Encouraged, Grateful And Quite 
 Contented In The Plenty Which Surrounded Us, And Still There Was A Sort 
 Of Puzzling Uncertainty As To Our Future, The Way To Which Seemed Very 
 Obscure. In The Past We Had Pushed On Our Very Best And A Kind 
 Providence Had Kept Us. This We Did Now, But Still Revolved The Best 
 Plans And The Most Fortunate Possibilities In Our Minds. We Talked Of 
 
 
 
 Chapter 11 Pg 164 
 The Time When We Should Be Able To Show Hospitality To Our Friends, And 
 To Strangers Who Might Need Our Open Hand As We Had Needed The Favors 
 Which Strangers Had Shown Us In The Last Few Days. 
   
   
   
 We Ate Our Supper Of Good Meat, With A Dessert Of Good Beans Our Kind 
 Friends Had Given Us, And Enjoyed It Greatly. As We Sat In Silence A 
 Flock Of The Prettiest, Most Graceful Birds Came Marching Along, And 
 Halted As If To Get A Better View Of Our Party. We Admired Them So Much 
 That We Made Not A Move, But Waited, And They Fearlessly Walked On 
 Again. We Could See That There Were Two Which Were Larger Than The Rest, 
 And From Twelve To Twenty Smaller Ones. The Little Top-Knot On The Head 
 And Their Symmetrical Forms Made Them Specially Attractive, And Mrs. 
 Bennett And The Children Were Much Pleased. The Beauty Of The California 
 Quail Is Especially Striking To One Who Sees Them For The First Time. 
   
   
   
 In The Morning We Began To Climb The Hill, Getting Along Very Well 
 Indeed, For Our Raw-Hide Moccasins Were Now Dry And Hard And Fitted The 
 Foot Perfectly. We Did Not Try To Make Great Speed, But Kept Steadily 
 On, And As We Were Used To Climbing, We Reached The Summit Easily. From 
 This Elevation We Could Get A Fine View Of The Big Grassy Plain That 
 Seemed To Extend As Far As The Eye Could Reach And, Not Far From Us, The 
 Buildings And Gardens Of The San Fernando Mission. If We Could Shut Out 
 The Mountains The Landscape Would Remind Us Of A Great Western Prairie. 
 We Never Could Get Over Comparing This Country With The Desolate Death 
 Valley, For It Seemed As If Such Strange And Striking Opposites Could 
 Hardly Exist. 
   
   
   
 We Rested Here A Little While And Then Wound Our Way Down The Hill To 
 The Level Land. A Few Miles Brought Us To The Mission Houses And The 
 Church Of San Fernando. There Was Not Much Life About Them, In Fact They 
 Seemed Comparatively Deserted, For We Saw Only One Man And A Few 
 Indians. The Man Brought Some Oranges And Gave The Children One Each. 
 After A Little Rest We Moved On Over Our Road Which Was Now Quite Smooth 
 And Gently Descending. Night Overtook Us In A Place Where There Was No 
 Water, But We Camped And Suffered No Inconvenience. A Stream Was Passed 
 Next Day, And A House Near By Unoccupied. The Road Now Began To Enter 
 Gently Rolling Hills Covered With Big Grass And Clover, Which Indicated 
 Rich Soil, And We Never Get Tired Of Talking About It. 
   
   
   
 At The Top Of These Hills We Had Another Beautiful View As Far South And 
 West As The Eye Could Reach. Small Objects, Probably Horses And Cattle, 
 Were Scattered About The Plain, Grazing In The Midst Of Plenty. Our Own 
 Animals Were Given Frequent Opportunities To Eat, And Again And Again We 
 Rejoiced Over The Beauty. Of Course It Was Not Such A Surprise And 
 Wonder As It Was When Such A View First Burst Upon Our Sight, But It 
 Pleased And Delighted Us Ever. On The East Was A Snow-Capped Peak, And 
 
 
 
 Chapter 11 Pg 165 
 Here We Were In The Midst Of Green Fields Of Grass And Wild Flowers, In 
 The Softest Climate Of An Early Spring. These Strong Contrasts Beat 
 Anything We Had Ever Seen. Perhaps The Contrast Between The Great Snow 
 Mountain And The Hot Death Valley Was Greater In Point Of Temperature, 
 But There The Heat Brought Only Barrenness, And Of The Two The Snow 
 Seemed The More Cheerful. Here The Vegetation Of All Sorts Was In Full 
 Balance With The Balmy Air, And In Comparison The Snow Seemed A Strange 
 Neighbor. It Was Quite A Contrast To Our Cold, Windy March In Wisconsin, 
 And We Wonder If It Is Always Summer Here. We Were Satisfied That Even 
 If We Could Get No Further We Could Live In Such A Land As This. The 
 Broad Prairie Doubtless Belonged To The United States, And We Could Have 
 Our Share And Own A Little Piece Of It On Very Easy Terms, And Raise Our 
 Own Cattle And Corn. If The People Were All As Kind As Those We Had Met 
 We Were Sure At Least Of Neighborly Treatment. I Have Endeavored To 
 Write This Just As It Seemed To Us Then And Not Clothe The Impressions 
 With The Cover Of Later Experience. The Impressions We Then Daily 
 Received And The Sights We Saw Were Stranger Than The Wildest Fiction, 
 And If It So Strikes You, My Friendly Reader, Do Not Wonder. 
   
   
   
 As We Came Over The Hills We Could See A Village Near The Southern Base 
 And It Seemed Quite Near Us. It Was A New And Strange Sight To Us As We 
 Approached. The Houses Were Only One Story High And Seemed Built Of Mud 
 Of A Gray Color, The Roofs Flat, And The Streets Almost Deserted. 
 Occasionally A Man Could Be Seen, Sometimes A Dog, And Now And Then An 
 Indian, Sitting With His Back To The House. The Whole View Indicated A 
 Thinly Populated Place, And The Entire Absence Of Wagons Or Animals Was 
 A Rather Strange Circumstance To Us. It Occurred To Us At First That If 
 All The Emigrants Were Gone Our Reception Might Be A Cool One In This 
 City Of Mud. One Thing Was In Its Favor And That Was Its Buildings Were 
 About Fire Proof For They Had Earthen Floors And Flat Roofs. 
   
   
   
 We Rested Half An Hour Or So Just Outside, And Then Ventured Down The 
 Hill Into The Street. We Met An American Almost The First Man, And When 
 We Asked About A Suitable Camping Place, He Pointed Out The Way And We 
 Marched On. Our Strange Appearance Attracted The Attention Of The 
 Children And They Kept Coming Out Of The Houses To See The Curious 
 Little Train With Old Crump Carrying The Children And Our Poor Selves 
 Following Along, Dirty And Ragged. Mrs. Bennett's Dress Hardly Reached 
 Below Her Knees, And Although Her Skirts Were Fringed About The Bottom 
 It Was Of A Kind That Had Not Been Adopted As Yet In General Circle Of 
 Either Spanish-American Or Good United States Society. The Shortness Of 
 The Dress Made The Curious Raw-Hide Moccasins Only The More Prominent, 
 And The Whole Make-Up Of The Party Was A Curious Sight. 
   
   
   
 We Went Down The Hill A Little Further To The Lower Bottom To Camp, 
 While The Barefooted, Bareheaded Urchins Followed After To Get A Further 
 Look At The Strangers. Before We Selected A Suitable Place, We Saw Two 
 Tents And Some Wagons Which Looked Like Those Of Overland Travelers, And 
 
 
 
 Chapter 11 Pg 166 
 We Went Toward Them. When Within Fifty Yards Two Men Suddenly Came To 
 Their Feet And Looked At Our Little Party Approaching As If In Wonder, 
 But At Twenty Steps They Recognized Bennett And Came Rushing Forward. 
 "My God! It's Bennett" Said They, And They Clasped Hands In Silence 
 While One Greeted Mrs. Bennett Warmly. The Meeting Was So Unexpected 
 They Shed Tears And Quietly Led The Way Back To Camp. This Was The Camp 
 Of R.G. Moody And H.C. Skinner, With Their Families. They Had Traveled 
 Together On The Platte And Became Well Acquainted, The Warmest Of 
 Friends, And Knowing That Bennett Had Taken The Cut Off, They More Than 
 Suspected He And His Party Had Been Lost, As No Sight Of Them Had Come 
 To Their Eyes. They Had Been Waiting Here Six Weeks In Order To Get Some 
 Reliable News, And Now Mr. Bennet Answered For Himself. Rogers And I, 
 Belonging To Another Party, Were Of Course Strangers. 
   
   
   
 Leaving Them To Compare Notes, Rogers And I Took Charge Of Old Crump, 
 The Oxen, And The Mule, Unpacked Them, And Arranged Camp Under A 
 Monstrous Willow Tree. Bennett And His Wife Were Taken Into Mr. Moody's 
 Tent, And An Hour Or So Later When Mrs. Bennett Appeared Again, She Had 
 Her Face Washed Clean, Her Hair Combed, And A New Clean Dress. It Was 
 The First Time We Had Found Soap, And The Improvement In Her Looks And 
 Feelings Was Surprising. Bennett Looked Considerably Cleaned Up Too, And 
 Appeared Bright And Fresh. The Children Had Also Been Taken In Hand And 
 Appeared In New Clothes Selected From The Wardrobe Of The Other 
 Children, And The Old Dirty Clothes Were Put In Process Of Washing As 
 Soon As Possible. 
   
   
   
 Supper Came, And It Was So Inviting. There Was Real Bread And It Looked 
 So Nice We Smiled When It Was Offered To Us. Mrs. Bennett Broke Pieces 
 For The Children And Cautioned Them Not To Eat Too Much. It Did Seem So 
 Good To Be Among Friends We Could Talk With And Be Understood. After 
 Supper Was Over And The Things Cleared Away We All Sat Down In A Circle 
 And Bennett Told The Story Of Where He Had Been These Many Days On The 
 Cut Off That Was To Shorten The Trail. Mr. Moody Said He Had About Given 
 The Party Up And Intended To Start Up The Coast To-Morrow. The Story Was 
 So Long That They Talked Till They Were Sleepy And Then Began Again 
 After Breakfast, Keeping It Up Till They Had A Good Outline Of All Our 
 Travels And Tribulations. This Mr. R.G. Moody, His Wife And Daughter, 
 Mrs. Quinby, And Son Charles, All Lived In San Jose And Are Now Dead. 
 H.C. Skinner Was A Brother-In-Law Of Moody And Also Lived A Long Time In 
 San Jose, But Himself, Son And One Daughter, Are Now Dead. 
   
   
   
 Rogers And I Now Took The Pack-Saddle We Had Borrowed Of Mr. French To 
 Use On Our Trip To Death Valley And Return, And Carried It To The Saloon 
 On The East Side Of The Plaza, Where We Were To Place It If We Got Back 
 Safely, And Delivered It To The Man In Charge, With Many Thanks To Mr. 
 French For His Favors To Us, And Sent Him Word That We Would Always 
 Remember Him And Be Ready To Do Him A Similar Or Equal Favor If Ever We 
 Were Able. We Considered Him A Good Benevolent Man, And Such He Proved 
 
 
 
 Chapter 11 Pg 167 
 To Be When He Offered Us Fat Oxen, Good Beans, And Any Other Thing We 
 Needed. He Told The People In The House Who We Were, Which No Doubt 
 Influenced Them Kindly In Our Favor When We Arrived. 
   
   
   
 At The Saloon There Was A Large Room With Tables In It And Gambling 
 Going On Actively. Money Changed Hands Very Rapidly, Drinks At The Bar 
 Were Frequent, And The Whole Affair Moved Forward With The Same 
 Regularity As Any Mercantile Business. The Door Stood Wide Open And Any 
 One Could Come And Go At His Pleasure. Quite A Number Of Black-Eyed, 
 Fair Looking Women Circulated Among The Crowd, And This, To Us, Seemed 
 Quite Out Of Place, For We Had Never Seen Women In Saloons Before. We 
 Watched The Game Awhile To See Some Losing And Some Gaining, The Result 
 Being Quite Exciting; But As Neither Of Us Had Any Money, We Could Not 
 Have Joined In The Game Had We Been So Disposed; So We Looked On Awhile 
 And Then Took A Seat On The Ground Outside Of The House. 
   
   
   
 Here We Talked Over Our Chances Of Getting To The Mines. All The Clothes 
 We Had Were On Our Backs And Feet And Those Were The Poorest Of The 
 Poor. We Had No Money. I Had The Little Black-Eyed Mule, And Rogers Had 
 The Watch Arcane Had Given Him. Mr. Moody Had Said It Was 500 Miles To 
 San Francisco, And 150 Miles Further To The Mines, So That After The 
 Hard Travel Of A Year We Were Still A Long Way Off From The Place We 
 Started For. 
   
   
   
 We Could Not See Any Way To Make A Living Here. There Was No Land 
 Cultivated, Not A Fence, Nothing To Require Labor Of Any Kind. The 
 Valley Was Rich Enough And Produced Great Crops Of Grass, And The Cattle 
 And Horses We Had Seen Grazing Seemed To Be About All The Use They Put 
 It To. It Looked As If The People Must Live Principally On Meat. I 
 Thought If We Could Manage To Get A Little Provision Together, Such As 
 Flour And Beans, That I Could Pack There On The Mule, And I Was Pretty 
 Sure I Could Find Game That Would Be Better Meat Than We Had Lived On 
 During The Last Two Months On The Desert. 
   
   
   
 We Looked Around To See If We Could Find Something To Do To Earn A 
 Little For A Start, But Were Not Successful. In Our Walk About This City 
 Of Mud We Saw Many Things That Seemed Strange To Us. There Were More 
 Women Than Men, And More Children Than Grown-Up People, While The Dogs 
 Were Plenty. At The Edge Of The Town, Near The River Were Some Grape 
 Vines Fenced In With Living Willows, Interlaced In Some Places With Dry 
 Vines. The Indians Moved Very Moderately Around And No Doubt Had Plenty 
 Of Beef To Eat, With Very Few Wants To Provide For. We Noticed Some Few 
 People Paying For Small Things At The Stores With Small Money. The Women 
 All Dressed Much Alike. The Dress Was Of Some Cheap Material, Sandals On 
 Feet, And A Kind Of Long Shawl Worn Over The Head And Thrown Over The 
 Shoulder. There Seemed To Be Neither Hoops Nor Corsets In Their 
 
 
 
 Chapter 11 Pg 168 
 Fashions. The Men Wore Trousers Of White Cotton Or Linen, With A Calico 
 Shirt, Sandals, And A Broad Rimmed Snuff Colored Hat. The Indians And 
 Their Wives Went Bareheaded. 
   
   
   
 Near The End Of The Street We Came To A Boarding House And Went In And 
 Sat Down In The Empty Room. Soon A Man Came In, Better Dressed Than 
 Ourselves, And Much To Our Surprise It Was One Of The Old Death Valley 
 Travelers, The Rev. J.W. Brier Whom I Last Saw In His Lone Camp In The 
 Desert, Discoursing To His Young Sons On The Benefits Of An Early 
 Education. I Know The Situation Struck Me Very Strangely, With Death 
 Staring Them In The Face And He Preaching! 
   
   
   
 We Had A Long Talk About The Hard Journey We Had Each Experienced. As 
 His Party Had Not Waited They Had Come Through Ahead Of Us. He Said 
 Himself And Mr. Granger Had Started A Boarding House When They Arrived, 
 And Had Been Doing A Good Business. He Said That As Long As The 
 Emigrants Continued To Come He Could Get Along Very Well. We Asked Him 
 If There Was Any Chance For Us To Work And Get Money To Get Some 
 Provisions To Help Us On The Way To The Mines. He Said He Could Give 
 Work To One Of Us Hauling Water For The House With Oxen And Cart, And 
 The One Who Could Manage Oxen Was The Man. I Was An Ox Driver And So 
 Told Him I Would Take His Team And Cart And Set Out With The Work. He 
 Said He Could Pay Fifty Dollars A Month, And I Accepted The Offer 
 Quickly As I Saw It Was A Good Chance To Build Up My Exhausted Strength 
 And Flesh. 
   
   
   
 I Turned The Little Mule Out In The Hills Near By, And Began My Work. It 
 Was Not Hard, For The Boarders Were Thinning Out. The Natives Did Not 
 Patronize This Hotel Very Much, But Grub Disappeared Pretty Fast At My 
 Corner Of The Table, For My Appetite Began To Be Ravenous. There Was Not 
 Much Variety To The Food And Very Few Luxuries Or Delicacies, Which Were 
 Hard To Obtain On Such A Bare Market, But All Seemed Satisfied With The 
 Food, And To Me It Tasted Extra Good. 
   
   
   
 Rogers Went Back To The Old Camp And Helped Them There, And I Often Went 
 Over After Dark, When My Work Was Done. Moody And Skinner Had Been 
 Active In Trying To Get Mr. Bennett Ready To Go Up The Coast With Them. 
 Bennett Had Sold His Repeating Rifle And With The Proceeds And The Help 
 Of His Friends Had Got Another Ox, Making Two Yoke For Him. They Fixed 
 Up A Wagon For Him, And Yokes Enough Could Be Found Where People Had 
 Traded Off Their Oxen For Horses. Provisions Enough Had Been Gathered By 
 Moody And Skinner For Them All, And Rogers Would Go Along With The Party 
 To Help Them With The Teams. 
   
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 11 Pg 169 
 I Was Left Alone After They Started, And It Was My Idea To Quit When I 
 Had Worked A Month, And If My Mule Staid With Me, To Start For The Mines 
 Even If I Went Alone. The Majority Of The Male Inhabitants Of This Town 
 Had Gone To The Mines, And This Accounted For The Unusual Proportion Of 
 Women. We Learned That They Would Return In November, And Then The 
 Gambling Houses Would Start Up In Full Blast, For These Native 
 Californians Seemed To Have A Great Natural Desire To Indulge In Games 
 Of Chance, And While Playing Their Favorite Game Of Monte Would Lay Down 
 Their Last Reale (12-1/2 Cents) In The Hope Of Winning The Money In 
 Sight Before Them On The Table. 
   
   
   
 As The Boarding House Business Got Dull I Was Taken Over To A Vineyard 
 And Set To Work, In Place Of Hauling Water. The Entire Patch Was As 
 Green As A Meadow With Weeds, And I Was Expected To Clean Them Out. I 
 Inquired Of Brier How He Came To Get Hold Of This Nice Property, And He 
 Said That During The War The Soldiers Had Taken Possession Of This Piece 
 Of Ground, And Had Their Camp Here, So He Considered It Was Government 
 Land, And Therefore Had Squatted On It And Was Going To Hold It, And Pay 
 For It As Regular Government Land, And That He Already Considered It His 
 Own, For Said He, "I Am An American, And This Is A Part Of The Public 
 Domain." "All Right," Said I, "I Will Kill Weeds For You, If You Wish, 
 When I Have Time To Spare, And You Don't Want The Oxen Worked At Any 
 Other Work ". 
   
   
   
 I Could See Every Day That I Was Improving In Health And Weight And 
 Would Soon Become Myself Again, Able To Take The Road To The Mines. When 
 About Two Weeks Of My Time Had Expired Two Oldish Men Came To The House 
 To Stop For A Few Days And Reported Themselves As From Sacramento, 
 Buying Up Some Horses For That Market. Thus Far They Had Purchased Only 
 Six Or Eight, As They Had Found The Price Too High To Buy And Then Drive 
 So Far To A Market To Sell Again. They Had About Decided To Go Back With 
 What They Had And Undertake Some Other Kind Of Business. I Thought This 
 Would Be A Pretty Good Chance For Me To Go, As I Would Have Company, And 
 So Went To Brier And Granger And Told Them What I Would Like To Do, And 
 That With Their Permission I Would Quit And Go On With Them. They 
 Readily Consented, For Their Money Was Coming In Rather Slow, And They 
 Paid Me Twenty Five Dollars For Half A Month's Work. This Made Me Feel 
 Pretty Rich And I Thought This Would Give Me Food Enough To Reach The 
 Mines. 
   
   
   
 Having Two Or Three Days To Get Ready In, I Began Doing The Best I 
 Could. I Found An Old Saddle Tree Which Had Been Thrown Away, And 
 Managed To Fix It Up So I Could Use It. I Also Found An Old Gun Some 
 Traveler Had Left, And With A Little Work I Fitted The Breech Of That To 
 My Own Gun Which Was Broken, And Had Been Roughly Tied Together With 
 Strips Of Raw-Hide. I Now Had A Good Sound Gun If It Was Not Very 
 Handsome. I Bought A Spanish Blanket, Not So Wide As Ours, But Coarse 
 And Strong, And Having A Hole In The Center Through Which To Put The 
 
 
 
 Chapter 11 Pg 170 
 Head And Wear It As A Garment In Case Of Storm, Or At Night. I Went To A 
 Native Store And Bought A Supply Of Carne Seca (Dried Beef) And Some 
 Crackers, Put Some Salt In My Pocket And Was Now Provisioned For Another 
 Trip. I Found My Mule In The Hills Back Of Town, Not Far From Where I 
 Left Her, And The Rest And Good Feed Had Made Her Look Better And Feel 
 Better, As Well As Myself. 
   
   
   
 The Drovers Had Found Two Other Men Who Wanted To Go With Them And Help 
 Drive The Horses For Their Board. I Put My Blanket On Under The Saddle, 
 Packed My Little Sack Of Meat And Crackers On Behind, And When I Was In 
 The Saddle With My Gun Before Me I Considered I Was Pretty Well Fixed 
 And Able To Make My Way Against Almost Anything. I Said To Myself That 
 The Only Way Now To Keep Me From Getting To The Gold Mines Was To Kill 
 Me. I Felt That There Was Not A Mountain So High I Could Not Climb, And 
 No Desert So Wide And Dry That I Could Not Cross It. I Had Walked And 
 Starved And Choked And Lived Through It, And Now I Felt So Strong And 
 Brave I Could Do It Again--Any Way To Reach The Gold Mines And Get Some 
 Of The "Dust." 
   
   
   
 I Had Not Much Idea How The Gold From The Mines Looked. Everybody Called 
 It Gold Dust, And That Conveyed An Idea To Me That It Was Fine As Flour, 
 But How To Catch It I Did Not Know. I Knew Other People Found A Way To 
 Get It, And I Knew I Could Learn If Any Body Could. It Was A Great 
 Longing That Came To Me To See Some Of The Yellow Dust In Its Native 
 State, Before It Had Been Through The Mint. 
   
   
   
 At The Last Meal I Took At The House There Were Only A Few At The Table. 
 Among Them Was A Well Dressed Californian Who Evidently Did Not Greatly 
 Fancy American Cooking, But Got Along Very Well Till Mrs. Brier Brought 
 Around The Dessert, A Sort Of Duff. This The Californian Tasted A Few 
 Times And Then Laid Down His Spoon Saying It Was No Bueno, And Some 
 Other Words I Did Not Then Understand, But Afterward Learned That They 
 Meant "Too Much Grease." The Fellow Left The Table Not Well Pleased With 
 What We Generally Consider The Best End Of A Yankee Dinner, The Last 
 Plate. 
   
   
   
 While Here I Had Slept In A Small Store Room, Where I Made My Pallet Out 
 Of Old Rags And Blankets. While I Was Looking Round For Material To Make 
 My Bed I Came Across A Bag Partly Full Of Sugar, Brought From Chili. It 
 Was In Very Coarse Crystals, Some As Large As Corn. There Were Some 
 Other Treasures End Luxuries There That Perhaps I Was Expected Guard. I 
 However Had A Sweet Tooth And A Handful Or So Of The Sweet Crystals 
 Found Their Way Into My Pocket. 
   
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 11 Pg 171 
 I Bade Mr. Brier And The Rest Good Bye And Rode Away To Join My Company. 
 
 
 
 Chapter 12 Pg 172 
   
 Leaving The Little Party Whose Wanderings We Have Followed So Closely, 
 Safely Arrived In Los Angeles, Their Further History In California Will 
 Be Taken Up Later On, And This Narrative Will Go Back To Points When The 
 Original Party Was Broken Up And Trace The Little Bands In Their Varied 
 Experience. It Will Be Remembered That The Author And His Friends, After 
 A Perilous Voyage Down Green River, Halted At The Camp Of The Indian 
 Chief, Walker, And There Separated, The Author And Four Companions 
 Striking For Salt Lake, While Mcmahon And Field Remained Behind, Fully 
 Determined To Go On Down The River. 
   
   
   
 The Story Of These Two Men Is Told By Mcmahon In The Following 
 Interesting Letter. 
   
   
   
   
   
   
 Dear Manley:-- 
   
   
   
 Yours Requesting Me To Give You A Synopsis Of The History Of Incidents, 
 Experience, And Observations Of Our Mutual Friend, Richard Field And 
 Myself, From The Time You, John Rogers, Alfred Walton, And The Hazelrig 
 Brothers Left Us At The Camp Of The Generous Old Chief Walker On The 
 West Bank Of The River Near The Mouth Of The "Great Seven Days Canon" Is 
 At Hand. 
   
   
   
 You No Doubt Distinctly, And With Pleasure, Remember That Unbroken 
 Friendship Which Existed Among Us Up To The Time Of Our Separation And 
 That We Parted Warm And Tried Friends. 
   
   
   
 Well, After You And Your Companions Had Left Us We Set To Work To 
 
 
 
 Chapter 12 Pg 173 
 Prepare The Canvas For The Continuation Of The Voyage Down The River. We 
 Drilled Holes Through The Sides Of The "Pilot"--You, I Have No Doubt 
 Remember Which That Was, Yours And Mine, In Which We Took So Many 
 Fearful Risks, And "No. 2," So That We Might In Case Of Necessity Lash 
 The Two Together. After A Day Or Two Field Lost Courage And Finally 
 Determined To Go No Further Down The River. Walker In The Meantime Had 
 Repeated His Friendly Warnings Appertaining To The Great Danger In Going 
 Further Down The River. You Will Remember What He Had Told Us About It 
 Before You Left Us. 
   
   
   
 You Know That I Was The Biggest Coward Of The Whole Seven; But I Assumed 
 Courage And Told Field That I Would Go Down The River Alone; And, For A 
 Time, I Thought I Would Do So; But After Some Reflection I Concluded 
 That, Perhaps, Discretion Was The Better Part Of Valor, And Reluctantly 
 Gave It Up. We Now Decided To Follow You, Or To Take Some Other Unknown 
 Route And Try To Make Our Escape Out Of This Most Perilous Condition. 
   
   
   
 We Then Set About, As You Had Done, To Trade With Walker For A Pony Or 
 Two, And After Much Dickering Field Succeeded In Getting The, Afterwards 
 Famous, Big, Old, Sore-Backed Mule. You May Not Remember Him, But I Do; 
 And, Notwithstanding His Sore Back, He Made Pretty Good Beef. I, With 
 Pins, Needles, Thread, A Pocket-Knife, A Handkerchief, Etc., Succeeded 
 In Getting A Very Nice, Round, Three-Year-Old, Iron-Gray Pony. 
   
   
   
 After Making Pack-Saddles, And Getting Almost Ready To Start, We Were, 
 Through Walker's Kindness And Persuasiveness, Overcome, And Consented To 
 Go With Him, Feeling Confident That We Would Not Starve To Death While 
 With Him. We Did Not Now Have Manley With His Long Experience, And His 
 Old Rusty, But Always Trusty, Rifle As A Sure Defence Against Possible 
 Hunger And Starvation. 
   
   
   
 The Old Chief, And, In Fact, The Whole Tribe, Seemed Pleased When We 
 Consented To Go With Them. Preparations Were Now Made, And All Except 
 The Horses And Four Head Of Cattle, Was Conveyed Across The River In The 
 Two Canoes Which Were Lashed Together, While The Horses And Cattle Were 
 Forced To Swim To The Other Side Where We Camped For The Night. Next 
 Morning The Clever Old Chief Had Two Good Horses Fitted Up In Good Style 
 For Field And I, Which We Rode All Of The Nine Days That We Remained 
 With The Band, While Our Own Run With The Herd. Our Baggage Was Carried 
 On Some Of The Chief's Pack-Horses. We Were, In Fact, His Honored 
 Guests, As Will Hereafter Appear. 
   
   
   
 All Were Soon Mounted And Off To The Buffalo Fields, Walker Having 
 Informed Us That He Intended Going Up Into The Buffalo Country On The 
 
 
 
 Chapter 12 Pg 174 
 Head-Waters Of Grand River Where He Would Remain Until Snow Fell, When 
 He Would Go To Salt Lake City, Or Vicinity. 
   
   
   
 Leaving The River, We Set Out Across A Not Entirely Barren Plain, For 
 There Was Much Sage-Brush, And Several Varieties Of Cactus. Towards 
 Evening We Came Close Up To The Foot Of A Range Of Rugged, Rocky 
 Mountains, Where We Found Water And Camped For The Night. Field And I 
 Usually Pitched Our Little Muslin Tent Somewhere Near Our Friends Where 
 We Could Sleep Without Fear Of Man Or Beast, For I Think Some One Of The 
 Reds Was Always On Guard. 
   
   
   
 All Went Well For Four Or Five Days, When We All Got Entirely Out Of 
 Food Except A Few Ounces Of Flour Which We Had Hidden Away For A 
 Possible Emergency. During The Following Two Days And Nights All Were 
 Entirely Without Food Except The Two Little Children, Whom You No Doubt 
 Remember. We Gave Their Mother A Little Flour Now And Then Which She 
 Mixed With A Little Milk Which One Of The Cows Afforded, For The Little 
 Ones. These Indians Did Not Seem To Suffer For Want Of Food; Even When 
 We Were Starving, They Appeared Happy And Contented; And One Young 
 Fellow Would Sing All Day Long While We Were Starving. Daring The Second 
 Day Of Starvation And Hard Traveling Over Hot And Barren Deserts, The 
 Indians Killed A Wild-Cat And Two Small Rabbits. We Got Nothing. You 
 Will Remember That All The Arms Of The Seven Men Were Lost In The River 
 When The Canoes Were Sunk, Except Your Rifle And My Double Barreled 
 Shot-Gun And Revolver, So That Field And I Had Only The One Gun, And 
 Neither Of Us Knew Anything About Hunting. When We Camped, One Of The 
 Boys Brought Over To Our Tent A Quarter Of The Cat, Which Was More Than 
 A Fair Share Of The Whole Supply, As Twenty-Two Of Them Had Only The Two 
 Little Rabbits And Three Quarters Of The Unfortunate Cat. We Boiled And 
 Boiled And Boiled That Cat's Hind Leg, But Never Got It Done. We Waited 
 As Long As We Possibly Could, Gave Up In Despair And Put A Little Flour 
 Into The Broth To Thicken It, And Drank It. It Was Not Good, But Much 
 Better The Meat Of The Cat. That Cat And The Rabbits Were All The 
 Twenty-Four Of Us Had To Eat, After Fasting Two Days, Until Late In The 
 Evening Of The Next Day. 
   
   
   
 My People Were Religious, And When I Was Young The Family Was Wont To 
 Observe Fast Days, But Never Did We Have Any Such Long Fasts As These 
 Were. In The Afternoon Of The Next Day The Old Chief Left The Caravan 
 And Went On Ahead Of The Train Toward A Chain Of Mountains, First Giving 
 Some Directions To The Band, And Taking One Son With Him. When We 
 Arrived In A Small Canon In The Edge Of The Mountains We Found Them With 
 A Fine Mountain Sheep Which They Had Killed And Brought Down To The Dim, 
 Little-Used Trail Where We Camped; And After We Had Set Up Our Little 
 Tent As Usual, A Short Distance Away From Our Friends, One Of The Young 
 Men Brought To Us About One Fourth Of The Sheep, While The Twenty-Two 
 Indians Had The Rest. 
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 12 Pg 175 
   
   
 You Know That A Good-Sized Mountain Sheep Would Make A Fair Supper For 
 Twenty-Four People, Even Though They Had Been Starving Three Or Four 
 Days; But This Was A Small One, And I Think Field And I Ate About Half 
 Of The Quarter. The Twenty-Two Indians Soon Devoured The Three-Fourths 
 And All Of The Soft Viscera, Including The Stomach And Intestines, After 
 Which Some Of The Boys Came To Our Tent While We Were Stuffing Our, What 
 Had Been For Several Days Empty, Stomachs. We Offered Them Part Of Our 
 Bounteous Supply Of Mutton, Having Much More Than We Could Eat; But No, 
 They Would Not Touch It Until We Were Filled Full, When They Accepted 
 What Was Left, And Soon Stowed It Away. All Were Now Pretty Well Filled 
 Up Once More. 
   
   
   
 The Next Day Was Spent Without Food, Traveling Over Rough Mountains. 
 Within A Pass, Late In The Afternoon, We Crossed The Fresh Trail Of Some 
 Other Band Of Roving Red-Skins, And Walker Suspected Who They Were, And 
 Went Into Camp Early. The Indians Had Killed Nothing That Day, But I Had 
 Killed A Small Rabbit Which, Unfortunately For It, Came In My Way During 
 The Day. This We Offered To The Women For Themselves And The Little 
 Children; But They Positively Refused To Accept It, Insisting That They 
 Did Not Want It Or Need It, And That The Small Supply Of Milk From The 
 Cow Was Quite Sufficient For The Little Ones, And The Others Spurned The 
 Offer To Divide So Little A Thing, So We Had It All To Ourselves. 
   
   
   
 It Appeared That These People Were Accustomed To Go For Long Periods 
 Without Food, And With Little Apparent Inconvenience; But Field And I 
 Began To Feel As I Suppose Dr. Tanner Felt After A Few Days' Fasting, 
 And Began To Wish That The Old Chief Would Get Hungry And Kill One Of 
 His Large, Fat Steers, But He Still Held Them In Reserve. 
   
   
   
 Early The Next Morning, Now Nine Days From The Time We Had Left The 
 River, The Old Chief Took Two Of The Young Men And Left Camp, As We 
 Afterwards Learned, To Go In Search Of The Indians Whose Trail We Had 
 Crossed The Evening Before. Some Time In The Early Part Of The Night, 
 One Of The Young Men Returned And Informed Us That They Had Found The 
 Wandering Tribe, And That We Were To Go Back To Their Trail And Follow 
 It To Their Camp Up In A Southeast Direction, Walker And One Of The 
 Young Men Having Remained With Their New-Found Friends. 
   
   
   
 Field And I Both Felt Greatly Disappointed In Not Being Able To Proceed 
 North; And In The Meantime We Had Become Very Tired Of The Society Of 
 These People, Notwithstanding The Fact That They Were Exceedingly 
 Clever; But We Were Almost Starved To Death, And Had About Come To The 
 Conclusion That We Would Be Obliged To Make Some Change. We Were Still 
 On The East Side Of, And Considerable Distance From The River, And 
 
 
 
 Chapter 12 Pg 176 
 Probably Not More Than One Hundred, Or One Hundred And Twenty Miles From 
 The Place Where We Parted From You. 
   
   
   
 The Chief Had Sent Particular Instructions For Us To Go With The Tribe; 
 But, After Canvassing The Whole Situation, We Decided To Part Company 
 With Our Good Friends, Proceed Northward, And Try To Reach Fort Bridger 
 Or Some Other Settlement In The Northwest, And So Informed Them, And 
 Requested The Boys To Bring In Our Mule And Horse, Which They Did After 
 Failing To Induce Us To Go With Them. 
   
   
   
 Bright And Early The Next Morning, They All, Even The Polygamous Wives 
 And Little Children, In Apparent Sorrow, Bade Us Good-Bye, And Were Off, 
 Leaving Us Alone With Our Two Poor, Lonely, Four-Footed Companions, Who 
 Were Very Anxious To Follow The Band Of Horses. After The Rather 
 Melancholy Parting We Arranged Our Packs, And About Ten O'clock Started 
 Out On What Then Seemed, And Afterwards Proved, To Be A Perilous Voyage 
 Through Deserts, And Over Rough Mountains. To Avoid A High Range Of 
 Mountains, Our Course Was For A Time Northeast But, After Passing That 
 Range We Bore To The Northwest. 
   
   
   
 The Days Were Quite Warm, But The Nights Were Cold. During The First Day 
 We Killed And Ate One Small Rabbit, And This, With A Few Seed Buds 
 Gathered From Wild Rose Bushes, Constituted Two Days' Rations. On The 
 Third We Did Not Have Even The Rabbit Or Rose Seed Buds, But Late In The 
 Afternoon We Found Some Small Red Berries, Similar In Appearance To What 
 I, In My Childhood, Knew And Relished As Solomon's Seal Berries. I Being 
 A Natural Coward, And Fearing That They Might Poison Me, Did Not Eat Any 
 Of Them, But Generously Allowed My Good Friend To Eat Them All. 
   
   
   
 We Had Now Been Almost Entirely Without Water For Two Days And Nights. 
 When Night Came On We Picketed Our Animals In A Grass Plot And Lay Down 
 Near Them To See That They Did Not Get Tangled In The Ropes And Hurt, Or 
 That Some Red Skin, Not Having The Fear Of The Lord In His Heart, Did 
 Not Come And Take Them Away. About Ten O'clock My Companion Began To 
 Complain Of Pain In His Stomach And Bowels, And Was Soon Vomiting At A 
 Fearful Rate; So Violently, Indeed, That I Was Apprehensive That He 
 Might Die. If I Had Had An Emetic I Would Have Given It To Him To Have 
 Assisted Nature In Pumping Those Devilish Little Red Berries Out Of Him, 
 For I Felt Quite Sure That They Were The Cause Of His Illness. Perhaps 
 It Was Fortunate That There Was No Medecine At Hand, For If There Had 
 Been I Might Have Killed Him With It. 
   
   
   
 He Suffered Most Intensely, And Soon Became Very Thirsty, And, There 
 Being No Water Within Many Miles Of Us, He Appealed To Me To Bleed One 
 
 
 
 Chapter 12 Pg 177 
 Of The Animals And Let Him Drink The Blood; I Refused: He Insisted; I 
 Again Refused: He Commanded; I Still Refused. He Swore, And Called Me 
 Almost Everything Except A Good Christian; He Even Expressed The Wish 
 That I, His Friend, Might Be Sent To A Certain Place Where The Heat Is 
 Most Intense, And The Fire Is Never Quenched. 
   
   
   
 At About Eleven O'clock, When His Pains Were Most Severe, A Dark Cloud, 
 The First We Had Seen For Months, Came Over Us, And A Little Rain Began 
 To Fall, When I At Once Opened Our Little Camp Kettle And Turned The Lid 
 Upside Down, And Into Both Kettle And Lid There Fell Perhaps Two Or 
 Three Teaspoonfuls Of Pure Water, Every Drop Of Which I Gave To The 
 Sufferer, Whereupon He Expressed Thanks For Another God-Send, And At 
 Once Apologized For Bestowing Unmerited Abuse On Me. He Afterwards Often 
 Asserted That He Believed That The Little Rain-Cloud Was Sent By God For 
 His Special Benefit, And That The Water Caught From That Cloud Was The 
 Sweetest And Best That He Had Ever Tasted. I Did Not Doubt The Latter 
 Half Of The Above Statement, But I Did Have Some Doubt About The Truth 
 Of The Former Half When I Called To Mind The Scene Which Followed My 
 Refusal To Bleed The Horse. Whether The Small Quantity Of Water Gave Him 
 Much Relief, Or Not, I Do Not Know, But I Do Know That He Soon Became 
 Better And Slept Some While I Watched. He Was Quite Feeble Next Morning 
 When I Put Him On The Old Sore-Backed Mule, Where He Rode Most Of The 
 Time For The Next Four Days, While The Little Horse Carried Our Baggage, 
 And I Led The Way As Usual, On Foot. 
   
   
   
 For Four Days From The Time Field Ate The Little Red Berries We Did Not 
 Have A Drop Of Water Except The Two Or Three Teaspoonfuls Which The 
 Stingy Cloud Left To Save The Life Of The "Berry-Eater." We Were Still 
 On The Desert, Or In The Mountains East Of The River, Traveling Hard 
 During The Day, And Burning Up With Fever In The Night. There Was Plenty 
 Of Drying Grass In Places, But Our Poor Animals Could Not Eat It Any 
 Longer, For They, Too, Were Burning Up For Want Of Water. Oh, How Much I 
 Did Wish That We Had Some Camels From Arabia, Which Could Have Gone So 
 Much Longer Without Water, And Traveled So Much Faster. 
   
   
   
 On The Morning Of The Third Day Of Starvation, We Determined To Change 
 Our Course, And, If Possible, Reach The River Once More. Bearing To The 
 Left Over A High, Barren Range Of Rocky Mountains, And Down Into A Plain 
 Of Sand, Sage Brush, And Cactus. During The Afternoon I Shot A Small 
 Rabbit, Not Much Larger Than A Rat, Which We Carried Until Night, Then 
 Broiled And Tried To Eat It, Not Because Our Appetites Craved It, But 
 Hoping That It Might Strengthen And Sustain Us, At Least A Little While 
 Longer. We Were, However, So Nearly Burned Up That There Was Not A 
 Sufficient Flow Of Saliva To Moisten The Little Bits Of Broiled Meat In 
 The Mouth. Late That Afternoon We Fancied That Our Fast Failing Brute 
 Companions Scented Water, Or That They Instinctively Knew That It Was 
 Not Far Away. They Would Raise Their Heads, And Extend Their Noses As If 
 Smelling, While Their Physical Force And Energy Seemed Renewed, And They 
 
 
 
 Chapter 12 Pg 178 
 Certainly Traveled Faster. 
   
   
   
 That Night We Ate The Little, As Before Stated, More As A Duty Than As A 
 Pleasure. There Was Some Green Grass Round About Where We Camped, Or, 
 More Properly Speaking, Where We Lay, For We Did Not Erect Our Little 
 Tent,--But The Poor Starving Animals Did Not Eat A Bite Of It, But Stood 
 Over Us As If In Sympathy With Us In Our Deplorable Condition. We Rose 
 Before The Sun, Being Somewhat Rested And Refreshed, For The Night Had 
 Been Cool, And Took Up Our Line Of March, I, As Usual, In The Lead, Then 
 Came The Old Mule Guided By Its Precious Owner, And Lastly, The Faithful 
 Little Horse With The Pack On His Still Quite Round Back;--On Over The 
 Still Dry And Barren Plain We Went, Without A Moses, Cloud, Or Pillar Of 
 Fire To Lead Us. 
   
   
   
 About Ten O'clock, Through The Hot Glimmer Of The Down-Pouring Rays Of 
 The Sun, We Saw What Appeared, And Afterwards Proved, To Be A Clump Of 
 Cottonwood Trees. Our Hopes And Courage Were Renewed, For We Well Knew 
 The Cottonwood Usually Grows Near Flowing Water. There Was No Beaten 
 Pathway, No Signs Of Animal Life, No Quails, No Manna In That Desert; 
 But On We Went, Almost Without A Halt, And At One O'clock Reached The 
 Cottonwood Grove, Immediately On The Bank Of The Great River Down Which 
 We Had Floated In Our Canoes More Than A Month Before. On Reaching The 
 Bank Of The River We Recognized Objects Which We Had Seen While On Our 
 Way Down. 
   
   
   
 We Remembered That Both Men And Horses Might Be Water-Foundered, And 
 That Self-Preservation Is Said To Be The First Law Of Nature; But It Was 
 Difficult To Prevent The Famishing Brutes From Plunging Into The River. 
 We Allowed Them To Take Only A Small Quantity At First, And Each Of Us 
 Took Only A Small Cupful; Then After A Little Time All Took More, And 
 The Thirst Was Soon Quenched. We Were Surprised To Find How Little Water 
 It Took To Satisfy The Raging Thirst Of Four Days Of Continued Fasting. 
 The Animals, After Taking Comparatively Small Quantities, Seemed 
 Satisfied, And Went Off In Search Of Grass. 
   
   
   
 We Now Had An Abundance Of Water, But We Well Knew That Water Alone 
 Would Not Sustain Life Very Long: Therefore Our Next, And Most Serious 
 Business Was To Determine How To Prolong Our Lives. According To Our 
 Map, Our Recollections Of Different Objects, And Present Appearances We 
 Were Now A Little Above The Mouth Of The Uinta River Which Comes In From 
 The Northwest, All Of Which Proved True. Our Little Map Pictured Fort 
 Uinta On The Uinta River About One Hundred Miles From Where We Were; But 
 Whether Or Not There Were Any Human Beings There, We Did Not Know, And 
 In Order To Determine We Must Cross This Great River And Travel A 
 Hundred Miles, And This Seemed A Perilous Undertaking For Us In Our 
 Present Starving Condition; But After Being Refreshed By Plenty Of Good 
 
 
 
 Chapter 12 Pg 179 
 Water We Determined To Undertake It, Hoping That Good Fortune Might 
 Attend Us. 
   
   
   
 After A Little Rest, The Animals With Grass, We Packed Up, And After 
 Field Had Put On His, Once Serviceable, Life Preserver He Mounted The 
 Old Mule Behind The Small Pack And Started To Swim Across The River. He 
 Took The Lead In This Instance For Three Reasons: First, We Thought That 
 The Mule, Being Much Older Than The Horse, Had Probably Had More 
 Experience And Therefore Might Be A Much Better Swimmer; Then Field Had 
 The Advantage In Having The Life Preserver; But The Last, And Most 
 Potent, Reason Was My Fear Of Getting Drowned. It Was Understood That I 
 Was To Remain On Shore And Be Ready To Assist Him If Necessary, Or Until 
 He Had Safely Landed On The Other Side. 
   
   
   
 In He Went, And The Trusty Old Mule Was Swimming Faithfully, And Had 
 Reached The Middle Of The River, When Field, As He Afterwards Told Me, 
 To Hurry The Mule, Gave A Gentle Jerk On The Bridle, When, To His Utter 
 Astonishment, The Mule Made A Complete Somerset Backwards Plunging 
 Field, The Pack, And Himself Entirely Under The Water, Except His Heels 
 Which Appeared Above The Water As His Head Went Under. In A Moment Field 
 Popped Up And, After Shaking His Head As A Swimmer Will Do After Taking 
 A Plunge, Cast About To Take His Bearings, Or To Determine Just Where He 
 Was, And Began To Paddle With His Hands, Much As He Did When The Canoes 
 Were Upset On The River, Or Somewhat After The Style Of A Swimming Dog. 
 On Coming To The Surface, The Mule Cast A Glance At The Still Living, 
 But Unloaded Portion Of His Cargo, Then Made A Bee Line For The Shore 
 Which He Had So Recently Left. While Field Continued To Paddle And Float 
 Down The River, I Dismounted And Followed Along The Bank, Trying To 
 Encourage Him To Renewed Efforts To Float Ashore. Finally He Passed 
 Behind A Clump Of Willows Out Of Sight; But Soon I Heard Him Call For 
 Help And On Going A Little Further Down, Found Him Stuck Fast In The 
 Mud. I Waded Waist Deep Into That Mud, And Literally Dragged Him Out, 
 Almost A Mile Below His Starting Point. 
   
   
   
 As We Were Struggling In This Muddy Swamp, Field Said He Wondered Why 
 Some Of This Superfluous Water Was Not Distributed Over Those Dry 
 Deserts From Which We Had So Recently Come. I Told Him, Politely, That I 
 Thought That A Man Of His Age, Ability, Opportunities, And Nationality, 
 (You Know He Was Quite Proud Of Being An Englishman) Ought To Know Why 
 The Moisture Was Not So Distributed, And That I Was Too Illiterate To 
 Enlighten Him On That Point, But That, When Opportunity Offered, He 
 Might Consult Some One Who Knew More Of Natural Science Than I Did. I 
 Informed Him That I Had An Idea That If Any Considerable Portion Of The 
 Water Of That River Had Been Distributed Over That Desert That We Would 
 Not Have Had The Experience Of The Last Fifteen Days, Whereupon He Very 
 Plainly Intimated That I Did Not Have Much Sense, Or, In Other Words, He 
 Called Me A D--D Fool. 
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 12 Pg 180 
   
   
 After Reaching Solid Ground And Resting For A Little While, We Returned 
 To The Place From Which He Had Started Out On His Perilous Voyage, And 
 Where I Had Hastily Left My Horse. We Found The Horse And Mule Quietly 
 Grazing With Their Packs On Their Backs. The Faithful Old Mule Had The 
 Appearance Of Having Been Wet, But Was Now Almost Dry, Yet Not So Dry, 
 Internally, As He Had Been Several Days Before. 
   
   
   
 What Shall We Do Now? We Are Perhaps Two Hundred Or More Miles From Any 
 White Settlement. We Do Not Know That Fort Uinta Is Occupied. Shall We 
 Make Another Attempt To Cross The River? I Asked My Brave Friend If He 
 Was Willing To Again Mount The Mule And Make Another Attempt, When He 
 Again Exclaimed, "You Must Be A D--D Fool!" I Then, Pretending To Have A 
 Little Courage, Asked Him If He Would Follow Provided I Would Lead, 
 Whereupon He Declared Most Emphatically That Under No Conditions Would 
 He Again Attempt To Swim Across That River. I Had Not Had His 
 Experience, But Fear Of Being Drowned Was Quite Sufficient To Prevent Me 
 From Undertaking The Perilous Task, More Especially After Witnessing His 
 Failure. 
   
   
   
 Well, What Next? We Could Not Depend Upon Fishing And Hunting, For We 
 Had No Fish-Hooks, Nor Means Of Catching Fish, And Not More Than A Dozen 
 Loads Of Shot, And A Little Powder; So The Matter Of Slaying One Of Our 
 Animal Friends Was Now Seriously Debated, And, After Thoroughly 
 Canvassing The Whole Situation, It Was Most Reluctantly Determined That, 
 However Hard, This Must Be Done. No Doubt Our Starving Condition At That 
 Particular Time Had Some Weight In Making This Decision. 
   
   
   
 Then The Question Was, Which Of The Animals Shall Be Sacrificed? The 
 Mule Was Quite Thin, And Probably Tough, While The Little Horse Was 
 Young, And, Notwithstanding The Many Days It Had, With All Of Us, 
 Starved And Traveled Without Water, Was Still Quite Plump And Round, And 
 Probably Tender, Or, At The Worst, Not So Tough As The Poor Old Docile 
 Mule; So, At Length We Decided To Kill The Innocent Little Creature, 
 Jerk His Flesh, Pack It On The Mule, And Thereby Try To Save Our Own 
 Lives, For A Time At Least, And Endeavor To Reach Some Place Of Safety. 
   
   
   
 The Matter Of Slaying The Horse Was Determined By Casting Lots, Neither 
 Being Willing To Perform That Melancholy, But Now Absolutely Necessary, 
 Act. It Fell To My Lot, And That Was One Of, If Not The Most Revolting 
 Act In My Whole Life's Experience, For I Had, Probably, Become As 
 Strongly Attached To That Little Horse As Man Ever Becomes Attached To 
 Animal. I Most Reluctantly Took The Bridle In My Left Hand, My Revolver 
 In My Right, Stood Directly In Front Of The Poor, Unsuspecting, Innocent 
 Creature With The Murderous Pistol Close To, And A Little Above A Line 
 
 
 
 Chapter 12 Pg 181 
 Extending From Eye To Eye, And Fired. When The Smoke Of The Powder Had 
 Cleared Off A Little, I Saw At My Feet The Quivering, Dying Body. I 
 Staggered Off A Few Steps And Sat Down, Sick At Heart. 
   
   
   
 Field Walked Several Steps Away, And Turned His Back Upon The Scene 
 Until After The Fatal Shot Had Been Fired; Then, After Some Little Time, 
 He Entered Upon His Share Of The Enforced Duty, And, After Having 
 Removed A Portion Of The Skin, Cut Off Some Slices Of Flesh And Brought 
 Them To A Fire I Had Started. We Broiled And Ate A Little Of It, Not 
 Through Desire Or Relish For It, But From A Sense Of Duty, Knowing That 
 Our Lives Depended Upon It. 
   
   
   
 It Is Said That For Many Years Dr. Franklin Refrained From Eating Flesh, 
 Having An Idea That It Was Wrong To Slay And Eat The Flesh Of Other 
 Creatures; But That He Changed His Mind, And His Diet, Too, After Having 
 Seen Large Fish Devour Small Ones. I Strongly Suspect That If The Doctor 
 Had Been With Us, Or In A Like Condition, Even Before His Conversion, He 
 Would, More Than Likely Have Taken A Little Flesh, Even Though It Had 
 Been A Piece Of His Own Favorite Horse. 
   
   
   
 I Said We Only Ate A Little At First: I Only Ate A Little For Two 
 Reason; First, I Did Not Relish The Food; Second, I Had Heard Of Persons 
 Being Killed By Eating Too Much After Fasting For A Long Time, And I Had 
 No Desire To Commit Suicide Just Then. Field Ate Too Much. Night Came 
 On, Work Was Suspended, And We Retired. The Poor Old Lone, And, No 
 Doubt, Now Lonely, Mule, Having Filled Himself With Grass, Came Up Near 
 The Now Terribly-Mutilated Remains Of His Late Companion, And Looked On 
 As Field Continued His Bloody Work. Field, With An Expression Of Sorrow, 
 Said, "If That Mule Could Reason And Look Forward To The Time When His 
 Body Might Be In A Like Condition As That Of This Horse, He Would, No 
 Doubt, Take To His Heels, Bid Us A Final Farewell, And Seek Other 
 Society." But, Fortunately For Us, He Did Not Know That He Was To Be 
 Held In Reserve For Our Future Security. He Was Securely Tied Up Every 
 Night From That Time Until The Day He Was Slain For Our Salvation. 
   
   
   
 Early In The Night Following That Eventful Day, My Companion Began To 
 Complain Much As He Had Done On The Night After He Had Eaten The Little 
 Red Berries; But There Was No Lack Of Water Now, No Need Of A Special 
 Rain-Cloud. I Got Up, Heated Water In Our Little Camp Kettle, Applied 
 Hot Cloths To His Aching Belly, And Did Everything Else That Either Of 
 Us Could Think Of For His Relief. The Pain Was Intense, And We Feared 
 That He Would Surely Die, And Earnestly Prayed All The Rest Of The Night 
 That He Might Be Relieved, And Get Well. Towards Morning Most Violent 
 Vomiting Came On, Which Continued For Thirty Hours, Or More. He Was Not 
 Able To Walk For Three Days, And During That Time I Nursed Him, Finished 
 Jerking The Meat, And Built A Raft Of Some Partly Rotten Logs, Which I 
 
 
 
 Chapter 12 Pg 182 
 Found In The Vicinity, On Which We Floated Across The River, On The 
 Fourth Day After Our Arrival Here. I Also Looked To The Welfare Of The 
 Mule, And Prepared Some Bags In Which To Carry Our Jerk. Manley, I Am 
 Sure That You Know The Meaning Of The Term "Jerk" So That A Definition 
 Of The Word Is Not At All Necessary. 
   
   
   
 The Old Logs Of Which The Raft Was Made Were Remnants Of Log Cabins, A 
 Number Of Which Had Been Built And Occupied More Than Half A Century 
 Before, But By Whom I Do Not Know. Field Remarked That The Finding Of 
 These Old Rotting Logs There Was Another "God Send," As We Then Had 
 Neither Ax, Hammer, Nor Any Tool Of Iron With Which To Cut Down A Tree. 
 I Bound These Logs Together With Long Strips Cut From The Hide Of The 
 Dead Horse. Paddles And Poles Were Also Provided. The Mule Was With 
 Difficulty Driven Across The River. 
   
   
   
 When The Raft Was Landed On The West Bank, The Mule Packed, And All 
 About Ready To Start, I Took The Long Strip Of Raw-Hide From The Raft 
 And Tied One End Of It Around The Mule's Neck, Mounted Field On The Mule 
 Behind The Large Pack, Which Made The Whole Outfit Look Quite Comical 
 Indeed. Before Leaving The Other Side Of The River I Had Discovered That 
 The Saddle Girth Was Not Very Strong, So I Cut A Wide Belt From The Hide 
 Of The Lately Slaughtered Horse And Fitted It To The Saddle As A Girth, 
 Knowing That The Pack, Now Containing All Of Our Goods And A Supply Of 
 More Than A Bushel Of Jerk, Would Be Quite Bulky, If Not Heavy, And More 
 Difficult To Keep On The Back Of A Mule Than It Is For The Camel To 
 Maintain His Hump On His Back. This Girth Afterwards Made Us Two Or 
 Three Pretty Substantial Meals, As Did Also The Long Strip Of Green, Wet 
 Hide, One End Of Which I Had Tied Round The Mule's Neck, Allowing It To 
 Drag For A Long Distance Through The Hot Dry Sand. 
   
   
   
 All Being Ready, I, As Usual, Took The Lead With My Shot Gun, Which I 
 Always Carried, But With Which I Seldom Killed Anything, On My Shoulder. 
 The Old Mule Followed With His High, Towering Pack, And Field Almost 
 Hidden Behind. It Was Noon, But We Did Not Stop For Dinner, But Simply 
 Reached Into One Of The Great Bulging Sacks, Took Out A Piece Of Jerk 
 And Ate It As We Went Marching On; No More Trouble Now About Cooking. 
 Late In The Afternoon We Reached Uinta River, And, As My Two-Legged 
 Companion Had Grown Very Tired Of The Back Of The Four-Legged One, We 
 Went Into Camp Early. Our Objective Point Was Fort Uinta, Where We Hoped 
 To Find Military. We Could Not Risk Turning The Mule Loose At Night, And 
 The Long Strip Of Raw-Hide Was Designed And Used To Secure Him, And Yet 
 To Afford Him Liberty To Graze While We Slept. As You Will See A Little 
 Further On, Both Girth And Lariat Were Used For A Purpose Not 
 Anticipated. 
   
   
   
 The Second, Third, Fourth, And Fifth Days Came And Went, And We Were 
 
 
 
 Chapter 12 Pg 183 
 Trudging On, Up The Uinta, Through A Mostly Very Barren Country, With 
 Some Little Rich And Fertile Land. We Saw Signs Of Indians Often, But No 
 Indians. There Was Much Cottonwood, But Little Other Timber. We Saw Some 
 Fish In The River Which We Coveted, But Could Not Get. The Main Course 
 Of This River Is From North-West To South-East. We Traveled Most Of The 
 Way To The Fort On Indian Trails, Some Of Which Were Much Worn, But 
 Mostly At Some Much Earlier Period. Of Course We Had Plenty Of Good 
 Water, And Food, Such As It Was. Field Did Not Walk Two Miles During 
 Those Five Days, But Seemed To Be Fattening Fast. I Sometimes Thought He 
 Might Be Just A Little Lazy, But I Never Told Him So, For I Realized 
 That He Had Recently Had A Severe Tussle With Death. 
   
   
   
 Early In The Morning Of The Sixth Day We Arrived At The Abandoned Old 
 Fort. There Were Only Three Log Buildings, And They Were In The Shape Of 
 Three Sides Of A Hollow Square, With Port-Holes On The Outer Faces Of 
 The Buildings, And Doors Entering Each Of Them From The Hollow Square Or 
 Court. Facing The Vacant Side Of The Court, The Port-Hole From Which I 
 Shot The Wolf On The Night After We Had Killed The Mule, Would Be On 
 Right Hand Side. We Were Unable To Determine Whether This Fort Had Been 
 Constructed And Occupied By Americans Or Mexicans, But, From Its 
 Apparent Age, We Were Inclined To The Opinion That It Was Mexicans. It 
 Had Not Been Occupied For, Probably, Three Or Four Years. Some Little 
 Farming Had Been Done Immediately Around The Fort. Surrounding The Fort 
 Is A Large Body Of Fine, Fertile Land Which I Have No Doubt Has Long 
 Since Been Occupied By Mormons, Or Other Enterprising People. 
   
   
   
 Having No Means Of Subsistence Here We Soon Decided To Push On Towards 
 Fort Bridger, And, After Resting A Few Hours Set Out Following The 
 Larger Fork Of The River Which Comes Almost Directly From The North. We 
 Now Believed That We Were Almost, If Not Exactly, Due South Of Fort 
 Bridger. The River Is Small, And Very Crooked; We Crossed It Many Times 
 Within Three Days, And, At The End Of That Time, Found Ourselves In The 
 Mouth Of A Rocky Canon, And After Struggling For One Whole Day, We Came 
 To Where The Steep, High, Stone Walls Closed The Little River In On Both 
 Sides, Rendering It Impossible For Us To Proceed Any Further. 
   
   
   
 We Were Now Nearly Out Of Food; The Jerk Was Almost Gone. A Council Was 
 Held, And It Was Decided That We Should Return To The Fort And Take 
 Chances Of Being Rescued, Or Scalped By Some Roving Band Of Reds, Or 
 Starving To Death. We At Once Set Out On Our Return, Full Of 
 Disappointment And Melancholy Forebodings. 
   
   
   
 The Next Day Found Us Without Food: And Now Came Into Use The Long, 
 Narrow Strip Of Raw-Hide Which First Bound Together The Old, Rotting 
 Logs Of Which The Raft Was Made, Then To Secure The Mule Of Nights. It 
 Was Now Almost As Hard As Bone, And Nearly Round, Having Been Dragged 
 
 
 
 Chapter 12 Pg 184 
 Through The Hot Sand While It Was Yet Green And Wet, Closed Up Like A 
 Hollow Tube With Sand Inside. Two Or Three Yards Of It At A Time, Was 
 Cut Into Pieces About Five Inches Long, The Hair Singed Off, The Sand 
 Scratched Out, And These Pieces Were Dropped Into Our Camp Kettle And 
 Cooked Until The Whole Formed One Mass Of Jelly Or Gluten Which Was, To 
 Us, Quite Palatable. When The Lasso Had All Been Thus Prepared And 
 Eaten, The Broad Girth Which Had Served So Well In Holding The 
 Pack-Saddle On The Mule's Back, Was Cleaned, Cooked, And Eaten. These 
 Substitutes For Jerk Sustained Us Very Well Till We Again Arrived At The 
 Fort. 
   
   
   
 Another Consultation Was Now Held, And The Question Was--What Shall We 
 Do Now? We Were Again, Apparently, At The Starting Point Of Another 
 Long, Enforced Fast. Our Path Seemed Hedged In. The Prospect Was, 
 Indeed, Very Gloomy. Our Only Reasonable Hope For Even The Temporary 
 Prolongation Of Our Lives Was Centered In Our Ever Faithful, And Always 
 Reliable Old Mule. We Revolted At The Idea Of Killing And Eating Him, 
 But The Last Bit Of The Girth Was Gone. After Canvassing The Whole 
 Situation Over And Over, Again And Again, We Finally, But Most 
 Reluctantly Decided To Kill The Mule, And Preserve All The Soft Parts, 
 Even The Skin With All Of Its Old Scars, And Then Gather In Whatever 
 Else We Could Find, And Stay Here Until Spring, Or Until Good Fortune 
 Might Afford Us Some Means Escape; Till Some Moses Might Come And Lead 
 Us Out Of This Wilderness, Notwithstanding The Fact That We Had Not 
 Borrowed Any Jewelry Which We Had Failed To Return. 
   
   
   
 There Were Signs Of Wolves In That Vicinity, And It Was Decided That The 
 Mule Be Slain About Ten Paces Distant And Directly In Front Of One Of 
 The Port-Holes Of The Fort, With The Idea That Wolves Might Smell The 
 Blood And Come There And Subject Themselves To Being Shot, And Thereby 
 Afford Us A Chance To Increase Our Stock Of Winter Supplies In The Form 
 Of Wolf Steak, Or Jerk. Accordingly The Victim Was Lead To The Spot 
 Indicated, And There Slain In The Same Manner, And With Quite As Much 
 Reluctance On The Part Of The Slayer, As On The Occasion Of The 
 Sacrifice Of The Little Horse, More Than Three Weeks Before. The Body 
 Was Skinned, Cut Up, And All Taken Within The Building, Nothing Being 
 Left Except The Blood Which Had Been Spilled On The Ground, And Which 
 Was Intended To Attract Wolves Or, Possibly, Bears Or Other Animals. 
   
   
   
 My Now Only Living Associate Ridiculed The Idea Of Killing Wolves, And 
 Insisted That The Flesh Could Not Be Eaten, Stating The Fact That Even 
 Hogs Would Not Eat The Dead Body Of A Dog, And Insisted That A Dog Was 
 Only A Tamed Wolf. I Reminded Him Of A Cat Which Had Been Eaten. He 
 Finally Agreed That, If I Killed A Wolf, He Would Get Up And Dress It, 
 But Said Most Emphatically That He Would Not Sit Up And Watch For It; So 
 He Went To Bed, That Is, Rolled Himself Up In A Blanket On The Ground In 
 Front Of A Good Fire Inside Of The Fort, And Went To Sleep, While I Sat 
 With My Rather Untrustworthy Double Barreled Shot-Gun Protruding Through 
 
 
 
 Chapter 12 Pg 185 
 The Port-Hole In Full View Of The Spot Before Indicated. The Night Was 
 Clear, And The Moon Was Shining In Full Splendor. It Was Probably Eleven 
 O'clock; Field Had Been Snoring For A Long Time, When I Heard Something 
 In The Tall, Dry Grass, And Soon A Large, Brownish-Gray Wolf Came Into 
 Full View, With Head Up, Apparently Sniffing, Or Smelling, And 
 Cautiously Approaching The Fatal Spot. When He Reached It, And Began To 
 Lick Up The Blood Which Was Still On The Surface Of The Ground, Standing 
 With His Left Side Toward The Fort, And In Full View, I Took Deliberate 
 Aim, And Fired, And He Fell Upon The Ground Without Making Any 
 Considerable Noise. 
   
   
   
 The Tired, Sleeping Man Was Aroused By The Report Of The Gun, And Rushed 
 Into The Room Where I Was In Great Excitement, Thinking, Perhaps, That 
 Some Enemy Had Appeared, And Had Just Then Commenced To Bombard The 
 Fort; But When I Explained To Him That I Had Simply Killed A Wolf, He 
 Ran Out Towards It, And, Arriving Close To It, The Wounded Creature Rose 
 Up On Its Hind Feet And Growled Quite Vigorously, Which Seemed To 
 Frighten Field As Much As Did The Noise Of The Gun. He Dashed Back To 
 The Fort, And, After Having Time To Recover From His Speechless 
 Condition, Abused Me Most Fearfully For Having Told Him That I Had 
 Killed A Wolf. I Then Went Out And Put A Load Of Shot Into The Wolf's 
 Head, And Found That My First Charge Had Passed Through And Broke Both 
 Of Its Fore Legs Near The Body. Field Was So Thoroughly Frightened That 
 I Could Not Induce Him To Approach The Dead Animal For Some Time, And I 
 Do Believe That That Wolf Haunted Him As Long As I Knew Him, For He 
 Seemed Never To Forget It. After Dressing It By The Light Of The Moon 
 Assisted By A Torch, We Retired. On Viewing The Plump Body Next Morning 
 Field Exclaimed, "That's Another God-Send!" And Notwithstanding His 
 Opinion That Wolf Could Not Be Eaten, He Found That Wolf To Be The Best 
 Food We Had Eaten Since We Had Assisted Walker And His Tribe In Eating 
 The Mountain Sheep. 
   
   
   
 The French May Eat Their Horses, But I Do Not Want More Horse Flesh. The 
 Old Mule Made Fair But Quite Coarse Beef. While Out On This Little 
 Pleasure Excursion We Ate Horse, Mule, Wolf, Wild-Cat, Mountain 
 Sheep, Rose Seed Buds, Raw-Hide, A Squirrel, Fatty Matter From The 
 Sockets Of The Mule's Eyes And The Marrow From His Bones; But That Ham 
 Of Wild-Cat Was Certainly The Most Detestable Thing That I Ever 
 Undertook To Eat. The Marrow From The Mule's Bones Was A Real Luxury. 
   
   
   
 We Now Had A Pretty Good Stock Of Food, Such As It Was, But Not Enough 
 To Carry Us Through The Winter On Full Rations; Therefore We Determined 
 To Try To Add To It By Hunting. One Was To Go Out And Hunt While The 
 Other Would Remain At Home: We Now Had Undisputed Possession Of The Fort 
 And It Was Our Home. Field Took The First Day's Outing While I Occupied 
 My Time In Drying And Smoking Meat. Late In The Evening He Returned, 
 Tired And Worn Out, Having Seen Nothing Worth Shooting. 
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 12 Pg 186 
   
   
 Next Day Came My Turn To Hunt. I Took A Lunch, As He Had Done, 
 Consisting Of Jerked Mule. I Did Not Tell Him So, But I Had Determined 
 To Make An Excursion Up The River To A Point Where We Had Seen Some 
 Fresh Trails And Deer Tracks Some Days Before. When I Was Putting Up My 
 Lunch My Friend Intimated That I Was Taking A Very Large Amount For One 
 Lunch, But I Told Him That I Might Stay Out Late And That I Did Not 
 Intend To Starve. I Went, Stayed All Day, All Night, And Part Of The 
 Next Day, And Returned As He Had Done, Tired And Discouraged, Not Having 
 Seen Anything Worth Bringing In. In The Evening Of The First Day Out I 
 Found A Trail Which Appeared To Have Been Used Daily By Deer Going To 
 And From The River. 
   
   
   
 It Occurred To Me That They Might Go Out Early In The Morning, So I 
 Secreted Myself Within Gun Shot Of The Trail Behind An Old, Moss-Covered 
 Log Where I Slept Comfortably; And When It Was Light Enough In The 
 Morning To See A Deer, I Leveled My Gun Across The Log In A Position 
 Commanding The Trail And Waited And Watched Until Nine O'clock, But 
 Nothing Came Upon That Pathway That Morning. After Getting Tired Of 
 Watching And Waiting I Went Down To The Trail Where, To My Astonishment, 
 I Found The Fresh Tracks Of A Large Bear Which Must Have Passed By That 
 Way While I Was Sleeping. As A Rule I Do Not Like To Be Treated 
 Discourteously, But In This Instance I Felt Glad That This Stranger Had 
 Passed Me By. 
   
   
   
 On Arriving At The Fort Late In The Evening I Found My Friend In A 
 Terrible State Of Mental Excitement. He Said That He Had Not Slept A 
 Minute During The Whole Of The Night Before. He Had Filled The Door Of 
 His Room With Rails, And Sharpened One End Of A Long Stick, Which He 
 Intended To Use If Necessary As A Weapon Of Defence. When I Arrived He 
 Was Again Filling The Door With Rails. I Had The Gun, Pistol And Big 
 Knife With Me So This Was His Only Means Of Defence. He Said He Would 
 Not Stay Alone Another Night For All The Gold In California. 
   
   
   
 I Was Much Discouraged By Our Failures In Hunting, And After A Lengthy 
 Discussion We Decided To Make Another Attempt To Cross The Mountains And 
 Escape From What Then Seemed To Us Certain Starvation. This Was Thursday 
 Night And We Set Monday As The Time For Starting. By Saturday Night 
 Everything Was In Readiness For The Start And Sunday We Devoted To Bible 
 Reading, For We Each Still Had A Pocket Bible. As Much Of The Flesh Of 
 The Wolf And The Lamented Mule As We Thought We Could Carry Had Been 
 Thoroughly Jerked, And Finding That We Would Not Be Overburdened By It, 
 We Economized By Roasting And Eating Little Scraps Of Flesh, The Marrow 
 From The Bones, And Even The Head Of The Mule Was Roasted, The Fragments 
 Of Flesh Scraped Off And Eaten, And Field Found A Rich Fatty Substance 
 In Behind The Eyes, Which He Ate. 
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 12 Pg 187 
   
   
 We Had A Canteen In Which Our Powder Was Carried, But The Powder Was 
 Nearly All Gone So We Emptied It And Used The Canteen To Carry Water In. 
 Early Monday Morning We Loaded Ourselves, Mostly With Jerked Mule And 
 Wolf, Leaving Many Useful Things Behind, Bid Adieu To Fort Uinta And 
 Took Up Our Line Of March Rather Reluctantly. 
   
   
   
 My Companion Was Not Strong And We Soon Found It Expedient For Me To 
 Take On Part Of His Burden. We Rested Often And Yet Long Before Night He 
 Became So Tired That We Had To Go Into Camp. Most Of The Day We Had 
 Traveled On An Old Deserted Trail. The Nights Being Cold We Were Under 
 The Necessity Of Keeping Up A Fire As We Had Left Our Blankets At The 
 Fort. The Next Morning We Made An Early Start And Rested Often. At About 
 Noon We Found Good Shade And Water, And The Sun Being Quite Hot We 
 Stopped And Rested In The Shade For More Than Three Hours, Then Trudged 
 On Till Nearly Night When We Found Water, And Plenty Of Old Dry Timber 
 For Fuel And Camped. Field Expressed A Wish That He Had His Old Mule 
 Again, And I Reminded Him That He Had A Portion Of It Left In His 
 Knapsack, And That Turn About Was Fair Play: As The Mule Had Carried Him 
 For A Long Time When He Was Unable To Walk He Should Not Object To 
 Carrying A Portion Of The Mule Now; Whereupon He Again Plainly Intimated 
 That He Thought I Was A D--- D Fool. I Kept Up The Fire And He Slept 
 Until Morning. 
   
   
   
 Another Day Was Passed Without Any Unusual Occurrence; We Traveled And 
 Ate At The Same Time As Usual. Another Day Of Pretty Hard Travel Over 
 Sandy Plains And Rocky Hills Brought Us To The Foot Of The Mountain 
 Where We Had Plenty Of Good Water And An Abundance Of Fuel. A Little 
 Sprinkle Of Rain Early In The Evening Was The First We Had Seen Since 
 The Memorable Night After Field Had Eaten The Little Red Berries. 
   
   
   
 Early Saturday Morning We Filled Our Canteen With Water And Started Up 
 The Mountain. I Had Been Carrying Most Of The Jerk, But The Stock Was 
 Running Down Quite Rapidly. My Companions Bag Now Being Almost Empty, 
 And As He Had Little Else To Carry While I Had The Gun And Some Other 
 Things, Including His Heavy Overcoat, I Divided The Jerk, Putting About 
 Half Of It Into His Sack. All Day Long We Were Climbing The Mountain. 
 Late In The Afternoon I Was Several Rods Ahead Of Field When He Called 
 To Me To Stop: I Did So And When He Came Up He Appeared To Be A Little 
 Cross And Insisted That We Were Not Traveling In The Direction Formerly 
 Agreed Upon. I Requested Him To Let Me See The Little Compass Which He 
 Had In His Pocket, And On Examining It He Found That He Was Mistaken; 
 Whereupon He Muttered Something Which I Thought Was "Swear Words," And 
 Then We Went Marching On. In A Little While We Were Within The Old Snow 
 Limits Where We Found Large Bodies Of Old Icy Looking Snow In Places 
 Shaded By Trees And Rocks, And A Little Before Dark Went Into Camp. We 
 Gathered Some Old Dry Timber And Made A Large Fire, Then Some Green Fir 
 
 
 
 Chapter 12 Pg 188 
 Limbs For A Bed. When I Began To Prepare Our Bed On One Side Of The 
 Flaming Logs, To My Surprise Field Began To Prepare One On The Other 
 Side Of The Fire. Neither Had Spoken Since The Occurrence Of The Little 
 Unpleasantness In The Afternoon About The Course Of Travel. Mutely Each 
 Took His Side Of The Fire. 
   
   
   
 We Had Always Slept Together Except When He Was Sick And The Night I Had 
 Left Him Alone At The Fort. Some Time In The Night I Became Thirsty And 
 Got Up And Procured Some Snow, Put It In Our Only Tin Cup And Set It On 
 Some Live Coals To Melt And Went To Sleep. The Snow Melted, The Water 
 Evaporated, The Solder Melted And Left The Tin. While I Slept, My Dumb 
 Friend Woke Up Thirsty, Took The Tin Cup, Filled It With Snow And Put It 
 On Coals. The Snow Melted And The Water Run Out On The Coals; His Tongue 
 Let Loose And He Then Denounced Me As A Knave, An Ass, A Fool, An 
 Unregenerate Heathen, And What Else I Don't Want To Remember. I Woke Up 
 Alarmed And Did Not At First Fully Understand What Had Created The 
 Storm, But After Having The Bottomless Cup Dashed At My Head I Realized 
 The Situation, And Began To Try To Apologize And Explain The Unavoidable 
 And Unfortunate Circumstance; But No Explanation Would Satisfy His Now 
 Thoroughly "Johnny Bull" Temper. After This Little Nocturnal Disturbance 
 Had Subsided, I, On My Bed Of Fir Branches With My Feet Towards The 
 Fire, Soon Fell Into A Sound Sleep And Knew Nothing More Of The World 
 Until The Sun Was Shining. Whether Or Not My Friend Had Cooled Off I Did 
 Not Inquire; But I Do Know That There Was An Unusual Coldness Between 
 Us, For Neither Spoke To The Other Until About Twelve O'clock And Then, 
 As Will Appear, Our Conversation Was Very Short. 
   
   
   
 As We Did Not Rise Until Late No Delay Was Made, But When Each Had His 
 Bag On His Back And A Nugget Of Jerk In His Hand We Started Up The Side 
 Of The Mountain As Quiet As Two Deaf Mutes. There Was No Water To Be 
 Had; Our Camp Kettle Had Been Left At The Fort, And Through My Stupidity 
 The Cup Had Become Useless, Therefore We Were Obliged To Eat The Icy 
 Snow Or Endure The Thirst. No New Snow Had Yet Fallen In This High 
 Altitude Although It Was Now Nearing The End Of October. These Mountains 
 Were Then Heavily Covered With Pine And Fir But The Timber Was Not 
 Large. In Some Places Where The Snow Had Melted Away, Short Green Grass 
 Was Found Quite Close To Great Banks Of Snow. 
   
   
   
 At About Twelve O'clock We Reached The Summit Of The Great Uinta Range, 
 And I, Being A Little In Advance Of My Still Mute Companion, Halted To 
 Take A Survey Of The Field Before Me. The Top Of The Range Here Is Bare 
 Of Timber And There Was No Snow. When Field Came Up I Broke The Silence 
 Which Had Lasted Since The Little Unpleasantness Of The Night Before, By 
 Suggesting That We Attempt To Cross The Snow-Covered Range Of Mountains 
 Which Now Appeared North Of Us And Probably Fifty Miles Away, Through 
 What Appeared To Be A Gap Or Low Place In The Great Range Of Mountains. 
 He Replied, "You May Go That Way If You Want To, But I Am Going This 
 Way," Pointing In Another Direction And Quickly Started Off At An Angle 
 
 
 
 Chapter 12 Pg 189 
 Of About 45 Degrees To The Right, Or Directly North-East. I Also Started 
 Immediately, And When We Were A Few Rods Apart I Said, "Good-By; We May 
 Not Meet Again Very Soon." He Replied "Good-By," And Within A Few 
 Minutes We Were Out Of Sight, And In A Very Short Time Beyond Hailing 
 Distance. 
   
   
   
 This Was The Last I Saw Or Heard Of Him Until After Each Of Us Had 
 Undergone Many More Hardships, So I Will Now Drop My Friend But Will 
 Hereafter Devote A Chapter To Him, And Give You An Account Of His 
 Experience As He Afterwards Gave It To Me, Detailing An Account Of Many 
 Most Interesting Incidents. Fortunately We Had Divided The Jerk, For 
 Nothing Was Said At This Sudden And Unexpected Parting About Anything 
 Which Either Had In His Possession. I Had An Idea When I Bade Him 
 Good-By That He Would Soon Turn About And Follow Me. 
   
   
   
 After The Unceremonious Parting I Immediately Began To Descend The North 
 Side Of The Mountain Which Was Very Rough, Rocky And Steep; But Down, 
 Down, Down I Went Into A Deep, Dark Canon Where I Slept On The Leaves 
 Under A Fir Tree, After Having Taken Some Landmarks. When It Was Light 
 Enough To See The Objects I Had Noted To Guide Me, I Set Out And Spent 
 The Day In Crossing Over Hills And Through Deep Canons. In The Evening I 
 Arrived At The Foot Of The Range Of Mountains Which I Had Seen From The 
 Point Of Our Parting. The Sun Disappeared, Dark Clouds Began To Float 
 Over The Mountains And It Was Evident That A Storm Was Approaching. 
   
   
   
 While It Was Yet Light Enough I Took Some Landmarks Or Guiding Points; 
 And It Was Well I Did So, For On The Following Morning When I Woke I 
 Found It Snowing Quietly But Heavily, And Before It Was Light Enough For 
 Me To See My Guiding Objects There Must Have Been Six Or More Inches Of 
 New Snow On The Ground Beyond My Snug Retreat Under A Sheltering Pine. 
 When It Was Light Enough I Rose From My Comfortable Bed, Took My 
 Bearings As Best I Could Without A Compass And Started Up The Mountain 
 Through The Rapidly Accumulating Bed Of Snow. The Snow Continued To Fall 
 Nearly All Day, And Before Night It Was More Than A Foot Deep. 
   
   
   
 All Day Long I Struggled Through A Dense Forest. Some Time In The 
 Forenoon I Crossed The Fresh Trail Of A Large Herd Of Elk Which Forcibly 
 Reminded Me That My Sack Was Almost Empty, And I Vainly Wished That One 
 Of These Wild Creatures Might Come In My Way, But I Did Not Dare To 
 Follow The Herd With The Uncertainty Of Killing One, And The Certainty 
 Of Losing My Way This Dark, Snowy Day. In Order To Maintain My Course 
 During Such Dark Days I Was Under The Necessity Of Looking Ahead And 
 Observing Trees Or Other Objects In My Line Of Travel. 
 
 
 
 Chapter 12 Pg 190 
 That Night I, As Usual, Slept Under A Pine Tree Where There Was No Snow. 
 I Saw No Sign Of Fire In Either Of These Ranges Of Mountains, Nor Did I 
 See Any Signs Of Indians On My Trip Over These Two Ranges. The Next Day 
 As I Approached The Top Of The Mountain I Found The Timber Much Smaller, 
 And Mostly Pine. There Is Much Fertile Land In Some Of The Valleys 
 Between The Two Great Ranges Of Mountains. 
   
   
   
 Early On The Following Morning I Arrived At The Bald, Snow-Covered 
 Summit. On My Right And On My Left Were High, Untimbered, Snow-Covered 
 Peaks. From This Point I Could Overlook A Vast Territory Extending Over 
 Many Hills, Valleys, And Smaller Mountains Where There Was No Snow; In 
 Fact, The Snow Only Extended A Few Miles Down The Steep Sides Of The 
 Great Range. As A Rule There Is More Timber On The North Than On The 
 South Side Of Mountains West Of The Rockies; But It Was The Reverse 
 Here, For There Was Little Timber On The North Side Of This Range. 
   
   
   
 One More Day's Tramping Brought Me Down Into A Large Barren Plain Where 
 I Gathered Some Dry Weeds For A Bed, And Slept, Without Food Or Water; 
 The Last Bit Of The Mule Or Wolf, I Know Not Which, I Had Eaten During 
 The Afternoon. I Had Had Very Little Jerk For The Last Two Or Three 
 Days, And Began To Wish That I Had Another Horse, Mule, Or Even A Wolf. 
 For Many Days I Had Seen No Living Thing Except When I Looked Into A 
 Small Glass Which I Carried In My Pocket, And Then Only Saw A Familiar 
 Shadow. 
   
   
   
 I Spent Another Day Without Food, But Had Plenty Of Water; Another Night 
 On A Bed Of Green Brush Beside A Good Fire. The Next Day Was Bright And 
 Sunny, Quite A Contrast To The Gloomy Days I Had Spent In The Mountains. 
 For Want Of Food I Was Becoming Quite Weak And Was Not Able To Travel As 
 Fast As Usual. During The Early Part Of The Day I Saw Some Tracks Of An 
 Unshod Horse, Which Renewed My Courage And Hope Of Redemption; And At 
 About Two O'clock In The Afternoon I Saw Some Dark Spots On The Plain A 
 Long Distance Away, But Almost In The Direction I Was Going. Hoping That 
 These Objects Might Be Living Creatures, I Hurried On For A Time, Then 
 Sat Down And After Having Watched Them For A Time I Found That They 
 Changed Positions And That Satisfied Me To A Moral Certainty That They 
 Were Living Creatures, But What I Could Not Tell. They Might Be Horses, 
 Cattle, Elk, Deer, Antelope Or Buffalo; But No Matter What, I Must Hurry 
 On And Try To Reach Them Before Night. 
   
   
   
 Late In The Evening I Determined That They Were Horses But Could Not Yet 
 Tell Whether They Belonged To Whites Or Indians, Or Were Wild. As I 
 Approached Them They Stopped Grazing And Started Toward Me, But Soon 
 Disappeared In A Deep Gulch Between Us Which I Had Not Noticed Before. 
 On Arriving At The Edge Of The Gulch Or Narrow Valley I Saw The Horses 
 In The Vicinity Of About Fifteen Or Twenty Wigwams Which Were All In A 
 
 
 
 Chapter 12 Pg 191 
 Row On The Bank Of A Little Creek That Ran Through The Gulch. Many 
 Indians Were Sitting Outside Of Their Lodges, The Weather Being Warm. 
   
   
   
 On First Sight Of The Village, Being Not More Than 200 Yards Away, My 
 Heart Fluttered Just A Little, Not Knowing Whether The Savages Would 
 Scalp Me Or Not; But, Notwithstanding My Natural Cowardice, I At Once 
 Determined To "Beard The Lion In His Den," And Walked As Boldly As I 
 Could Up To The Lower End Of The Row Of Wigwams. Within A Few Feet Of 
 The Nearest One Three Young Bucks Met Me And Seemed To Be Anxious To 
 Know Whence I Came And Whither I Was Going; Whether Right Down From 
 Heaven, And If So What Was My Mission. They Seemed As Much Surprised At 
 My Sudden Appearance As I Was On Coming So Suddenly Upon Them. My First 
 And Most Important Business Was To Determine Whether They Would Give Me 
 Something To Eat, Or Eat Me. 
   
   
   
 As The Men, Women, And Children Began To Gather Around Me I Heard Some 
 One Half Way Up The Line Of Lodges Call Out Saying Something Which I Did 
 Not Understand, But On Looking That Way Saw A Man Beckoning To Me, As I 
 Thought, When The Young Men Motioned For Me To Move On Up The Line. On 
 Arriving At The Place Indicated I Found Myself In The Presence Of One 
 Whom I Then Suspected, And Afterwards Found To Be The Chief, Who 
 Extended To His Royal Right Hand And Greeted Me In A Most Courteous And 
 Polite Manner, And Then With A Graceful Wave Of His Hand And A Slight 
 Bow Indicated That I Should Precede Him At The Low Open Door Into His 
 Royal Palace Where He Very Politely Introduced Me To His Wife Who Proved 
 To Be A Sensible, Clever, Courteous Woman. She Soon Prepared Some Thing 
 For Me To Eat, And After I Had Finished My Supper An Indian Brought In 
 Two Pistols And Wanted Me To Take The Cap Tube From One And Put It Into 
 The Other, Which I Soon Accomplished. He Was Much Pleased, Went Out, And 
 Soon Returned With Ten Or More Pounds Of Elk Meat Which He Tendered To 
 Me As Compensation For My Work, But The Chief Objected, And Insisted, As 
 I Understood Him, That He Had Plenty And That I Was His Guest, But 
 Finally Consented For Me To Accept Part Of The Meat. I Gave Him To 
 Understand That I Wanted To Go To Fort Bridger. 
   
   
   
 A Case Of Nice New Blankets Was Opened, As It Appeared To Me, For My 
 Especial Benefit. The Chief, His Lady, Two Sons Almost Grown, Two Or 
 Three Wolfish Looking Dogs Which Forcibly Reminded Me Of Field's 
 Terrible Scare, And Myself Made Up The Number Of Lodgers In That Mansion 
 That Night. Late That Night Some Warriors Who Had Been Out On A Campaign 
 Came Home, And Learning That There Was A Stranger Within The Gates Came 
 To The King's Palace To See Him, And Also To Report That They Had 
 Discovered Some White Barbarians In The Vicinity Who Had Dared To Enter 
 His Domain Without A Special Permit, And That They Had Sent A Message To 
 His Highness Informing Him That They Had A Good Assortment Of Blankets, 
 Cutlery, Pins, Needles, Beads, Etc., Which His People Might Need Or 
 Desire, And Also A Limited Amount Of "Fire-Water," And That They Would 
 Be Pleased To Receive His Order For Anything He Might Desire. 
 
 
 
 Chapter 12 Pg 192 
   
   
   
 The Fact Of The Presence Of These Pale-Faces In The Vicinity Was At Once 
 Communicated To Me, And Early On The Following Morning I Was Informed 
 That If It Was My Desire To Cut Short My Stay At The Palace, The King 
 Would Take Great Pleasure In Furnishing Me Means Of Conveyance, A Proper 
 Escort, And A Reliable Guide Who Would Safely Conduct Me To The Camp Of 
 The Accommodating Merchants Or Indian Traders, (But, In Fact, Indian 
 Robbers.) Notwithstanding My Reluctance In Leaving The Society Of The 
 Noble Ruler And His People I Most Readily Accepted His Generous Offer, 
 And After Breakfast, Which Consisted Of Elk Meat And Tobacco Root In A 
 Combination Stew Which Was Very Palatable, A Fine Steed With A Good 
 Mexican Saddle And Bridle Was At The Door. My Escort, Consisting Of Four 
 Mounted Warriors, Was Ready, And After Bidding My Good Friends Farewell, 
 I With Some Assistance Mounted My Charger And We Were All Off On A Full 
 Run, Up And Down Hill And Across Valley, At What Seemed To Me A Fearful 
 Rate. 
   
   
   
 In Less Than Two Hours We Entered The Camp Of The Traders At Full Speed, 
 Dismounted, And Found One Man, A Long Jake From Illinois, Who Could 
 Speak English. He Had Two Wives, (Squaws,) And Several Children Which He 
 Claimed, But Some Of Them Were Quite Dark. His Name Was John Smith; Not 
 A Very Uncommon One. He Was A Very Clever Man, About 35 Years Old, Was 
 Not A Mormon, But Had Taken The Women In Order To Become Popular With 
 The Indians And To Improve His Opportunities For Trade. 
   
   
   
 After Getting Something To Eat, And Learning Something, Through Smith, 
 Of My Adventures, My Escort Made Ready To Return To Their Camp. Their 
 Trip, As Smith Told Me, Was Made Solely For My Accommodation And Now I 
 Had Nothing With Which To Compensate Them; But As They Were About To 
 Leave I Took A Large "Bandanna," The Only One I Had Left, And Tied It 
 Around The Neck Of The Chief's Son, He Being One Of The Clever Escorts. 
 He At First Refused To Accept It, But When Smith Told Him That I Desired 
 Him To Take It As A Token Of Regard, He Accepted It With An Expression 
 Of Thanks, And After I Had Bidden Them All Good-Bye, They Rode Away As 
 Rapidly As We Had Come. I Will Always Hold That Chief And His People In 
 Kindly Remembrance. 
   
   
   
 All Of The Other White Men With Smith Were French, And All Had Plenty Of 
 Wives (Squaws) And Numerous Slaves. The Wives Were Not Slaves, But They 
 Had Slaves All Around Them. The Whole Tribe Traveled About And Lived 
 Much As Other Tribes Did, Only Much Better, For They Lived By Trading 
 While The Others Lived By Hunting And Fishing. In This Camp I Ate Bread 
 For The First Time In Many Weeks. At The End Of Three Days After My 
 Arrival Here A Caravan Was Ready To Start For Fort Bridger For Winter 
 Supplies For The Traders. I Was Furnished With A Good Horse And Saddle, 
 And Smith, One Of The Frenchmen, Five Slaves, 20 Horses, And Myself Made 
 
 
 
 Chapter 12 Pg 193 
 Up The Caravan, And On The Evening Of The Third Day We Reached The Fort 
 Where I Was Very Kindly Received. 
   
   
   
 Smith Was A Large Man, Had A Good Head, And Some Cultivation And 
 Apparent Refinement, And Treated His Women And Children Well. He Said He 
 Had Been To His Old Home In Illinois Since He Had Entered Upon This Kind 
 Of Life, But Was Not Contented There And Soon Returned To His Indian 
 Friends. He And Those Frenchmen Were As Generous And Hospitable As Old 
 Southern Planters, And Their Kindness To Me Will Not Be Forgotten While 
 My Memory Lasts. 
   
   
   
 I Was Well Treated At The Fort Which Is 116 Miles From The Point Where 
 The Seven Dug Up The Little Flat-Boat From Its Sandy Bed On The Fifth 
 Day Of August, Just Three Mouths Before, Since Which I Had Undergone 
 Many Hardships, Took Many Fearful Risks, And Traveled More Than A 
 Thousand Miles, Far Enough To Have Taken Me From Green River To San 
 Francisco. 
   
   
   
 On The Morning Of The Seventh Day Of November I Started With A 
 Government Train For Salt Lake City Where I Arrived On The Fifteenth. I 
 Soon Found A Home With A Prominent Mormon, A Scotchman Named Archie 
 Gardner, Living In The Fifth Ward, On Mill Creek, One Of The Many Small 
 Streams Coming Down From The Mountains East Of The City. Mr. Gardner Was 
 A Clever Gentleman About 45 Years Old, Had A Saw-Mill Up In, The 
 Mountains, And Was Then Building A Flour Mill Only A Few Rods From His 
 Dwelling. I Assisted Him In Completing The Little Flour Mill And In 
 Attending It During The Winter. Mr. Gardner Had Three Wives, All Living 
 In One House, But Occupying Separate Rooms At Night. I Usually Attended 
 The Little Mill Until Midnight, And Gardner Made It Part Of My Duty To 
 Go To His House And Call Him. He Usually Told Me Where I Could Find Him, 
 But Not Always, So At Times I Was Under The Necessity Of Rapping At More 
 Than One Door Before I Found Him. 
   
   
   
 He Had The Largest House In The Ward, And The Religious Services Were 
 Held There By Bishop Johnson Who Also Acted As Justice Of The Peace In 
 That Ward. Gardner's Family All Ate At The Same Table Over Which The 
 First Wife Presided. She Was, Indeed, Mistress Of The House, The Other 
 Wives Treating Her With Great Respect, And All Were, To All Outward 
 Appearance, Quite Friendly. Gardner Bestowed Much Attention On His First 
 Wife, Though I Always Suspected That He Was Just A Little More Fond Of 
 The Youngest One, And I Did Not Blame Him Much For She Manifested Strong 
 Affection For Him Even In The Presence Of The Others, And Yet There Was 
 No Outward Manifestation Of Jealousy. 
   
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 12 Pg 194 
 The Second, Or The One I Will Call The Second Because She Was In Age 
 Between The Others, And Was The Mother Of The Third Or Youngest, A 
 Widowed Mother And Her Daughter Having Been Sealed To Gardner At The 
 Same Time, The First Wife Having Given Her Consent And Standing With 
 Them At The Triple Matrimonial Altar, And Then And There Joining In The 
 Sacred Ceremony. As I Was About To Say, The Second Wife Seemed To Be 
 Pleased At The Manifestation Of Affection For The Common Husband By The 
 Youngest Wife, And No. 1 Would In A Good-Humored Way Say:--"My, Annie, 
 Don't Be So Demonstrative In The Presence Of Other People," When The 
 Husband Would Laugh And Go And Kiss No. 1. 
   
   
   
 Gardner Spent Most Of His Leisure Time, Particularly During The Day And 
 Evening, In His First Wife's Apartments With Her And Her Children. He 
 Was A Very Religious Man, And Always Had Family Prayers Before Retiring 
 At Night, And All Persons About The House Were Expected To Join, At 
 Least Formally, In This Service. The Use Of Profane Language Was Not 
 Allowed In Or About The House. 
   
   
   
 Many Of The Higher Church Officers Were Entertained At Gardner's House 
 And Table, Among Whom Were Brigham Young, George A. Smith, Heber C. 
 Kimble, George Taylor, And Parley P. Pratt, With All Of Whom I Formed 
 Some Acquaintance. Brigham Was A Dignified, Clever Gentleman, Not 
 Austere But Kind And Affable. Kimble Was Also A Nice, Genteel, Genial, 
 Redheaded Gentleman. Smith Was A Heavy Man With A Very Large Abdomen, 
 Dark Hair Full Beard, Exceedingly Jovial And Apparently Always Happy. 
 Pratt Was A Small, Rather Slim, Quick And Athletic Man, Rather Austere, 
 Refined, Active And Energetic. Taylor Was A Large Man, Highly 
 Intellectual, And Rather Unsocial. Kimble Was My Favorite 
 Notwithstanding The Fact That He Had Fifteen Wives, Mostly Young And 
 Handsome, All In One House, And My Impression Is That None Of Them Had 
 Any Children. I Think It Was Conceded That His Was The Finest Harem In 
 Utah. He Called Me His Young Gentile, Was Very Kind And Affable, But He 
 Never Invited Me To Inspect His Harem. 
   
   
   
 About The First Of December, 1849, Field Arrived In Salt Lake City, And 
 I Will Allude To A Little Matter In Which He Was Concerned, After Which 
 I Will Give You A Short Account Of His Trip From The Time We Parted 
 Company Until He Arrived In Salt Lake As He Afterwards Gave It To Me. 
 Soon After He Arrived In The City Of The Saints He Heard Of Another Who 
 Had Recently Arrived From The South And That He Was Located In The Fifth 
 Ward On Mill Creek At The House Of One Gardner, And At Which House He 
 Soon Arrived. 
   
   
   
 After Staying With Me For Two Or Three Days He Found Employment In The 
 Family Of The Apostle John Taylor. The Family Consisted Of Seven Wives 
 Living In Seven Different Houses. How Many Children There Were I Never 
 
 
 
 Chapter 12 Pg 195 
 Knew, But There Was One Wife Who Did Not Have Any. She Was A Fine 
 Specimen Of English Beauty. Taylor's Women Were Nearly All English. It 
 Was The Business Of My Friend To Cut Wood, And Do Chores Generally For 
 The Taylor Family Living In Seven Different Places At The Same Time. 
 Taylor Was In Europe That Winter Looking After The Interest Of The 
 Church, And Possibly After A Few More Wives, And Consequently Could Not, 
 In Person, Attend To All Of The Necessities Of The Seven Branches Of His 
 Family. In His Daily Rounds Looking After The Seven Wood-Piles And Other 
 Little Matters Appertaining To The Comfort Of The Family In So Many 
 Places Field Happened To Come In Contact With The English Beauty, And 
 The Result Was, Mutual Love At First Sight, Notwithstanding The Fact 
 That This Woman Had Passed, And Taken All Of The Solemn Vows Of The Lym 
 House With The Apostle And His Six Other Wives. 
   
   
   
 I Do Not Think That My English Friend Had Lost One Iota Of The Fond 
 Recollection Of His Long Since Dead English Wife, The Picture Of Whom He 
 Still Carried Near His Heart; But, Nevertheless, He And This Seventh 
 Wife Of The Noted Apostle Fell Heels Over Head In Love. Field, As You 
 Know, Was A Well Developed, Good-Looking, Intelligent Man Of Forty. The 
 Woman Was Well Developed, Good-Looking, And As Smart As A Steel-Trap, 
 And Both Being English I Was Not At All Surprised At Their Mutual 
 Admiration And Infatuation, Nor Did I Blame Them Much. I Was Entrusted 
 With Many Closely-Sealed Envelopes Which I Carried From One To The 
 Other. With My Feeble Assistance They Tried To Devise Some Method By 
 Which They Might Escape From The City Before The Apostle Should Return 
 Home; But The Danites Were Always On The Alert, And They Well Knew That 
 Detection By The Danites Of An Attempt To Get Away Together Would Lead 
 To Certain Death To Him, And If Not To Her She Would Certainly Have Been 
 Returned To Her Polygamous State Of Bondage. Spring Came With Little 
 Hope Of Escape, And They Reluctantly Parted With The Mutual 
 Understanding That, If Possible, She Would Make Her Escape And Go To 
 Sacramento Where He Promised To Keep His Address. Ten Months After The 
 Parting They Had Not Met Yet, And If They Ever Did It Was After I Had 
 Lost All Further Knowledge Of Him. 
   
   
   
 Mormon Morals, Exclusive Of Polygamy, Are Very Good. I Never Saw A 
 Drunken Man In Salt Lake City, And Heard Very Little Profane Language 
 There. The People Were Industrious And Seemed Happy. Their Hospitality 
 Rivaled That Of The Old Southern Planters, And Their Charity Was Equal 
 To That Of Other Christians. 
   
   
   
 I Will Now Go Back To The Place Where Field And I Separated On The 
 Mountain Top And Give You A Short Statement As He Gave It To Me, And 
 While Some Things May Border On The Miraculous, And Seem Somewhat 
 Incredible, I Do Not Question The Truth Of His Statements. When We 
 Parted So Unexpectedly He Had About Half Of The Jerked Wolf And Mule 
 Combined. I Went North While He Bore Off In A Northeasterly Direction, 
 And After Traveling For Three Days Came To The River At A Point Above 
 
 
 
 Chapter 12 Pg 196 
 Where We Lost Our Flat-Boat. He Struggled On Up The River Without Road 
 Or Trail, And Nothing To Guide Him Except The Little Compass Which He 
 Still Carried In His Pocket. 
   
   
   
 Two Days More And His Last Bit Of Jerk Was Gone, Starvation Began To 
 Stare Him In The Face Once More. He Saw Signs Of Indians Having Crossed 
 His Pathless Course Which Gave Him Renewed Courage. Soon After Starting 
 Out Next Morning He Was Delighted To See A Pony In The Distance Grazing, 
 And On Coming Up To It Found One Of Its Front Legs Broken. This, He Said 
 Was Another God-Send. The Poor Pony Seemed To Fear Him. It Was Probably 
 An Indian Pony, Had Its Leg Broken And Was Left To Die. He Followed It 
 For Some Time And Finally Got Close To It And Fired His Revolver At Its 
 Chest And Wounded It, But It Then Left Him With The Blood Flowing From 
 Its Wound. After Resting For A Time He Followed On And Soon Found It 
 Lying Down, But Not Dead. He Told Me How Innocent And Helpless It 
 Appeared, And Looked At Him As If Pleading With Him Not To Inflict Any 
 More Pain; But He Felt That His Life Was In A Balance With Its, And 
 After A Little Meditation He Put The Revolver To Its Forehead And Ended 
 Its Life And Suffering. Then Came The Usual Process Of Skinning, Cutting 
 Up And Jerking Which Took The Balance Of That Day And Part Of The Next. 
   
   
   
 Eight Days More And He Was Again Starving. On The Ninth He Arrived At 
 The Spot Where We Had Dug Up The Little Ferry-Boat Which Carried The 
 Seven Adventurers Far Down The River More Than Three Very Long Dreary 
 Months Before. Snow Now Covered The Entire Country, And All Emigrants 
 Had Long Since Gone By. His Strength Was Failing Fast But It Would Not 
 Do To Linger There, So He Arose And Was About To Start When He Saw A 
 Poor Old Ox Slowly Coming Towards Him, And When It Had Come Up Near To 
 Him He Discovered A Wolf Not Far Behind Which Seemed To Be Following The 
 Ox, But It Soon Turned And Went Away. Night Was Coming On And He Was 
 Very Hungry. Something Must Be Done. The Last Cartridge Had Been 
 Exploded In Killing The Poor, Broken Legged Indian Pony, And The 
 Revolver Was No Longer Of Use. The Ox, Though Feeble, Was Probably Yet 
 Stronger Than The Starving Man. 
   
   
   
 Field Feared That He Was Not Able To Catch The Ox By The Horns And Hold 
 It Until He Could Cut Its Throat, So The Next Plan Was To Get Hold Of 
 The Animal's Tail With One Hand, And With The Big Knife In The Other Cut 
 His Hamstrings So As To Disable Him, And Then Cut His Throat. The Ox 
 Seemed Fond Of Being Rubbed And Petted, So After A Little Time A Firm 
 Hold On The Tail Was Secured, And The Big Knife Vigorously Applied, But 
 It Was So Very Dull That He Could Not Sever The Tough Old Tendons. After 
 Sawing With The Dull Knife And Being Literally Dragged For Some 
 Distance, He Became So Much Exhausted That He Was Obliged To Relinquish 
 His Hold And See The Excited Old Ox Disappear. 
   
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 12 Pg 197 
 In Almost Complete Despair Field Spent The Night Beside A Fire Under One 
 Of Those Large Cottonwoods Which I Have No Doubt You Will Remember Even 
 Though It Is Now More Than Forty Years Since You Saw Them. He Rose Early 
 Next Morning And Started Out On The Well Beaten Road Towards The Golden 
 West, But Had Only Gone A Few Hundred Yards When He Was Agreeably 
 Surprised To Again Behold The Old Ox Approaching Him, But So Much 
 Exhausted That It Could Scarcely Walk. The Same, Or Some Other, Wolf Was 
 Near By, And Had Probably Followed The Poor Old Ox All Night. When The 
 Ox Came Close To Field The Wolf Growled And Again Turned Away As On The 
 Evening Before. After The Wolf Had Left The Ox Seemed To Be Relieved. 
   
   
   
 It Then Occurred To The Starving Emigrant That He Had A Sharp Razor In 
 His "Kitt" With Which He Knew He Could Cut Those Tough Tendons, Provided 
 He Could Get Another Hold On That Tail. Field, As You Probably Remember, 
 Always Kept His Face Cleanly Shaved. Even While We Were Starving He 
 Would Shave Almost Every Day. The Ox Was Tired And Worn Out And So Was 
 Field; But He Got The Razor Ready And Soon Had Hold Of That Tail Again. 
 Off Went The Ox, The Keen Razor Was Applied, Soon The Tendons Parted And 
 Down Went The Ox. But Only Half The Victory Was Won, For The Ox Would 
 Raise Up On His Front Feet And Show Fight; But After Resting Awhile The 
 Would-Be Victor Rushed Up, Caught The Poor Beast By The Horns, Pushed 
 Him Over On His Side, Held Him Down And Cut His Throat. 
   
   
   
 After A Long, Much Needed Rest He Cut Out A Piece Of The Poor Beef, 
 Broiled And Ate It, And Then Spent The Remainder Of The Day In Hunting 
 Out The Small, Lean Muscles That Still Remained Between The Skin And 
 Bones Of The Poor Old Ox. The Poor Beef Was Jerked And Put Into The Sack 
 Which On The Following Morning Was Thrown Upon The Back Of Its Owner, 
 And From Which He Fed For The Next Six Days, At The End Of Which He 
 Arrived At Fort Bridger. From There He Soon Obtained A Passage For Salt 
 Lake City, Arriving There On The Second Day Of December, Seventeen Days 
 After I Had Reached There, And Finding Me As Before Stated. 
   
   
   
 Some Time In The Winter We Formed An Acquaintance Of A Gentleman Named 
 Jesse Morgan, A Gentile, Who Had Left Illinois In The Spring Of 1849 For 
 California, But For Some Cause Had Been Delayed And Obliged To Winter In 
 The City Of The Latter Day Saints. Morgan Had A Wife, A Little Child, A 
 Wagon And Two Yoke Of Oxen, But No Food Nor Money. Field And I Arranged 
 To Furnish Food For All For The Trip From There To Sacramento, And 
 Assist In Camp Duties, Drive The Team, &C. We Made The Trip Together And 
 Arrived In Sacramento In Good Condition On The Fourth Day Of July, 1850, 
 And Pitched Our Tent Under A Large Oak Tree Where The State Capitol Now 
 Stands. 
   
   
   
 I Spent Five Months With A Wholesale Grocery And Miners Supply Firm, 
 Elder And Smith, Fourth And J Streets, Sacramento, And Three Months In 
 
 
 
 Chapter 12 Pg 198 
 The Mines As A Drummer, Or Solicitor And Collector For The Same Firm. I 
 Returned To Sacramento And Was Almost Ready To Start Home When The Scots 
 River Excitement Broke Out. I Then Went To The Mines On Trinity River 
 And Associated Myself In Mining With Hiram Gould, A Young Presbyterian 
 Clergyman Who Had Laid Aside The "Cloth" For The Time And Engaged In 
 Mining. I Remained In The Mines Until July Fourth, 1851, Exactly One 
 Year From The Time I Entered Sacramento, When I Started Home By Way Of 
 Nicaragua. In Due Time, After An Interesting Trip, I Arrived Home And 
 Again Entered Upon The Study Of My Chosen Profession, Graduated From An 
 Honorable College, And Am Now, As You Know, Practicing My Profession On 
 The Sea Shore. 
   
   
   
 M.S. Mcmahon. 
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 13 Pg 199 
 Story Of The Jayhawkers. 
   
   
   
   
 In The Foregoing Chapters Describing The Trip Across The Deserts And 
 Mountains, The Author Has Had Occasion Many Times To Refer To The 
 "Jayhawkers." Their History Is In Many Respects No Less Remarkable And 
 Intensely Interesting Than That Of His Own Party. The Author Has 
 Therefore Collected Many Notes And Interviews With Prominent Members And 
 Presents Herewith The Only Written History Of Their Travels. 
   
   
   
 The Little Train Afterward Known By This Name Was Made Up In The State 
 Of Illinois In 1849, Of Industrious, Enterprising Young Men Who Were 
 Eager To See And Explore The New Country Then Promising Gold To Those 
 Who Sought. The Young Men Were From Knoxville, Galesburg And Other 
 Towns. Not All Were Influenced By The Desire For Gold. It Was Said That 
 California Had A Milder Climate And That Pleasant Homes Could There Be 
 Made, And The Long, Cold Winter Avoided. 
   
   
   
 They Placed Some Of The Best Men In Position To Manage For The Whole. 
 The Outfit Was Placed On A Steam-Boat And Transported To Kanesville, On 
 The Missouri River Above Council Bluffs. Some Of The Company Went With 
 
 
 
 Chapter 13 Pg 200 
 The Goods While Others Bought Teams And Wagons In Western Missouri And 
 Drove To The Appointed Place. Kanesville Was A Small Mormon Camp, While 
 Council Bluffs Was A Trading Post Of A Few Log Cabins On The River Bank, 
 Inhabited Mostly By Indians. There Was No Regular Ferry At Either Place, 
 And Our Party Secured A Log Raft Which They Used To Get Their Wagons And 
 Provisions Across, Making The Oxen Swim. 
   
   
   
 They Asked All The Questions They Could Think Of From Everyone Who 
 Pretended To Know Anything About The Great Country To The West Of Them, 
 For It Seemed A Great Undertaking To Set Out Into The Land They Could 
 See Stretching Out Before Them Across The River. Other Parties Bound The 
 Same Way, Also Arrived And Joined Them. They Chose A Guide Who Claimed 
 To Have Been Over The Road Before. When All Were Gathered Together The 
 Guide Told Them That They Were About To Enter An Indian Country, And 
 That The Dusky Residents Did Not Always Fancy The Idea Of Strangers 
 Richer Than Themselves Passing Through, And Sometimes Showed Out Some Of 
 The Bad Traits The Indians Had Been Said To Possess. It Would Therefore 
 Be Better To Organize And Travel Systematically. He Would Divide The 
 Company Into Divisions And Have Each Division Choose A Captain, And The 
 Whole Company Unite In Adopting Some Rules And Laws Which They Would All 
 Agree To Observe. This Arrangement Was Satisfactorily Accomplished, And 
 They Moved Out In A Sort Of Military Style. And Then They Launched Out 
 On The Almost Endless Western Prairie, Said Then To Be A Thousand Miles 
 Wide, Containing Few Trees, And Generally Unknown. 
   
   
   
 These Illinois Boys Were Young And Full Of Mirth And Fun Which Was 
 Continually Overflowing. They Seemed To Think They Were To Be On A Sort 
 Of Every Day Picnic And Bound To Make Life As Merry And Happy As It 
 Could Be. One Of The Boys Was Ed Doty Who Was A Sort Of Model Traveler 
 In This Line. A Camp Life Suited Him; He Could Drive An Ox Team, Cook A 
 Meal Of Victuals, Turn A Pan Of Flap-Jacks With A Flop, And Possessed 
 Many Other Frontier Accomplishments. One Day When Doty Was Engaged In 
 The Duty Of Cooking Flap-Jacks Another Frolicsome Fellow Came Up And 
 Took Off The Cook's Hat And Commenced Going Through The Motions Of A 
 Barber Giving His Customer A Vigorous Shampoo, Saying:--"_I Am Going To 
 Make A Jayhawker Out Of You, Old Boy_." Now It Happened At The Election 
 For Captain In This Division That Ed Doty Was Chosen Captain, And No 
 Sooner Was The Choice Declared Than The Boys Took The Newly Elected 
 Captain On Their Shoulders And Carried Him Around The Camp Introducing 
 Him As The _King Bird Of The Jayhawkers_. So Their Division Was 
 Afterwards Known As The Jayhawkers, But Whether The Word Originated With 
 Them, And John Brown Forgot To Give Them Credit, Or Whether It Was Some 
 Old Frontier Word Used In Sport On The Occasion Is More Than I Will 
 Undertake To Say; However The Boys Felt Proud Of Their Title And The 
 Organization Has Been Kept Up To This Day By The Survivors, As Will Be 
 Related Further On. 
   
   
   
 The First Few Days They Got Along Finely And Began To Lose All Feeling 
 
 
 
 Chapter 13 Pg 201 
 Of Danger And To Become Rather Careless In Their Guard Duty. When The 
 Cattle Had Eaten Enough And Lain Down, The Guards Would Sometimes Come 
 Into Camp And Go To Sleep, Always Finding The Stock All Right In The 
 Morning And No Enemy Or Suspicious Persons In Sight. But One Bright 
 Morning No Cattle Were In Sight, Which Was Rather Strange As The Country 
 Was All Prairie. They Went Out To Look, Making A Big Circuit And Found 
 No Traces Till They Came To The River, When They Found Tracks Upon The 
 Bank And Saw Some Camps Across The River, A Mile Or So Away. Doty Had A 
 Small Spy Glass And By Rigging Up A Tripod Of Small Sticks To Hold It 
 Steady They Scanned The Camps Pretty Closely And Decided That There Were 
 Too Many Oxen For The Wagons In Sight. 
   
   
   
 Some Of The Smartest Of Them Stripped Off Their Clothes And Started To 
 Swim The Stream, But Landed On The Same Side They Started From. Captain 
 Doty Studied The Matter A Little And Then Set Out Himself, Being A Good 
 Swimmer, And By A Little Shrewd Management And Swimming Up Stream When 
 The Current Was Strongest, Soon Got Across To Where He Could Touch 
 Bottom And Shouted To The Others To Do The Same. Soon All The Swimmers 
 Were Across. 
   
   
   
 They Could Now See That There Were Two Trains On That Side And That The 
 Farther One Had Already Begun To Move And Was About A Mile In Advance Of 
 The Nearest One, Doty Said Something Must Be Done, And Although They 
 Only Were Clothed In Undershirts They Approached The Nearest Camp And 
 Were Handed Some Overalls For Temporary Use. The Men In This Camp On 
 Hearing About The Missing Oxen Said The Fellows In The Forward Train 
 Went Over And Got Them, For, As They Said There Were No Wagons In Sight 
 And They Must Be Strays. He Said The Forward Train Was From Tennessee, 
 And That They Had Some Occasion To Doubt Their Honesty And Had Refused 
 To Travel With Them Any Further. They Said They Were All Old 
 Missourians, And Did Not Want Other People's Property And If The Boys 
 Found Their Cattle With The Tenneseans, And Wanted Any Help To Get Them 
 Back Again To Call On Them, And Putting In Some Good Strong Swear Words 
 For Emphasis. 
   
   
   
 The Boys, Barefooted And With Only Overalls And Shirts, Started After 
 The Moving Train Which They Called To A Halt When Overtaken. The Coarse 
 Grass Was Pretty Hard To Hurry Through, Clothed As They Were. The Train 
 Men Were Pretty Gruff And Wanted To Know What Was Wanted. Capt. Doty 
 Very Emphatically Told Them He Could See Some Of His Oxen In Their 
 Train, And Others In The Herd, And He Proposed To Have Them All Back 
 Again. The Jayhawker Boys Were Unarmed But Were In A Fighting Mood And 
 Determined To Have The Stock At All Hazards, And If Not Peaceably, War 
 Might Commence. The Boys Saw That The Two Trains Were Of About Equal 
 Strength, And If Worse Came To Worst They Could Go Back And Get Their 
 Guns And Men And Come Over In Full Force After Their Property, And They 
 Were Assured The Missourians Would Help Them And A Combination Of Forces 
 Would Give Them A Majority And They Could Not Be Beaten By The Tennessee 
 
 
 
 Chapter 13 Pg 202 
 Crowd. There Was A Good Deal Of Talk, But Finally When Doty Demanded 
 That Their Cattle Be Unyoked And The Others Separated From The Herd, 
 They Yielded And Gave Them All Their Stock, Some Seventy Head. 
   
   
   
 The Missourians Had Come Up And Heard The Talk, And Some Of Them Went 
 Back And Helped Drive The Cattle To The River, And Deal Out Some Double 
 Shotted Thunder Against The Biggest Scamps They Had Come Across. It Was 
 Quite A Job To Get The Cattle Across The River. They Would Go In A 
 Little Way And Then Circle Round And Round Like A Circus, Making No 
 Progress. They Finally Put A Rope On One Of Them And A Man Led Him As 
 Far As He Could, Which Was More Than Half Way, And Although They Landed 
 A Good Ways Down Stream, They Got Them All Across Safely, Left Their 
 Borrowed Overalls In The Hands Of Their Friends, With A Thousand Thanks 
 For Valuable Assistance, And Plunged Into The Swift Running Platte, And 
 Swam Back Again To The Northern Side. They Drove The Straggling Oxen 
 Back To Camp With A Sense Of Great Satisfaction, And In Turn Received 
 The Praise Of Their Friends Who Said That Ed Doty Was The Best Jayhawker 
 Of The Border. 
   
   
   
 This Was The First Unpleasantness And They Were Afterwards More Cautious 
 And Stood Guard All Night, Watching Closely All The Time, Both Night And 
 Day, For For Any Signs Of Danger. Thus In Time They Reached Salt Lake, 
 Rather Late In The Season, But Safe And Sound, Having Escaped Cholera Or 
 Other Disease, And In Good Spirits To Surmount Any Further Difficulties 
 Which Might Be Met. 
   
   
   
 When The Jayhawkers Reached Salt Lake It Was Found That It Was Not Safe 
 To Try To Go The Regular Northern Route To California, As They Were 
 Advised By Those Who Seemed To Know, As They Might Be Snowed In On The 
 Sierra Nevada Mountains And Perish. The Mormons Told Them That The Snow 
 Often Fell There Twenty Feet Deep, And Some Other Stories Likely To 
 Deter Them From Making The Attempt. They Also Told Them Of A Route 
 Farther South By Which They Could Come Into California At Los Angeles, 
 Or They Could Remain In Salt Lake Until May When It Would Be Safe To Try 
 The Mountain Route Again. After Listening To The Talk Of The 
 Mountaineers Who Claimed To Have Been Over The Route And To Know All 
 About It, And Camping Some Time To Rest And Learn All They Could, They 
 Finally Decided On Taking The Southern Route. One Mormon Told Them Of A 
 Place Where They Could Make A Cut-Off And Save Five Hundred Miles, And, 
 If They Would Follow His Instructions, They Would Find The Route Fully 
 As Good As The One Usually Traveled Which Was Not Much Better Than A 
 Trail. The Cut-Off Was So Instilled Into Their Minds That They Had Great 
 Confidence In The Report And Talked Very Favorably Of Taking It. 
   
   
   
 The Man Williams Made For Them A Map Of The Proposed Route And Explained 
 It To Them And Others Who Had Gathered At Salt Lake, And From The Map 
 
 
 
 Chapter 13 Pg 203 
 They Could See How Much Was To Be Gained In Time And Distance By Taking 
 That Route. A Month Or Two Of Travel Was Indeed Something To Gain, And 
 As The Roads Seemed Similar In Quality The Reasoning Was Very Plausible 
 The Map Explained All The Watering Places And Favorable Things But Said 
 Nothing About A Desert, And As There Was No One To Tell Them Any 
 Unfavorable Side To This Plan There Were Many Who Quite Concluded To Go 
 This Way, And Among Those Who Did So Were The Jayhawkers, And The 
 "Williams Short Route" Was Freely Talked About As A Settled Thing By 
 Them. 
   
   
   
 They Now Set About Preparing To Move. They Sold, Traded, And Bought Oxen 
 Till They Had The Best And Fattest Teams In Salt Lake Valley; Selected 
 Good Provisions, And Plenty Of Them So As To Be Safe In Case Of Delay, 
 And Contended That Nothing Could Stop Them In A Country Where But Little 
 Snow Could Be, And Water Was As Plentiful As Shown On The Map. They 
 Wanted To Reach The Gold Mines And This Was The Shortest Route And Even 
 If It Was Still Considerably Longer Than The Northern Way They Said They 
 Would Rather Be Moving Along And Thus Gain Time Than To So Long In Camp 
 With Nothing To Do By Which They Could Earn A Cent. There Were Here In 
 Salt Lake Ten Times As Many Men As Could Find Employment, And Brigham's 
 Saints Would Be Pretty Sure To Get All Of The Odd Jobs To The Exclusion 
 Of The Heretics. 
   
   
   
 To Bring The Matter To A Determination A Paper Was Drawn Up For Those To 
 Sign Who Wanted To Go The Southern Route And It Was Pretty Generally 
 Signed. The Mormon Elder, John Hunt, Was Consulted, And As He Seemed To 
 Know The General Southern Route Better Than Any One Else, He Was 
 Prevailed Upon To Guide The Train Through On The Old Spanish Trail. This 
 Had Never Been Used As A Wagon Road, But He Thought It Could Be Without 
 Much Difficulty, And He Said If They Could Secure Him A Fair Sized Train 
 He Would Go And Conduct Them Through For Ten Dollars A Wagon. This 
 Proposition Was Accepted After Some Consideration, And All Who Wished To 
 Do So Were Given Permission To Join The Train. In A Few Days There Were 
 One Hundred And Seven Wagons Enlisted For This Route, Including Seven 
 Mormons Bound For San Bernardino. 
   
   
   
 Preparations For The Trip Now Began In Good Earnest, And The Saints Were 
 Liberally Patronized In Purchase Of Flour And Meat Which Were The 
 Principal Things They Had To Sell. As Their Several Wagons Were Loaded 
 They Moved Out In Small Lots To The South To Keep In Good Fresh Feed For 
 Their Animals, And To Move On Slowly Till All Were Ready, When They 
 Would Join In One Large Body And Proceed. The Guide Was In No Special 
 Haste As He Said He Wanted To Wait A Little Later So The Weather In The 
 South Would Be Cooler Than They Would Be Likely To Find It If They 
 Pressed On At Once. He Said That In Summer It Was So Hot That No White 
 Man Could Endure The Heat. He Said They Could Work Slowly Along The 
 Trail, And When The Right Time Came He Would Move Out Himself, And That 
 They Might Be Assured That It Would Then Be The Coolest And Best Time In 
 
 
 
 Chapter 13 Pg 204 
 Which To Travel Down There. So The Company Dallied Along, And It Was 
 October Before The Whole Train Was Made Up At A Point About A Hundred 
 Miles South Of Salt Lake. 
   
   
   
 The Complete Organization Was Divided Into Seven Divisions, Each With 
 Its Captain, And Division No. 1 Was To Lead The March The First Day And 
 Then Fall To The Rear While No. 2 Took The Advance, And So Continued 
 Till All Had Taken Their Turn. The Leading Party Was To Guard And Care 
 For The Cattle And Deliver Them In The Morning. The Regulations Were 
 Read Aloud To The Captains, And This Rather Large Army Of Men, Women And 
 Children, With About Five Hundred Head Of Stock, Moved Out Very 
 Systematically. It Would Sometimes Be Fully Ten O'clock Before The Rear 
 Division Could Make A Start, And Correspondingly Late Before They Could 
 Get Up With The Main Camp At Night. They Got Along Very Well, But 
 Cleaned The Country Of Grass For Some Distance Each Side Of The Trail, 
 As They Swept Along. 
   
   
   
 About The First Of November Capt. Smith Overtook Us With The Pack Train, 
 And Camped With Us At Night. He Formed Many Acquaintances And Told Them 
 He Was Going To Take A Shorter Route And Save Five Hundred Miles, Rather 
 Than Take The Long Route By Way Of Los Angeles. He Had A Map Of His 
 Proposed Route, And It Was Very Much Like The One We Had. He Also Stated 
 That It Could Probably Be As Easily Traveled As The One By Way Of Los 
 Angeles, And As A Consequence Of His Talk, Cut-Off Fever Began To Rage 
 In Camp Again. Some Got Very Enthusiastic In The Matter And Spoke 
 Publicly In Favor Of Following Capt. Smith When He Should Come To The 
 Place When His Short Route Turned Away From The Other Trail. His Plan 
 Grew So Much In Favor That When The Place Was Reached A Hundred Wagons 
 Turned Out Into The Smith Trail, Leaving Capt. Hunt Only The Seven 
 Mormon Wagon Bound For San Bernardino, Hunt Stood At The Forks Of The 
 Road As The Wagons Went By And Said To Them;--"Good-Bye, Friends. I 
 Cannot, According To My Agreement Go With You, For I Was Hired For This 
 Road, And No Other Was Mentioned. I Am In Duty Bound To Go Even If Only 
 One Wagon Decides To Go." When The Last Wagon Had Passed Him He Still 
 Stood Talking With Several Who Had Chosen The New Way And Told Them They 
 Were Taking A Big Risk, For They Did Not Know Very Much About The Route, 
 And He Had Been Thinking That They Might Find It Pretty Rough And Hard 
 To Get Over The First Time. He Said That If All Decided To Go That Way 
 He Would Go And Help Them, Even If They Went To H-Ll, But As It Was He 
 Could Not. He Wished Them Luck And The Two Trains Parted Company. 
   
   
   
 At The End Of Three Days Of Travel On The Smith Trail They Came To The 
 Top Of A Long Steep Hill. The Trail Went Down And Down, And They See No 
 Way Of Crossing The Terribly Deep Canon That Was Before Them. So They 
 Went Into Camp And Sent Explorers Out To Investigate And Find A Crossing 
 If Possible. 
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 13 Pg 205 
   
 On The Second Day The Explorers Began To Return With Very Unfavorable 
 Reports, And Many Who Found Their Progress Thus Blocked Turned About And 
 Started To Follow Hunt. Most Of The Wagons Which Remained Had Each One 
 Or More Of Their Men Out Exploring And Could Not Turn Back Until Their 
 Return. Several Of The Jayhawkers Having Once Started On This Route Were 
 Very Anxious To Get Through On It If A Way Could Be Found For Them To Do 
 It, And Therefore Searched Farther And With Greater Determination Than 
 The Others. When They Returned They Reported They Had Found A Way Around 
 The Head Of The Canon And They Believed It To Be The Right Way. The Map 
 Williams Had Given Them Did Not Show This Canon And They Believed It To 
 Be Correct, And That The Real Road Led Around At The Place Which They 
 Had Found, And No Further Trouble Would Be Met. 
   
   
   
 Acting On This Report About Twenty Wagons, Including The Jayhawkers, 
 Concluded To Go Ahead. "We Can Beat The Other Fellows A Month," Said 
 They, And So They Hitched Up And Pulled Out In A Northerly Direction, 
 Feeling In Good Spirits And Hopeful Of Success. 
   
   
   
 They Named This Place Mt. Misery. While Camped Here A Lone And Seemingly 
 Friendless Man Died And Was Buried. None Seem Now To Remember His Name, 
 But Think He Was From Kentucky. He Was Low With Consumption And Not 
 Strong Enough To Endure The Hardships Of The Journey. 
   
   
   
 About The Third Night The Jayhawkers Were Overtaken By Seven More Wagons 
 Owned By A. Bennett And Friends, J.B. Arcane And Family, Two Men Named 
 Earhart And A Son Of One Of Them, And One Or Two Other Wagons. 
   
   
   
 The Jayhawker's Train Was Made Up Of Men From Many States, But Seemed 
 Well United And Was As Complete As When They First Started. The Author 
 Was With The Party That Came Up In The Rear, Which Had Started Later But 
 Traveled Faster On Account Of Having A Road Broken For Them. He Visited 
 The Leaders In Camp When They Were Discussing The Necessity Of Forming A 
 New Travelling Compact To Help And Protect Each Other On The Road. Those 
 Who Had No Families Were Objecting To Being Bound To Those Who Had Women 
 And Children With Them. They Argued That The Road Would Be Hard And 
 Difficult And Those Wagons With Women And Children Would Require More 
 Assistance Than They Would Be Able To Render In Return. They Said They 
 Could Go Back And Follow Hunt Who Was On A Better Road And They Could 
 Proceed With More Safely. 
   
   
   
 Among Those With This Train Was Rev. J.W. Brier, His Wife And Three 
 Children. He Objected To Being Turned Back And Said He Did Not Want To 
 Be Assisted, But Would Go With Them And Do His Part And Take Care Of 
 
 
 
 Chapter 13 Pg 206 
 Himself. The Author Listened To The Various Speeches Without Speaking 
 And Became Satisfied That It Would End In Every One Looking Out For 
 Himself In Case Of Hard Times. He Went Over To Their Camp Again The Next 
 Night And Wished To Ask Them Why They Were Steering So Nearly Due North. 
 He Said To Them That They Were Going Toward Salt Lake Rather Than 
 California, And That The Bennet Party Did Not Feel Inclined To Follow 
 Them Any Farther In That Direction. They Replied That Their Map Told 
 Them To Go North A Day Or More And Then They Would Find The Route As 
 Represented. They Would Then Turn West And Reach Owen's Lake And From 
 There There Would Be No More Trouble. The Jayhawker Crowd Seemed To 
 Think They Could Go Anywhere And No Difficulty Could Happen Which They 
 Couldn't Overcome. Bennett's Little Train Turned West From This Point 
 And The Jayhawkers Went On North, But Before Night They Changed Their 
 Minds And Came Following On After Bennett Whom They Overtook And Passed, 
 Again Taking The Lead. 
   
   
   
 Thus Far The Country Had Been Well Watered And Furnished Plenty Of 
 Grass, And Most Of Them Talked And Believed That This Kind Of Rolling 
 Country Would Last All The Way Through. The Men At Leisure Scattered 
 Around Over The Hills On Each Side Of The Route Taken By The Train, And 
 In Advance Of It, Hunting Camping Places And Making A Regular Picnic Of 
 It. There Were No Hardships, And One Man Had A Fiddle Which He Tuned Up 
 Evenings And Gave Plenty Of Fine Music. Joy And Happiness Seemed The 
 Rule, And All Of The Train Were Certainly Having A Good Time Of It. 
   
   
   
 But Gradually There Came A Change As The Wagon Wheels Rolled Westward. 
 The Valleys Seemed To Have No Streams In Them, And The Mountain Ranges 
 Grew More And More Broken, And In The Lower Ground A Dry Lake Could Be 
 Found, And Water And Grass Grew Scarce--So Much So That Both Men And 
 Oxen Suffered. These Dry Lake Beds Deceived Them Many Times. They Seemed 
 As If Containing Plenty Of Water, And Off The Men Would Go To Explore. 
 They Usually Found The Distance To Them About Three Times As Far As They 
 At First Supposed, And When At Last They Reached Them They Found No 
 Water, But A Dry, Shining Bed, Smooth As Glass, But Just Clay, Hard As A 
 Rock. Most Of These Dry Lakes Showed No Outlet, Nor Any Inlet For That 
 Matter, Though At Some Period In The Past They Must Have Been Full Of 
 Water. Nothing Grew In The Shape Of Vegetables Or Plants Except A Small, 
 Stunted, Bitter Brush. 
   
   
   
 Away To The West And North There Was Much Broken Country, The Mountain 
 Ranges Higher And Rougher And More Barren, And From Almost Every Sightly 
 Elevation There Appeared One Or More Of These Dry Lake Beds. One Night 
 After About Three Days Of Travel The Whole Of The Train Of Twenty Seven 
 Wagons Was Camped Along The Bank Of One Of These Lakes, This One With A 
 Very Little Water In It Not More Than One Fourth Or One Half An Inch In 
 Depth, And Yet Spread Out To The Width Of A Mile Or More. It Was Truly 
 Providential, For By Digging Holes Along The Border The Water Would Run 
 Into Them And Prove Abundant For All, Both Oxen And Men. If It Had 
 
 
 
 Chapter 13 Pg 207 
 Proved Dry, As So Many Before Had Proved, Or If We Had Been A Few Days 
 Earlier Or Later We Might Not Have Found A Drop. This Proved To Be The 
 Last Time The Whole Twenty Seven Wagons Were Gathered In One Camp 
 Together. 
   
   
   
 The Author Came Into Camp About Nine O'clock In The Evening After 
 Climbing Many Peaks And Taking A Survey Of The Surrounding Country With 
 A Field Glass. Men From Nearly Every Mess Came To Him To Inquire What He 
 Had Seen. They Asked All Sorts Of Questions And Wanted An Opinion As To 
 The Advisability Of Trailing Across The Prairie Directly West, Which 
 Then Seemed Easy. They Were Told That From What Could Be Seen From The 
 Summit Of Buttes Both North And South Of The Camp, Ranging A Hundred Or 
 So Miles In Almost Every Direction, It Was Believed No Water Could Be 
 Found, Between The Present Camp And A Range Of Mountains Which Could Be 
 Seen Crossing The Route Far To The West. "Well," Said Capt. Doty Of The 
 Jayhawkers, "I Don't Like To Hear Such Discouraging Talk From Manley, 
 But I Think We Will Have To Steer Straight Ahead. The Prospect For Water 
 Seems To Be About The Same, West Or South, And I Cannot See That We 
 Would Better Ourselves, By Going North." When Morning Came Capt. Doty 
 And His Party Yoked Up And Set Out Straight Across The Desert, Leaving 
 Seven Wagons Of The Bennett Party Still In Camp. 
   
   
   
 For Some Time All Of Us Had Seen In The Range Ahead An Appearance Of A 
 Pass, Or Lower Place In The Mountain, And We Had Got To Calling It 
 Martin's Pass, Naming It After Jim Martin. There Was A Snow-Capped Peak 
 Just To The South Of It And The Pass, Now Apparently Exactly West Of The 
 Lake Camp, Seemed To The Jayhawkers Easy To Reach. Their Wills Were 
 Strong Enough And They Were Running Over With Determination And Energy 
 Enough To Carry Them Over Any Plain, No Matter How Dry Or Barren, Or 
 Over Any Mountain No Matter How Rugged And Steep. 
   
   
   
 Five Days They Traveled, Without Finding Water, And Small Supply They 
 Took Along Had Been Consumed. For Lack Of Water They Could Not Eat Or 
 Sleep. The Oxen Gathered Round The Little Fire And Seemed To Beg For 
 Water, They Had No Cud To Chew Unless It Was The Cud Of Disappointment. 
 The Range Of Mountains They Had Been Aiming For Still Seemed Far Away 
 And The Possible Show For Reaching It Seemed Very Poor Indeed, And The 
 Prospect Of Any Water Hole Between Them And The Mountains Poorer Yet. 
 Hope Was Pretty Near Gone. Martins Mess Unyoked Their Oxen From The 
 Wagons, Put Some Small Packs On Their Own Backs, And Loaded Some Upon 
 The Backs Of The Oxen, And Turned South Toward The Nearest Snowy 
 Mountain They Could See, The Same One Towards Which The Bennett Party 
 Steered From The Lake Camp. 
   
   
   
 The Doty Party Kept Their Courage Longer And Kept On Straight Ahead For 
 Another Day, And Then Camped, Almost Without Hope. No Rest Came To Them, 
 
 
 
 Chapter 13 Pg 208 
 Nor Sleep. Towards Morning As They Stood Around The Fire A Stray Cloud 
 Appeared And Hid The Stars, And Shortly After Began To Unload A Cargo Of 
 Snow It Carried. They Spread Out Every Blanket, And Brushed Up Every Bit 
 They Could From The Smooth Places, Kindled A Little Fire Of Brush Under 
 The Camp Kettles And Melted All The Snow All Of Them Could Gather, 
 Besides Filling Their Mouths As Fast As Ever They Could, Hoping That It 
 Would Full In Sufficient Quantities To Satisfy Themselves And The Oxen, 
 And Quench Their Dreadful Thirst. Slowly The Cloud Moved Scattering The 
 Snowflakes Till They Felt Relieved. The Last Time The Author Conversed 
 With A Member Of This Party Was In 1892, And It Was Conceded That This 
 Storm Saved The Lives Of Both Man And Beast In That Little Band Of 
 Jayhawkers. It Was Like Manna Falling From Heaven, And As Surely Saved 
 Their Lives As Did The Manna Of The Bible Save The Lives Of The Tribes 
 Of Israel. They Had No Reason To Expect A Storm Of Rain Or Snow, But 
 Came To Them Just As They Were Perishing. A Little Further On They Came 
 To A Small Stream Of Water, And As The Bed Showed Only A Recent Flow It 
 Must Also Have Come From The Little Local Storm Further Up The Mountain. 
 They Used This Water Freely, Even Though It Was Not Very Good, And It 
 Acted On Them Very Much Like A Solution Of Glanber Salts. 
   
   
   
 They Decided At First That They Had Better Follow The Stream Southward, 
 But After A Little Time, Feeling The Sickness Caused By The Water, They 
 Saw It Was No Advantage And Turned West Again, Bearing To The North 
 Toward A Sort Of Pass They Could Now See In The Mountains In That 
 Direction. This Stream Is Now Known As The Amargosa, Or Bitter, River. 
   
   
   
 The New Direction In Which They Marched Gave Them An Up-Hill Route For 
 Thirty Or Forty Miles, Rough And Barren, With No Water Or Grass. There 
 Was No Road Or Trail To Follow, The Oxen Were As Weak As Their Owners 
 From Drinking The Bitter Water, And The Road Needed Some Clearing And 
 Breaking In Places Before The Wagons Could Pass. They Moved Quite Slowly 
 And Reached The Summit On The Second Night With The Loss Of A Single Ox. 
 The Author Would Say Here That This Was The Last Ox Which Was Allowed To 
 Die Without Using The Flesh For Food, And It Was From This Same One He 
 Cut A Steak To Eat On Christmas Eve, 1849. 
   
   
   
 From The Summit They Took A Way Down A Dark, Deep Canon Having A Steep 
 Slope, And Very Rocky And Bad, But Down Which The Oxen Drew Their Loads 
 Much Easier Than When They Came Up, Reaching Water On The Third Day, 
 Where There Were Many Springs, And A Sort Of Coarse Grass For The Oxen. 
 The Place Is Now Known As Furnace Creek. The Jayhawkers Passed On, And 
 Here At These Very Springs Was Where The Author Overtook The Rev. J.W. 
 Brier Delivering A Lecture To His Children On The Benefits Of An Early 
 Education, As Referred To In His Narrative. 
   
   
   
 As The Jayhawkers Drove Out Of This Furnace Creek Canon The Valley Into 
 
 
 
 Chapter 13 Pg 209 
 Which They Came Was Very Narrow, The High, Snow-Capped Mountain Before 
 Them Seemed Steeper And Rougher Than Ever, So Steep In Fact That It 
 Could Not Be Ascended By A Man On Foot. A Short Distance Below Could Be 
 Seen A Lake Containing Water, And The Pass Toward Which They Had Been 
 Directing Their Course Seemed To The North Of Them. They Therefore 
 Turned Their Course In That Direction. The Road Was Sandy, And The Brush 
 That Grew On It Was Only A Few Inches High. On Their Way They Came To An 
 Abandoned Indian Camp Occupied By One Poor Old Blind Red Man. He Would 
 Hold His Mouth Open Like A Young Bird Begging For Something To Eat. One 
 Man Dropped Kernels Of Parched Corn Into His Mouth, But Instead Of 
 Eating Them He Quickly Spit Them Out; It Seemed That He Had Been Left To 
 Die And Could Not Or Would Not. His Hair Was White As Snow. His Skin 
 Looked About The Color Of A Smoked Ham, And So Crippled Was He That He 
 Crawled About Like A Beast, On All Fours. It Was Barely Possible That He 
 Had Been Left To Watch, And That His Great Infirmities Were Only 
 Pretended, But They Seemed Genuine Enough, And Were Doubtless True. They 
 Left Him In Peaceable Possession Of The Spot And Traveled On. 
   
   
   
 They Approached The Base Of The Mountain In Front Of What They Had All 
 Along Supposed To Be A Pass, And Found, As They Had Lately Begun To 
 Suspect, That There Was No Pass That Their Wagons Could Be Taken 
 Through, And They Must Be Abandoned. The Camp Was Poor. What Little 
 Water There Was Had A Salty Taste, And They Could Only Find Here And 
 There A Bunch Of The Poorest Grass. The Oxen Stood Around As If Utterly 
 Dispirited, And Would Sometimes Make A Faint Effort To Pick Up And Eat 
 Some Of The Dry Brush That Grew Around The Desolate Camp. This Camp Is 
 Now Known To Be In The Northern Part Of Death Valley, But Then They Knew 
 No Names For Anything, But If Dreariness And Absence Of Life, And 
 Threatened Danger All Around Were Any Indication, They Might Well Have 
 Named It Death Valley As Was Afterwards Done By The Party With Whom The 
 Author Traveled. 
   
   
   
 The Party Had Been Brave Till Now, But When They Realized That They Must 
 Make Pack Animals Of Themselves, And Trudge On, They Knew Not Where, 
 Perhaps To Only A Lingering Death, The Keen Edge Of Disappointment Cut 
 Close, And They Realized How Desolate They Were. They Felt Much Inclined 
 To Attribute All Their Troubles To The Advice Of The Mormons. Some Said 
 That The Plan Was Thus To Wipe So Many More Hated Gentiles Out Of The 
 Way, And Wishes Were Deep And Loud That The Mormons Might All Be Buried 
 Out Of Sight In The Great Salt Lake. They Thought Lot's Wife Must Have 
 Been Turned To Salt In The Neighborhood, Everything Was So Impregnated 
 With Saline Substances, And The Same Result Might Come To Them. But The 
 Inherent Manhood Of The Little Band Came To Their Relief And They 
 Determined Not To Die Without A Struggle For Escape And Life. 
   
   
   
 They Killed Some Of Their Oxen, And Took The Wood Of Their Wagons And 
 Kindled Fires To Dry And Smoke The Flesh So It Would Be Light And Easy 
 To Carry With Them. They Scattered All Surplus Baggage Around The 
 
 
 
 Chapter 13 Pg 210 
 Ground, Carefully Storing And Saving The Bit Of Bread That Yet Remained 
 And Dividing It Equally Among The Party. They Also Divided The Tea, 
 Coffee, Rice And Some Such Things, And Each One Agreed That He Could Not 
 Ask Aught Of His Neighbor More. Knapsacks Were Improvised From Parts Of 
 The Wagon Canvas, And Long Strips Of Canvas Were Made Into A Sort Of 
 Pack Harness For The Oxen. It Was A Sad Sight To See The Strong And 
 Vigorous Young Men Of A Few Days Ago Reduced To Such Straits; Almost 
 Skeletons Now, With No Hope Of Nourishment To Invigorate Them. They Made 
 Canteens By Sewing A Couple Of Small Powder Cans In Cloth, With A Band 
 To Go Over The Shoulders. 
   
   
   
 The Jayhawkers Were Still Making Their Preparations When The Martin 
 Party And Rev. J.W. Brier And Family Came Up To Their Camp, Having Taken 
 A Circuit Around Farther To The South. The Martin Party Was Already In 
 Marching Order And This Camp Was So Poor That They Did Not Wait, But 
 Gave All Their Oxen They Had Left To Mr. Brier And Said They Could Get 
 On Faster Without Them. They Took A Straight Course Over The Hills And 
 Up The Mountain, Saying They Believed They Had Provisions Enough Upon 
 Their Backs To Last Them Through, And That Nothing Should Check Their 
 Progress Till They Reached The Other Side, Where They Said Were Fertile 
 Valleys And Plenty Of Chance To Live. 
   
   
   
 The Doty Party, Or Jayhawkers, When They Were Ready Started First A 
 Northerly Course To Find A More Favorable Place To Cross The Range And 
 Drove Their Oxen With Them, Each With A Small Pack. They Soon Came To 
 Some Good Water, And After Refreshing Themselves Turned Westward To 
 Cross The Great Mountain Before Them. Both Men And Oxen Were Shod With 
 Moccasins Made Of Raw-Hide To Protect The Feet Against Sharp Rocks. They 
 Could See No Trail But Merely Picked Out The Best Way To Go. While 
 Climbing The Steep Mountain Side They Came Across A Dead Ox Left By Some 
 Party That Had Gone Before Them. They Cut Out The Tongue And Some Of The 
 Best Meat And Ate It To Eke Out Their Own Small Stock, And Carried Some 
 Pieces With Them, But Soon Threw It All Away But Enough For A Roast For 
 Supper. 
   
   
   
 When It Was Getting Dark They Were Almost At The Summit, But There Was 
 No Good Camping Place, And They Saw A Small Fire Light At A Little 
 Distance And Went To It, Finding A Poor Lone Camper Taking Care Of 
 Himself. They Camped Here Also. It Seemed As If There Were Many Men From 
 The Various Parties Scattered All Around The Country, Each One Seeking 
 Out The Path Which Seemed To Suit Best His Tender Feet Or Present Fancy, 
 Steering West As Well As Mountains And Canon Would Permit, Some Farther 
 North, Some Farther South And Generally Demoralized, Each Thinking That 
 As A Last Resort He Would Be Able To Save His Own Life. It Seemed To Be 
 A Question Of Will And Endurance, Strong Hearts And Keeping The Body In 
 Motion. The Weak And Faint Must Fail, And The Strong Said To The 
 Weak;--"Stand Up; Be A Man; Don't Fall Down;" And So The Strong Spurred 
 On The Weak And Kept Them Up As Best They Could. 
 
 
 
 Chapter 13 Pg 211 
   
   
 Down The Mountain They Went, On The West Side And Instead Of Los 
 Angeles, Which Some Of Them Expected To See, They Saw Only A Salt Lake 
 In The Midst Of A Barren Desert Valley And Their Route Lay Directly 
 Across It. They Traveled In Several Directions As They Went Across. One 
 Went Across The Valley On A Strip Of Dried Mud Between Two Small Lakes. 
 Others Followed Down Along The East Side Of The Lake Near The Foot Of 
 The Mountain, Where They Found Some Good Water And An Old Indian Camp. 
 They Found Some Mosquite Beans, Which They Did Not Know Were Of Much 
 Use, But Really, If They Had Known How To Fix Them Up A Little They 
 Would Have Been Good Food. 
   
   
   
 Capt. Doty's Mess Crossed Between The Lakes On The Strip Of Dry Mud 
 While Others Went On Where It Was Still Soft And Left Marks Of Their 
 Foot-Steps. Both Parties Turned Up A Small Canon On The West Side And 
 Began The Ascent Of A Black And Barren Range, Containing No Water, But 
 In The Bed Of The Ravine Near The Summit They Found Some Damp Sand And 
 Tried To Dig With Their Hands To Find Some Of The Precious Fluid. But No 
 Water Came, And In The Morning One Of Their Number Mr. Fish Died And Was 
 Left Unburied On The Barren Rocks. No Doubt His Bones Could Be Found 
 There To-Day. 
   
   
   
 Turning West Again, They Had A Down Grade Over A Most Barren And Rocky 
 Road For Many Miles. The Prospect From This Point Was Any Thing But 
 Cheering. To The Left A Large Lake Could Be Seen, And From Their 
 Previous Experience They Concluded It To Be Salt, And The Valley They 
 Were Coming To Was Very Sandy, And The Hardest Sort Of Footing For Men 
 And Animals As Weak As Those Of The Party Were. It Must Be Crossed 
 Before There Was Any Possibility Of Water, And When Across It Was Quite 
 Uncertain Whether They Could Obtain Any. One Of Their Number Had Already 
 Died Of Thirst And Fatigue And All Were Suffering Terribly. 
   
   
   
 The Valley Seemed About Eight Miles Across, And Before They Were Half 
 Way Over Mr. Ischam, One Of Their Party Sat Down, Perfectly Exhausted, 
 And Said He Could Not Take Another Step. No One Was Able To Assist Him 
 Or Give Him A Drink Of Water, And They Could Not Tarry To See If Rest 
 Would Refresh Him. They Could Only Look Sadly At Him And Pass On In 
 Silence, For He Seemed Fast Wasting Away. The Thought Came To Everyone 
 That Perhaps It Would Be His Turn Next To Sit Down And See The Others 
 Pass On. In Fact The Probability Of Any More Of Them Living Another Day 
 Was Very Poor, For They All Grew Weaker And Weaker With Every Hour, And 
 No One Knew How Many Hours Must Pass Before They Could Hope For Water. 
 There Was Not Moisture Enough In Their Poor Bodies To Make Tears, And No 
 One Dare Open His Mouth, Lest All The Moisture Suddenly Evaporate And 
 Respiration Cease. 
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 13 Pg 212 
   
   
 Those Who Had No Cattle Took Different Courses To Reach The Hills And 
 Mountains On The West Side Of This Valley, Hoping There To Find Water 
 And Signal To The Others If They Were Successful. All Except The Two Men 
 Managed To Get Across, And Finding No Water The Packs Were Taken From 
 The Oxen And They Were Driven To The Lake Which Appeared On The Left. 
 Reaching The Lake They Found The Water Red In Color And So Strong Of 
 Alkali That No Man Or Beast Could Take A Single Swallow. They Drove The 
 Cattle Back Again With Sad Hearts, And Almost Despondent, For In The 
 Rough, Dry Rocks Of The Mountains There Seemed No Signs Of Water. But 
 They Were Saved Again. Those Who Bore Farthest To The Right In Their 
 Course To The Mountains, Steering Toward A Pile Of Tremendous Rocks, 
 Found A Little Stream Of Good Water Which Flowed Only A Short Distance 
 And Then Sank Into The Sand. This Good News Spread Rapidly, And All Soon 
 Gathered At The Little Streamlet. It Was Slow Work Getting Water For 
 Them All, But By Being Patient They Were All Filled Up. Some Took Two 
 Canteens Of Water And Hurried Back To Mr. Ischam, Whom They Found Still 
 Alive But His Mouth And Throat So Dry And Parched, And His Strength So 
 Small That He Was Unable To Swallow A Single Drop, And While They Waited 
 He Breathed His Last. With Their Hands And Feet They Dug Away The Sand 
 For A Shallow Grave, Placed The Body In It, Covered It With His 
 Blankets, And Then Scraped The Sand Back Over Again To Make A Little 
 Mound Over Their Dead Comrade. Perhaps If He Could Have Walked A Mile 
 Farther He Might Have Lived, And But For The Little Trickling Stream Of 
 Water From The Rocks They Might All Be Dead, So Slight Were The 
 Circumstances That Turned The Scale To Balance Toward Life Or Death. 
   
   
   
 There Was So Little Feed For Oxen That They Could Gain No Strength, But 
 Were Much Refreshed By The Water And Could Still Travel. One Was Killed 
 Here, And The Meat, Poor As It Was, Gave The Men New Strength. They All 
 Guessed It To Be At Least Fifty Miles To The Base Of The Great Snow 
 Mountain Before Them, And What There Was Between No One Could Tell, For 
 There Were Hills And Valleys Between. Leaving The Little Spring Their 
 Course Led First Up A Small Canon, And When They Reached The Summit Of 
 The Ridge A Small Valley Covered With Sage Brush Was Before Them, The 
 Most Fertile Spot They Had Seen For A Long Time. The Descent To This 
 Valley Was Through Another Canon Which Was Filled With Large Boulders 
 For Much Of The Way, And Over These It Seemed Almost Impossible To Get 
 The Cattle. They Had Seen No Water Since Leaving The Little Stream, And 
 The Plain They Were Now Approaching Seemed Thirty Miles Wide, With No 
 Signs Of Streams Or Springs. However Just At The Foot Of The Canon They 
 Found A Small Water Hole, But The Water Was So Salt That Even The Oxen 
 Refused To Drink It. 
   
   
   
 They Decided To Make A Push Across The Plain And Endeavor To Reach The 
 Other Side In Two Days, And They Knew There Could Be No Water On Its 
 Even Expanse. The Plain Seemed Quite An Up Grade From Where They Were To 
 The Base Of The Mountain. 
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 13 Pg 213 
   
   
 On The Second Day They All Reached The Point They Were Aiming For Except 
 Rev. J.W. Brier And Family, And They Came In One Day Behind. Every One 
 Looked Out For Himself And Had No Time Nor Strength To Spare To Help 
 Others. Here On A Small Bench Overlooking The Country To The South And 
 East But Still A Long Distance From The Snow, They Found Some Holes Of 
 Water, And Some Bunch Grass A Little Farther Up The Hill. Here Was A 
 Large Trail Coming From The North And Leading From This Point Westward. 
 There Were No Signs Of Recent Use, But There Were Many Indications That 
 It Was Quite Ancient And Had Been Considerably Traveled In Time Past. 
 This Was Quite Encouraging To Many Of Them And They Declared They Would 
 Follow This Trail Which Would Surely Lead To Some Place Well Known, In A 
 Better Country. They Cared Not Whether It Led To California, Mexico, Or 
 Texas, Only That They Might Get Out Of This Country Which Seemed 
 Accursed. Any Place Where They Could Get Something To Eat And Drink 
 Would Be Better Than This. 
   
   
   
 Mr. And Mrs. Brier Had Some Pretty Hard Struggles To Get Along, And 
 Everyone Of This Party Has Ever Been Loud In Praise Of The Energy And 
 Determination Of The Brave Little Woman Of The Brier Mess. All Agreed 
 That She Was By Far The Best Man Of The Party. She Was The One Who Put 
 The Packs On The Oxen In The Morning. She It Was Who Took Them Off At 
 Night, Built The Fires, Cooked The Food, Helped The Children, And Did 
 All Sorts Of Work When The Father Of The Family Was Too Tired, Which Was 
 Almost All Of The Time. They All Said That He, Like Other Ministers, Had 
 Fallen Out With Any Work But That Of The Tongue, And Seemed Perfectly 
 Willing For Some One Else To Do The Work. Mrs. Brier Had The Sympathy Of 
 Everyone, And Many Would Have Helped Her If They Could. She Waited On 
 Her Big Husband With Untiring Zeal, And Still Had Time To Care For The 
 Children With All Of A Mother's Love. It Seemed Almost Impossible That 
 One Little Woman Could Do So Much. It Was Entirely To Her Untiring 
 Devotion That Her Husband And Children Lived. Mr. Brier Had But Little 
 Sympathy Or Help From Any One But Her. Some Were Quite Sarcastic In 
 Their Remarks About The Invalid Preacher Who Never Earned His Bread By 
 The Sweat Of His Brow, And By Their Actions Showed That They Did Not 
 Care Very Much Whether He Ever Got Through Or Not. They Thought He Ought 
 To Have Asserted His Manliness And Taken The Burden On Himself, And Not 
 Lean Upon His Delicate And Trusting Wife As He Seemed To Do. All Are 
 Sure That It Is To His Faithful Wife The Rev. J.W. Brier Owed His Succor 
 From The Sands Of That Desert. 
   
   
   
 Looking Back On The Scenes Of That Day, The Way The Selfish Dispositions 
 Of People Were Made Manifest Is Almost Incredible. Every One Seemed To 
 Think Only Of Saving His Own Life, And Every Spark Of Human Sympathy And 
 Kindness Seemed Extinguished. A Man Would Drink The Last Cup Of Water 
 Even If His Neighbor Choked. 
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 13 Pg 214 
 This Camp Was The Same One Which The Author Mentions In His Narrative, 
 To Which Rogers And Himself Crept So Silently And Carefully At Night To 
 Ascertain Whether The Occupants Were Friends Or Foes. They Were Much 
 Pleased To Find It Was Capt. Doty Of The Jayhawkers And His Mess Who Had 
 Remained Behind To Dry The Flesh Of An Ox They Had Killed When It Could 
 Travel No Longer. The Others Had Gone On Ahead, Following The Trail, 
 Leaving These To Follow. They Staid Here Two Days, And It Was While 
 Waiting Here That The Rev. J.W. Brier Came Up As Before Related, And 
 They All Went On Together When They Moved. 
   
   
   
 Nearly Every Man Had Carried A Gun In The Early Days Of The Expedition, 
 Hoping To Kill Game, And To Be Well Armed In Case Of Attack By Indians 
 Or Enemies, But They Began To Find That They Were Useless Encumbrances, 
 And First One And Then Another Would Throw Away His Fire-Arms As A 
 Burden Too Great For A Weary Man To Bear. There Was No Game, And The 
 Poor Weak Men Hardly Deemed Their Own Lives Worth Defending Against An 
 Enemy When A Day Or Two Of Lack Of Water Would End The Matter Of Life At 
 Any Rate. 
   
   
   
 As They Slept They Dreamed The Most Tantalizing Dreams Of Clear, 
 Rippling Brooks Of Water; Of Wading Knee Deep In The Most Beautiful Of 
 Ponds; Of Hoisting The Old Moss-Covered Bucket From Some Deep Old Well; 
 Of Breaking And Eating Great White Loaves Of Bread; Of Surrounding The 
 Home Table With Its Load Of Steaming Beans And Bacon, Fragrant Coffee 
 And Delicious Fried Cakes. With Such Dreams Of Comfort, They Awoke To 
 Realize More Fully The Terrors Of Their Dry And Swollen Throats, The 
 Discomfort Of Empty Stomachs. Water And Food Were The Great Riches Of 
 Life To Them Then. Had Piles Of Twenty-Dollars Pieces Been On The One 
 Hand And A Bucket Of Cold Water On The Other There Is No Doubt Of The 
 Choice That Would Have Been Made. 
   
   
   
 Seven Or Eight Miles From This Place Were Two Branches To The Trail. One 
 Led Into The Mountains Toward The Snow, And The Other Still Bore 
 Southerly. They Could See That Some Other Party Who Had No Oxen To Drive 
 Had Taken The More Northerly Route, Which Seemed To Lead More Directly 
 In The Direction Of The Mines Of California. Those Who Came Later, With 
 Animals Thought It Would Be Folly To Try To Cross The Deep Snow They 
 Could See On The Mountains Before Them And Concluded That It Would Be 
 Safer To The South Of The Snow Line, Braving The Danger Of Scarcity Of 
 Water, Rather Than To Perish In The Snow. Capt. Doty Was Willing To 
 Attempt The Northern Branch Of The Trail If The Others So Decided, But 
 The General Feeling Was In Favor Of The More Plain And Open Trail Which 
 Led Away From The Snows. It Is Known That This Northern Branch Led Over 
 What Is Known As Walker's Pass, Coming Out At The Kern River. 
   
   
   
 Taking Then The Southern Branch, The Party Passed Through A Range Of Low 
 
 
 
 Chapter 13 Pg 215 
 Mountains, And Then The Country Before Them Seemed Quite Level For A 
 Hundred Miles. 
   
   
   
 They Expected They Would Find Much Difficulty On Account Of Water, As 
 Their Experience Had Taught Them That It Was Very Scarce In Such 
 Locations, But This Trail When They Came To Follow It Led Them For Eight 
 Or Ten Miles Over A Level Piece Of High Land That Looked As If It Might 
 Have Slid Down From The High Mountain At Some Day Long Past, And This 
 Easily Traveled Road Brought Them At Last To The Top Of A Steep Hill, 
 Down Which They Went And Found Near The Bottom, A Small Weak Stream Of 
 Water, But No Grass, And But Little Fuel Of Any Kind. (This Was The Same 
 Camp At Which Rogers And The Author Overtook The Advance Party.) Here 
 They Killed An Ox, Which Made A Good Meal For All, And Not Much Remained 
 Over, For Many Had No Oxen And Were Getting Out Of All Sorts Of 
 Provisions. They Depended Much On The Generosity Of Their Fellow 
 Travelers. Many Of Them Stood Back, And Waited Till Those Who Owned The 
 Food Were Satisfied, And Were Very Grateful When They Were Invited To 
 Take Even The Poorest Morsels. 
   
   
   
 They Could Count The Oxen And Make A Pretty Close Guess Of How Many Days 
 They Could Live In This Way, Even With The Best Probable Fortune 
 Favoring Them, And To The Best Of Them There Was But Little Hope, And To 
 Those Who Were Dependent It Seemed As If The Fate Of Fish And Ischam 
 Might Be Theirs Almost Any Day. When The Author Conversed With Them At 
 This Camp He Found Them The First Really Heart-Broken Men He Had Ever 
 Seen. Some Were Men Of Middle Age Who Had Left Good Farms That Gave Them 
 Every Need, And These They Had Left To Seek A Yellow Phantom, And Now 
 There Were Yellow Phantoms Of A Different Sort Rearing Their Dreadful 
 Forms All About Them. They Called Themselves Foolish Gold Hunters To 
 Forsake A Land Of Plenty For A Chance To Leave Their Bones In A Hot 
 Desert. More Eyes Than One Filled With Tears, And Hopes In More Than One 
 Breast Vanished To Almost Nothing. More Than One Would Gladly Have 
 Placed Himself Back Where He Could Have Been Assured Of The Poorest Fare 
 He Ever Saw Upon His Farm, For Bread And Water Would Have Been An 
 Assurance Of Life, Of Which There Seemed To Be Really But Little 
 Expectation Here. 
   
   
   
 When They Left This Camp In The Canon The Trail Was Between Two High 
 Rocks, Rising Like Walls On Each Side. In One Place They Were So Near 
 Together That An Ox Could Hardly Squeeze Through. In A Very Short Time 
 They Came To A Bunch Of Willows Growing Out In The Open Ground. The 
 Little Bunch Or Grove Was Forty Or Fifty Feet In Diameter, And In The 
 Center Was A Spring Of Water. The Center Of The Clump Had Been Cleared 
 Out, Making A Sort Of Corral Of Bushes, Enclosing The Spring. On The 
 Outside There Was Quite A Little Growth Of Grass, Which Was A Fortunate 
 Thing For Their Poor Beasts. 
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 13 Pg 216 
   
 Away In The Distance, Rising Up A Little Against The Western Sky They 
 Could See Mountains With Snow On Them, And It Seemed As If It Were A 
 Journey Of Five Or Six Days To Reach Them, But The Good Water And The 
 Grass Bolstered Up Their Spirits Wonderfully For There Was Present 
 Relief And Rather Better Prospects Ahead. They Were Pretty Sure That The 
 Wide Plain Held No Water. Everything That Would Hold The Precious Drink 
 Was Filled, And The Best Preparations Made For What They Believed Was To 
 Be The Final Struggle For Life. They Rested One Day And Prepared For The 
 Very Worst That Might Before Them. Early In The Morning When They Could 
 See Plainest, They Looked Across The Expanse Before Them And Really It 
 Did Not Seem Quite So Barren, Hot And Desolate As The Region They Had 
 Passed, And They Talked And Hoped That This Would Be The Last Desert 
 They Must Cross And That Los Angeles Lay Just Beyond The Sunny Ridge 
 They Could Dimly See Ahead. There Were Some Tears That More Than One 
 Would Not Live To Answer Roll Call On The Other Side, But It Was The 
 Last Hope, And Worth An Earnest, Active Trial. 
   
   
   
 Early In The Morning, Much Refreshed, They Started On Again With Rather 
 Sober Faces. That Night One Man Insisted On Sleeping With His Clothes 
 And Boots All On, For He Said If He Died He Wanted To Die In Full Dress. 
 Another Day And Some Thought They Could See Trees On The Mountains Ahead 
 Of Them, And This Renewed Their Courage Greatly. In The Middle Of The 
 Day They Suffered Greatly With The Heat And The Dry Air Seemed To Drink 
 Up Every Bit Of Moisture From Everybody. When They Killed An Ox They 
 Saved The Blood And Ate It. The Intestines, Cleaned With The Fingers, 
 Made Food When Roasted On The Fire, And Pieces Of Hide, Singed And 
 Roasted, Helped To Sustain Life. The Water Was Nearly All Gone. Only 
 Power Of Will And Strength Of Body Had Kept Any. Capt. Asa Haines Sat 
 Down One Day And Said He Could Go No Farther, But His Comrade, L.D. 
 Stephens, Who Had Kept A Little Rice, A Little Tea, And A Dry Crust Of 
 Bread For Time Of Need, Took A Little Water In A Cup And Made Some Soup 
 Which He Forced His Friend To Eat And Soon He Revived And Was Able To 
 Move On Again. That Was True Friendship. 
   
   
   
 The Next Night Stevens Himself Awoke And Seemed Perishing With Thirst. 
 He Crawled Over To Doty's Bed And Begged For Just One Sup Of Water, Doty 
 In The Goodness Of His Heart, Took His Canteen From Under His Head 
 Divided The Last Few Drops With Him And The Death Which Threatened Him 
 Was Held Off. Capt. Doty Found It Necessary To Talk Very Seriously To 
 Those Who Mourned And Talked Of Failing. He Never Gave Up In The Least. 
 He Encouraged All To Make Every Step They Could And Know No Such Word As 
 Fail. When They Said That Death Would Be Easier Than Life, He Told Them 
 So, But That Life Was Possible If They Only Willed It, And A Better Life 
 Than Had Been Theirs. And So He Kept Them Encouraged And Kept Them 
 Putting One Foot Before The Other, Pointing Out The Ever Lessening 
 Distance To The Mountain Before Them. He Appealed To Their Manhood. "Be 
 Men," Said He, "Be Brave And Courageous, And You Have More Strength Than 
 You Believe." Thus By Example And Words He Proved To Be A True Captain 
 To His Little Band. 
 
 
 
 Chapter 13 Pg 217 
   
   
   
 Their Water Was All Gone, Every Drop, And Still The Foot-Hills Seemed 
 Far Away. The Supply Of Meat Ran Out. Tom Shannon Killed An Ox, And When 
 Those Who Had Cattle Had Taken Some, The Others Who Had None Were Told 
 To Divide The Rest. There Was No Water To Dress Or Cook It, But It 
 Helped To Sustain Life. Entrails, Bones, Sinews, Bits Of Hide And 
 Everything Was Used. One Man Was Seen With An Ox Horn, Burning The End 
 In The Fire And Gnawing Away At The Softened Portion. It Was Something 
 Terrible To See Human Beings Eating What The Dogs Would Cast Aside. One 
 Man Saw Some Moist Looking Earth On The Shady Side Of A Bunch Of Brush 
 And He Dug Down And Got A Handful Of It, From Which He Tried To Suck The 
 Moisture. He Failed, And The Bad Taste Of The Earth Made Him Suffer More 
 Than Before. Many Bones Of Horses And Cattle Now Appeared Along The 
 Trail. They Seemed To Have Been There A Long Time, And Some Were Partly 
 Decayed. On This Waterless Stretch One Of Their Number, A Frenchman, 
 Wandered Off, Searching For Water In Little Hollows Or Puddles, And 
 Never Came Back To Camp. He Was Supposed To Be Dead, But Ten Years 
 Afterward Some Surveyors Found Him In A Digger Indian Camp. 
   
   
   
 An Idea How Selfish Men Will Get Under Such Circumstances May Be Gained 
 By Relating That On One Occasion When An Ox Was Killed The Liver Was 
 Carried To The Brave Little Mrs. Brier For Herself And Children, And She 
 Laid It Aside For A Few Moments Till She Could Attend To Some Other 
 Duties Before Cooking It. Darkness Coming On Meanwhile, Some 
 Unprincipled, Ungallant Thief Stole It, And Only Bits Of Offal And 
 Almost Uneatable Pieces Were Left To Sustain Their Lives. That Any One 
 Could Steal The Last Morsel From A Woman And Her Children Surpasses 
 Belief, But Yet It Was Plain That There Was At Least One Man In The 
 Party Who Could Do It. No One Can Fully Understand Or Describe Such 
 Scenes As This Unless He Has Looked Into Just Such Hungry Looking, 
 Haggard Eyes And Faces, A Mixture Of Determination And Despair, The 
 Human Expression Almost Vanishing, And The Face Of A Starving Wolf Or 
 Jackal Taking Its Place, There Are No Words To Paint Such A State Of 
 Things To Him Who Has Never Seen And Known. 
   
   
   
 But There Were True Men, True, Charitable Hearts In That Little Band. 
 Though Death Stared Them In The Face They Never Forgot Their Fellow Men. 
 As They Slowly Crawled Along Many Would Wander Here And There Beside The 
 Trail And Fall Behind, Especially The Weaker Ones, And Many Were The 
 Predictions That Such And Such A One Would Never Come Up Again, Or Reach 
 The Camp. Then It Was That These Noble Souls, Tired Almost Beyond 
 Recovery Themselves, Would Take Water And Go Back To Seek The Wandering 
 Ones And Give Them Drink And Help Them On. More Than One Would Thus Have 
 Perished In The Sands But For The Little Canteen Of Water Carried Back 
 By Some Friend. Only A Swallow Or Two Would Often Revive Their Failing 
 Strength And Courage, And With Slow Step They Would Move On Again. How 
 Much Good A Crust Of Bread Would Have Done Such A Poor Creature. Bread 
 There Was None--Nothing But The Flesh Of Their Poor Oxen, Wasted And 
 
 
 
 Chapter 13 Pg 218 
 Consumed By Days Of Travel And Lack Of Food Till It Had No Goodness In 
 It. Even The Poor Oxen, Every Night Seemed To Be The End Of Their 
 Walking; Every Morning It Was Feared That That Would Be The Last Time 
 They Would Be Able To Rise Upon Their Feet. 
   
   
   
 Already Five Or Six Days Had Passed Since They Left The Camp At The 
 Willows Where They Had Their Last Supply Of Water, And Still They Were 
 On The Desert. The Journey Was Longer Than They Had Expected, Partly 
 Owing To The Slow Progress They Had Made For There Were Frequent Stops 
 To Rest Or They Could Not Move At All. The Mountains Seemed Nearer Every 
 Day, And The Trees Were Outlined More Plainly Each Morning As They 
 Started Out. Capt. Doty Used Every Circumstance To Encourage Them. He 
 Would Remark Upon The Favorable Signs Of Water In The Hills Before Them, 
 And The Hope That There Might Be Some Game To Provide Better Meat Than 
 That Of Starving Oxen. Thus He Renewed Their Hope And Kept Alive Their 
 Courage. He Must Have Had A Great Deal Of Fortitude To Hide His Own Sad 
 Feelings, For They Must As Surely Have Come To Him As To Any One, And To 
 Keep Up Always An Air Of Hope, Courage, And Determination To Succeed. If 
 He Had Been A Man Of Less Spirit And Good Judgment It Is Very Probable 
 That Many More Would Have Been Left By The Wayside To Die. 
   
   
   
 About This Point The Trail Which Had Been Growing Fainter And Fainter, 
 Seemed To Vanish Entirely. One Could Move In Almost Any Direction To 
 Right Or Left As He Chose, And Because Of This, Previous Travel Had 
 Doubtless Scattered And Thus Left No Trail. It Was Thought Best That 
 This Company Should Spread Out And Approach The Mountains In As Broad A 
 Front As Possible So As To Multiply The Chances Of Finding Water, And So 
 They Started Out In Pairs, Some To The Right And Some To The Left, Each 
 Selecting The Point Where Water Seemed Most Probable. 
   
   
   
 Tom Shannon And A Companion Were One Of These Pairs. Tom Was One Of The 
 Few Who Still Stuck To His Gun, For He Felt That It Might Save His Life 
 Sometime. He And His Companion Separated About A Mile, Each Looking At 
 All Points That Showed The Least Sign Of Water. Suddenly A Jack Rabbit 
 Started From A Bush, The First Game Shannon Had Seen For More Than A 
 Month. He Pulled The Rifle On Him As He Was Making Some Big Bound And 
 Had The Good Luck To Nearly Split His Head Open. Rushing Up To His Game 
 He Put His Mouth To The Wound And Sucked The Warm Blood As It Flowed, 
 For It Was The First Liquid He Had Seen; But Instead Of Allaying His 
 Fearful Thirst It Seemed To Make It Worse And He Seemed Delirious. A 
 Little Way Up The Gulch He Saw A Rock And A Green Bush And Steered For 
 It, But Found No Water. He Sat Down With His Back To The Rock, His Rifle 
 Leaning Up Near By, Pulled His Old Worn Hat Over His Eyes, And Suffered 
 An Agony Of Sickness. He Realized That Life Was Leaving His Body, And 
 There He Sat With No Power To Move And No Desire To Make An Effort. It 
 Seemed As If He Could See Plain Before Him All The Trail From Where He 
 Sat, Back Over All The Deserts, Mountains And Rivers To The Old Place In 
 Illinois. He Entirely Forgot The Present, And Seemed Unconscious Of 
 
 
 
 Chapter 13 Pg 219 
 Everything But The Pictures Of The Past. The Mind Seemed Growing Freer 
 From Its Attachment To The Body And At Liberty To Take In His Whole Past 
 Life, And Bright Scenes That Had Gone Before. How Long He Sat Thus He 
 Knows Not. His Companion Was Fortunate In Finding Water, And When He Had 
 Refreshed Himself He Set Out To Find Poor Tom Of Whom He Could See 
 Nothing. Going Toward Where He Heard The Shot He Followed On Till He Saw 
 Him At The Rock, Almost Doubled Up, With His Face Concealed By His Hat. 
 "O! Tom!" Said He, But There Came No Answering Motion, And Going Nearer 
 He Called Again And Still No Answer And No Sign. Poor Tom Had Surely 
 Passed On To The Better Land, Thought He, And Salvation Was So Near. He 
 Approached And Lifted The Hat Rim. There Was A Movement Of The Eyes, A 
 Quivering Of The Muscles Of The Face, And A Sort Of Semi-Unconscious 
 Stare Such As Precedes Approaching Dissolution. 
   
   
   
 Quickly Holding Back His Head He Poured Water Between His Lips From His 
 Canteen And It Was Swallowed. Then A Little More, And Then Some More, 
 And Life Seemed Coming Back Again Into A Troublesome World, Bringing 
 Pain With It, And The Consciousness Of A Suffering Body. After A Time He 
 Felt Better And Was Helped To His Feet, And Together They Went To The 
 Water Hole Where They Made A Fire And Cooked The Rabbit Which Was The 
 First Savory Meat They Had Tasted For A Long Time. Tom Felt Better And 
 Told His Companion How He Felt After Tasting The Warm Rabbit's Blood, 
 And How He Had Nearly Gone Off Into The Sleep Of Death. 
   
   
   
 "If You Had Been A Little Longer Finding Me," Said Tom, "I Should Soon 
 Have Been Out Of This Sad World." They Fired A Signal Gun, Looked Down 
 At The Bones Of The Rabbit, Drank More Water, And Gradually Felt New 
 Life Coming To Them. The Mountains Seemed More Fertile, And There Was 
 Brush And Grass Near By, Timber Farther Up, And Still Higher A Cap Of 
 Snow Extending Far Along The Range, Both North And South. Towards Night 
 On This Eventful Day The Scattered Travelers Began To Come Slowly Into 
 Camp Attracted By The Guns And The Smoke Of The Fire Made By Those Who 
 First Found The Water. Some Were Nearly As Far Gone As Tom Shannon Was, 
 And Great Caution Had To Used In Giving Them Water On Their Empty 
 Stomach. One Man Named Robinson Became So Weak Before He Got Near Camp 
 That His Companions Placed Him On The Back Of One Of The Animals And A 
 Man Walked On Either Side To Catch Him If He Fell Off. When They Got 
 Within A Mile Of The Water He Insisted That He Was Strong Enough To Take 
 Care Of Himself And Not Be Watched Every Minute, And They Relaxed Their 
 Vigilance. He Soon Fell Off, And When They Went To Him He Refused To Be 
 Put Back On The Animal Again Or To Walk Any Farther. "Just Spread My 
 Blankets Down," Said He, "And I Will Lie Down And Rest A Little And 
 After A While I Will Come Along Into Camp." So They Left Him And Pushed 
 On To Water, And When They Were A Little Refreshed Went Back To Him With 
 Water, And To Help Him To Come In, But When They Came To Him They Found 
 Him Dead. He Did Not Seem To Have Moved After He Had Lain Down. He Did 
 Not Seem So Bad Off As Shannon Was When He Lay Down, And Probably A Few 
 Swallows Of Water At That Time Would Have Saved His Life. It Seemed Sad 
 Indeed, After So Much Suffering And Striving To Get Along, That He 
 Should Die Within A Mile Of Water That Would Have Saved His Life. If He 
 
 
 
 Chapter 13 Pg 220 
 Had Possessed A Little More Strength So That The Spark Of Life Could 
 Have Remained A Little Longer, The Cooling Moisture From The Canteen 
 Would Have Revived It, And A Little Rest Would Have Placed Him On His 
 Feet Again. They Had No Tools To Dig A Grave, Not Even A Knife For They 
 Had Left Every Weight In Camp, So They Covered Him Closely In His 
 Blankets And Sadly Returned To Their Friends. They Had All Along Hoped 
 That The Frenchman Who Had Wandered Away Would Come In, But He Never 
 Came. There Were Several Water Holes Scattered Around At This Point 
 Which Seemed To Be A Sort Of Sunken Place In The Hills, And Quite Large 
 Brush Could Be Obtained For Fire, And Grass For The Oxen. Those Who Had 
 Been Good Hunters And Had Thrown Away Their Rifles As Useless Burdens, 
 Now Began To Look At Hills Before Them And Think That Game Might Be 
 Found In Them, As Well As Water. There Were Only One Or Two Guns In The 
 Whole Party, They Thought That This Must Surely Be The Edge Of The Great 
 Desert They Had Crossed, And Only The Snow Range Before Them Could Be 
 The Obstacle That Separated Them From Los Angeles. 
   
   
   
 One Day From Here Would Bring Them To The Edge Of The Snow, And They 
 Debated As To The Best Course To Pursue. Some Of Them Were Fearful They 
 Could Not Cross The Snow With The Oxen, For It Seemed To Be Quite Deep. 
 The Best Place To Cross Seemed Directly West Of Them. South Was A Higher 
 Peak, And To The North It Was Surely Impassible. There Seemed To Be A 
 Faint Sign Of A Trail From This Point Towards The Lowest Point In The 
 Snow Mountains. There Were Some Bones Of Cattle Around The Springs Which 
 They Thought Was An Indication That In Years Gone By There Had Been Some 
 Traveling On This Trail. There Surely Would Be Water In The Snow Which 
 Could Be Got By Melting It, And On The Whole It Seemed Best To Make The 
 Attempt To Cross At The Lowest Place. There Were No Signs Of Travel 
 Except The Trail Which Had Not Been Used In Years, Not Signs Of 
 Civilization Except The Bones. 
   
   
   
 Starting From The Water Holes Which Showed No Signs Of Having Been Used 
 For Several Years, Their Next Camp Was, As They Had Calculated, On The 
 Edge Of The Snow Where They Found Plenty Of Dry Juniper Trees For Fire. 
 And Of Course Plenty Of Water. Here They Killed An Ox And Fed The Hungry 
 So That They Were Pretty Well Refreshed. This Was An Elevated Place And 
 They Could Look Back Over The Trail Across The Desert For, What Seemed 
 To Them, A Hundred Miles, And The Great Dangers Of Their Journey Were 
 Discussed. Said One Of Them To Tom Shannon:--"Tom, You Killed The First 
 Game We Have Come Across In Two Months. Even The Buzzards And Coyotes 
 Knew Better Than To Go Out In Into The Country Where The Cursed Mormon 
 Saint Sent Us Numbskulls." Another Said That While They Had Been Seeking 
 A Heaven On Earth They Had Passed Through Purgatory, Or Perhaps A Worse 
 Place Still Nearer The One From Which Sulphurous Fumes Arise, And Now 
 They Hoped That There Might Be A Somewhat More Heavenly Place Beyond The 
 Snow. One Who Had Been Silent Seemed Awakened By Inspiration And Spoke 
 In Impromptu Lines Somewhat As Follows, As He Pointed Out To The Dim 
 Distance:-- 
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 13 Pg 221 
   
   
   "Yonder In Mountains' Gray Beauty, 
       Wealth And Fame Decay. 
   Yonder, The Sands Of The Desert, 
   Yonder, The Salt Of The Sea, 
   Yonder, A Fiery Furnace, 
   Yonder, The Bones Of Our Friends, 
   Yonder The Old And The Young 
      Lie Scattered Along The Way." 
   
   
   
   
 Some Even Confessed The Desperate Thoughts That Had Come To Their Minds 
 When They Were Choking And Starving. We Have Mentioned Four Of The Train 
 Who Had Perished Beside The Trail And It Will Be Remembered That One 
 Party Of Eleven Started Out On Foot Before The Wagons Were Abandoned By 
 The Rest Of The Party. Nothing Was Heard Of These For Seven Years, But 
 Long Afterward Nine Skeletons Were Found At The Remains Of A Camp, And 
 The Other Two Were Afterward Seen In The Gold Fields. When Spoken To 
 About This Party, They Burst Into Tears And Could Not Talk Of It. So It 
 Is Known That At Least Thirteen Men Perished In The Country Which Has 
 Well Been Named Death Valley. 
   
   
   
 People Who Have Always Been Well Fed, And Have Never Suffered From 
 Thirst Till Every Drop Of Moisture Seemed Gone From The Body, So They 
 Dare Not Open Their Mouth Lest They Dry Up And Cease To Breathe, Can 
 Never Understand, Nor Is There Language To Convey The Horrors Of Such A 
 Situation. The Story Of These Parties May Seem Like Fairy Fables, But To 
 Those Who Experienced It All, The Strongest Statements Come Far Short Of 
 The Reality. No One Could Believe How Some Men, When They Are Starving 
 Take On The Wild Aspect Of Savage Beasts, And That One Could Never Feel 
 Safe In Their Presence. Some Proved True And Kind And Charitable Even 
 With Death Staring Them In The Face, And Never Forgot Their Fellow Men. 
 Some That Seemed Weakest Proved Strongest In The Final Struggle For 
 Existence. 
   
   
   
 Early Next Morning Before The Sun Rose They Started To Cross The Snow, 
 Leaving Their Comrade Robinson Behind, Rolled Up In His Blankets, Taking 
 His Everlasting Sleep So Far As The Troubles Of This World Are 
 Concerned. What The Day Would Bring Forth Very Few Could Have Any Idea. 
 Go On They Must, And This Direction Seemed Most Promising. If The Snow 
 Should Prove Hard Enough To Hold Up The Oxen They Could Probably Cross 
 Before Night, But If Compelled To Camp In The Snow It Was A Doubtful 
 Case For Them. 
   
   
   
 The Snow Held Them As They Advanced On It, But Grew A Little Softer As 
 
 
 
 Chapter 13 Pg 222 
 The Sun Got Higher. The Tracks Of Both Men And Animals Were Stained With 
 Blood From Their Worn-Out Feet. When They Turned The Summit They Found 
 More Timber And The Ravine They Followed Was So Shaded That The Force Of 
 The Sun Was Broken, And They Really Did Not Suffer Very Much From 
 Slumping Through The Snow, And So Got Safely Over. Not Far Below The 
 Snow They Found A Running Brook Of Clear, Sweet Water, With Willows 
 Along The Banks And Trees On The Hills, The First Really Good Water For 
 A Month Or Two. This Is The Same Camp Where Rogers And His Companion Ate 
 Their Meal Of Quail, Hawk And Crow A Few Days Before, And These 
 Travelers Knew By The Remains Of The Little Camp Fire That They Were 
 Following On The Trail Of The Two Men Who Had Gone Before. 
   
   
   
 This Place Was So Great An Improvement On The Camps Of The Past That All 
 Hands Began To Talk And Act More Rational As Hope Dawned More Brightly 
 On Them. Those Who Had Guns Branched Off To Search For Game, But Found 
 They Were Too Weak For That Kind Of Work, And Had To Sit Down Very Often 
 To Rest. When They Tried To Run They Stumbled Down And Made Very Poor 
 Progress. 
   
   
   
 Capt. Doty, Tom Shannon And Bill Rude Sat Down To Rest On A Bold Point 
 Above The Creek. While There Three Wild Horses Came Along Within Easy 
 Range, And Thinking They Would Form Better Meat Than The Oxen Each Man 
 Picked His Animal And All Fired Simultaneously, Bringing Them All To The 
 Ground. This Seemed A Piece Of Glorious Luck, And All Rushed In Like 
 Wolves Lifter A Wounded Animal. It Was Not Very Long Before Each Had A 
 Chunk Of Meat In His Hand, And Many A One Did Not Stop From Eating 
 Because It Was Not Cooked. Such Declared They Never Ate Anything So 
 Delicious In All Their Lives Before, And Wondered Why Horses Were Not 
 Used As Food Instead Of Hogs And Cattle. As They Satisfied Their 
 Ravenous Appetites They Ate More Like Beasts Than Like Men, So Nearly 
 Were They Starved, And So Nearly Had Their Starving Condition Made Them 
 Fall From Their Lofty Estate. 
   
   
   
 As They Passed On Down This Canon They Found It Very Brushy And On The 
 Dry Leaves Under The Wide-Spreading Trees They Saw Signs Of Bear And 
 Perhaps Other Animals. There Were Some Swampy Places Where It Was 
 Grassy, And Into These The Cattle Rushed With Great Eagerness For The 
 Food They Had So Long Suffered For. Some Of Mr. Brier's Cattle Went In, 
 And In Tramping Around For Food Sank Deep Into The Mud And Could Not Be 
 Coaxed Out Again. Mrs. Brier Threw Clubs At Them But They Did Not Seem 
 Inclined To Pay Much Attention To Her Attacks So She Was Forced To Go In 
 After Them Herself, And In So Doing Also Sank Into The Mud And Could Not 
 Get Out Without Assistance. All This Time Her Reverend Husband Sat 
 Outside On The Hard Ground At A Safe Distance, But Did Not Offer Any 
 Help. Probably If An Extended And Learned Lecture On The Effects Of 
 Gravitation Would Have Done Any Good He Would Have Been Ready With 
 Prompt And Extended Service To One Whom He Had Promised To Love And 
 Cherish. 
 
 
 
 Chapter 13 Pg 223 
   
 About This Time L.D. Stevens Came Along And Seeing The Condition Of The 
 Unfortunate Woman, At Once Went To Her Assistance And Helped Her To Dry 
 Land. Brier Himself Never Made A Move Nor Said A Word. Stevens Looked 
 Terribly Cross At Him And Remarked To His Companions That If The 
 Preacher Himself Had Been The One Stuck In The Mud He Would Have Been 
 Quite Inclined To Leave Him There For All Of Helping Him. 
   
   
   
 The Canon Grew Narrow As They Descended, And The Brush Thicker, So That 
 To Follow The Bed Of The Stream Was The Only Way To Get Along. The 
 Cattle Seemed To Scent A Bear And Stampeded In Terror Through The Brush 
 In Various Directions, All Except One Which Was Being Led By A Rope. 
 They Tried To Follow The Animals In A Desperate Effort To Recover Them 
 And A Few Blankets They Had Upon Their Backs, But Could Only Make Slow 
 Progress. Tom Shannon And Two Others Found A Fresh Bear Track And 
 Determined To Follow It Awhile In The Hope Of Having Revenge On The 
 Cause Of Their Mishap With The Oxen. They Took Their Blankets And Kept 
 The Trail Till Night When They Camped, But Were At So Great An Elevation 
 That A Snowstorm Came With Six Inches Of Snow So They Could No Longer 
 Follow The Track. 
   
   
   
 They Were Very Hungry And On The Way Back Came Across Some Wild Cherries 
 Which Had Dried Perfectly Dry As They Hung On The Bushes. These They 
 Picked And Ate, Cracking The Seeds With Their Teeth, And Declaring Them 
 To Be The Best Of Fruit. Good Appetites Made Almost Anything Taste Good 
 Then. They Got Back To The Creek Next Day Pretty Nearly Starved, And 
 With Neither A Bear Nor Runaway Oxen To Reward Them For Their Two Days' 
 Hard Work. 
   
   
   
 Wood And Water Were Plenty, But Grass Was Scarce And Their Ox Had To 
 Live On Brush And Leaves, But This Was Infinitely Better Than The 
 Stunted And Bitter Shrubs Of The Desert. They Came Out Of The Brush At 
 Last Into The Open Bottom Land Where The Brook Sank Out Of Sight In The 
 Sand, And Sage Brush Appeared All About. From This On, Over The Elevated 
 Point Which Projected Out Nearly Across The Valley, Their Experience And 
 Emotions In Coming In Sight Of Vast Herds Of Cattle Feeding On Rolling 
 Grassy Hills, Or Reclining Under Great Oak Trees Scattered Over The More 
 Level Lands, Were Much The Same As Came To The Author And His Party When 
 The Same Scene Was Suddenly Opened To Them. Signs Of Civilization And Of 
 Plenty So Suddenly Appearing After So Many Weeks Of Suffering And 
 Desolation Was Almost Enough To Turn Their Heads, And More Than One Of 
 The Stout-Hearted Pioneers Shed Tears Of Joy. Only A Few Days Before And 
 They Could Scarcely Have Believed It Possible To Find A Spot So Lovely. 
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 13 Pg 224 
 But To Hungry, More Than Half Starved Men, Points Of Artistic Beauty And 
 Sober Reflections Over The Terrors Of The Past Found Little Place, And 
 Their First Thought Was To Satisfy The Cravings Of Hunger Which Were 
 Assuredly None The Less When They Beheld The Numerous Fat Cattle All 
 Around Them. There Was No One To Ask Or To Buy From And To Kill And Eat 
 Without Permission Might Be Wrong And Might Get Them Into Difficulty, 
 But One Might As Well Ask A Starving Wolf To Get Permission To Slay And 
 Eat When A Fat Lamb Came Across His Path As To Expect These Men To Take 
 Very Much Time To Hunt Up Owners. When Life Or Death Are The Questions 
 That Present Themselves Men Are Not So Apt To Discuss The Right Or Wrong 
 Of Any Matter. 
   
   
   
 Tom Shannon And A Couple Of Others Did Not Wait Long At Any Rate, But 
 Crawled Down The Creek Bed Till They Were Opposite A Few Fine Animals 
 And Then Crept Up The Bank Very Near To Them. Two Or Three Shots Rang 
 Out And As Many Fine Cattle Were Brought Down. The Live Cattle Ran Away 
 And The Hungry Men Soon Had The Field To Themselves. Much Quicker Than 
 Can Be Told The Men Had Fat Pieces Of Meat In Their Hands Which They 
 Devoured Without Cooking. The Men Acted Like Crazy Creatures At A 
 Barbacue--Each One Cut For Himself With Very Little Respect For Anyone. 
 The Boldest Got In First And The More Retiring Came In Later, But All 
 Had Enough And Gradually Resumed More Human Actions And Appearance. 
   
   
   
 They Had Hardly Finished Their Bloody Feast When They Saw A Small Squad 
 Of Men On Horseback Advancing Toward Them, And As They Came Near It Was 
 Quite Plain That They Were All Armed In Some Way. All Had Lassoes At 
 Their Saddles, Some Had Old-Fashioned Blunderbusses, And Nearly Every 
 One Had A _Macheta_ Or Long Bladed Spanish Knife. As The Horsemen Drew 
 Near They Formed Into Something Like Military Order And Advanced Slowly 
 And Carefully. It Was Pretty Evident They Thought They Were About To 
 Encounter A Band Of Thieving Indians, But As They Came Closer They 
 Recognized The Strangers As Americans And Passed The Compliments With 
 Them In A Rather Friendly Manner. 
   
   
   
 Some Of The Jayhawkers Had Been In The Mexican War And Understood A Few 
 Words Of Spanish, And By A Liberal Use Of Signs Were Able To Communicate 
 With The Armed Party And Tell Them Who They Were, Where They Were Going, 
 And The Unfortunate Condition In Which They Found Themselves. The Men 
 Did Not Seem Angry At Losing So Few Of Their Cattle, And Doubtless 
 Considered Themselves Fortunate In Not Suffering To The Extent Of Some 
 Hundreds As They Did Sometimes By Indian Raids, And Invited The Whole 
 Party Down To The Ranch House Of The San Francisquito Rancho Of Which 
 This Was A Part. Arrived At The House The Ranch Men Brought In A Good 
 Fat Steer Which They Killed And Told The Poor Americans To Help 
 Themselves And Be Welcome. This Was On The Fourth Day Of February, 1850. 
 
 
 
 Chapter 13 Pg 225 
 The Whole Party Remained Here To Rest Themselves And Their Oxen For 
 Several Days, And Were Royally Entertained By The People At The Ranch. 
 They Talked Over The Plans For The Future, And Considered The Best 
 Course To Pursue. They Thought It Would Be Wise To Keep Their Oxen For 
 These Would Now Improve In Flesh, And As They Had No Money With Which To 
 Buy Food They Might Still Rely On Them In Further Travels. The Best Oxen 
 Had Survived, For The Failing Ones Were Selected To Be Killed When They 
 Were Forced To Have Food. The Weaker Of Their Comrades Had Perished In 
 The Desert, And The Remainder Of The Train Consisted Of The Strongest 
 Men And The Strongest Oxen, And There Seemed To Be No Question But That 
 They Could All Live In This Country Where Grass And Water Were Both 
 Abundant, And Every Sign Of More Or Less Wild Game. 
   
   
   
 Those Of The Company Who Had No Cattle Made Their Way Directly To Los 
 Angeles, And From Thence To The Coast From Which Most Of Them Reached 
 San Francisco By Sailing Vessel. Those Who Had No Money Were Given A 
 Passage On Credit, And It Is Believed That All Such Debts Were 
 Afterwards Honestly Paid. 
   
   
   
 Capt. Doty Made A Proposition To Buy Out The Oxen Of Some Who Had Only 
 One Or Two, Giving His Note For Them Payable In San Francisco Or 
 Anywhere Up North They Might Chance To Meet, And Many Of Them Accepted 
 And Went To The Coast. In This Way Doty Secured Oxen Enough To Supply 
 One For Each Of Those Who Decided To Go With Him. They Decided To Use 
 Them For Pack Animals To Carry Their Blankets, And To Proceed Slowly 
 Toward The Mines, Killing Game, If Possible, And Permitting Their 
 Animals To Graze And Improve In Condition As They Moved. 
   
   
   
 There Must Have Been From Twenty-Five To Forty People Gathered At The 
 Ranch. Among Them Was The Rev. J.W. Brier Who Seemed To Want To Impress 
 It On The New California Friends That He Was The Man Of All Others To Be 
 Honored. The Ranchman Was A Good Catholic, And Brier Tried To Make Him 
 Understand That He, Also, Was Very Devout. He Said, And Repeated To Him 
 Very Often--"Me Preacher," But He Did Not Succeed Very Well In 
 Impressing The Good Californian With The Dignity Of His Profession, For 
 He Could Talk No Spanish And Was Not Highly Gifted In Sign Language. 
   
   
   
 When They Went Away They Had No Way To Reward Their Good Friends Who Had 
 Been Friends Indeed To Them. They Could Only Look Their Thanks And 
 Express Themselves In A Very Few Words Of Spanish. "_Adios Amigos_," 
 Said They To The Scantily Clothed Travelers As They Set Out On Their Way 
 To The Mines. 
   
   
   
 They Followed Down The Course Of The River That Flowed Through The 
 
 
 
 Chapter 13 Pg 226 
 Valley, The Santa Clara River, And Knew That It Would Take Them To The 
 Sea At Last. Before They Reached The Mission Of San Buena Ventura, Near 
 The Sea, They Ran Out Of Meat Again, For They Had Failed To Find Game As 
 They Had Expected, And Capt. Asa Haynes Took The Chances Of Killing A 
 Spanish Cow That Looked Nice And Fat. They Camped Around The Carcass And 
 Ate, And Smoked The Meat That Was Left. While Thus Engaged Two Horsemen 
 Approached, And After Taking A Good Look At The Proceedings, Galloped 
 Off Again. When The Party Arrived At The Mission They Were Arrested And 
 Taken Before The Alcalde To Give An Account Of Their Misdeeds. They 
 Realized That They Were Now In A Bad Fix, And Either Horn Of The Dilemma 
 Was Bad Enough. They Could Not Talk Spanish; They Had No Money; They Had 
 Killed Somebody's Cow; They Were Very Hungry; They Might Be Willing To 
 Pay, But Had No Way Of Doing It; They Did Not Want To Languish In Jail, 
 And How To Get Out Of It They Could Not Understand. Luck Came To Them, 
 However, In The Shape Of A Man Who Could Speak Both English And Spanish, 
 To Whom They Told Their Story And Who Repeated It To The Alcalde, 
 Telling Him Of Their Misfortunes And Unfortunate Condition, And When 
 That Officer Found Out All The Circumstances He Promptly Released Them 
 As He Did Not Consider Them As Criminals. The Cow Was Probably Worth No 
 More Than Ten Dollars. 
   
   
   
 At Santa Barbara They Found A Chance To Trade Off Some Of Their Oxen For 
 Mares, Which Were Not Considered Worth Much, And Managed The Barter So 
 Well That They Came Out With A Horse Apiece And A Few Dollars Besides, 
 With Which To Buy Grub Along The Road. They Depended Mostly On Their 
 Guns For Supplying Them With Food. They Supposed They Were About Three 
 Hundred Miles From San Francisco, And Expected To Meet With But Few 
 People Except At The Missions, Of Which They Had Learned There Were A 
 Few Along The Road. At These There Was Not Much To Be Had Except Dried 
 Beef. However, They Managed To Use The Guns With Fair Success, And At 
 Last Arrived Safely At Stockton Where They Sold Some Of Their Horses For 
 More Than Double What They Cost, And With A Small Number Of Horses They 
 Packed On To The Gold Mines. 
   
   
   
 Those Of The Party Who Went To Los Angeles Managed In One Way Or Another 
 To Get Through On Schooners, And Many Of Them, After A Year Or Two Of 
 Hard Work, Made Some Money And Returned To Their Homes In Illinois. It 
 Is Hardly Necessary To Add That They Did Not Return Via Death Valley. 
   
   
   
 Some Years Afterward The Members Of This Party Who Had Returned To Their 
 Eastern Homes Formed Themselves Into An Organization Which They Called 
 The Jayhawkers' Union, Appointed A Chairman And Secretary, And Each Year 
 Every One Whose Name And Residence Could Be Obtained Was Notified To Be 
 Present At Some Designated Place On The Fourth Day Of February Which Was 
 The Date On Which They Considered They Passed From Impending Death Into 
 A Richly Promising Life. They Always Had As Good A Dinner As Illinois 
 Could Produce, Cooked By The Wives And Daughters Of The Pioneers, And 
 The Old Tales Were Told Over Again. 
 
 
 
 Chapter 13 Pg 227 
   
   
   
 One Part Of The Program Was The Calling Of The Roll, And Such Reports 
 And Letters As Had Come To Hand. The Following Is A List Of The Members 
 Of The Party So Far As Can Be Ascertained, As Gathered From 
 Recollections And From The Reports Of The Meetings Of The Reunions. 
   
   
   
 List Of Jayhawkers. 
   
   
   
 The Following Named Were Living, So Far As Known, In 1893:--John B. 
 Colton And Alonzo C. Clay, Of Galesburg, Ill., Luther A. Richards, Of 
 Woodhull, Ill., Chas. B. Mecum, Of Ripley, Iowa, John W. Plummer, Of 
 Tulon, Ill., Edward Bartholomew, Urban P. Davidson, John Crosscup And L. 
 Dow Stephens, Of San Jose, California, Harrison Frans And Thomas 
 Shannon, Of Los Gatos, Cal., J.W. Brier And Wife, Lodi, Cal., Three 
 Children Of Mr. Brier. 
   
   
   
 The Following Are Supposed To Be Dead:--Ann Haines, Knoxville, Ill., 
 Sidney P. Edgerton, Formerly Of Blair, Nebraska, Thomas Mcgrew, John 
 Cole, Wm. B. Rude, Wm. Robinson And Alex. Palmer, Of Knoxville, Ill., 
 Marshall B. Edgerton, Late Of Galesburg, Ill. Wm. Ischam, Of Rochester, 
 N.Y., Mr. ---- Fish, Of Oskaloosa, Iowa, John L. West, Aaron Larkin, 
 Capt. Edwin Doty And Brien Byram, Of Knoxville, Ill., Mr. ---- Carter, 
 Of Wisconsin, Geo. Allen, Leander Woolsey And Chas. Clark, Of Henderson, 
 Ill., Mr. ---- Gretzinger, Of Oskaloosa, Iowa, And A Frenchman Whose 
 Name Is Unknown. 
   
   
   
 There Were Some Others Connected More Or Less With The Party At Some 
 Part Of The Trip, But Not Coming In With The Jayhawker Organization. So 
 Far As Learned, Their Names Are As Follows:--John Galler, Jim Woods And 
 Jim Martin Of Miss., Ed Croker Of N.Y., David Funk, Mr. Town, Henry 
 Wade, Wife And Three Children, Nat Ward, John D. Martin, Of Texas, Old 
 Francis, A Frenchman, Fred Carr And Negro "Joe," From Miss. 
   
   
   
 There Were A Great Many Reports About Finding Rich Mines About This 
 Time, And These Stories Have Been Magnified And Told In All Sorts Of 
 Ways Since Then, And Parties Have Returned To Try To Find The Great 
 Riches. 
   
   
   
 Among The Jayhawkers Were Two Germans Who Could Speak But Little English 
 And Probably For This Reason, Kept Apart From The Remainder Of The 
 
 
 
 Chapter 13 Pg 228 
 Party. 
   
   
   
 One Day, After The Wagons Were Abandoned These German Fellows Were 
 Marching Along Alone With Their Packs On Their Backs In The Warm Sun, 
 Suffering Very Much For Want Of Water And Food, When One Of Them Sat 
 Down On A Hill-Side In Pretty Nearly Absolute Despair, While The Other 
 Man Went Down Into A Ravine Hoping To Find A Puddle Of Water In The 
 Rocky Bottom Somewhere, Though It Was Almost A Forlorn Hope. All At Once 
 He Called Out To His Partner On The Hill--"John, Come Down Here And Get 
 Some Of This Gold. There Is A Lot Of It." To This Poor John Galler Only 
 Replied:--"No, I Won't Come. I Don't Want Any Gold, But I Would Like 
 Very Much To Have Some Water And Some Bread." And So They Left The 
 Valuable Find And Slowly Walked On, Pulling Through At Last With The 
 Rest Of Them, And Reaching Los Angeles. 
   
   
   
 The Man Who Found The Gold Went To The Mission Of San Luis Rey And 
 Started A Small Clothing Store, And Some Time Afterward Was Killed. John 
 Galler Settled In Los Angeles And Established A Wagon Shop In Which He 
 Did A Successful Business. He Was An Honest, Industrious Man And The 
 People Had Great Confidence In Him. He Often Told Them About What His 
 Partner Had Said About Finding The Gold In The Desert, And The People 
 Gave Him An Outfit On Two Or Three Occasions To Go Back And Re-Locate 
 The Find, But He Did Not Seem To Have Much Idea Of Location, And When He 
 Got Back Into The Desert Again Things Looked So Different To Him That He 
 Was Not Able To Identify The Place, Or To Be Really Certain They Were On 
 The Same Trail Where His Companion Found The Gold. 
   
   
   
 The Author Saw Him In 1862 And Heard What He Had To Say About It, And Is 
 Convinced That It Was Not Gold At All Which They Saw. I Told Him That I 
 More Than Suspected That What He Saw Was Mica Instead Of Gold And That 
 Both He And His Partner Had Been Deceived, For More Than One Man Not 
 Used To Gold Had Been Deceived Before Now. "No Sir!" Said He, "I Saw 
 Lots Of Gold In Germany, And When I Saw That I Knew What It Was." The 
 Author Went Back Over That Trail In 1862 And Sought Out The German On 
 Purpose To Get Information About The Gold. He Could Not Give The Name Of 
 A Single Man Who Was In The Party At That Time, But Insisted That It Was 
 Gold He Saw And That He Knew The Trail. 
   
   
   
 The Author Was Able To Identify With Reasonable Certainty The Trails 
 Followed By The Different Parties, But Found No Signs Of Gold Formation 
 Except Some Barren Quartz, And This After An Experience Of Several Years 
 In Both Placer And Quartz Mines. So Honest John Galler's Famous Placer 
 Mine Still Remains In The Great List Of Lost Mines, Like The Gunsight 
 Lead And Other Noted Mines For Which Men Have Since Prospected In Vain. 
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 14 Pg 229 
   
 Alexander Combs Erkson Was One Of The Pioneers Of 1849, Having Left The 
 State Of Iowa In The Month Of May, When He Assisted In Organizing A 
 Company Known As The "Badger Company" At Kanesville, The Object Being 
 Mutual Assistance And Protection. This Company Joined The Bennett Party 
 Mentioned So Prominently In This History, At The Missouri, And Traveled 
 With Them Or Near Them To The Rendezvous Near Salt Lake Where The New 
 Company Was Organized For The Southern Trip Taken By The Death Valley 
 Party, The Jayhawkers And Others. As The Experience Of Mr. Erkson Was In 
 Some Respects Different To That Of The Parties Mentioned, He Having 
 Taken A Different Route For A Part Of The Way, It Was Thought Best To 
 Embody It In This History. The Following Was Dictated To The Editor Of 
 This Book, And As Mr. Erkson Died Before The Written Account Could Be 
 Revised By Him, It Is The Best That Can Possibly Be Obtained. 
   
   
   
        
   
   
 Mr. Erkson's Statement. 
   
   
   
 "We Arrived At The Mormon Camp Near Salt Lake, Salt Lake City, In The 
 Month Of August. Several Of Us Went To Work Getting Out Lumber For 
 Brigham Young While We Were Waiting And Resting. The Mormons All Advised 
 Us Not To Undertake To Go On By The Northern Route, And As The Travelers 
 Gathered At This Point They Canvassed The Situation. We Used Our Teams 
 When We Were At Work For Brigham And Assisted In Building A Dam Across A 
 Canon Where He Intended To Build A Woolen Mill. I Earned About A Hundred 
 Dollars By My Work, Which Was Paid To Me In Ten-Dollar Pieces Of A Gold 
 Coin Made By The Mormons. They Were Not Like The U.S. Coins. I Remember 
 One Side Had An Eye And The Words--'Holiness To The Lord.' 
   
   
   
 We Entered Into An Agreement With Capt. Hunt, A Mormon, To Pilot Us 
 Through, And Turned All Our Gold Into That Company, Thus Bringing None 
 Of The Mormon Gold With Us. We Went On With The Company As Has Been 
 Related In The Foregoing Pages, Till We Arrived At Mt. Misery, So Named 
 By Us, When We Took The Back Track, While Mr. Manley And The Others Went 
 On As They Have Related. We Had Meetings By The Light Of A Greenwood 
 Fire, And The Matter Was Talked Up In Little Knots Of People, And Then 
 
 
 
 Chapter 14 Pg 230 
 Some One Would Get Up And Speak. One J.W. Brier, A Preacher, Was The 
 Principal Blower. 'You Are Going Wrong!' Said He, We Should Go West, And 
 In Six Weeks We Will Be Loaded With Gold!' 
   
   
   
 Hunt Got A Little Confused At A Place Called Beaver Meadows, Or Mountain 
 Meadows, And Thought Perhaps He Could Find A New Road. Several Men Were 
 Sent Out To Look, And Some Of Us In Camp Played Ball For Amusement While 
 We Were Waiting. Hunt's Men Came Back And Said There Were No Prospects 
 Of A New Road, And He Said He Knew The Southern Route And Believed It 
 Would Be Safe To Go That Way. 
   
   
   
 He Told Us That We Must Decide The Next Day. When We Came To The Road 
 Where We Were To Separate He Filed Off On His Road And The Others Filed 
 Off On Their Road And Then Came Back With Their Whips In Their Hands. I 
 Had Filed In After Hunt, And They Tried To Convince Me That I Was Very 
 Wrong. A Mr. Norton Of Adrian, Mich., Promised Mrs. Erkson A Horse To 
 Ride If She Would Go, And So I Left Hunt And Turned In On The Other 
 Road, The Hindmost Wagon. This Is Going Back A Little With The History 
 And Bringing It Up To Mt. Misery. On My Way Back From Mt. Misery I 
 Climbed Up On A Big Rock And Inscribed The Date--Nov. 10, 1849. 
   
   
   
 In Our Journey We Came To What Is Called 'The Rim Of The Basin,' And 
 Traveled Along On That A Distance Till We Came To The Santa Clara River 
 And Saw Where The Indians Had Raised Corn And Melons. We Followed On 
 Down That Stream And Found Our Teams Gradually Failing. Noting This We 
 Decided To Overhaul Our Loads And Reject A Lot Of Things Not Strictly 
 Necessary To Preserve Life. I Know I Threw Out A Good Many Valuable And 
 Pretty Things By The Roadside. I Remember Six Volumes Of Rollin's 
 Ancient History, Nicely Bound, With My Name On The Back, That Were Piled 
 Up And Left. We Followed Along Near The Santa Clara River Till It 
 Emptied Into The Virgin River. It Was Somewhere Along Here That We First 
 Saw Some Yucca Trees. The Boys Often Set Fire To Them To See Them Burn. 
   
   
   
 The Virgin River Was A Small Stream Running On About The Course We 
 Wanted To Travel, And We Followed This Course For Thirty Or Forty Miles. 
 We Found Plenty Of Wood And Water And Mesquite. After Awhile The River 
 Turned Off To The Left, While We Wanted To Keep To The Right, So We 
 Parted Company There. We Heard Of A River Beyond Which They Called The 
 'Big Muddy' And We Went Up A Little Arroyo, Then Over A Divide To Some 
 Table Land That Led Us Down To The Big Muddy. We Made Our Wagons As 
 Light As Possible, Taking Off All The Boards And Stakes We Could 
 Possibly Get Along Without. Wm. Philipps And Others Were Placed On Short 
 Allowance. They Had An Idea That I Had More Provisions In My Wagon Than 
 I Ought To Have, But I Told Them That It Was Clothing That We Used To 
 Sleep On. I Divided Among Them Once Or Twice. When We Reached The Muddy 
 We Stopped Two Or Three Days For There Was Plenty Of Feed. It Was A 
 
 
 
 Chapter 14 Pg 231 
 Narrow Stream That Seemed As If It Must Come From Springs. It Was Narrow 
 Between Banks, But Ran Pretty Deep, And A Streak Of Fog Marked Its 
 Course In The Morning. We Understood It Was Not Very Far From Where We 
 Left The Virgin River To The Colorado, Some Said Not More Than Fourteen 
 Miles And That The Colorado Turned Sharply To The South At That Point. 
 Mr. Rhynierson And Wife Had A Child Born To Them On The Virgin River, 
 And It Was Named Virginia. 
   
   
   
 It Was A Gloomy Trip The Whole Time On The Muddy. I Lost Three Or Four 
 Head Of Cattle, All Within A Day And A Night. Mrs. Erkson Walked To 
 Lighten The Load, And Would Pick All The Bunches Of Grass She Saw And 
 Put Them On The Wagon To Feed The Oxen When We Stopped. I Let Them Pass 
 Me And Stopped And Fed The Cattle, And Slept Ourselves. It Was Said That 
 We Ran Great Risks From Indians, But We Did Not See Any. I Had At This 
 Time Only Two Yoke Of Oxen Left. 
   
   
   
 We Overtook The Party Next Morning At Nine O'clock, Having Met Some Of 
 Them Who Were Coming Back After Us. All Were Rejoiced That We Had Come 
 On Safely. Here I Met Elisha Bennett And Told Him My Story. He Said He 
 Could Sell Me A Yoke Of Oxen. He Had A Yoke In J.A. Philipps' Team And 
 Was Going To Take Them Out. He Said Nothing In Particular As To Price. I 
 Said That I Wanted To See Mr. Philipps And Talk With Him About The 
 Matter, For He Had Said Bennett Should Not Have The Cattle. I Went Over 
 To See Him And Spoke To Him About Bennett's Cattle And He Told Me They 
 Had Quarreled And I Could Have Them, And So We Made A Bargain. I Gave 
 Twenty Dollars For The Cattle, The Last Money I Had, And As Much 
 Provisions As He Could Carry On His Back. They Were Making Up A Party To 
 Reach The Settlements At The Williams Ranch, And I Made Arrangements For 
 Them To Send Back Provisions For Us. About Thirty Started That 
 Way--Young Men And Men With No Families With Them. 
   
   
   
 I Got Along Very Well With My New Team After That. It Was About Forty 
 Miles From Water To Water, And I Think We Camped Three Times. At One 
 Place We Found That Provisions Had Been Left, With A Notice That The 
 Material Was For Us, But The Red-Skins Got The Provisions. We Struck A 
 Spring Called-----, A Small Spring Of Water, And A Child Of Some Of The 
 Party Died There And Was Buried. 
   
   
   
 We Then Went More Nearly South To Find The Mojave River, For We Hoped To 
 Find Water There. It Was Very Scarce With Us Then, We Had One Pretty 
 Cold Day, But Generally Fine Weather, And To Get Along We Traveled At 
 Night And A Party Struck The Mojave. Here There Was Some Grass, And The 
 Mustard Was Beginning To Start Up And Some Elder Bushes To Put Forth 
 Leaves. I Picked Some Of The Mustard And Chewed It To Try To Get Back My 
 Natural Taste. Here The Party Divided, A Part Going To The Left To San 
 Bernardino And The Remainder To The Right To Cucamunga. I Was With The 
 
 
 
 Chapter 14 Pg 232 
 Latter Party And We Got There Before Night. 
   
   
   
 Rhynierson Said To One Of The Party--'Charlie, You Had Better Hurry On 
 Ahead And Try To Get Some Meat Before The Crowd Comes Up.' Charlie Went 
 On Ahead And We Drove Along At The Regular Gait Which Was Not Very Fast 
 About These Times. We Saw Nothing Of Charlie And So I Went To The House 
 To Look For Him And Found Him Dead Drunk On Wine. He Had Not Said A Word 
 To Them About Provisions. That Wine Wrecked Us All. All Had A Little 
 Touch Of Scurvy, And It Seemed To Be Just What We Craved. I Bought A Big 
 Tumbler Of It For Two Bits And Carried It To My Wife. She Lasted It At 
 First Rather Gingerly, Then Took A Little Larger Sup Of It, And Then Put 
 It To Her Lips And Never Slopped Drinking Till The Last Drop Was Gone. I 
 Looked A Little Bit Surprised And She Looked At Me And Innocently 
 Asked--'Why! Haven't You Had Any?' I Was Afraid She Would Be The Next 
 One To Be Dead Drunk, But It Never Affected Her In That Way At All. We 
 Bought A Cow Here To Kill, And Used The Meat Either Fresh Or Dried, And 
 Then Went On To The Williams, Or Chino Ranch. Col. Williams Was Glad To 
 See Us, And Said We Could Have Everything We Wanted. We Wanted To Get 
 Wheat, For We Had Lived So Long On Meat That We Craved Such Food. He 
 Told Us About The Journey Before Us And Where We Would Find Places To 
 Camp. Here We Found One Of The Gruwells. We Camped Here A Week, Meeting 
 Many Emigrants Who Came By Way Of Santa Fe. 
   
   
   
 We Went On From Here To San Gabriel Where We Staid Six Weeks To Rest And 
 Recuperate The Cattle. In The Good Grass We Found Here They All Became 
 About As Fat As Ever In A Little While. Here The Party All Broke Up And 
 No Sort Of An Organization Was Kept Up Beyond Here. Some Went To Los 
 Angeles, Some Went On North, Trading Off Their Cattle For Horses, And 
 Some Went Directly To The Coast. We Went To The Mission Of San Fernando 
 Where We Got Some Oranges Which Were Very Good For Us. There Is A Long, 
 Tedious Hill There To Get Over. We Made Up Ten Wagons. By The Time We 
 Reached The San Francisquito Ranch I Had Lost My Cattle. I Went Down To 
 This Ranch And There Met Mr. And Mrs. Arcane Getting Ready To Go To San 
 Pedro. We Came North By Way Of Tejon Pass And The Kern River, Not Far 
 From Quite A Large Lake, And Reached The Mines At Last. I Remember We 
 Killed A Very Fat Bear And Tried Out The Grease, And With This Grease 
 And Some Flour And Dried Apples Mrs. Erkson Made Some Pretty Good Pies 
 Which The Miners Were Glad To Get At A Dollar And Even Two Dollars 
 Apiece." 
   
   
   
 Mr. Erkson Followed Mining For About A Year And Then Went Into Other 
 Business Until He Came To Santa Clara Valley And Began Farming Near 
 Alviso. He Has Been A Highly Respected Citizen And Progressive Man, He 
 Died In San Jose In The Spring Of 1893. 
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 14 Pg 233 
   
   
 The Experience Of Edward Coker. 
   
   
   
 Edward Coker Was One Of A Party Of Twenty-One Men Who Left Their Wagons, 
 Being Impatient Of The Slow Progress Made By The Ox Train, And Organized 
 A Pack Train In Which They Were Themselves The Burden Carriers. They 
 Discarded Everything Not Absolutely Necessary To Sustain Life, Packed 
 All Their Provisions Into Knapsacks, Bravely Shouldered Them And Started 
 Off On Foot From The Desert To Reach California By The Shortest Way. 
   
   
   
 Among Those Whom Mr. Coker Can Recollect Are Capt. Nat. Ward, Jim Woods, 
 Jim Martin Of Missouri, John D. Martin Of Texas, "Old Francis," A French 
 Canadian, Fred Carr, Negro "Joe" And Some Others From Coffeeville, 
 Miss., With Others From Other States. 
   
   
   
 Mr. Coker Related His Experience To The Author Somewhat As Follows:-- 
   
   
   
 "One Other Of The Party Was A Colored Man Who Joined Us At The Camp When 
 We Left The Families, He Being The Only Remaining Member Of A Small 
 Party Who Had Followed Our Wagon Tracks After We Had Tried To Proceed 
 South. This Party Was Made Up Of A Mr. Culverwell Who Had Formerly Been 
 A Writer In A Government Office At Washington, D.C., A Man Named Fish 
 Claiming To Be A Relative Of Hamilton Fish Of New York, And Another Man 
 Whose Name I Never Knew. He, Poor Fellow, Arrived At Our Camp In A 
 Starving Condition And Died Before Our Departure. The Other Two 
 Unfortunates Ones Died On The Desert, And The Colored Man Reported That 
 He Simply Covered Their Remains With Their Blankets. 
   
   
   
 I Well Remember That Last Night In Camp Before We Started With Our 
 Knapsacks And Left The Families, For It Was Plain The Women And Children 
 Must Go Very Slow, And We Felt We Could Go Over Rougher And Shorter 
 Roads On Foot And Get Through Sooner By Going Straight Across The Sierra 
 Nevada Mountains. Our Condition Was Certainly Appalling. We Were Without 
 Water, All On The Verge Of Starvation, And The Three Poor Cattle Which 
 Yet Remained Alive Were Objects Of Pity. It Seemed Almost A Crime To 
 Kill The Poor Beasts, So Little Real Food Was There Left On Their 
 Skeleton Frames. They Had Been So Faithful And Had Plodded Along When 
 There Seemed No Hope For Them. They Might Still Serve To Keep The Party 
 From Starvation. 
 
 
 
 Chapter 14 Pg 234 
 It Was At This Camp That Mr. Ischam Died. The Night Before Our Departure 
 He Came Wandering Into Camp And Presented Such An Awful Appearance, 
 Simply A Living Skeleton Of A Once Grand And Powerful Man. He Must Have 
 Suffered Untold Agony As He Struggled On To Overtake The Party, Starving 
 And Alone, With The Knowledge That Two Of His Companions Had Perished 
 Miserably Of Starvation In That Unknown Wilderness Of Rocks And Alkali. 
   
   
   
 Our Journey On Foot Through The Mountains Was Full Of Adventure And 
 Suffering. On Our Arrival At The Shores Of Owen's Lake Not A Man Of The 
 Party Had A Mouthful Of Food Left In His Pack, And To Add To Our 
 Difficulties We Had Several Encounters With The Hostile Indians. There 
 Was A Fearful Snow Storm Falling At Owen's Lake On The Evening That We 
 Arrived There, And We Could Make No Fire. The Indians Gathered Around Us 
 And We Did Not Know Exactly What To Make Of Them, Nor Could We Determine 
 Whether Their Intentions Were Good Or Bad. We Examined The Lake And 
 Determined To Try To Ford It, And Thus Set Out By The Light Of The Moon 
 That Occasionally Peeped Out From Behind The Clouds, While The Red 
 Devils Stood Howling On The Shore. 
   
   
   
 The Following Morning We Found What Was Then Known As The Fremont Trail, 
 And By The Advice Of Some Friendly Indians Who Came Into Our Camp, We 
 Kept The "Big Trail" For Three Days And Came To Walker's Pass. While On 
 This Trail We Were Followed At Night By A Number Of Wild Indians, But We 
 Prudently Avoided Any Collisions With Them And Kept Moving On. Going On 
 Through The Pass We Followed The Right Hand Branch Of The Trail, The 
 Left Hand Branch Leading More To The South And Across A Wide Plain. We 
 Soon Came To A Fair-Sized Stream, Now Known To Be The South Fork Of The 
 Kern River, Which We Followed Until We Came To Its Junction With A 
 Larger River, The Two Making The Kern River. Here We Were Taken Across 
 By Some Friendly Indians Who Left The Missions Farther West During The 
 Mexican War And Took To Their Own Village Located At The Foot Of The 
 Sierra Nevada Mountains. At This Village We Were On Exhibition For 
 Several Hours With An Audience Of Five Hundred People Or More, Of The 
 Red Men, And On The Following Morning We Commenced The Ascent Of The 
 Mountains Again, The Indians Furnishing Us With A Guide In The Person Of 
 An Old Pi-Ute. He Brought Us Over The Range, Through The Snow And Over 
 The Bleak Ridges, In The Month Of December, 1849, And We Made Our First 
 Camp At An Indian Village In Tulare Valley, A Few Miles South Of Where 
 Porterville Now Stands. 
   
   
   
 From This Indian Village We Walked On Until We Arrived At The Present 
 Site Of Millerton On The South Bank Of The San Joaquin River. Our 
 Sufferings Were Terrible From Hunger, Cold, And Wet, For The Rains Were 
 Almost Continual At This Elevation, And We Had Been Forced Several Times 
 To Swim. The Sudden Change From The Dried-Up Desert To A Rainy Region 
 Was Pretty Severe On Us. On Our Arrival At The San Joaquin River We 
 Found A Camp Of Wealthy Mexicans Who Gave Us A Small Amount Of Food, And 
 Seemed To Want Us To Pass On That They Might Be Rid Of Us. I Can Well 
 
 
 
 Chapter 14 Pg 235 
 Believe That A Company Of Twenty-One Starving Men Was The Cause Of Some 
 Disquietude To Them. They Gave Us Some Hides Taken From Some Of The 
 Cattle They Had Recently Slain, And From These We Constructed A Boat And 
 Ferry Rope In Which We Crossed The River, And Then Continued Our Journey 
 To The Mining Camp On Aqua Frio, In Mariposa County. 
   
   
   
 It Is Very Strange To Think That Since That Time I Have Never Met A 
 Single Man Of That Party Of Twenty-One. I Had Kept Quite Full Notes Of 
 The Whole Trip From The State Of New York To The Mines, And Including My 
 Early Mining Experience Up To The Year 1851. Unfortunately This 
 Manuscript Was Burned At The Russ House Fire In Fresno, Where I Also 
 Lost Many Personal Effects." 
   
   
   
 In The Year 1892 Mr. Coker Was Living In Fresno, Or Near That City, In 
 Fairly Comfortable Health, And It Is To Be Hoped That The Evening Of His 
 Days, To Which All The Old Pioneers Are Rapidly Approaching, May Be To 
 Him All That His Brightest Hopes Pictured. 
   
   
   
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 15 Pg 236 
 Having Followed The Various Little Parties Into Which The Great Train 
 Had Resolved Itself When It Began To Feel The Pressure Of Suffering And 
 Trouble Which Came With Contact With The Desert, Followed Them In Their 
 Various Ways Till They Came Through To The Pacific Slope, The Travels 
 And Experiences Of The Author Are Again Resumed. 
   
   
   
 It Will Be Remembered That He Had Rested At Los Angeles, Working For Mr. 
 Brier Who Had Temporarily Turned Boarding House Keeper, And Finally Made 
 Arrangements With Some Drovers To Assist In Taking A Small Stock Of 
 Horses North To The Mines. His Story Is Thus Continued:-- 
   
   
   
 We Followed The Wagon Road Which The Companies That Had Gone On Before 
 Had Made, And Got Along Very Well. At Night I Acted 
 Independently--Staked Out My Mule And Ate My Meal Of Dried Meat And 
 Crackers--Then Joined The Others Around A Large Fire, And All Seemed To 
 Enjoy The Company. After A Few Days The Two Men Who Owned The Horses 
 
 
 
 Chapter 15 Pg 237 
 Proposed To Me To Let My Mule Carry The Provisions, And They Wanted Me 
 To Ride One Of Their Horses That Was Not Carrying A Pack, As They Said 
 It Would Keep It More Gentle To Ride It. 
   
   
   
 To Please The Old Gentleman From Sacramento I Agreed To The Proposition, 
 For I Thought Perhaps By Being Accommodating I Could Get Along More 
 Pleasantly. 
   
   
   
 Thus We Traveled On, Over Rolling Hills Covered With Grass And Wild 
 Flowers, And I Was Much Pleased With All That I Could See. For The First 
 Two Days We Did Not Pass A House, Which Shows How Thinly Settled The 
 Country Was. Cattle Were Often Seen, And Sometimes Horses, But People 
 Were Very Scarce. In Time We Went Down A Long, Steep Hill, Then Across A 
 Wide Valley That Supported A Rank Growth Of Vegetation, And Came To A 
 Mission Called San Buena Ventura (Good Luck.) Here The Men Seemed 
 Scarce, But Indians And Dogs Plenty. The Houses Were Of The Same Sort As 
 At Los Angeles, Except The Church, All Made Of Dried Mud, And Never More 
 Than One Story High. 
   
   
   
 As We Journeyed Along We Came To The Sea Shore, The Grandest Sight In 
 The World To Me, For I Had Never Before Seen The Ocean. What A Wide 
 Piece Of Water It Was! Far Out I Could See Small Waves Coming Toward The 
 Shore, And The Nearer They Came The Faster They Seemed To Rush And At 
 Last Turned Into Great Rollers And Breakers Which Dashed Upon The Rocks 
 Or Washed Far Up The Sandy Shore With A Force That Made The Ground 
 Tremble. There Was No Wind And I Could Not See What It Could Be That So 
 Strangely Agitated The Water. Here The Waves Kept Coming, One After 
 Another, With As Much Regularity As The Slow Strokes Of A Clock. This 
 Was The First Puzzle The Great Sea Propounded To Me, And There Under The 
 Clear Blue Sky And Soft Air I Studied Over The Ceaseless, Restless 
 Motion And The Great Power That Was Always Beating On The Shore. I 
 Tasted The Water And Found It Exceedingly Salt, And I Did Not See How 
 Anything Could Live In It And Not Become In The Condition Of Pickled 
 Pork Or Fish. Where Was The Salt To Make This Mighty Brine Pond, And Why 
 Did It Keep So When The Great Rivers Kept Pouring In Their Torrents Of 
 Fresh Waters? I Did Not Understand, And These Are Some Of The Thoughts 
 That Came To The Boy Who Had Been Raised Upon The Prairie, And To Whom 
 The Great Ocean Was Indeed An Unknown Sea. 
   
   
   
 We Followed Along The Road And In Time Came To Another Village And 
 Mission Called Santa Barbara. The Village Was Near The Shore, And The 
 Church Farther Back Upon An Elevated Piece Of Ground Near The Foot Of 
 The Mountain, Overlooking The Town And Sea And Much Of The Country To 
 The South, West And East. The Mountain Was High And Rough, And A Point 
 Ran Out Into The Sea Making A Sort Of Harbor. This Town Was Built Much 
 As The Others Had Been Except Perhaps The Mission Which Seemed Better. 
 
 
 
 Chapter 15 Pg 238 
 The Roofs Were As Flat As The Floors And Were Covered With A Sort Of Tar 
 Which Made Them Water-Proof. The Material Of The Houses Was Sun-Dried 
 Bricks, Two Feet Long By One Foot Wide And Four To Six Inches Thick. 
 There Was No Lime In The Mortar Of This Mason Work, And The Openings In 
 The Walls Had Iron Bars Across Them Instead Of Sash And Glass. Dried 
 Hides Were Spread Upon The Floors, And There Was A Large Earthen Jar For 
 Water, But Not A Table, Bedstead Or Chair Could Be Seen In The Rooms We 
 Saw. A Man Came Along, Rode Right In At The Door, Turned Around And Rode 
 Out Again. The Floor Was So Hard That The Horse's Feet Made No 
 Impression On It. Very Few Men, Quite A Number Of Indians, More Women, 
 And A Still Larger Quantity Of Dogs Made Up The Inhabitants. 
   
   
   
 Leaving Here The Road Led Back From The Sea Shore And Over Quite A Level 
 Table Land, Covered With A Big Growth Of Grass And Some Timber, And Then 
 Down To The Sandy Shore Again Where The Mountain Comes So Close That We 
 Were Crowded Down To The Very Water's Edge. Here The Never-Tiring Waves 
 Were Still Following Each Other To The Shore And Dashing Themselves To 
 Pieces With Such A Noise That I Felt Awed To Silence. What A Strange 
 Difference In Two Parts Of The Earth So Little Distance From Each Other! 
 Here Was A Waste Of Waters, There Was A Waste Of Sands That May Some 
 Time Have Been The Bottom Of Just Such A Dashing, Rolling Sea As This. 
 And Here, Between The Two, Was A Fertile Region Covered With Trees, 
 Grass And Flowers, And Watered With Brooks Of Fresh, Sweet Water. 
 Paradise And Desolation! They Surely Were Not Far Apart. Here I Saw Some 
 Of The Queer Things That Wash On Shore, For We Camped Close To The 
 Beach. 
   
   
   
 It Was A Circumstance Of Great Interest To Me To See The Sun Slowly Go 
 Down Into The Great Ocean. Slowly And Steadily It Went, Getting Redder 
 And Redder As It Went Down, Then It Just Touched The Distant Water And 
 The Waves Dashed Over More And More Of Its Face Till All Was Covered. 
 Were It Not For The Strong, Bright Rays That Still Shot Up Across The 
 Sky One Might Think It Was Drowned Forever, But In The Morning It Came 
 Up Over The Mountain Top, Having Apparently Made Half The Circuit Of The 
 Globe. 
   
   
   
 Soon After This The Road Left The Shore And Turned Into The Mountains. 
 Another Mission Was On This Road, Santa Ynez, Situated In A Beautiful 
 Place But Apparently In Decay, For The Men Had Gone To The Mines, 
 Leaving The Indians, Women, And Dogs As In Other Places. San Luis Obispo 
 Was Another Mission Similarly Inhabited, But The Surroundings Did Not 
 Seem So Pleasant As Those We Had Seen Before, Although It Bore Signs 
 That Considerable Had Been Done. From Here Our Road Bore Still More 
 North And We Had A Long Mountain To Work Over, Very Rocky, And In Some 
 Places Barren. 
   
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 15 Pg 239 
 San Miguel Was A Mission Situated On The Bank Of A Dry Stream That 
 Evidently Had Seen Plenty Of Water Earlier In The Season. The 
 Surrounding Country Was Covered With Scattering Timber. Soledad Was 
 Another Place Where There Were Some Improvements, Located On A Small 
 River, But Nearly Deserted Like The Other Places. Prospects At The Gold 
 Mines Were So Favorable That Every Man Felt An Irresistible Desire To 
 Enrich Himself, And So They Left Their Families At The Missions And In 
 The Towns And Rushed Off To The Mines. Nearly All Of Them Expected To 
 Return By Winter. 
   
   
   
 I Think I Must Stop Right Here And Tell About The California Carriages 
 Of Which I Had Seen Several At Los Angeles And At The Missions Along Our 
 Road. The First Time I Saw One It Was A Great Curiosity, I Assure You. 
 The Wheels Were Cut Off The End Of A Sycamore Log A Little Over Two Feet 
 In Diameter And Each Section About A Foot Long. The Axle Was A Piece Of 
 Wood Eight Inches Square With A Tongue Fastened To It Long Enough To Be 
 Used With A Yoke Of Oxen, And The Ends Of The Axle Were Roughly Rounded, 
 Leaving Something Of A Shoulder. The Wheels Were Retained In Place By A 
 Big Lynch-Pin. On The Axle And Tongue Was A Strong Frame Of Square Hewed 
 Timbers Answering For Bed Pieces, And The Bottom Was Of Raw-Hide Tightly 
 Stretched, Which Covered The Whole Frame. Tall Stakes At Each Corner Of 
 The Frame Held Up An Awning In Hot Weather. The Yoke Was Fastened To The 
 Horns Of The Oxen By Strong, Narrow Strips Of Raw-Hide, And The Tongue 
 Was Fastened To The Yoke In The Same Way. The Driver Was Generally An 
 Indian, Armed With A Small Pole Six Or Eight Feet Long, Who Marched On 
 Before, The Oxen Following After. I Saw Many A Wagon Like This, The 
 Platform Well Filled Up With Women And Children, And A Pack Of Dogs 
 Following Along Behind, Slowly Rolling Over The Country, And This Is The 
 Way They Traveled When They Went Visiting Friends Who Lived A Few Miles 
 In The Country. Sometimes The Wheels Gave Perfectly Agonizing Shrieks As 
 They Revolved, And When They Made So Much Noise That Their Strong 
 Spanish Nerves Could Stand It No Longer, If There Was Any Green Grass To 
 Be Found The Drivers Would Crowd In A Quantity Around The Axle, And 
 There Was Generally Room For A Good Lot Of It, To Answer For A 
 Lubricator. 
   
   
   
 We Passed On From Soledad And Shortly Rose Into The Table Land We Had 
 Seen For Some Time Before Us. From Here We Could Look North For A Long 
 Way With No Hill Or Mountain In Sight; But Our Road Led Along On The 
 East Side Of This Treeless Plain, So Thickly Covered With Grass That We 
 Recalled Some Of The Old Tales Of The Grassy Plains. We Passed A 
 Landholder's House On The Road, Then Crossed A Range Of Low Mountains 
 And Came To The Mission Of San Juan (St. John) Situated Near The 
 Foot-Hills, Overlooking A Level, Rich Appearing Extent Of Valley Land 
 With A Big Vegetable Growth All Over It; In Some Places Wild Mustard 
 Which Stood Thickly And Was From Four To Ten Feet High. I Thought What A 
 Splendid Place It Would Be For The Yankees Who Are Fond Of Greens. 
   
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 15 Pg 240 
 This Was The First Place Since We Left Los Angeles Where We Could Buy 
 Any Kind Of Breadstuff, And We Were Here Enabled To Get A Change Of 
 Diet, Including Greens. This Seemed To Be One End Or Side Of Another 
 Valley, And As We Went Along It Seemed To Widen Away To The East; But 
 Our Course Was To The North, And We Followed The Road. The Architecture 
 Of All The Buildings Except The Churches Was All The Same, Being Built 
 Of The Sun Dried Adobes Or Bricks Made By Mixing Up A Clay Mud With 
 Tough Grass And Letting It Get Dry And Hard. We Saw The Same Kind Of 
 Roof Material As Before, A Sort Of Mineral Tar Which I Supposed They 
 Must Find Somewhere About. 
   
   
   
 I Could Imagine Why The Houses Were Built In This Way, For When The 
 Jesuit Missionaries First Came In They Found The Country Occupied By 
 Indians Who Used Their Arrows To Good Effect, As They Were Jealous Of 
 All Outside Occupation. The Early Settlers Evidently Made The Walls Of 
 Their Dwellings Thick And Strong Enough To Resist All Kinds Of Weapons 
 Used By Indians. They Could Not Set Fire To Them For They Were Fire 
 Proof And Arrow Proof, And The Hostile Indian Could Dance On The Roof 
 Without Being Able To Get In Or Do Any Injury. Thus The Poor Indian Was 
 Fairly Beat And Eventually Became A Better Indian. 
   
   
   
 The Indians Of What Is Now Nevada And Arizona Used To Come Over Into 
 These Rich Valleys And Clandestinely Capture A Band Of A Hundred Or More 
 Head Of Cattle Or Horses And Make Their Escape. They Were Often Followed 
 By The Herders, But If They Did Not Overtake The Thieves Before They Got 
 Into The Deep Canons Of The Mountains, They Would Usually Turn Back And 
 Let Them Go Rather Than Be Led Into Ambush In Some Strange Narrow Place 
 Where Escape Would Be Impossible And They Might Be Filled With Arrows. 
 No Doubt The Trail We Had Followed Across The Plains, Where There Were 
 So Many Horses' Bones, Was One Of These Trails Along Which The Thieving 
 Indians Took Their Booty Which Died Upon The Trip. 
   
   
   
 Our Road From Here Was Near The Foot-Hills On The West Side Of A Level, 
 Grassy, Thinly Timbered Valley, And As We Advanced We Noticed That The 
 Timber Grew More Plentiful And The Trees Larger, Without Much 
 Underbrush. We Also Noticed That The Vegetation Was Ranker And No Doubt 
 The Soil Was Very Rich. We Then Came To A Point Where The Mountain 
 Reaches Out Almost Across The Valley To Meet The Mountain On The East 
 Side. Here We Found A Gravelly Creek With But Little Water, But As Soon 
 As We Passed This Point We Saw The Valley Suddenly Widening Out, And 
 Beautiful Groves Of Live Oak Trees Scattered All Around. The Vegetation 
 Here Was Very Rank, The Mustard Ten Feet High In Places, Making It 
 Difficult To See Out Of The Road. This Was Perhaps The Strongest 
 Contrast To The Arid Desert That We Had Seen. 
   
   
   
 As We Went On Down The Valley The Hills Seemed To Stand Farther And 
 
 
 
 Chapter 15 Pg 241 
 Farther Back As If To Make More Room For Those Who Would Soon Settle In 
 This Fertile Place, And We Soon Came In Sight Of The Village Or Pueblo 
 Of San Jose (St. Joseph) Where We Camped. Here We Learned That The Two 
 Owners Of The Horses Intended To Go To San Francisco Instead Of 
 Sacramento, And As We Considered The Former Place A Very Poor One For A 
 Penniless Person To Go We Concluded To Break Up The Company Camp And 
 Each Do The Best He Could For Himself, For Our Objective Point Was The 
 Gold Mines, And The Sooner We Reached Them The Better. 
   
   
   
 The Drovers Who Had Been Anxious To Have Us Go With Them And Help Them 
 Now Began To Talk About A Settlement With Us, As If They Had Done Us 
 Great Favors, And Called On The Other Fellows To Help Pay For Their 
 Board Upon The Way. When They Came To Me They Said My Share Would Be An 
 Ounce. This Struck Me Hard, But They Said I Had Ridden Their Horse All 
 The Way And The Charge Was Very Low. I Told Them I Had Furnished The 
 Most Of The Provisions I Had Eaten, And My Mule Had Packed A Good Load 
 All The Way, Which I Considered Worth As Much As The Use Of The Horse. 
 But They Refused To Allow Me Anything For The Use Of The Mule And Became 
 Very Urgent In Their Demand For Money. 
   
   
   
 These Men Were Evidently Of The Tribe Of Skinflint, Who Had No Souls, Or 
 They Would Not Have Attempted To Rob An Almost Penniless Emigrant In 
 This Way Of The Last Few Dollars He Had, And All The Hope He Had Of 
 Reaching The Mines. I Did Not Desire To Give Up To Such Narrow 
 Principles As This And Hesitated, But They Were Bound To Have The Money 
 Or Make A Quarrel, And Talked Pretty Loud Of The Way They Collected 
 Debts In Sacramento, So That To Avoid Trouble And Get Out Of The 
 Clutches Of Such Mean Scoundrels As These I Counted Out Sixteen Dollars, 
 Almost Every Cent I Had, And Reluctantly Gave Them To My Enemy. I 
 Immediately Mounted My Mule, And Without Stopping To Say Goodbye Rode 
 Off. I May Have Quoted A Part Of The Speech Capt Hunt Made When The 
 Party Wanted To Leave The Trail And Take The Cut-Off, Especially That 
 Part Where He Alluded To Their Going To H--L. I Very Much Fear The 
 Little Piety My Mother Taught Me Was Badly Strained On That Occasion, 
 And I Thought Of A Good Many Swear Words If I Did Not Say Them, Which I 
 Suppose Is About As Bad. I Could See How Cunningly They Had Managed To 
 Get Me To Ride Their Horse That It Might Serve As The Foundation For A 
 Claim On Me For About All The Money I Had In The World. 
   
   
   
 I Hitched My Mule In The Edge Of The Town And Went In To Look At The 
 Place. The Houses Were Situated Very Much As In Other Places We Had Come 
 Through--Scattered Around Over Much Ground And Built Low, But Had A 
 Different Style Of Roof, A Peaked Or Sloping One, And Covered With Half 
 Round Tile Two Feet Or More Long And An Inch Thick. One Course Of These 
 Would Be Laid With The Hollow Side Up, And Then A Course With The Hollow 
 Side Down, Covering The Joints Of The Lower Course. This Allowed The Air 
 To Circulate Freely And Was Proof Against Rain. I Saw No Flat Roofs Such 
 As I Had Seen Down Along The Coast. I Saw One Gambling House And About 
 
 
 
 Chapter 15 Pg 242 
 All The Men In Town Were Gathered There, And Some Women, Too. This Was 
 The Busiest Place In Town And Situated Near The Plaza. This Was The 
 Largest Town I Had Yet Been In. There Seemed To Be Plenty Of Women And 
 Lots Of Dogs, But The Men Were As Scarce As They Had Been In Any Of The 
 Towns--Gone To The Gold Mines To Make A Stake. I Took In The Sights 
 Pretty Well, And There Were A Great Many New Things For Me To See, And 
 When Pretty Well Satisfied Concluded I Would Go Back To My Mule And Camp 
 In Some Place Just Out Of Town For The Night. 
   
   
   
 Before I Reached My Animal Whom Should I Meet But My Old Traveling 
 Companion John Rogers Whom I Thought To Be A Hundred Miles Away By This 
 Time. We Shook Hands Heartily And He Told Me That Bennett, Moody And 
 Skinner Were Camped Not Far Off, And He Was Still With Them. He Wore A 
 Pair Of Blue Overalls, A Blue Woolen Shirt And The Same Little Narrow 
 Rimmed Hat He Had Worn So Long. I Observed, Too, That He Was Barefoot, 
 And Told Him I Had A Dollar Or Two Which He Could Take And Get Some 
 Shoes. He Said It Was No Use For There Was Not A Pair Of Shoes In The 
 Town To Buy, And He Had Not Found Any Material Of Which He Could Make 
 Himself A Pair Of Moccasins. I Told Him How I Had Been Swindled Coming 
 Up, And He Was About As Angry As I Had Been. I Think If I Had Known That 
 My Friend John Rogers Had Been So Near I Should Have Bidden The Rascals 
 An Unceremonious Good-Bye And We Would Have Been Able To Hold Our Own On 
 A Claim For The Services Of Myself And Mule. 
   
   
   
 We Went Up To The Place Where Our People Were Camped, Perhaps A Mile 
 Above Town On The Bank Of A River, Nearly Dry, But Where Plenty Of Wood, 
 Water And Grass Were At Hand; Such A Place As We Had Looked For In Vain 
 For Many A Weary Day Upon The Desert. This Was As Far Above Death Valley 
 As A King Above A Pauper, And We Hoped Never To See Such A Country 
 Again. 
   
   
   
 In Camp We Talked About Moving On To The Mines. Rogers Said He Was Going 
 To Start Next Day, And In Answer To Exclamations Of Surprise That He 
 Should Start Off Alone, He Said That Some Fellows Camped A Little Way 
 Down The River Were Going To Start And He Had Made Arrangements To Go 
 With Them, As The Bennett Party Would Not Go Yet For A Week. In The 
 Morning He Shook Hands And Bade Us Good-Bye And Good Luck, And Started 
 Off Down The River Bank, Lost To Us, As It Proved, For Many Years. 
   
   
   
 The Next Day As We Were All Sitting On The Ground I Felt A Sort Of 
 Moving Of The Earth Under Me And Heard A Rumbling Sound That Seemed Very 
 Queer. It Seemed There Was A Motion Also To The Trees Around Us. We All 
 Started And Looked A Little Frightened, And Skinner Said He Believed It 
 Was An Earthquake, For He Said He Could See The Motion In A Sort Of 
 Wave. It Was Gone In Half A Minute. Moody Said:--"How Do You Like 
 California Now?" I Said I Thought This Part Of It Was A Pretty Good 
 
 
 
 Chapter 15 Pg 243 
 Place For There Was Plenty Of Wood, Water And Grass, And That Was Better 
 Than We Had Seen In Some Places. 
   
   
   
 He Then Went On To Say That He Had Heard Mr. Bennett's Story Of Their 
 Sufferings And Narrow Escape From Death, And It Was The Most Wonderful 
 Story He Had Ever Heard. He Said The Idea Of Mrs. Bennett Walking Over 
 Such A Country For Twenty-Two Days Was Almost Beyond Belief, For He 
 Would Not Have Thought Her Able To Walk One-Third The Distance. He Never 
 Knew Before How Much Women Could Do When They Were Called To Do It, And 
 They Proved In Emergencies To Be As Tough As Any Body. He Said If He 
 Ever Got Back Home He Should Move To Give Them All The Rights And 
 Privileges Of Men For Sure. 
   
   
   
 One Day I Mounted My Mule For A Ride To The Eastern Foothills, And Sat 
 Down On A Little Incline And Overlooked The Valley, A Beautiful 
 Landscape, While My Mule Cropped The Rich Grasses In A Circle Described 
 By The Rope Which Confined Him. I Was Always A Great Admirer Of Nature, 
 And As I Sat There Alone I Could See Miles On Miles Of Mammoth Mustard 
 Waving In The Strong Breeze Which Came Down Over The San Francisco Bay 
 Just Visible To The Northward, And On The Mountain Summits To The West 
 Could See Tall Timber Reaching Up Into The Deep Blue Of The Sky. It Was 
 A Real Contented Comfort To Be Thus In The Midst Of Luxuriance And 
 Beauty, And I Enjoyed It, Coming As It Did At The End Of The Long And 
 Dreary Road I Had Been Traveling For The Past Twelve Months. Up The 
 Platte; Across The Rockies; Down The Green River Canons In My Canoe; 
 Across The Mountains To Salt Lake; Out Over The "Rim Of The Basin," And 
 Across The Desert, Guided Only By The Fact That We Knew The Pacific 
 Ocean Was To The West Of Us, And Choosing Our Road As Best We Could In 
 View Of The Lofty, Snow-Clad, Impassible Mountains; Seeing Thirteen Of 
 Our Comrades Lie Down Never To Rise Again, And, When Hope And Strength 
 Were Almost Gone, To Suddenly Come Out Into A Fertile Region On The 
 Seventh Of March, 1850. How I Wished The Fellows Who Slept In Death 
 Valley Could Have Seen This View. The Change From All That Barrenness 
 And Desolation To This Beautiful, Fertile Country, Covered With Wild 
 Flowers And Luxuriant Live Oaks, Was As Strong A Contrast As One Could 
 Imagine A Sudden Coming From Purgatory To Paradise In The Space Of A 
 Single Hour. 
   
   
   
 I Waked Up From My Dreamy Thoughts, Mounted My Mule And Rode To Camp. As 
 I Rode Along The Nimble Ground Squirrel, With His Keen Black Eye, Would 
 Climb To The Top Of The High Mustard Stalks To Get A Better View And, 
 Suspicious Of An Enemy Within His Almost Undisputed Territory, Disappear 
 In A Wink To His Safe Underground Fortress. Fat Cattle And Horses Would 
 Appear Before Me A Moment, And Then, With A Wild Look And High Heads, 
 Dash Through The Tall Mustard Out Of Sight. 
   
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 15 Pg 244 
 Next Day My Trip Was Toward The Western Hills, And Before I Came To Them 
 Was Confronted With An Extensive Stretch Of Chaparral Brush, Absolutely 
 Impenetrable, Which I Must Go Around Or Stop My Progress In This 
 Direction. These Thickets Were A Regular Paradise For Grizzly Bears, For 
 Within The Protection Of This Matted And Thorny Growth He Is As Safe As 
 Is The Soldier In The Rocky Fort Of Gibraltar. I Soon Found A Way Around 
 The Brush And Rose High Enough So That A Backward Look Over The Valley 
 Was Charming, Quite As Much So As The Eastern Side. I Wandered Over The 
 Grassy Hills Covered With Great Scattering Oaks, And Came To A Grove Of 
 Mammoth Trees, Six Feet Or More In Diameter, With Tops Reaching Two 
 Hundred Or Three Hundred Feet Toward The Blue Sky. They Seemed To Me To 
 Be A Kind Of Cedar, And Were Far Larger And Taller Than Any Trees I Had 
 Ever Seen In The Forests Of Vermont, Michigan Or Wisconsin, And In My 
 Long Journey From The East The Route Had Been Principally Through A 
 Country Devoid Of Good Timber. A Stranger In A Strange Land, Everything 
 Was New And Wonderful. After Satisfying My Inquiring Mind I Returned To 
 Camp Again, And Soon Learned That My Newly Discovered Trees Were The 
 Famous Redwoods, So Greatly Prized For Their Valuable Qualities. 
   
   
   
 Taking The Most Direct Course To Camp I Came, When Within Two Or Three 
 Miles Of San Jose, To A Large Extent Of Willows So Thick, And So Thickly 
 Woven Together With Wild Blackberry Vines, Wild Roses And Other Thorny 
 Plants, That It Appeared At First As If I Never Could Get Through. But I 
 Found A Winding Trail Made By The Cattle Through The Bushes And Mustard, 
 And This I Followed, Being Nearly Scared Occasionally By Some Wild 
 Steers As They Rushed Off Through The Thickets. I Got Through Safely, 
 Though It Would Have Been Difficult To Escape A Wild, Enraged Steer, Or 
 A Grizzly Had I Met Him Face To Face Even With A Rifle In Hand. I Could 
 See Nowhere But By Looking Straight Up, For The Willows Were In Places 
 Fifty Feet High And A Foot In Diameter. The Willows Where I Came From 
 Were Mere Bushes, And These Astonished Me. This Bit Of Brush Is Still 
 Locally Known As "The Willows," But The Trees Are All Gone, And The 
 Ground Thickly Covered With Orchards And Fine Residences, The Land 
 Selling At From One Thousand To Two Thousand Dollars Per Acre. 
   
   
   
 The Sun Rose Without A Cloud, And A Little Later The Sea Breeze From The 
 Bay Blew Gently Over The Valley, Making The Climate Perfectly Delightful 
 In Its Temperate Coolness, A True Paradise On Earth It Seemed To Me, If 
 I Was Able To Judge Or Set A Value Upon So Beautiful A Spot; And Surely 
 I Had Seen All Sorts, Good And Poor, Desert And Valley, Mountain And 
 Plain. 
   
   
   
 But I Was Poor In Purse, And Resolved I Would Seek First The Gold Mines 
 And Secure Gold Enough To Buy A Piece Of This Valley Afterward. 
   
   
   
 When I Had Seen What Was To Be Seen About San Jose I Had A Talk With My 
 
 
 
 Chapter 15 Pg 245 
 Friends And Found That Mr. Bennett Favored Going On To The Mines At Once 
 And That Moody And Skinner Thought They Would Remain A Little While At 
 Least. 
   
   
   
 I Went Along In Company With Bennett, And When We Got A Little Way From 
 San Jose, On The Road To The Mission, The Road Seemed Walled In On Both 
 Sides With Growing Mustard Ten Or Twelve Feet High And All In Blossom. 
 How So Much Mustard Could Grow, And Grow So Large, I Could Not 
 Understand. I Had Seen A Few Plants In The Gardens Or Fields Which 
 People Used For Greens, And Here Seemed To Be Enough To Feed The Nation, 
 If They Liked Mustard Greens. 
   
   
   
 The Second Day Out We Passed The Big Church At Mission San Jose And Soon 
 Left The Valley And Turned Into The Mountains And When Part Way Over We 
 Came To A Stream Which We Followed Up And Came Out Into Livermore 
 Valley, Where We Found A Road To Follow. Houses Were Scarce, And We 
 Camped A Mile Or So Before We Got To The Livermore Ranch Buildings. 
 There Was Very Little Sign Of Life About The Place, And We Soon Went Out 
 Of The Valley And Into The Mountains Again. 
   
   
   
 The First Sign Of Settlement We Saw When Part Way Through The Mountains 
 Was A Stone Corral, But No House Or Other Improvements. The Next Place 
 Was A Small House Made Of Willow Poles Set In The Ground And Plastered 
 Over With Mud. This Rejoiced In The Name Of "Mountain House." This 
 Wayside Inn Looked Like A Horse Thief's Glory; Only One Or Two Men, A 
 Quarter Of An Elk Hanging On A Pole, And No Accommodations For Man Or 
 Beast. There Was Very Little Water, Nothing To Sell As Well As Nothing 
 Wanted. On The Summits Of The Mountains As We Passed Through We Saw, 
 Standing Like Guards, Many Large Buck Elks. 
   
   
   
 It Was Now Fifteen Miles To The San Joaquin River, And A Level Plain Lay 
 Before Us. When Our Road Turned Into The River Bottom We Found The Water 
 Too Deep To Get Through Safely, So We Concluded To Go On And Try To Find 
 Some Place Where We Could Cross. On Our Way Droves Of Antelopes Could Be 
 Seen Frolicking Over The Broad Plains, While In The Distance Were Herds 
 Of Elk Winding Their Way From The Mountains Towards The River For Water. 
 When Far Away Their Horns Were The First Things Visible, And They Much 
 Resembled The Dry Tops Of Dead Pine Trees, But A Nearer View Showed Them 
 To Us As The Proud Monarchs Of The Plain. 
   
   
   
 When We Came Up Opposite The Mouth Of The Merced River We Concluded To 
 Try Again To Cross. The River Here, As Below, Was Out Of Its Banks, And 
 The Overflowed Part Was Quite Wide Which We Had To Pass Through Before 
 We Could Reach The River Proper. 
 
 
 
 Chapter 15 Pg 246 
   
   
   
 I Waded In Ahead Of The Team And Sounded The Depth Of The River So As 
 Not To Get In Too Deep Water, And Avoid If Possible Such Accidents As 
 Might Otherwise Occur. Sometimes The Water Was Up To The Wagon Bed And 
 It Looked A Little Doubtful Of Our Getting Through In Safety, But We 
 Made It At Last. 
   
   
   
 We Found A Narrow Strip Of Dry Land Along The River Bank. A Town Was On 
 The East Side Of The San Joaquin. River, Just Below Where The Merced 
 River Came In. I Think This Place Was Called Merced City. This So-Called 
 City Contained But One Residence, A Tent Occupied By The Ferryman. We 
 Crossed The Sluggish Stream And For The Privilege Paid The Ferryman, Ten 
 Dollars For Toll. The Road Was Not Much Used And The Ferry Business 
 Seemed Lonesome. 
   
   
   
 Here We Camped For The Night. The Mosquitoes Soon Found Us, And They 
 Were All Very Hungry And Had Good Teeth. They Annoyed Me So That I Moved 
 My Lodgings To The Ferryboat, But Here They Quickly Found Me And 
 Troubled Me All Night. These Insects Were The First I Had Seen Since I 
 Left The Lower Platte River, And I Thought Them As Bad As On The 
 Mississippi. 
   
   
   
 From Here The Road Led Up The Merced River Near The Bottom, And As We 
 Came Near Groves Of Willows, Big, Stately Elk Would Start Out And Trot 
 Off Proudly Into The Open Plains To Avoid Danger. These Proud, 
 Big-Horned Monarchs Of The Plains Could Be Seen In Bunches Scattered 
 Over The Broad Meadows, As Well As An Equal Amount Of Antelope. They All 
 Seemed To Fear Us, Which Was Wise On Their Part, And Kept Out Of Rifle 
 Shot. As Were Not Starving As We Were Once, I Did Not Follow Them Out On 
 The Open Plain, For I Thought I Could Get Meat When We Were More In 
 Need. 
   
   
   
 We Followed Up The River Bottom And Saw Not A Single House Until We 
 Reached The Road Leading From Stockton To The Mariposa Mines, Where We 
 Found A Ferry And A Small Store. Here We Learned That Some Men Were 
 Mining A Few Miles Up The River, So We Drove On Until We Found A Little 
 Work Being Done In A Dry Gulch Near The River Bank. We Made Our Camp At 
 This Spot And Had Plenty Of Wood, Water And Grass. We Found There Was 
 Something To Be Learned In The Art Of Gold Mining. We Had No Tools Nor 
 Money, And Had Never Seen A Speck Of Native Gold And Did Not Know How To 
 Separate It From The Dirt Nor Where To Search For It. We Were Poor, 
 Ignorant Emigrants. There Were Two Or Three Men Camped Here. One Of Them 
 Was More Social Than The Rest And We Soon Got Acquainted. His Name Was 
 Williams, From Missouri. He Came Down To The River With A Pan Of Dirt, 
 
 
 
 Chapter 15 Pg 247 
 And Seeing Me In My Ignorance Trying To Wash Some As Well, He Took The 
 Pan From Me And Very Kindly Showed Me How To Work So As To Let The Dirt 
 Go And Save The Gold. When He Had The Pan Finished A Few Small, Bright 
 Scales Remained. These To Me Were Curious Little Follows And I Examined 
 Them Closely And Concluded There Was A Vast Difference Between Gold And 
 Lead Mining. Williams Became More Friendly And We Told Him Something 
 About Our Journey Across The Plains, And He Seemed To Think That We 
 Deserved A Good Claim. He Went To A Dry Gulch Where A Spaniard Was 
 Working And Told Him That All Of California, Now That The War Was Over, 
 Belonged To Americans And He Must Leave. Williams Had His Gun In His 
 Hand And War Might Follow, So Mr. Spaniard Left And His Claim Was 
 Presented To Bennett And Myself. 
   
   
   
 Williams Had Been Twice To Santa Fe From Missouri And Had Learned The 
 Spanish Language And Could Swear At Them By Note If Necessary. We Now 
 Began Work Almost Without Tools, But Our Ground We Had To Work Was Quite 
 Shallow And Williams Helped Us Out By Loaning Us Some Of His Tools At 
 Times. We Soon Succeeded In Scratching Together Some Of The Yellow Stuff 
 And I Went Down To The Store And Bought A Pan For Five Dollars, A Shovel 
 For Ten Dollars, And A Poor Pick Cost Me Ten Dollars More. This Took 
 About Two Ounces Of My Money. 
   
   
   
 We Now Worked Harder Than Ever For About Three Weeks, But We Could Not 
 Save Much And Pay Such High Prices As Were Charged. Our Gulch Claim Was 
 Soon Worked Out, And As The River Had Fallen Some We Tried The Bar, But 
 We Could Only Make Four Or Five Dollars A Day, And The Gold Was Very 
 Fine And Hard To Save. We Bought A Hind Quarter Of An Elk And Hung It Up 
 In A Tree And It Kept Fresh Till All Of It Was Eaten. 
   
   
   
 Some Others Came And Took Up Claims On The Bar, And As The Prospects 
 Were Not As Good As Was Wished, Three Of Us Concluded To Go And Try To 
 Find A Better Place. The Next Day Was Sunday And All Lay In Bed Late. 
 Before I Rose I Felt Something Crawling On My Breast, And When I Looked 
 I Found It To Be An Insect, Slow In Motion, Resembling A Louse, But 
 Larger. He Was A New Emigrant To Me And I Wondered What He Was. I Now 
 Took Off My Pants And Found Many Of His Kind In The Seams. I Murdered 
 All I Could Find, And When I Got Up I Told Williams What I Had Found. He 
 Said They Hurt Nobody And Were Called _Piojos_, More Commonly Known As 
 Body Lice. 
   
   
   
 We Started On Our Prospecting Tour And Went Northeast To A Place Now 
 Called Big Oak Flat. This Was At The Head Of A Small Stream And There 
 Were Several Small Gulches That Emptied Into It That Paid Well. This 
 Flat Was All Taken Up And A Ditch Was Cut Through To Drain It. A Ship 
 Load Of Gold Was Expected To Be Found When It Was Worked. A Small Town 
 Of Tents Had Been Pitched On Both Sides Of The Flat. One Side Was 
 
 
 
 Chapter 15 Pg 248 
 Occupied By Gamblers, And Many Games Were Constantly Carried On And Were 
 Well Patronized. On The Opposite Side Of The Flat Were Many Small Tents, 
 And Around On The Hillside Some Mules And Jacks Were Feeding. One Of The 
 Little Long-Eared Donkeys Came Down Among The Tents And Went In One And 
 Commenced Eating Flour From The Sack. The Owner Of The Flour Ran To The 
 Tent, Took His Shot Gun And Fired A Load Of Buck-Shot Into The Donkey's 
 Hams. The Animal Reeled And Seemed Shot Fatally. I Now Looked For A 
 Battle To Commence, But The Parties Were More Reasonable. The Price Of 
 The Animal Was Fully Paid, And No Blood Shed As I Expected There Surely 
 Would Be. 
   
   
   
 We Now Prospected Further East, But Nothing Good Enough Was Found. The 
 Place We Looked Over Was Where The Town Of Garota Now Stands. We 
 Concluded To Go Back, Have A Council, And Go Somewhere Else. On Our Way 
 Back We Stopped To Get Dinner. While I Was Around The Fire, Barefooted, 
 I Felt Something Crawl Up My Instep, And It Proved To Be Another Of 
 Those _Piojos_ Of Williams'. I Now Thought These Torments Must Be All 
 Over This Country. 
   
   
   
 Gold Dust Was Used To Transact All Business; All The Coin Was In The 
 Hands Of The Gentlemen Gamblers. Most Miners Found It Necessary To Have 
 A Small Pair Of Scales In The Breast Pocket To Weigh The Dust So As Not 
 To Have To Trust Some One Who Carried Lead Weights And Often Got More 
 Than His Just Dues. Gold Dust Was Valued At Sixteen Dollars An Ounce. 
   
   
   
 We Now Thought It Would Be Best For Two Of Us To Take Our Mules And Go 
 Down In The Small Hills And Try To Get Some Elk Meat To Take With Us, As 
 Our Route Would Be Mostly Through The Unsettled Part Of The Country, And 
 No Provisions Could Likely Be Procured, So Mr. Bradford Of New Orleans 
 And Myself Took Our Mules And Went Down Where The Hills Were Low And The 
 Game Plenty. We Camped In A Low Ravine, Staked Out Our Mules And Staid 
 All Night Without A Fire, Believing That When We Woke In The Early 
 Morning Some Of The Many Herd Of Elk Then In Sight Would Be Near Us At 
 Daylight, And We Could Easily Kill All We Wanted Without Leaving Camp; 
 But We Were Disappointed. Hundreds Of The Big-Horned Fellows Were In 
 Sight, But None In Rifle Shot, And There Was No Chance For Us To Get Any 
 Nearer To Them. We Got Near A Couple Of Antelope And Mr. Bradford, Who 
 Was A Brag Shot And Had The Best Gun, Proposed To Kill Them As We Stood. 
 The Larger Of The Two Was On His Side And Much Nearer Than The Smaller 
 One, But We Fired Together Just As We Stood. Bradford's Antelope Ran Off 
 Unhurt: Mine Fell Dead In Its Tracks. Bradford Bragged No More About His 
 Fine Gun And Superior Marksmanship. 
   
   
   
 We Went Back To Camp With The Little We Had Killed And Soon Got Ready To 
 Start North. Bennett Was To Go With His Team To Sacramento And Wait 
 There Until He Heard From Us. 
 
 
 
 Chapter 15 Pg 249 
   
   
   
 Four Of Us, Mounted On Mules, Now Started On Our Journey Along The 
 Foothills Without A Road. We Struck The Tuolumne River At A Ferry. The 
 Stream Was High And Rapid And Could Not Be Forded, So We Had To 
 Patronize The Ferryman, And Give Him Half An Ounce Apiece. We Thought 
 Such Charges On Poor And Almost Penniless Emigrants Were Unjust. 
   
   
   
 The Point We Were Seeking To Reach Was A New Discovery Called Gold Lake 
 On Feather River, Where Many Rich Gulches That Emptied Into It Had Been 
 Worked, And The Lake Was Believed To Have At Least A Ship Load Of Gold 
 In It. It Was Located High In The Mountains And Could Be Easily Drained 
 And A Fortune Soon Obtained If We Got There In Time And Said Nothing To 
 Anyone We Might Meet On The Road. We Might Succeed In Getting A Claim 
 Before They Were All Taken Up. We Followed Along The Foothills Without A 
 Road, And When We Came To The Stanislaus River We Had To Patronize A 
 Ferry And Pay Half An Ounce Each Again. We Thought Their Scale Weights 
 Were Rather Heavy And Their Ferrymen Well Paid. 
   
   
   
 We Continued Along The Foothills Without Any Trail Until We Struck The 
 Road From Sacramento To Hangtown. This Sounded Like A Bad Name For A 
 Good Village, But We Found It Was Fittingly Named After Some Ugly Devils 
 Who Were Hanged There. The First House That We Came To On This Road Was 
 The Mormon Tavern. Here Were Some Men Playing Cards For Money, And Two 
 Boys, Twelve Or Fourteen Years Old, Playing Poker For The Same And 
 Trying In Every Way To Ape The Older Gamblers And Bet Their Money As 
 Freely And Swear As Loud As The Old Sports. All I Saw Was New And 
 Strange To Me And Became Indelibly Fixed On My Mind. I Had Never Before 
 Seen Such Wicked Boys, And The Men Paid No Attention To These Fast 
 American Boys. I Began To Wonder If All The People In California Were 
 Like These, Bad And Wicked. 
   
   
   
 Here We Learned That Gold Lake Was Not As Rich As Reported, So We 
 Concluded To Take The Road And Go To Coloma, The Place Where Gold Was 
 First Found On The American River. 
   
   
   
 We Camped At Coloma All Night. Mr. Bradford Got His Mule Shod And Paid 
 Sixteen Dollars, Or In The Mining Phrase, An Ounce Of Gold Dust. I 
 Visited The Small Town And Found That The Only Lively Business Place In 
 It Was A Large Gambling House, And I Saw Money (Gold Dust) Liberally 
 Used--Sometimes Hundreds Of Dollars Bet On A Single Card. When A Few 
 Hundred Or Thousand Were Lost More Would Be Brought On. The Purse Would 
 Be Set In The Center Of The Table And The Owners Would Take Perhaps 
 Twenty Silver Dollars Or Checks, And When They Were Lost The Deposited 
 Purse Would Be Handed To The Barkeeper, The Amount Weighed Out And The 
 
 
 
 Chapter 15 Pg 250 
 Purse Returned. When The Purse Was Empty A Friend Of The Better Would 
 Bring Another, And So The Game Went On Almost In Silence. The Game 
 Called Monte Seemed To Be The Favorite. How Long These Sacks Of Gold 
 Lasted Or Who Eventually Got The Whole I Never Knew. This Was A New 
 Country With New People, And Many Seemed To Be Engaged In A Business 
 That Was New, Strange And Hazardous. The Final Result Of All This Was 
 What Puzzled Me. 
   
   
   
 We Now Followed The Road Up The Mountain To Georgetown. Here Was A Small 
 Village On The Summit Of The Ridge And It Seemed To Be In A Prosperous 
 Mining Section. After Some Inquiry About A Good Place To Work We 
 Concluded To Go Down A Couple Of Miles Northeast Of Town On Canon Creek 
 And Go To Work If Vacant Ground Could Be Found. There Was A Piece Of 
 Creek Bottom Here That Had Not Been Much Worked. Georgia Flat Above Had 
 Been Worked And Paid Well, And The Illinois And Oregon Canons That 
 Emptied Into The Bottom Here Were Rich, So We Concluded To Locate In The 
 Bottom. Claims Here In The Flat Were Only Fifteen Feet Square. I Located 
 One And My Notice Told Others That I Would Go To Work On It As Soon My 
 Partner Came From Sacramento. I Sent My Partner, Mr. Bennett A Note 
 Telling Him To Come Up. 
   
   
   
 While Waiting For Mr. Bennett I Took My Pan And Butcher Knife And Went 
 Into A Dry Gulch Out Of Sight Of The Other Campers And Began Work. As 
 The Ground Was Mostly Bare Bed Rock By Scratching Around I Succeeded In 
 Getting Three Or Four Pans Of Dirt A Day. The Few Days I Had To Wait For 
 Bennett I Made Eight Dollars A Day Until My Claim Was Worked Out. 
   
   
   
 I Then Went To Georgetown To Meet Bennett And Family, And Soon After My 
 Arrival They Came Well And Safe. All Of Them, Even To The Faithful Camp 
 Dog, Cuff, Were Glad To See Me. Old Cuff Followed Me All Around Town, 
 But When We Got Ready To Start For Camp The Dog Was Gone And Could Not 
 Be Found. Some One Had Hidden Him Away Knowing He Could Not Be Gotten 
 Any Other Way, For Six Ounces Would Not Have Bought Him. We Had Raised 
 Him In Wisconsin, Made Him A Good Deer Dog, And With Us He Had Crossed 
 The Dry And Sandy Deserts. He Had Been A Great Protection To Bennett's 
 Children On The Plains, And Company For Us All. 
   
   
   
 We Now Located Claims On The Creek Bottom. The Channel Of The Creek Was 
 Claimed By Holman Of Alabama And The Helms Brothers Of Missouri. They 
 Had Turned The Stream Into A Ditch In Order To Work The Bed Of The 
 Stream, Believing That Their Claims Had All The Gold In Them. Our Claims 
 Joined Theirs. 
   
   
   
 Mr. W.M. Stockton, Who Left His Family In Los Angeles, Came With Mr. 
 
 
 
 Chapter 15 Pg 251 
 Bennett And Went To Work With Us. As Everything Here Was Very High We 
 Concluded To Let Mr. Stockton Take The Team And Go To Sacramento For 
 Provisions For Our Own Use. Flour And Meat Were Each Fifty Cents A 
 Pound, Potatoes Twenty-Five Cents A Pound And Onions One Dollar And 
 Twenty-Five Cents Each. Onions And Potatoes Eaten Raw Were Considered 
 Very Necessary To Prevent And Cure Scurvy, Which Was Quite A Common 
 Complaint. Whiskey, If Not Watered, Cost One Dollar A Drink. 
   
   
   
 Our Claims Were About Ten Feet Deep. The Bottom Was Wet And A Pump 
 Needed, So We Went To A Whip Saw-Mill And Got Four Narrow Strips One By 
 Three And One By Five And Twelve Feet Long, Paying For Them By Weight, 
 The Price Being Twelve Cents A Pound. Out Of These Strips We Made A Good 
 Pump By Fixing A Valve At The End And Nailing A Piece Of Green Rawhide 
 On A Pole, Which Answered For A Plunger, And With The Pump Set At 
 Forty-Five Degrees It Worked Easily And Well. One Man Could Easily Keep 
 The Water Out And We Made Fair Wages. 
   
   
   
 In The Creek Bottom Mr. Bush Of Missouri Had A Saloon. The Building Was 
 Made Mainly Of Brush, With A Split Piece For A Counter, And Another One 
 For A Shelf For His Whiskey Keg, A Box Of Cigars, A Few Decks Of Cards 
 And Half A Dozen Glasses, Which Made Up The Entire Stock Of Trade For 
 The Shop. In Front Was A Table Made Of Two Puncheons With A Blanket 
 Thrown Over All, And A Few Rough Seats Around. There Was No Roof Except 
 The Brush, And Through The Dry Season None Was Needed Except For Shade. 
   
   
   
 There Was Also At This Place Five Brothers By The Name Of Helms, Also 
 From Missouri. Their Names Were Jim, Davenport, Wade, Chet And Daunt. 
 These Men, With Mr. Holman, Owned The Bed Of The Stream, And Their 
 Ground Proved To Be Quite Wet And Disagreeable To Work. Mr. Holman Could 
 Not Well Stand To Work In The Cold Water, So He Asked The Privilege Of 
 Putting In A Hired Man In His Place, Which Was Agreed To. He Then Took 
 Up A Claim For Himself Outside Of The Other Claims, And This Proved To 
 Be On Higher Bed Rock And Dry, And Paid Even Better Than The Low Claims 
 Where The Helms Brothers Were At Work. This Was Not What The Helms Boys 
 Considered Exactly Fair, As Holman Seemed To Be Getting Rich The 
 Fastest, And As There Was No Law To Govern Them They Held A Free Country 
 Court Of Their Own, And Decided The Case To Suit Themselves; So They 
 Ordered Holman To Come Back And Do His Own Work. No Fault Was Found With 
 The Hired Man But What He Did His Work Well Enough, But They Were 
 Jealous And Would Not Be Bound By Their Agreement. 
   
   
   
 But This Decision Did Not Satisfy All Parties, And It Was Agreed To 
 Submit The Case To Three Men, And I Was Chosen One Of Them. We Held 
 Court On The Ground And Heard Both Sides Of The Story, After Which We 
 Retired To The Shade Of A Bunch Of Willows To Hold Council Over The 
 Matter With The Result That We Soon Came To A Decision In Favor Of Mr. 
 
 
 
 Chapter 15 Pg 252 
 Holman. About This Time One Of The Helms Boys Began To Quarrel With 
 Holman And Grew Terribly Mad, Swearing All Kinds Of Vengeance, And 
 Making The Canon Ring With The Loudest Kind Of Missouri Oaths. Finally 
 He Picked Up A Rock To Kill Holman, But The Latter Was Quick With His 
 Pistol, A Single Shot Duelling Piece, And As They Were Not More Than Ten 
 Feet Apart Helms Would Have Had A Hole In Him Large Enough For Daylight 
 To Shine Through If The Pistol Had Not Missed Fire. We Stopped The 
 Quarrel And Made Known Our Decision, Whereupon Helms Went Off Muttering 
 Vengeance. 
   
   
   
 We Now Went Back To Our Work Again At Our Claims, Mine Being Between 
 Helms' Cabin And The Saloon. Holman Stopped To Talk A Little While On My 
 Claim, While I Was Down Below At Work, And Soon Helms Came Back Again In 
 A Terrible Rage, Stopping On The Opposite Side Of The Hole From Holman, 
 Swearing Long And Loud, And Flourishing A Big Pistol With Which He 
 Threatened To Blow Holman Into Purgatory. He Was So Much Enraged That He 
 Fairly Frothed At The Mouth Like A Rabid Dog. The Men Were About Twenty 
 Feet Apart, And I At The Bottom Of The Hole Ten Feet Below, But Exactly 
 Between Them. It Seemed To Me That I Was In Some Little Danger For Helms 
 Had His Big Pistol At Full Cock, And As It Pointed At Me Quite As Often 
 As It Did At Anybody, I Expect I Dodged Around A Little To Keep Out Of 
 Range. Helms Was Terribly Nervous, And Trembled As He Cursed, But Holman 
 Was Cool And Drew His Weapon Deliberately, Daring Helms To Raise His 
 Hand Or He Would Kill Him On The Instant. Helms Now Began To Back Off, 
 But Carefully Kept His Eye On Holman And Continued His Abuse As He Went 
 On To The Saloon To Get Something To Replenish His Courage. Holman, 
 During The Whole Affair, Talked Very Calmly And Put Considerable 
 Emphasis Into His Words When He Dared Helms To Make A Hostile Motion. He 
 Was A True Alabamian And Could Be Neither Scared Nor Driven. He Soon 
 Sold Out, However, And Went To A More Congenial Camp For He Said These 
 People Were Cowardly Enough To Waylay And Kill Him Unawares. 
   
   
   
 Soon After This Unpleasantness A Man And Wife Who Lived In Georgetown 
 Came Into Notice, And While The Man Made Some Money Mining His Wife Did 
 A Good Stroke Of Business Washing For The Boys Who Paid Her A Dollar A 
 Shirt As Laundry Fees. As She Began To Make Considerable Money The 
 Bigger, If Not Better, Half Of This Couple Began To Feel Quite Rich And 
 Went Off On A Drunk, And When His Own Money Was Spent He Went To His 
 Wife For More, But She Refused Him, And He, In His Drunken Rage, Picked 
 Up A Gun Near By And Shot Her Dead. 
   
   
   
 All Of A Sudden The Helms Boys And Others Gathered At The Saloon, Took 
 Drinks All Around, And Did A Good Deal Of Swearing, Which Was The 
 Biggest Portion Of The Proceedings Of The Meeting; And Then They All 
 Started Off Toward Town, Swearing And Yelling As They Struggled Up The 
 Steep Mountain Side--A Pack Of Reckless, Back-Woods Missourians Who 
 Seemed To Smell Something Bloody. 
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 15 Pg 253 
   
   
 It Was Near Night When They All Came Back And Gathered Around The Saloon 
 Again. They Were All In Unusual Good Humor As They Related The 
 Adventures Of The Afternoon, And Bragged Of Their Bravery And Skill In 
 Performing The Little Job They Had Just Completed, Which Consisted In 
 Taking The Murderer Out To The First Convenient Oak Tree, And With The 
 Assistance Of Some Sailors In Handling The Ropes, Hoisting The Fellow 
 From The Ground With A Noose Around His Neck, And To The "Heave, Yo 
 Heave" Of The Sailor Boys, Pulling The Rope That Had Been Passed Over An 
 Elevated Limb. They Watched The Suspended Body Till The Last Spark Of 
 Life Went Out, And Then Went Back To Town Leaving The Corpse Hanging For 
 Somebody Else To Cut Down And Bury. They Whooped And Yelled At The Top 
 Of Their Voices As They Came Down Along The Mountain Trail, And At The 
 Saloon They Related To The Crowd That Had Gathered There How They Had 
 Helped To Hang The ---- Who Had Killed His Wife. They Said Justice Must 
 Be Done If There Was No Law, And That No Man Could Kill A Woman And Live 
 In California. They Imagined They Were Very Important Individuals, And 
 Veritable Lords Of Creation. 
   
   
   
 These Miners, Many Of Them, Were Inveterate Gamblers And Played Every 
 Night Till Near Day-Light, With No Roof Over Them, And Their Only 
 Clothes A Woolen Shirt And Overalls Which Must Have Been A Little Scanty 
 In The Cool Nights Which Settled Down Over The Mountain Camp; But They 
 Bore It All In Their Great Desire For Card Playing. 
   
   
   
 Near By There Were Three Men Who Worked And Slept Together, Every Night 
 Dividing The Dust Which Each Put Into A Purse At The Head Of His Bed. 
 One Day The News Came To The Saloon That One Of The Purses Had Been 
 Stolen. The Helms Boys Talked It Over And Concluded That As One Of The 
 Men Had Gone To Town, He Might Know Something About The Lost Dust; So 
 They Went To Town And There, After A Little Search, Found Their Man In A 
 Gambling House. After A Little While They Invited Him To Return To Camp 
 With Them, And All Started Together Down The Mountain; But When About 
 Half Way Down They Halted Suddenly Under An Oak Tree And Accused Their 
 Man Of Knowing Where His Partner's Money Was. This He Strongly Denied, 
 And Was Very Positive In His Denial Till He Felt The Surprise Of A Rope 
 Around His Neck, With The End Over A Limb, And Beginning To Haul Pretty 
 Taut In A Direction That Would Soon Elevate His Body From The Ground, 
 When He Weakened At Their Earnestness And Asked Them To Hold On A 
 Minute. As The Rope Slackened He Owned Up He Had The Dust And Would Give 
 It Up If They Would Not Send The News To His Folks In Missouri. This Was 
 Agreed To And The Thief Was Advised To Leave At Once For Some Distant 
 Camp, Or They Might Yet Expose Him. He Was Not Seen Afterward. 
   
   
   
 The Boys Bragged A Good Deal Of Their Detective Ability After This, And 
 Said That A Little Hanging Would Make A ---- Thief Tell The Truth Even 
 If It Did Not Make An Honest Man Of Him, And That A Thief Would Be Lucky 
 
 
 
 Chapter 15 Pg 254 
 If He Got Through With Them And Saved His Life. Their Law Was "Hanging 
 For Stealing." 
   
   
   
 The Helms Brothers Were Said To Be From Western Missouri, And In Early 
 Days Were Somewhat Of The Border Ruffian Order, And Of Course Preferred 
 To Live On The Frontier Rather Than In Any Well Regulated Society. As 
 The Country Became Settled And Improved Around Them They Moved On. A 
 School House Was An Indication That The Country Was Getting Too Far 
 Advanced For Them. 
   
   
   
 They Crossed The Plains In 1849 And Began Mining Operations Near 
 Georgetown In Placer County. It Was Well Known That They Were Foremost 
 In All Gambling, And In Taking A Hand In Any Excitement That Came Up, 
 And As A Better Class Of Miners Came In They Moved On, Keeping Ahead 
 With The Prospectors, And Just Out Of Reach Of Law And Order. If Anyone 
 Else Committed A Crime They Were Always Quite Eager To Be On The 
 Vigilance Committee, And Were Remarkably Happy When Punishing A 
 Wrong-Doer. When Any Of Their Number Was Suspected It Was Generally The 
 Case That They Moved Quickly On And So Escaped. It Was Reported, 
 However, That One Of Their Number Was In The Hands Of The Vigilance 
 Committee And Hanged In Montana. 
   
   
   
 After A Time, It Is Said, They Went Down To Southern California And 
 Settled On The Border Of The Colorado Desert, About Seventy-Five Miles 
 East Of San Diego, In A Mountainous And Desert Region. Here They Found A 
 Small Tribe Of Indians, And By Each Marrying A Squaw They Secured Rights 
 Equal To Any Of Them In The Occupation Of The Land. This Was Considered 
 Pretty Sharp Practice, But It Suited Them And They Became Big Chiefs And 
 Midecine Men, And Numerous Dusky Descendants Grew Up Around Them. 
   
   
   
 It Is Said That Their Property Consists Of Extensive Pasture Lands On 
 Which They Raise Cattle, And That They Always Go Well Armed With Pistol, 
 Rifle And Riata. It Is Said That Some Of The Indians Undertook To Claim 
 That The Helms Brothers Were Intruders, But That In Some Mysterious Way 
 Accidents Happened To Most Of Them And They Were Left Without Any 
 Serious Opposition. 
   
   
   
 They Are Very Hospitable And Entertaining To People Who Visit Them, 
 Provided They Do Not Know Too Much About The Men Or Their Former Deeds 
 Or History. In This Case Ignorance Is Bliss And It Is Folly, If Not 
 Dangerous, To Be Too Wise. They Have Made No Improvements, But Live In 
 About The Same Style As The Indians And About On A Level With Them 
 Morally And Intellectually. 
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 15 Pg 255 
   
   
 There May Be Those Who Know Them Well, But The Writer Only Knows Them By 
 Hearsay And Introduces Them As A Certain Type Of Character Found In The 
 Early Days. 
   
   
   
 As I Was Now About Barefoot I Went To Town To Look For Boots Or Shoes. 
 There Were No Shoes, And A Pair Of The Cheapest Boots I Found Hanging At 
 The Door Were Priced To Me At Two Ounces. This Seemed A Wonderful Sum 
 For A Pair Of Coarse Cow-Hide Boots That Would Sell In The State For Two 
 Dollars And Fifty Cents; But I Had To Buy Them At The Price Or Go 
 Barefoot. 
   
   
   
 While Rambling Around Town I Went Into A Round Tent Used As A Gambling 
 Saloon. The Occupants Were Mostly Men, And One Or Two Nice Appearing 
 Ladies, But Perhaps Of Doubtful Reputation. The Men Were Of All 
 Classes--Lawyer, Doctors, Preachers And Such Others As Wanted To Make 
 Money Without Work. The Miners, Especially Sailors, Were Eager To Try To 
 Beat The Games. While I Was Here The Table Was Only Occupied By A Sailor 
 Lying Upon It And Covered With A Green Blanket. All At Once The Fellow 
 Noticed A Large _Piojo_ Walking Slowly Across The Table, And Drawing His 
 Sheath Knife Made A Desperate Stab At Him, Saying "You Kind Of A Deck 
 Hand Can't Play At This Game." 
   
   
   
 Our Claims, By This Time Were Nearly Worked Out, And I Thought That I 
 Had Upward Of Two Thousand Dollars In Gold, And The Pile Looked Pretty 
 Big To Me. It Seemed To Me That These Mines Were Very Shallow And Would 
 Soon Be Worked Out, At Least In A Year Or Two. I Could Not See That The 
 Land Would Be Good For Much For Farming When No Irrigation Could Be 
 Easily Got, And The Spanish People Seemed To Own All The Best Land As 
 Well As The Water; So That A Poor Fellow Like Myself Would Never Get 
 Rich At Farming Here. 
   
   
   
 Seeing The Matter In This Light I Thought It Would Be Best To Take My 
 Money And Go Back To Wisconsin Where Government Land Was Good And 
 Plenty, And With Even My Little Pile I Could Soon Be Master Of A Good 
 Farm In A Healthy Country, And I Would There Be Rich Enough. Thus 
 Reasoning I Decided To Return To Wisconsin, For I Could Not See How A 
 Man Could Ever Be A Successful Farmer In A Country Where There Were Only 
 Two Seasons, One Wet And The Other Long And Dry. 
   
   
   
 I Went Out And Hunted Up My Mule Which I Had Turned Out To Pasture For 
 Herself, And Found Her Entirely Alone. After A Little Coaxing I Caught 
 Her And Brought Her With Me To Camp, Where I Offered Her For Sale. She 
 
 
 
 Chapter 15 Pg 256 
 Was Sleek And Fat And Looked So Well That Helms Said That If I Could 
 Beat Him Shooting He Would Buy Both Mule And Gun; So Three Or Four Of Us 
 Tried Our Skill. My Opponents Boasted A Good Deal Of Their Superior 
 Marksmanship, But On The Trial, Which Began At Short Range, I Beat Them 
 All Pretty Badly. Helms Was As Good As His Word And Offered Me Twelve 
 Ounces For My Gun And Mule, Which I Took. I Thought A Great Deal Of My 
 Fat Little One-Eyed Mule, And I Thought Then, As I Think Now, How Well 
 She Did Her Part On The Fearful Road To And From Death Valley. 
   
   
   
 Helms Was Now Going To The Valley To Have A Winter's Hunt, For Here The 
 Snow Would Fall Four Feet Deep And No Mining Work Could Be Done Till 
 Spring, When He Would Return And Work His Claim Again. 
   
   
   
 I Now Had All In My Pocket, And When I Got Ready To Go Mrs. Bennett Was 
 Much Affected At Knowing That I Would Now Leave Them, Perhaps Never To 
 Return To Them Again. She Clasped Me In Her Arms, Embraced Me As She 
 Would Her Own Son, And Said "Good Luck To You--God Bless You, For I Know 
 That You Saved All Our Lives. I Don't Suppose You Will Ever Come Back, 
 But We May Come Back To Wisconsin Sometime And We Will Try To Find A 
 Better Road Than The One We Came Over. Give My Best Regards To All Who 
 Inquire After Us." She Shook My Hand Again And Again With Earnest 
 Pressure, And Cried And Sobbed Bitterly. As I Climbed The Mountain She 
 Stood And Watched Me So Long As I Was In Sight, And With Her 
 Handkerchief Waved A Final Adieu. I Was Myself Much Affected At This 
 Parting, For With Mr. And Mrs. Bennett Had Been Really A Home To Me; She 
 Had Been To Me As A Mother, And It Was Like Leaving A Home Fireside To 
 Go Away From Them. I Was Now Starting Out Among Strangers, And Those I 
 Should Meet Might Be The Same Good Friends As Those Whom I Had Left 
 Behind. Mr. Bennett And I Had For Many Years Been Hunting Companions; I 
 Had Lived At His House In The East, And We Never Disagreed But Had 
 Always Been Good Friends. I Had Now A Traveling Companion Whose Home Was 
 In Iowa Co., Wis., Where I Had Lived For Several Years, And We Went 
 Along Together By Way Of Greenwood Where There Was A Small Mining Town 
 Built Of Tents, Many Of Which Were Used As Gambling Places. These Places 
 Were Occupied By Gentlemen, Some Of Whom Wore White Shirts To 
 Distinguish Them, I Presume, From The Common Herd Of Miners From Whom 
 They Won Their Dust. 
   
   
   
 We Crossed The American River At Salmon Falls, And Walked Thence On To 
 Sacramento City, Which Was The Largest Town We Had Seen On The Coast. 
 The Houses Were All Small Wooden Ones, But Business Seemed To Be Brisk, 
 And Whiskey Shops And Gambling Houses Plenty. One Game Played With Three 
 Cards, Called Three Card Monte, Was Played Openly On The Streets, With 
 Goods Boxes For Tables. Every One Who Came Along Was Urged To Bet By The 
 Dealer Who Would Lay Out His Cards Face Up So All Could See Them, Then 
 Turn Them Over And Shuffle Them And Say "I'll Bet Six Ounces That No One 
 Can Put His Finger On The Queen." I Watched This A While And Saw That 
 The Dealer Won Much Oftener Than He Lost, And It Seemed To Be A Simple 
 
 
 
 Chapter 15 Pg 257 
 And Easy Way To Make A Living When Money Was Plenty. 
   
   
   
 We Strolled Around Town Looking At The Sights, And The Different 
 Business Places, The Most Lively Of Which Had Plenty Of Music Inside, 
 Lots Of Tables With Plenty Of Money On Them, And Many Questionable Lady 
 Occupants. These Business Places Were Liberally Patronized And Every 
 Department Flourishing, Especially The Bar. Oaths And Vulgar Language 
 Were The Favorite Style Of Speech, And Very Many Of The People Had All 
 The Whiskey Down Them That They Could Conveniently Carry. 
   
   
   
 We Got Through The Town Safely And At The River We Found A Steamboat 
 Bound For San Francisco And The Fare Was Two Ounces. The Runners Were 
 Calling Loudly For Passengers, And We Were Told We Could Never Make The 
 Trip Any Cheaper For They Had Received A Telegram From Below Saying That 
 No Boat Would Come Up Again For Two Days. I Said To Him "I Can't See 
 Your Telegram. Where Is It?" At This He Turned And Left Us. He Had 
 Thought, No Doubt, That Miners Were Green Enough To Believe Anything. In 
 The Course Of An Hour The Smoke Of A Steamer Was Seen Down The River, 
 And This Beat Out The Runners Who Now Offered Passage For Half An Ounce. 
   
   
   
 At This Time There Was No Telegraph And The Delay Was A Lucky One For 
 Us. We Took Passage And Went To San Francisco That Night, Where We Put 
 Up At A Cheap Tavern Near Where The Custom House Now Stands. 
   
   
   
 Here We Learned That We Would Have To Wait Two Days Before A Ship Would 
 Sail For Panama, And During This Time We Surveyed The Town From The 
 Hill-Tops And Walked All Over The Principal Streets. It Was Really A 
 Small, Poorly Built, Dirty Looking Place, With Few Wharves, Poor, Cheap 
 Hotels, And Very Rough Inhabitants. There Were Lots Of Gambling Houses 
 Full Of Tables Holding Money, And The Rooms Filled With Pretty Rough 
 Looking People, Except The Card Dealers, Most Of Whom Wore White Shirts, 
 And A Few Sported Plug Hats. There Was Also A "Right Smart Sprinkling" 
 Of Ladies Present Who Were Well Dressed And Adorned With Rich Jewelry, 
 And Their Position Seemed To Be That Of Paying Teller At The Gambling 
 Tables. 
   
   
   
 The Buildings Seemed To Be Rather Cheap, Although Material Was Very 
 Expensive, As Well As Labor, Mechanics Of All Sorts Getting As Much As 
 Ten Or Twelve Dollars Per Day For Work. Coin Seemed To Be Scarce, And A 
 Great Deal Of The Money Needed On The Gambling Tables Was Represented By 
 Iron Washers, Each Of Which Represented An Ounce Of Gold. 
   
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 15 Pg 258 
 I Noticed Some Places In The Streets Where It Was Muddy And A Narrow 
 Walk Had Been Made Out Of Boxes Of Tobacco, And Sometimes Even Bacon Was 
 Used For The Same Purpose. Transportation From The City To The Mines Was 
 Very Slow And Made By Schooner. Ship Loads Of Merchandise Had Arrived 
 And Been Unloaded, And The Sailors Having Run Away To The Mines, 
 Everything Except Whiskey And Cards Was Neglected. Whiskey Sold At This 
 Place For Fifty Cents A Drink. 
   
   
   
 A Man At The Tavern Where We Stopped Tried Hard To Sell Me A Fifty-Vara 
 Lot There In The Edge Of The Mud (Near Where The Custom House Now 
 Stands) For Six Hundred Dollars. I Thought This A Pretty High Price And 
 Besides Such A Lot Was No Use To Me, For I Had Never Lived In Town And 
 Could Not So Easily See The Uses To Which Such Property Could Be Put. It 
 Seemed Very Doubtful To Me That This Place Would Ever Be Much Larger Or 
 Amount To Much, For It Evidently Depended On The Mines For A Support, 
 And These Were So Shallow That It Looked As If They Would Be Worked Out 
 In A Short Time And The Country And Town Both Be Deserted. And I Was Not 
 Alone In Thinking That The Country Would Soon Be Deserted, For 
 Accustomed As We All Had Been To A Showery Summer, These Dry Seasons 
 Would Seem Entirely To Prevent Extensive Farming. Some Cursed The 
 Country And Said They Were On Their Way To "Good Old Missouri, God's Own 
 Country." Hearing So Much I Concluded It Would Be Wise Not To Invest, 
 But To Get Me Back To Wisconsin Again. 
   
   
   
 The Steamer We Took Passage In Was The Northerner, Advertised To Sail On 
 The Twenty-Ninth Day Of November, 1850. The Cabin Room Was All Engaged, 
 And They Charged Us Nine Ounces For Steerage Passage; But I Did Not Care 
 As Much About Their Good Rooms And Clean Sheets As I Would Have Done At 
 One Time, For I Had Been A Long Time Without Either And Did Not Care To 
 Pay The Difference. When We Were At The Ship's Office We Had To Take Our 
 Turns To Get Tickets. One Man Weighed Out The Dust, And Another Filled 
 Out Certificates. When The Callers Began To Get A Little Scarce I Looked 
 Under The Counter Where I Saw A Whole Panful Of Dust To Which They Added 
 Mine To Make The Pile A Little Higher. They Gave Out No Berths With 
 These Tickets, But Such Little Things As That Did Not Trouble Us In The 
 Least. It Was Far Better Fare Than We Used To Have In And About Death 
 Valley, And We Thought We Could Live Through Anything That Promised 
 Better Than The Desert. 
   
   
   
 The Passenger List Footed Up Four Hundred And Forty, And When All Got On 
 Board, At About Ten O'clock In The Morning, There Was Hardly Room For 
 All To Stand Up Comfortably. It Seemed To Me To Be A Very Much 
 Over-Crowded Boat In Which To Put To Sea, But We Floated Out Into The 
 Current, With All The Faces Toward The Shore, And Hats And Handkerchiefs 
 Waving Goodbye To Those Who Had Come Down To See The Home-Goers Safely 
 Off. 
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 15 Pg 259 
   
 As We Passed Out Through The Wonderful Golden Gate And The Out Going 
 Current Met The Solid Sea, Each Seemed Wrestling For The Mastery, And 
 The Waves Beat And Dashed Themselves Into Foam All Around Us, While The 
 Spray Came Over The Bows Quite Lively, Frightening Some Who Did Not 
 Expect Such Treatment. When We Had Passed This Scene Of Watery Commotion 
 And Got Out Into The Deeper Water, The Sea Smoothed Down A Great Deal; 
 But Sea-Sickness Began To Claim Its Victims, At First A Few, Then More 
 And More, Till The Greater Part Were Quite Badly Affected. I Had A Touch 
 Of It Myself, But Managed To Keep My Feet By Bracing Out Pretty Wide, 
 And Hugging Everything I Could Get Hold Of That Seemed To Offer A Steady 
 Support, And I Did Not Lie Down Until After I Had Thrown My Breakfast 
 Overboard. 
   
   
   
 By The Time Dark Came Nearly Every One Was On His Back, Mostly On Deck, 
 And No One Asleep. All Were Retching And Moaning Bitterly. Some Who Had 
 A Few Hours Before Cursed California Now Cursed The Sea, And Declared 
 That If They Could Induce The Captain To Turn About And Put Them Back On 
 Shore Again, They Would Rather Creep On Their Hands And Knees Clear Back 
 To Old Missouri Over Rocks And Sand, Than To Ride Any Further On Such A 
 Miserable Old Boat As This One Was. 
   
   
   
 Next Morning The Decks Looked Pretty Filthy, And About All The Food The 
 Passengers Had Eaten Was Now Spread About The Decks In A Half Digested 
 Condition. Most Of The Passengers Were Very Sick. With The Early 
 Daylight The Sailors Coupled The Hose To The Big Steam Pump, And Began 
 The Work Of Washing And Scrubbing Off The Decks, And Though Many Begged 
 Hard To Be Left Alone As They Were, With All The Filth, A Good Flood Of 
 Salt Water Was The Only Answer They Received To Their Pleading, And They 
 Were Compelled To Move, For The Sailors Said They Could Not Change Their 
 Orders Without The Captain, And He Would Not Be Out Of Bed Till Ten 
 O'clock Or Later. So The Cursing And Swearing Went For Naught, And The 
 Decks Were Clean Again. There Were No Deaths To Report, But There Were 
 Very Few To Do Duty At The Tables In Eating The Food Prepared For Them. 
 After A Few Days The Tables Filled Up Again, And Now It Took Them So 
 Long To Eat That There Had To Be An Order For Only Two Meals A Day Or 
 There Would Not Have Been A Chance For All To Get Something. They Were 
 Terribly Hungry Now, And Every One Seemed To Try His Best To Take In 
 Provisions Enough To Last Him For At Least Twelve Hours. 
   
   
   
 As The Fellows Began To Get Their Sea Legs On, They Began To Talk As If 
 They Were Still In California, And Could Easily Manage Any Little Boat 
 Like This, And Could Run Things As They Did When They Crossed The 
 Plains, Where No Sheriff, Court Or Judge Had Anything To Say About 
 Matters, And All Law Was Left Behind. They Began To Act As If They Were 
 Lords Over All They Could See, And As Many Of Them Were From The 
 Southern States, They Seemed To Take An Especial Pride In Boasting Of 
 How They Did As They Pleased, About Like The Helms Brothers. They Talked 
 
 
 
 Chapter 15 Pg 260 
 As If They Could Run The World, Or The Universe Even, Themselves Without 
 Assistance. 
   
   
   
 One Morning At Breakfast, When The Table Was Full And The Waiters 
 Scarce, Some Of These Fellows Swore And Talked Pretty Rough, And As A 
 Waiter Was Passing A Blue-Blood From New Orleans Rose In His Seat And 
 Called For Sugar, Holding The Empty Bowl In His Hand, But The Waiter 
 Passed On And Paid No Attention, And When A Mulatto Waiter Came Along 
 Behind Him The Angry Man Damned Him The Worst He Could, Ordering Him To 
 Bring A Bowl Of Sugar, Quick. This Waiter Did Not Stop And The Louisiana 
 Man Threw The Bowl At The Waiter's Head, But Missed It, And The Bowl 
 Went Crashing Against The Side Of The Ship. I Expected Surely The 
 Captain And His Men Would Come And Put The Unruly Fellow In Irons, And 
 There Might Be A Fight Or A Riot, So I Cut My Meal Short And Went On 
 Deck About As Soon As I Could Do So, Thinking That Would Be A Safer 
 Place. But The Captain Seemed To Know About How To Manage Such Fellows, 
 And Never Left His Stateroom, Which I Think Was A Wise Move. The Darky 
 Did Not Make His Appearance At Table Afterwards, And The Man Who Threw 
 The Bowl Said That Colored Folks Had To Mind A Gentleman When He Spoke 
 To Them, Or Fare Worse. 
   
   
   
 The Captain Now Got Out His Passenger List, And We All Had To Pass 
 Through A Narrow Space Near The Wheel-House And Every One Answer To His 
 Name And Show His Ticket. This Made Work For About One Day. Some 
 Stowaways Were Found And Put Down Into The Hole To Heave Coal. One Day 
 The Captain And Mate Were Out Taking An Observation On The Sun When A 
 Young Missourian Stepped Up To See What Was Being Done, And Said To The 
 Captain:--"Captain, Don't You Think I Could Learn How To Do That Kind Of 
 Business?" The Captain Took The Young Man's Hand And Looked At His Nails 
 Which Were Very Rough And Dirty And Said:--"No My Lad; Boys With Such 
 Finger Nails Can't Learn Navigation." This Made A Big Laugh At The Brave 
 Lubber's Expense. 
   
   
   
 Many Of The Sea-Sick Ones Did Not Get Up So Soon, And Some Died Of That, 
 Or Something Else, And Their Bodies Were Sewed Up In Blankets With A 
 Bushel Of Coal At Their Feet To Sink Them, And Thrown Overboard. The 
 Bodies Were Laid Out On A Plank At The Ship's Side, The Captain Would 
 Read A Very Brief Service, And The Sailors Would, At The Appropriate 
 Time, Raise The End Of The Plank So That The Body Slid Off And Went Down 
 Out Of Sight In A Moment. 
   
   
   
 In Due Time We Went Into The Harbor Of Acapulco For Water And Coal. Here 
 Nearly Every One Went On Shore, And As There Was No Wharf For The Vessel 
 To Lie To, The Native Canoes Had Many Passengers At A Dollar Apiece For 
 Passage Money. Out Back Of Town There Was A Small Stream Of Clear Water 
 Which Was Warm And Nice To Bathe In, And Some Places Three Or Four Feet 
 
 
 
 Chapter 15 Pg 261 
 Deep, So That A Great Many Stripped Off For A Good Wash Which Was Said 
 To Be Very Healthful In This Climate. Many Native Women Were On Hand 
 With Soap And Towels Ready To Give Any One A Good Scrubbing For _Dos 
 Reales_, (Twenty-Five Cents) And Those Who Employed Them Said They Did A 
 Good, Satisfactory Job. 
   
   
   
 As I Returned To Town The Streets Seemed To Be Deserted, And I Saw One 
 Man Come Out On An Adjoining Street, And After Running A Few Steps, Fall 
 Down On His Face. Hearing The Report Of A Gun At The Same Time, I 
 Hurried On To Get Out Of Danger, But I Afterward Learned That The Man 
 Was A Travelling Gambler Who Had Come Across The Country From Mexico, 
 And That He Was Killed As He Fell. No One Seemed To Care For Him. 
   
   
   
 Near The Beach Were Some Large Trees, And Under Them Dancing Was Going 
 On To The Music Of The Guitar. There Were Plenty Of Pretty Spanish Girls 
 For Partners, And These And Our Boys Made Up An Interesting Party. The 
 Girls Did Not Seem At All Bashful Or Afraid Of The Boys, And Though They 
 Could Not Talk Together Very Much They Got Along With The Sign Language, 
 And The Ladies Seemed Very Fond Of The _Americanos_. 
   
   
   
 There Was A Fort Here, A Regular Moss-Backed Old Concern, And The 
 Soldiers Were Bare Footed And Did Not Need Much Clothing. 
   
   
   
 The Cattle That Were Taken On Board Here Were Made To Swim Out To The 
 Ship, And Then, With A Rope Around Their Horns, Hoisted On Deck, A 
 Distance Of Perhaps Forty Feet Above The Water. The Maddened Brutes Were 
 Put Into A Secure Stall Ready For The Ship's Butcher. The Small Boys 
 Came Around The Ship In Canoes, And Begged The Passengers To Throw Them 
 Out A Dime, And When The Coin Struck The Water They Would Dive For It, 
 Never Losing A Single One. One Man Dropped A Bright Bullet And The Boy 
 Who Dove For It Was So Enraged That He Called Him A D----D Gringo 
 (Englishman.) None Of These Boys Wore Any Clothes. 
   
   
   
 This Town, Like All Spanish Towns, Was Composed Of One-Story Houses, 
 With Dry Mud, Fire-Proof Walls. The Country Around Looked Very 
 Mountainous And Barren, And Comfortably Warm. 
   
   
   
 After Two Days We Were Called On Board, And Soon Set Sail For Sea Again; 
 And Now, As We Approached The Equator, It Became Uncomfortably Warm And 
 An Awning Was Put Over The Upper Deck. All Heavy Clothing Was Laid 
 Aside, And Anyone Who Had Any Amount Of Money On His Person Was Unable 
 To Conceal It; But No One Seemed To Have Any Fear Of Theft, For A Thief 
 
 
 
 Chapter 15 Pg 262 
 Could Not Conceal Anything He Should Steal, And No One Reported Anything 
 Lost. There Was Occasionally A Dead Body To Be Consigned To A Watery 
 Grave. 
   
   
   
 A Few Days Out From Here And We Were Again Mustered As Before To Show 
 Our Tickets, Which Were Carefully Examined. 
   
   
   
 It Seemed Strange To Me That The Water Was The Poorest Fare We Had. It 
 Was Sickish Tasting Stuff, And So Warm It Would Do Very Well For 
 Dish-Water. 
   
   
   
 There Were Many Interesting Things To See. Sometimes It Would Be 
 Spouting Whales; Sometimes Great Black Masses Rolling On The Water, 
 Looking Like A Ship Bottom Upward, Which Some Said Were Black-Fish. Some 
 Fish Seemed To Be At Play, And Would Jump Ten Feet Or More Out Of The 
 Water. The Flying Fish Would Skim Over The Waves As The Ship's Wheels 
 Seemed To Frighten Them; And We Went Through A Hundred Acres Of 
 Porpoises, All Going The Same Way. The Ship Plowed Right Through Them, 
 But None Seemed To Get Hurt By The Wheels. Perhaps They Were Emigrants 
 Like Ourselves In Search Of A Better Place. 
   
   
   
 It Now Became Terribly Hot, And The Sun Was Nearly Overhead At Noon. 
 Sometimes A Shark Could Be Seen Along-Side, And Though He Seemed To Make 
 No Effort, Easily Kept Up With The Moving Ship. Occasionally We Saw A 
 Sea Snake Navigating The Ocean All By Himself. I Did Not Understand How 
 These Fellows Went To Sea And Lived So Far From Land. The Flying Fish 
 Seemed To Be More Plentiful As We Went Along, And Would Leave The Water 
 And Scud Along Before Us. 
   
   
   
 We Had Evening Concerts On The Forecastle, Managed By The Sailors. Their 
 Songs Were Not Sacred Songs By Any Means, And Many Of Them Hardly Fit To 
 Be Heard By Delicate Ears. We Again Had To Run The Gauntlet Of The 
 Narrow Passage And Have Our Tickets Looked Over, And This Time A New 
 Stowaway Was Found, And He Straightway Made Application For A Job. "Go 
 Below, Sir" Was All The Captain Said. Several Died And Had Their Sea 
 Burial, And Some Who Had Been So Sick All The Way As Not To Get Out Of 
 Bed, Proved Tough Enough To Stand The Climate Pretty Well. 
   
   
   
 As We Were Nearing Panama The Doctor Posted A Notice To The Mast 
 Cautioning Us Against Eating Much Fruit While On Shore, As It Was Very 
 Dangerous When Eaten To Excess. We Anchored Some Little Distance From 
 The Shore And Had To Land In Small Boats Managed By The Natives. I Went 
 
 
 
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 In One, And When The Boat Grounded At The Beach The Boatman Took Me On 
 His Back And Set Me On Shore, Demanding Two Dollars For The Job, Which I 
 Paid, And He Served The Whole Crowd In The Same Way. The Water Here Was 
 Blood Warm, And They Told Me The Tide Ran Very High. 
   
   
   
 This Was A Strange Old Town To Me, Walled In On All Sides, A Small Plaza 
 In The Center With A Catholic Church On One Side, And The Other Houses 
 Were Mostly Two Story. On The Side Next To The Beach Was A High, Thick 
 Wall Which Contained Cells That Were Used For A Jail, And On Top Were 
 Some Dismounted Cannon, Long And Old Fashioned. 
   
   
   
 The Soldiers Were Poor, Lazy Fellows, Barefooted, And Had Very Poor 
 Looking Guns. Going Out And In All Had To Pass Through A Large Gateway, 
 But They Asked No Questions. The Streets Were Very Narrow And Dirty And 
 The Sleeping Rooms In The Second Story Of The Houses Seemed To Be 
 Inhabited By Cats. For Bed Clothes Was Needed Only A Single Sheet. On 
 The Roofs All Around Sat Turkey Buzzards, And Anything That Fell In The 
 Streets That Was Possible For Them To Eat, Was Gobbled Up Very Quickly. 
 They Were As Tame As Chickens, And Walked Around As Fearless And Lordly 
 As Tame Turkeys. In Consideration Of Their Cleaning Up The Streets 
 Without Pay, They Were Protected By Law. One Of The Passengers Could Not 
 Resist The Temptation To Shoot One, And A Small Squad Of Soldiers Were 
 Soon After Him, And Came Into A Room Where There Were Fifty Of Us, But 
 Could Not Find Their Man. He Would Have Been Sent To Jail If He Had Been 
 Caught. We Had To Pay One Dollar A Night For Beds In These Rooms, And 
 They Counted Money At The Rate Of Eight Dimes To The Dollar. 
   
   
   
 The Old Town Of Panama Lies A Little South In The Edge Of The Sea, And 
 Was Destroyed By An Earthquake Long Ago I Was Told. To Me, Raised In The 
 North, Everything Was Very New And Strange In Way Of Living, Style Of 
 Building And Kind Of Produce. There Were Donkeys, Parrots And All Kinds 
 Of Monkeys In Plenty. Most Of The Women Were Of Very Dark Complexion, 
 And Not Dressed Very Stylishly, While The Younger Population Did Not 
 Have Even A Fig Leaf, Or Anything To Take Its Place. The Adults Dressed 
 Very Economically, For The Days Are Summer Days All The Year Round, And 
 The Clothing Is Scanty And Cheap For Either Sex. 
   
   
   
 The Cattle Were Small, Pale Red Creatures, And Not Inclined To Be Very 
 Fat, And The Birds Mostly Of The Parrot Kind. The Market Plaza Is 
 Outside The Walls, And A Small Stream Runs Through It, With The Banks 
 Pretty Thickly Occupied By Washerwomen. All The Washing Was Done Without 
 The Aid Of A Fire. 
   
   
   
 On The Plaza There Were Plenty Of Donkeys Loaded With Truck Of All 
 
 
 
 Chapter 15 Pg 264 
 Sorts, From Wood, Green Grass, Cocoa-Nuts And Sugar-Cane To Parrots, 
 Monkeys And All Kinds Of Tropical Fruits. Outside The Walls The Houses 
 Were Made Of Stakes Interwoven With Palm Leaves, And Everything Was 
 Green As Well As The Grass And Trees. Very Little Of The Ground Seemed 
 To Be Cultivated, And The People Were Lazy And Idle, For They Could Live 
 So Easily On The Wild Products Of The Country. A White Man Here Would 
 Soon Sweat Out All His Ambition And Enterprise, And Would Be Almost 
 Certain To Catch The Panama Yellow Fever. The Common Class Of The People 
 Here, I Should Say, Were Spanish And Negro Mixed, And They Seem To Get 
 Along Pretty Well; But The Country Is Not Suitable For White People. It 
 Seems To Have Been Made On Purpose For Donkeys, Parrots And Long-Heeled 
 Negroes. 
   
   
   
 The Cabin Passengers Engaged All The Horses And Mules The Country 
 Afforded On Which To Ride Across The Chagres River, So It Fell To The 
 Lot Of Myself And Companion To Transfer Ourselves On Foot, Which Was 
 Pretty Hard Work In The Hot And Sultry Weather. My Gold Dust Began To 
 Grow Pretty Heavy As I Went Along, And Though I Had Only About Two 
 Thousand Dollars, Weighing About Ten Pounds, It Seemed To Me That It 
 Weighed Fifty Pounds By The Way That It Bore Down Upon My Shoulders And 
 Wore Sore Places On Them. It Really Was Burdensome. I Had Worn It On My 
 Person Night And Day Ever Since Leaving The Mines, And I Had Some Little 
 Fear Of Being Robbed When Off The Ship. 
   
   
   
 Our Road Had Been Some Day Paved With Cobble Stones. At The Outskirts Of 
 The Town We Met A Native Coming In With A Big Green Lizard, About Two 
 Feet Long, Which He Was Hauling And Driving Along With A String Around 
 Its Neck. I Wondered If This Was Not A Panama Butcher Bringing In A 
 Fresh Supply Of Meat. 
   
   
   
 When We Reached The Hills On Our Way From Panama, The Paved Road Ended 
 And We Had Only A Mule Trail To Follow. The Whole Country Was So Densely 
 Timbered That No Man Could Go Very Far Without A Cleared Road. In Some 
 Places We Passed Over Hills Of Solid Rock, But It Was Of A Soft Nature 
 So That The Trail Was Worn Down Very Deep, And We Had To Take The Same 
 Regular Steps That The Mules Did, For Their Tracks Were Worn Down A Foot 
 Or More. On The Road We Would Occasionally Meet A Native With A Heavy 
 Pack On His Back, A Long Staff In Each Hand, And A Solid Half-Length 
 Sword By His Side. He, Like The Burro, Grunted Every Step He Took. They 
 Seemed To Carry Unreasonably Heavy Loads On Their Backs, Such As Boxes 
 And Trunks, But There Was No Other Way Of Getting Either Freight Or 
 Baggage Across The Isthmus At That Time. 
   
   
   
 It Looked To Me As If This Trail Might Be Just Such A One As One Would 
 Expect Robbers To Frequent, For It Would Of Course Be Expected That 
 Californians Would Carry Considerable Money With Them, And We Might 
 
 
 
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 Reasonably Look Out For This Sort Of Gentry At Any Turn Of The Trail. We 
 Were Generally Without Weapons, And We Should Have To Deliver On Demand, 
 And If Any One Was Killed The Body Could Easily Be Concealed In The 
 Thick Brush On Either Side Of The Trail, And No Special Search For 
 Anyone Missing Would Occur. 
   
   
   
 About Noon One Day We Came To A Native Hut, And Saw Growing On A Tree 
 Near By Something That Looked Like Oranges, And We Made Very Straight 
 Tracks With The Idea Of Picking Some And Having A Feast, But Some Of The 
 People In The Shanty Called Out To Us And Made Motions For Us Not To 
 Pick Them For They Were No Good; So We Missed Our Treat Of Oranges And 
 Contented Ourselves With A Big Drink Of Water And Walked On. 
   
   
   
 After A Little More Travel We Came To Another Shanty Made Of Poles And 
 Palm Leaves, Occupied By An American. He Was A Tall, Raw-Boned, 
 Cadaverous Looking Way-Side Renegade Who Looked As If The Blood Had All 
 Been Pumped Out Of His Veins, And He Claimed To Be Sick. He Said He Was 
 One Of The Texas Royal Sons. We Applied For Some Dinner And He Lazily 
 Told Us There Were Flour, Tea And Bacon And That We Could Help 
 Ourselves. I Wet Up Some Flour And Baked Some Cakes, Made Some Poor Tea, 
 And Fried Some Bacon. We All Got A Sort Of Dinner Out Of His Pantry 
 Stuff, And Left Him A Dollar Apiece For The Accommodation. As We Walked 
 On My Companion Gave Out And Could Carry His Bundle No Longer, So I Took 
 It, Along With My Own, And We Got On As Fast As We Could, But Darkness 
 Came On Us Before We Reached The Chagres River And We Had To Stay All 
 Night At A Native Hut. We Had Some Supper Consisting Of Some Very Poor 
 Coffee, Crackers, And A Couple Of Eggs Apiece, And Had To Sleep Out 
 Under A Tree Where We Knew We Might Find Lizards, Snakes, And Other 
 Poisonous Reptiles, And Perhaps A Thieving Monkey Might Pick Our Pockets 
 While We Slept. 
   
   
   
 Before It Was Entirely Dark Many Who Rode Horses Came Along, Many Of 
 Them Ladies, And Following The Custom Of The Country, They All Rode 
 Astride. Among This Crowd Was One Middle-Aged And Somewhat Corpulent Old 
 Fellow, By Profession A Sea-Captain, Who Put On Many Airs. The Old 
 Fellow Put On His Cool White Coat--In Fact, A White Suit Throughout--And 
 In This Tropical Climate He Looked Very Comfortable, Indeed, Thus 
 Attired. He Filled His Breast Pocket With Fine Cigars, And Put In The 
 Other Pocket A Flask With Some Medicine In It Which Was Good For Snake 
 Bites, And Also Tending To Produce Courage In Case The Man, Not Used To 
 Horse-Back Riding, Should Find His Natural Spirits Failing. The Rest Of 
 His Luggage Was Placed On Pack Animals, And In Fact The Only Way Luggage 
 Was Carried In Those Days Was Either On The Backs Of Donkeys Or Men. 
   
   
   
 All Was Ready For A Start, And The Captain In His Snow-White Suit Was 
 Mounted On A Mule So Small That His Feet Nearly Touched The Ground. The 
 
 
 
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 Little Animal Had A Mind Of His Own, And At First Did Not Seem Inclined 
 To Start Out Readily, But After A Bit Concluded To Follow His Fellow 
 Animals, And All Went Well. 
   
   
   
 The Rider Was Much Amused At What He Saw; Sometimes A Very Lively 
 Monkey, Sometimes A Flock: Of Paroquets Or A High-Colored Lizard--And So 
 He Rode Along With A Very Happy Air, Holding His Head Up, And Smoking A 
 Fragrant Havana With Much Grace. The Road Was Rough And Rocky, With A 
 Mud-Hole Now And Then Of Rather Uncertain Depth. At Every One Of These 
 Mud-Holes The Captain's Mule Would Stop, Put Down His Head, Blow His 
 Nose And Look Wise, And Then Carefully Sound The Miniature Sea With His 
 Fore-Feet, Being Altogether Too Cautious To Suit His Rider Who Had Never 
 Been Accustomed To A Craft That Was Afraid Of Water. 
   
   
   
 At One Of These Performances The Mule Evidently Concluded The Sea Before 
 Him Was Not Safe, For When The Captain Tried To Persuade Him To Cross 
 His Persuasions Had No Effect. Then He Coaxed Him With Voice Gentle, 
 Soft And Low, With The Result That The Little Animal Took A Few Very 
 Short Steps And Then Came To Anchor Again. Then The Captain Began To Get 
 Slightly Roiled In Temper, And The Voice Was Not So Gentle, Sweet And 
 Low, But It Had No Greater Effect Upon His Craft. He Began To Get 
 Anxious, For The Others Had Gone On, And He Thought Perhaps He Might Be 
 Left. 
   
   
   
 Now, This Sea-Faring Man Had Armed His Heels With The Large Spanish 
 Spurs So Common In The Country, And Bringing Them In Contact With The 
 Force Due To Considerable Impatience, Mr. Mule Was Quite Suddenly And 
 Painfully Aware Of The Result. This Was Harsher Treatment Than He Could 
 Peaceably Submit To, And At The Second Application Of The Spurs A Pair 
 Of Small Hoofs Were Very High In The Air And The Captain Very Low On His 
 Back In The Mud And Water, Having Been Blown From The Hurricane Deck Of 
 His Craft In A Very Sudden And Lively Style. The Philosophical Mule 
 Stood Very Still And Looked On While The White Coat And Pantaloons Were 
 Changing To A Dirty Brown, And Watched The Captain As He Waded Out, To 
 The Accompaniment Of Some Very Vigorous Swear Words. 
   
   
   
 Both The Man And Beast Looked Very Doubtful Of Each Other's Future 
 Actions, But The Man Shook The Water Off And Bestowed Some Lively Kicks 
 On His Muleship Which Made Him Bounce Into And Through The Mud-Hole, And 
 The Captain, Still Holding The Bridle, Followed After. Once Across The 
 Pool The Captain Set His Marine Eye On The Only Craft That Had Been Too 
 Much For His Navigation And Said "Vengeance Should Be Mine," And In This 
 Doubtful State Of Mind He Cautiously Mounted His Beast Again And Fully 
 Resolved To Stick To The Deck, Hereafter, At All Hazards, He Hurried On 
 And Soon Overtook The Train Again, Looking Quite Like A Half Drowned 
 Rooster. The Others Laughed At Him And Told Him They Could Find Better 
 
 
 
 Chapter 15 Pg 267 
 Water A Little Way Ahead, At The River, And They Would See Him Safely 
 In. The Captain Was Over His Pet, And Made As Much Fun As Any Of Them, 
 Declaring That He Could Not Navigate Such A Bloody Craft As That In Such 
 Limited Sea Room, For It Was Dangerous Even When There Was No Gale To 
 Speak Of. 
   
   
   
 The Ladies Did Not Blush At The New And Convenient Costumes Which They 
 Saw In This Country, And Laughed A Good Deal Over The Way Of Traveling 
 They Had To Adopt. Any Who Were Sick Were Carried In A Kind Of Chair 
 Strapped To The Back Of A Native. Passengers Were Strung Along The Road 
 For Miles, Going And Coming. We Would Occasionally Sit Down Awhile And 
 Let The Sweat Run Off While A Party Of Them Passed Us. Some Were Mounted 
 On Horses, Some On Mules, And Some On Donkeys, And They Had To Pay 
 Twelve Dollars For The Use Of An Animal For The Trip. 
   
   
   
 Our Night At This Wayside Deadfall Was Not Much Better Than Some Of The 
 Nights About Death Valley, But As I Was Used To Low Fare, I Did Not 
 Complain As Some Did. This Seemed A Wonderful Country To A Northern 
 Raised Boy. The Trail Was Lined On Both Sides With All Kinds Of Palms 
 And Various Other Kinds Of Trees And Shrubs, And They Were Woven 
 Together In A Compact Mass With Trailing And Running Vines. The Trees 
 Were Not Tall, And The Bark Was As Smooth As A Young Hickory. The Roots 
 Would Start Out Of The Tree Three Feet Above The Ground And Stand Out At 
 An Angle, And Looked Like Big Planks Placed Edgewise. 
   
   
   
 It Seemed As If There Were Too Many Plants For The Ground To Support, 
 And So They Grew On The Big Limbs Of The Trees All Around, The Same As 
 The Mistletoe On The Oak, Only There Were Ever So Many Different Kinds. 
   
   
   
 The Weather Was Very Clear, And The Sun So Hot That Many Of The 
 Travelers Began To Wilt And Sit Down By The Roadside To Rest. Many 
 Walked Along Very Slowly And Wore Long Faces. The Road From Panama To 
 Crucez, On The Chagres River, Was Eighteen Miles Long, And All Were Glad 
 When They Were On The Last End Of It. The Climate Here Seems To Take All 
 The Starch And Energy Out Of A Man's Body, And In This Condition He Must 
 Be Very Cautious Or Some Disease Will Overtake Him And He Will Be Left 
 To Die Without Burial For His Body If He Has No Personal Friends With 
 Him. 
   
   
   
 We Started On The Next Morning, And On Our Way Stepped Over A Large Ship 
 Anchor That Lay Across The Trail. I Suppose The Natives Had Undertaken 
 To Pack It Across The Isthmus And Found It Too Heavy For Them. Perhaps 
 It Was For Capt. Kidd, The Great Pirate, For It Is Said That He Often 
 Visited Panama In The Course Of His Cruising About In Search Of 
 
 
 
 Chapter 15 Pg 268 
 Treasures. 
   
   
   
 Passing Along A Sandy Place In The Trail, A Snake Crossed And Left His 
 Track, Big As A Stovepipe It Seemed To Be, And After This We Kept A 
 Sharp Watch For Big Snakes That Might Be In Waiting To Waylay Us For 
 Game. 
   
   
   
 There Were Plenty Of Monkeys And Parrots Climbing And Chattering Around 
 In The Trees. The Forest Is Here So Dense That The Wind Never Blows, And 
 Consequently It Never Gets Cool. The Sun, Ever Since We Got Down Near 
 The Equator, Was Nearly Overhead, And The Moon Seemed To Be Even North 
 Of Us. 
   
   
   
 When We Reached The Chagres River We Hired A Boat Of An Irishman For The 
 Trip Down. I Wondered If There Was A Place On Earth So Desolate That The 
 "Paddy" Would Not Find It. The Boat For The Journey Cost Two Hundred 
 Dollars, And Would Hold Passengers Enough So That It Would Cost Us Ten 
 Dollars Each, At Any Rate, And Perhaps A Little More. Two Natives Had 
 Charge Of The Boat And Did The Navigating. There Were Two Ladies Among 
 The Passengers, And When The Two Natives, Who I Suppose Were The Captain 
 And Mate Of The Craft, Came On Board, Clad Very Coolly In Panama Hats, 
 The Ladies Looked At Them A Little Out Of The Corners Of Their Eyes And 
 Made The Best Of It. Our Two Navigators Took The Oars And Pulled Slowly 
 Down The Stream. 
   
   
   
 Nothing But Water And Evergreen Trees Could We See, For The Shore On 
 Either Hand Was Completely Hidden By The Dense Growth That Hung Over And 
 Touched The Water. On A Mud Bar That We Passed A Huge Alligator Lay, 
 Taking A Sun Bath, And Though Many Shots Were Fired At Him He Moved Away 
 Very Leisurely. No One Could Get On Shore Without First Clearing A Road 
 Through The Thick Brushes And Vines Along The Bank. On The Way One Of 
 Our Boatmen Lost His Hat, His Only Garment, Into The River, And 
 Overboard He Went, Like A Dog, And Soon Had It And Climbed On Board 
 Again. I Wondered Why Some Of The Big Alligators Did Not Make A Snap At 
 Him. 
   
   
   
 The Water In The Run Looked Very Roily And Dirty, And No Doubt Had Fever 
 In It. The Only Animals We Saw Were Monkeys And Alligators, And There 
 Were Parrots In The Trees. The Farther We Went Down The Stream The Wider 
 It Became, And The Current Slacker So That We Moved More Slowly With The 
 Same Amount Of Rowing. At A Place Called Dos Hermanos (Two Brothers) We 
 Could See A Little Cleared Spot Near The Bank, Which Seemed To Be Three 
 Or Four Feet Above The Water. There Were No Mountains Nor Hills In 
 Sight, And The Whole Country Seemed To Be An Extensive Swamp. It Was 
 
 
 
 Chapter 15 Pg 269 
 Near Night That We Came To A Small Native Village Of Palm Huts, And Here 
 Our Boatmen Landed And Hid Themselves, And Not Being Able To Find Them 
 We Were Compelled To Stay All Night, For We Dare Not Go On Alone. The 
 Place Looked Like A Regular Robbers' Roost, And Being Forced To Sleep 
 Outside The Huts, We Considered It Safest To Sleep With One Eye Open. We 
 Would Have Gone On With The Boat Only That We Were Afraid The River 
 Might Have More Than One Outlet, And If We Should Take The Wrong One We 
 Might Be Too Late For The Steamer, Which Even Now We Were Afraid Would 
 Not Wait For Us, And Getting Left Would Be A Very Serious Matter In This 
 Country. 
   
   
   
 We Had Very Little To Eat, And All We Could Buy Was Sugar Cane, Bananas, 
 Monkeys And Parrots. We Kept A Sharp Eye Out For Robbers, Keeping 
 Together As Much As We Could, For We Knew That All Returning 
 Californians Would Be Suspected Of Having Money. Most All Of Them Were 
 Ready For War Except Myself Who Had No Weapon Of Any Kind. All Of These 
 People Had A Bad Name, And Every One Of Them Carried A Long Bladed Knife 
 Called A Macheta, With Which They Could Kill A Man At A Single Blow. But 
 With All Our Fears We Got Through The Night Safely, And In The Morning 
 Found Our Boatmen Who Had Hidden Away. We Waited Not For Breakfast, But 
 Sailed Away As Soon As We Could, And Reached Chagres, Near The Mouth Of 
 The River, Before Night. 
   
   
   
 The River Banks Here Are Not More Than Three Feet High, And Farther Back 
 The Land Fell Off Again Into A Wet Swamp Of Timber And Dense Vegetable 
 Growth. The Town Was Small And Poorly Built, On The Immediate Bank, And 
 The Houses Were Little Brush And Palm Affairs Except The Boarding House 
 Which Was "T" Shaped, The Front Two Stories High, With A Long Dining 
 Room Running Back, Having Holes For Windows, But No Glass In Them. 
   
   
   
 Before The Bell Rung For Meals A Long String Of Hungry Men Would Form In 
 Line, And At The First Tap Would Make A Rush For The Table Like A Flock 
 Of Sheep. After All Were Seated A Waiter Came Around And Collected A 
 Dollar From Each One, And We Thought This Paid Pretty Well For The Very 
 Poor Grub They Served Afterwards. 
   
   
   
 No Ship Had As Yet Been In Sight To Take Us Away From This Lowest, 
 Dirtiest, Most Unhealthful Place On Earth, And The Prospect Of Remaining 
 Here Had Nothing Very Charming About It. The River Was Full Of 
 Alligators, So The Bathing Was Dangerous, And The Whole Country Was 
 About Fit For Its Inhabitants, Which Were Snakes, Alligators, Monkeys, 
 Parrots And Lazy Negroes. It Could Not Have Been More Filthy If The 
 Dregs Of The Whole Earth Had Been Dumped Here, And Cholera And Yellow 
 Fever Were Easy For A Decent Man To Catch. 
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 15 Pg 270 
   
 My Companion And I Went Out On The Beach A Mile Or Two To Get The Salt 
 Water Breeze, And Leave The Stinking Malaria For Those Who Chose To Stay 
 In The Hot, Suffocating Village, And Here We Would Stay Until Nearly 
 Night. Across A Small Neck Of Water Was What Was Called A Fort. It Could 
 Hardly Be Seen It Was So Covered With Moss And Vines, But Near The Top 
 Could Be Seen Something That Looked Like Old Walls. There Was No Sign Of 
 Life About It, And I Should Judge It Was Built At Some Very Early Day. 
 Surely There Was Nothing Here To Protect, For The Whole Country Did Not 
 Seem Able To Support Even A Few Barefooted Soldiers. 
   
   
   
 Some Men Who Wandered Along Up The River Bank, Following A Path, Said 
 They Had Seen Some Dead Human Bodies Thrown Into The Swamp And Left, 
 Probably Because It Was Easier Than Putting Them Under Ground. 
   
   
   
 For A Bedroom I Hired A Little Platform Which A Store Keeper Had Placed 
 Before His Store, Where I Slept, And Paid A Dollar For The Privilege. 
 Some One Walked Around Near Me All Night, And I Dared Not Close More 
 Than One Eye At A Time For Fear Of Losing A Little Bag Of Gold Dust. 
 This Little Bag Of Gold Was Getting To Be A Great Burden To Me In This 
 Sickly Climate, And The Vigilant Guard I Had To Keep Over So Small A 
 Treasure Was Very Tiresome. 
   
   
   
 The Second Night No Steamer Came, But On The Third Morning The Steamer 
 Was Riding At Anchor Three Or Four Miles Out, And Soon After A Ship Came 
 In From The Atlantic End Of The Nicaragua Route With One Thousand 
 Passengers, There Being No Steamer There For Them To Take A Passage Home 
 On, And So They Had To Come Here For A Start. This Filled The Little 
 Town To Overflowing, But As The Ship That Had Arrived Was The Georga, 
 One Of The Largest Afloat, All Could Go If They Only Could Endure The 
 Fare. 
   
   
   
 We Now Had To Go In Small Boats From The Shore To The Ship, And The Trip 
 Cost Two Dollars And A Half. I Waited Till I Had Seen Some Of The Boats 
 Make A Trip Or Two, And Then Choosing One That Had A Sober Skipper, I 
 Made The Venture. It Was Said That One Drunken Boatman Allowed His Boat 
 To Drift Into Some Breakers And All Were Lost. 
   
   
   
 I Tell You I Was Over Anxious To Get Out Of This Country, For I Well 
 Knew That If I Stayed Very Long I Should Stay Forever, For One Like 
 Myself Raised In A Healthful Climate, Could Not Remain Long Without 
 Taking Some Of The Fatal Diseases The Country Was Full Of. 
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 15 Pg 271 
   
 We Made The Trip To The Vessel Safely, And As Our Boat Lay Under The 
 Ship's Quarter, The Men Holding The Ropes, I Looked Up, And When I Saw 
 The Swinging Rope Ladder On Which I Was Expected To Climb Up To The 
 Ship's Deck, It Seemed A Pretty Dangerous Job; But I Mustered Up Courage 
 And Made The Attempt. The Sea Was Pretty Rough Out Here For The Small 
 Boats, And The Ship Rolled Some, So That When Persons Tried To Get Hold 
 Of The Ladder They Were Thrown Down And Sometimes Hurt A Little. A Man 
 Held On To The Lower End Of The Ladder So That The One Who Was Climbing 
 Might Not Get Banged Against The Side Of The Ship And Have His Breath 
 Knocked Out Of Him, I Mounted The Ladder Safely And Climbed Away Like A 
 Monkey, Reaching The Deck All Right. Ladies And Weak People Were Hauled 
 Up In A Sort Of Chair With A Block And Rope. 
   
   
   
 It Took The Most Of Two Days To Get The People On Board, And When They 
 Were Counted Up There Were One Thousand Four Hundred And Forty, All 
 Told. This Steamer Had A Very Long Upper Deck And A Comparatively Short 
 Keel, And Rolled Very Badly; And As For Me, I Had Swallowed So Much Of 
 The Deadly Malaria Of The Isthmus That I Soon Got Very Seasick, And The 
 First Day Or Two Were Very Unpleasant. I Went To The Bar And Paid Two 
 Bits For A Glass Of Wine To Help My Appetite, But It Staid With Me No 
 Longer Than Time Enough To Reach The Ship's Side. When Night Came The 
 Decks Were Covered With Sleepy Men, And If The Weather Had Been Rough 
 And All Sick, As Was The Case When We Left San Francisco, We Should Have 
 Had More Filthy Decks Than We Had Even On That Occasion. 
   
   
   
 Approaching The Harbor At Havana, Cuba, We Seemed To Be Going Head 
 Foremost Against A Wall Of Solid Rock, But When Within Speaking Distance 
 An Officer Came In Sight On The Fort Right Before Us, And Shouted 
 Through His Speaking Trumpet, Saying:--"Why Don't You Salute Us?" Our 
 Officer Said, "You Know Us Well Enough Without." Our Ship Had A Small 
 Cannon On The Forecastle, But Did Not Choose To Use It, And I Suppose 
 The Cuban Officer Felt Slighted. We Now Turned Short To The Right And 
 Entered The Beautiful Harbor, Which Is Perfectly Landlocked And As Still 
 As A Pond. The City Is All On The Right Side Of The Bay And Our Coal 
 Yard Was On The Left At A Short Wharf At Which We Landed. 
   
   
   
 A Lot Of Armed Soldiers Were Placed A Short Distance Back On The High 
 Ground And No One Was Allowed To Go Beyond Them. We Now Had A Port 
 Officer On Board Who Had Entire Charge Of The Ship, And If Anyone Wanted 
 To Go To The City, Across The Bay Two Or Three Miles, He Had To Pay A 
 Dollar For A Pass. This Pass Business Made The Blue Bloods Terribly 
 Angry, And They Swore Long And Loud, And The Longer They Talked The 
 Madder They Got, And More Bitter In Their Feelings, So That They Were 
 Ready To Fight (Not With Sugar-Bowls This Time.) 
   
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 15 Pg 272 
 The Weather Here Was Very Warm And The Heat Powerful, And As These 
 Fellows Saw There Was Only One Course To Be Pursued If They Wanted To 
 Get On Shore, They Slowly Took Passes Good For All Day And Paid Their 
 Dollar For Them, And Also Another Dollar Each To The Canoe Men To Take 
 Them To The City. Myself And Companion Also Took Passes And Went Over. 
   
   
   
 Arriving At The City We Walked A Short Distance And Came To The Plaza, 
 Which Is Not A Very Large One. Here Was A Single Grave Nicely Fenced In, 
 And Across The Plaza Were Some Large Two-Story Houses In Front Of Which 
 Was Stationed A Squad Of Cavalry Standing As Motionless As If Every Man 
 Of Them Was A Marble Statue. We Kept On The Opposite Side Of The Street, 
 And Chancing To Meet A Man Whom We Rightly Supposed To Be An Englishman, 
 We Inquired About The Grave On The Plaza And Were Informed That It Was 
 That Of Christopher Columbus, The Discoverer Of America. 
   
   
   
 Just Then We Noticed The Cavalry Moving Up The Street At A Slow Gallop, 
 And So Formed That A Close Carriage Was In The Center Of The Squad. As 
 They Rushed By And We Gazed At Them With Purely American Curiousity, Our 
 New English Friend Raised Our Hats For Us And Held Them Till The 
 Cavalcade Had Passed, Merely Remarking That The Governor General Was 
 Within The Carriage. We Spoke Perhaps A Bit Unpleasantly When We Asked 
 Him Why He Was So Ungentlemanly In His Treatment Of Us As To Remove Our 
 Hats, But He Said:--"My Friends, If I Had Not Taken Off Your Hats For 
 You As A Friend, Some Of Those Other Fellows Would Have Knocked Them 
 Off, So I Did For You An Act Of Greatest Kindness, For Every One Removes 
 His Hat When The Governor General Passes." He Also Informed Us That The 
 Special Occasion For This Rather Pompous Parade Was The Execution Of 
 Some Criminals At A Park Or Prison Not Far Away, And That This Was Done 
 By Beheading Them. 
   
   
   
 Our Friend Proposed That We Also Walk Out In That Direction, And We Went 
 With Him To The Edge Of The City, But When He Turned Into A By Path That 
 Did Not Seem Much Frequented, We Declined To Follow Farther, And Turned 
 Back Along The Open Road. The Path Looked To Us A Sort Of Robber's 
 Route, And Not Exactly Safe For Unarmed Men Like Us In A Strange 
 Country. 
   
   
   
 The Man Followed Us Back And Took Us Into A Large, Airy Saloon, In The 
 Center Of Which A Big Fountain Was Playing, And The Great Basin In Which 
 The Water Fell Was Filled With Beautiful Fish. Our Friend Called For An 
 Iced Drink For Each Of Us, And As We Sat At The Table We Tasted It And 
 Found It Rather Intoxicating. For This They Charged Us One Dollar Each, 
 But We Noticed That Our Friend Paid Nothing, And We Set Him Down As A 
 Sort Of Capper, After The Style We Had Seen At The Gold Mines. We Sat A 
 Few Minutes And Then So Coolly Bade Our Friend Good-Bye That He Had Not 
 The Face To Follow Us Further, And Continued Our Walk About The Streets 
 
 
 
 Chapter 15 Pg 273 
 Which Seemed To Us Very Narrow, And The Houses Generally Two Stories 
 High. 
   
   
   
 A Chaise Passed Us, Containing Two Young Ladies With Complexions White 
 And Fair, And Eyes And Hair Black, In Striking Contrast. The Carriage 
 Was Drawn By Two Horses Tandem, The Horse In The Shafts Being Mounted By 
 A Big Negro Of Very Dignified Appearance, Dressed In Livery And Having 
 Top Boots That Came To His Knees. This Was The Only Vehicle Of The Kind 
 We Saw On The Streets. 
   
   
   
 We Did Not Dare To Go Very Far Alone, For With Our Ignorance Of The 
 Spanish Language We Might Go Astray And Not Get Back To The Ship Within 
 The Lifetime Of Our Passes, And Not Knowing How Much Trouble That Might 
 Cause Us, We Were Naturally A Little Timid; So We Took A Boat Back To 
 The Ship, And When On Board Again We Felt Safe. We Had Only About Four 
 Dollars Cash Left. 
   
   
   
 A Big Gang Of Darkies Were Coaling The Ship. Each One Carried A Large 
 Tub Full Of Coal Upon His Head And Poured It Down Into The Ship's Hold. 
 All The Clothes These Fellows Wore Was A Strip Of Cloth About Their 
 Middle. When They Were Let Off For Dinner They Skimmed Off All They 
 Could Get From The Ship's Slop Barrel Which Stood On The Wharf 
 Alongside, To Help Out Their Very Scanty Food. The Overseer Stood By 
 Them All The Time With A Big Whip And Made Them Hurry Up As Fast As 
 Possible, Talking Spanish Pretty Vigorously, And Though We Could Not 
 Understand, We Made Up Our Minds That A Good Part Of It Was Swearing. 
   
   
   
 The Next Morning The Steamship Prometheus Came In And Tied Up Near Us, 
 And Soon Word Was Brought That She Would Take The New Orleans Passengers 
 On Board And Sail Immediately For That Port. It Now Occurred To Me That 
 I Could Get Nearer Home By Going Up The Mississippi River Than By Way Of 
 New York, So I Went On Board The Prometheus, And We Soon Sailed Out Of 
 The Harbor, Passing Under The Gate Of The Fortress Called, I Think, San 
 Juan De Ulloa. 
   
   
   
 Nothing Special Occurred During Our Passage Till We Were Near The Mouth 
 Of The Mississippi River, When, In The Absence Of A Pilot Boat Or Tug, 
 Our Captain Thought He Would Try To Get In Alone, And As A Consequence 
 We Were Soon Fast In The Mud. The Captain Now Made All The Passengers Go 
 Aft, And Worked The Engine Hard But Could Not Move Her At All. The Tide 
 Was Now Low, And There Was A Prospect That We Should Have To Wait Full 
 Six Hours To Get Away. We Worked On, However, And After A Few Hours A 
 Tug Came To Our Assistance And Pulled Us Out Of The Mud And Towed Us 
 Into The Right Channel, Up Which We Steamed On Our Way To New Orleans, 
 
 
 
 Chapter 15 Pg 274 
 One-Hundred-Twenty Miles Away. 
   
   
   
 The Country On Both Sides Of Us Was An Immense Marsh--No Hills In Sight, 
 No Timber, Nothing But The Same Level Marsh Or Prairie. When We Were 
 Nearer The Crescent City Some Houses Came In Sight; Then We Passed 
 General Jackson's Battle-Field, And In Due Time Reached The City. 
   
   
   
 On Board This Ship I Became Acquainted With Dick Evans Who Lived In The 
 Same County That I Used To In Wisconsin, Near Mineral Point, So The 
 Three Of Us Now Concluded To Travel Together. 
   
   
   
 New Orleans Seemed To Be A Very Large City. Near The Levee A Large 
 Government Building Was In Course Of Construction For A Custom House. It 
 Was All Of Stone, And The Walls Were Up About Two Stories. We Put Up At 
 A Private Boarding House, And The First Business Was To Try And Sell Our 
 Gold Dust. So We Went To The Mint And Were Told We Would Have To Wait 
 Ten Days To Run It Through The Mill, And We Did Not Like To Wait So 
 Long. We Were Shown All Through The Mint And Saw All The Wonders Of Coin 
 Making. Every Thing Seemed Perfect Here. Beautiful Machinery Was In 
 Operation Making All Sizes Of Gold Coins, From A Twenty Dollar Piece 
 Down. Strips Of Gold Bands About Six Feet Long And Of The Proper 
 Thickness For Twenty Dollar Pieces Are Run Through A Machine Which Cuts 
 Out The Pieces, And When These Are Cut They Can Stamp Out The Pieces As 
 Fast As One Can Count. 
   
   
   
 This Was The Most Ingenious Work I Ever Saw, And Very Wonderful And 
 Astonishing To A Backwoodsman Like Myself, For I Supposed That Money Was 
 Run In Moulds Like Bullets. 
   
   
   
 As We Could Not Wait We Went To A Bank And Sold Our Dust, Getting Only 
 Sixteen Dollars Per Ounce, The Same Price They Paid In California. We 
 Now Took The Cars And Rode Out To Lake Ponchartrain--Most Of The Way 
 Over A Trestle Work. We Found A Wharf And Warehouse At The Lake, And A 
 Steamer Lay There All Ready To Go Across To The Other Side. The Country 
 All About Looked Low, With No Hills In Sight. 
   
   
   
 When We Returned To The City We Looked All About, And In The Course Of 
 Our Travels Came To A Slave Market. Here There Were All Sorts Of Black 
 Folks For Sale; Big And Little, Old And Young And All Sorts. They All 
 Seemed Good-Natured, And Were Clean, And Seemed To Think They Were Worth 
 A Good Deal Of Money. Looking At Them A Few Minutes Sent My Mind Back To 
 St. Joseph, Missouri, Where I Saw A Black Sold At Auction. From My 
 
 
 
 Chapter 15 Pg 275 
 Standpoint Of Education I Did Not Approve Of This Way Of Trading In 
 Colored People. 
   
   
   
 We Continued Our Stroll About The City, Coming To A Cemetery, Where I 
 Looked Into A Newly Dug Grave To Find It Half Full Of Water. On One Side 
 Were Many Brick Vaults Above Ground. The Ground Here Is Very Low And 
 Wet, And Seemed To Be All Swamp. The Drainage Was In Surface Gutters, 
 And In Them The Water Stood Nearly Still. It Seemed To Me Such Water 
 Must Have Yellow Fever In It. 
   
   
   
 For A Long Way Along The Levee The Steamboats Lay Thick And Close 
 Together, Unloading Cotton, Hemp, Sugar, Hoop Poles, Bacon And Other 
 Products, Mostly The Product Of Negro Labor. 
   
   
   
 Here Our Friend Evans Was Taken Sick, And As He Got No Better After A 
 Day Or Two, We Called A Doctor To Examine Him. He Pronounced It A Mild 
 Case Of Yellow Fever. His Skin Was Yellow In Places, And He Looked Very 
 Badly. The Doctor Advised Us To Go On Up The River, Saying It Was Very 
 Dangerous Staying Here With Him. Evans Gave Me Most Of His Money And All 
 Of His Gold Specimens To Take To His Wife, And When He Got Well He Would 
 Follow Us. We Bade Him Good-Bye, And With Many Wishes For His Speedy 
 Recovery, We Took Passage On A Steamer For St. Louis. This Steamer, The 
 Atlantic, Proved To Be A Real Floating Palace In All Respects. The Table 
 Was Supplied With Everything The Country Afforded, And Polite And 
 Well-Dressed Darkies Were Numerous As Table Waiters. This Was The Most 
 Pleasant Trip I Had Ever Taken, And I Could Not Help Comparing The 
 Luxuriance Of My Coming Home To The Hardships Of The Outward Journey 
 Across The Plains, And Our Starvation Fare. 
   
   
   
 Our Boat Was Rather Large For The Stage Of Water This Time Of Year, And 
 We Proceeded Rather Slowly, But I Cared Little For Speed As Bed And 
 Board Were Extra Good, And A First Cabin Passage In The Company Of 
 Friends, Many Of Whom Were Going To The Same Part Of Wisconsin As 
 Myself, Was Not A Tedious Affair By Any Means. 
   
   
   
 At Night Gambling Was Carried On Very Extensively, And Money Changed 
 Hands Freely As The Result Of Sundry Games Of Poker, Which Was The 
 Popular Game. 
   
   
   
 We Reached St. Louis In Time, And Here Was The End Of Our Boat's Run. 
 The River Had Some Ice Floating On Its Surface, And This Plainly Told Us 
 That We Were Likely To Meet More Ice And Colder Weather As We Went 
 
 
 
 Chapter 15 Pg 276 
 North. We Concluded To Take The Illinois River Boat From Here To Peoria, 
 And Paid Our Passage And Stepped On Board. We Were No More Than Half Way 
 Through This Trip When The Ice Began To Form On The Surface Of The 
 Water, And Soon Became So Thick And Strong That The Boat Finally Came To 
 A Perfect Standstill, Frozen In Solid. 
   
   
   
 We Now Engaged A Farm Wagon To Take Us To Peoria, From Which Place We 
 Took Regular Stages For Galena. Our Driver Was Inclined To Be Very 
 Merciful To His Horses, So We Were Two Days In Reaching That Town, But 
 Perhaps It Was Best, For The Roads Were Icy And Slippery, And The 
 Weather Of The Real Winter Sort. From Here We Hired A Team To Take Four 
 Of Us To Plattville, And Then An Eighteen-Mile Walk Brought Me To 
 Mineral Point, The Place From Which I Started With My Winnebago Pony In 
 1849. I Had Now Finished My Circle And Brought Both Ends Of The Long 
 Belt Together. 
   
   
   
 I Now Went To A Drug Store And Weighed Mr. Evans' Specimens, Wrapping 
 Each In A Separate Piece Of Paper, With The Value Marked On Each, And 
 Took Them To His Wife, To Whom I Told The News About Her Husband. In Two 
 Week's Time He Came Home Sound And Well. 
   
   
   
 I Was Quite Disappointed In Regard To The Looks And Business Appearance 
 Of The Country. It Looked Thinly Settled, People Scarce, And Business 
 Dull. I Could Not Get A Day's Work To Do, And I Could Not Go Much 
 Farther On Foot, For The Snow Was Eight Or Ten Inches Deep, And I Was 
 Still Several Hundred Miles From My Parents In Michigan. So My Journey 
 Farther East Was Delayed Until Spring. The Hunting Season Was Over, And 
 When I Came Into Mineral Point Without A Gun, And Wore Good Clothes, 
 Making A Better Appearance Than I Used To, They Seemed To Think I Must 
 Be Rich And Showed Me Marked Attention, And Made Many Inquiries About 
 Their Neighbors Who Started For California About The Same Time I Did. 
 The Young Ladies Smiled Pleasantly When Near Me, And Put On Their Best 
 White Aprons, Looking Very Tidy And Bright, Far Superior To Any Of The 
 Ladies I Had Seen In My Crooked Route From San Francisco Through 
 Acapulco, Panama, The West Indies And Along The Mississippi. 
   
   
   
 After A Few Days In Town I Went Out Into The Neighborhood Where I Used 
 To Live And Stopped With Mr. E.A. Hall, Who Used To Be A Neighbor Of Mr. 
 Bennett, As He Had Invited Me To Stay With Himself And Wife, Who Were 
 The Only Occupants Of A Good House, And All Was Pleasant. But 
 Notwithstanding All The Comfort In Which I Was Placed, I Grew Lonesome, 
 For The Enforced Idleness, On Account Of The Stormy Weather, Was A New 
 Feature In My Life, And Grew Terribly Monotonous. 
 
 
 
 Chapter 15 Pg 277 
 After Some Delay I Concluded To Write To My Parents In Michigan And Give 
 Them A Long Letter With Something Of A History Of My Travels, And To 
 Refresh My Memory I Got Out My Memorandum I Had Kept Through All My 
 Journey. 
   
   
   
 As My Letter Was Liable To Be Quite Lengthy I Bought A Quantity Of 
 Foolscap Paper And Begun. I Took My Diary As My Guide, And Filled Out 
 The Ideas Suggested In It So They Would Understand Them. I Soon Ran 
 Through With My Paper And Bought More, And Kept On Writing. The Weather 
 Was Cold And Stormy, And I Found It The Best Occupation I Could Have To 
 Prevent My Being Lonesome; So I Worked Away, Day After Day, For About A 
 Month, And I Was Really Quite Tired Of This Sort Of Work Before I Had 
 All The Facts Recorded Which I Found Noted Down In My Diary. My Notes 
 Began In March, 1849, In Wisconsin, And Ended In February, 1852, On My 
 Return To Mineral Point. I Found, As The Result Of My Elaboration, Over 
 Three Hundred Pages Of Closely Written Foolscap Paper, And I Felt Very 
 Much Relieved When It Was Done. By The Aid Of My Notes I Could Very 
 Easily Remember Everything That Had Taken Place During My Absence, And 
 It Was Recorded In Regular Form, With Day And Date, Not An Incident Of 
 Any Importance Left Out, And Every Word As True As Gospel. I Had Neither 
 Exaggerated Nor Detracted From Any Event So Far As I Could Recollect. 
   
   
   
 I Now Loaned Mr. Hall, With Whom I Lived, Six Hundred Dollars To Enable 
 Him To Cross The Plains To California And Try To Make His Fortune. To 
 Secure This I Took A Mortgage On His Eighty-Acre Farm, And He Set Out To 
 Make The Journey. I Had Another Eighty Acres Of Land Near Here Which I 
 Bought At Government Price Before Going To California, But I Could Not 
 Now Sell It For What It Cost Me. When I Went Away I Had Left My Chest 
 And Contents With My Friend Samuel Zollinger, And He Had Kept It Safely, 
 So I Now Made Him My Lawful Agent. I Placed My Narrative And Some Other 
 Papers In The Chest And Gave The Key Into His Charge, While I Went 
 North, Across The Wisconsin River, To Visit My Old Hunting And Trapping 
 Friend, Robert Mccloud. Here I Made A Very Pleasant Visit Of Perhaps A 
 Week, And The Common Prospects Of The Country Were Freely Talked Over. 
 It Seemed To Us As If The Good Times Were Still Far Off; Every Day Was 
 Like Sunday So Far As Anything Going On; No Money In Circulation, Many 
 Places Abandoned, And, Like Myself, Many Had Gone To California To Seek 
 Gold Instead Of Lead. (The Mines At Mineral Point Are Mostly Of Lead, 
 With Some Copper.) 
   
   
   
 Looking At Matters In This Light It Did Not Need A Great Deal Of 
 Mccloud's Persuasion To Induce Me To Go Back With Him To California, All 
 The More So As My Little Pile Seemed To Look Smaller Every Day, While 
 Three Or Four Years Ago It Would Have Seemed Quite Large. Deciding To 
 Go, I Wrote To Mr. Zollinger To Send The Account I Had Written To My 
 Parents In Michigan, Reading It First Himself, And Admonishing Him Not 
 To Lend It. I Also Wrote To My Parents Telling Them What They Might Look 
 For In The Mails, And Cautioning Them Never To Have It Printed, For The 
 
 
 
 Chapter 15 Pg 278 
 Writing Was So Ungrammatical And The Spelling So Incorrect That It Would 
 Be No Credit To Me. 
   
   
   
 I Afterward Learned That In Time They Received The Bundle Of Paper And 
 Read It Through And Through, And Circulated It Around The Neighborhood 
 Till It Was Badly Worn, And Laid It Away For Future Perusal When Their 
 Minds Should Incline That Way. But The Farm House Soon After Took Fire 
 And Burned, My Labor Going Up In Smoke. 
   
   
   
 When The News Of This Reached Me I Resolved To Try To Forget All The 
 Trials, Troubles And Hardships I Had Gone Through, And Which I Had 
 Almost Lived Over Again As I Wrote Them Down, And I Said To Myself That 
 I Would Not Talk About Them More Than I Could Help, The Sooner To Have 
 Them Vanish, And Never Write Them Down Again, But A Few Years Ago An 
 Accident Befell Me So That I Could Not Work, And I Back-Slid From My 
 Determination When I Was Persuaded So Earnestly By Many Friends To Write 
 The Account Which Appeared A Few Years Ago In The Santa Clara Valley Now 
 The Pacific Tree And Vine, Edited By H.A. Brainard, At San Jose, 
 California. The Diary Was Lost, And From Memory Alone The Facts Have 
 Been Rehearsed, And It Is But Fair To Tell The Reader That The Hardest 
 And Worst Of It Has Never Been Told Nor Will It Ever Be. 
   
   
   
   
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 16 Pg 279 
   
   
 Mccloud And I Now Took His Skiff, And For Two Days Floated Down The 
 Wisconsin River Till We Reached The Mississippi, Boarded The First 
 Steamboat We Could Hail, And Let Our Own Little Craft Adrift. In Due 
 Time We Reached St. Louis And Boarded Another Steamer For New Orleans. 
   
   
   
 At A Wood-Yard, About Dark, A Lot Of Negroes, Little And Big, Came On 
 Board To Sell Brooms. The Boat's Clerk Seemed To Know Negro Character 
 Pretty Well, So He Got Out His Violin And Played For Them. For A While 
 The Young Colored Gentry Listened In Silence, But Pretty Soon He Struck 
 A Tune That Suited Them, And They Began To Dance In Their Own Wild 
 Style. 
   
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 16 Pg 280 
 In Seven Days From St. Louis We Landed In New Orleans, And Found The 
 Government Steamer, Falcon, Advertised To Sail In Two Days. We Went 
 Together To One Of The Slave Warehouses. Outside And In All Was Neat End 
 Clean, And Any Day You Could See Men, Women And Children Standing Under 
 The Shed As A Sign Of What They Had Within, And The Painted Signs "For 
 Sale" Displayed Conspicuously. We Were Very Civilly Treated, And Invited 
 To Examine The Goods Offered For Sale. There Were Those Of All Ages And 
 All Colors, For Some Were Nearly White And Some Intensely Black, With 
 All The Shades Between. All Were To Be Sold, Separately, Or In Families, 
 Or In Groups As Buyers Might Desire. All Were Made To Keep Themselves 
 Clean And Neatly Dressed, And To Behave Well, With A Smile To All The 
 Visitors Whether They Felt Like Smiling Or Not. Some Seemed Really 
 Anxious To Get A Good Master, And When A Kind, Pleasant Looking Man Came 
 Along They Would Do Their Utmost To Be Agreeable To Him And Inquire If 
 He Did Not Want To Buy Them. We Talked It Over Some Between Ourselves, 
 And When We Thought Of The Market And The Human Chattels For Sale There, 
 Mccloud Spoke Up And Said:--"I Am Almost Persuaded To Be An 
 Abolitionist." 
   
   
   
 I Now Went On Board The Steamer Falcon, In Command Of A Government 
 Officer, To Try To Learn Something About The Family Of Capt. Culverwell 
 Who Perished Alone In Death Valley. He Told Me He Had Once Belonged To 
 The Navy And Had His Life Insured, And As I Was An Important Witness For 
 His Family I Wanted To Learn Where They Lived. The Captain Looked Over A 
 List Of Officers, But Culverwell's Name Was Not There. I Then Wrote A 
 Letter To Washington Stating The Facts Of His Death, And My Own Address 
 In Sacramento, California. I Also Stated That I Would Assist The Widow 
 If I Could, But I Never Received An Answer. 
   
   
   
 We Soon Started Down The River, Having On Board About One Hundred 
 Passengers, Men Going To Work On The Panama Railroad. At Chagres We 
 Found A Small Stern Wheeled River Steamer And Took Passage On It For 
 Gorgona, As Far As The Steamer Could Well Go Up The River. While Going 
 Up We Met A Similar Boat Coming Down, And Being Near A Short Bend They 
 Crashed Together, Breaking Down Our Guards Severely, But Fortunately 
 With No Damage To Our Wheel. A Few Miles Above This A Dark Passing Cloud 
 Gave Us Rain In Streams, And We Had To Drift In Near Shore To Wait For 
 The Storm To Pass. I Never Before Saw Water Fall So Fast, And Yet In 
 Half An Hour The Sun Was Out And Burning Hot. 
   
   
   
 Before We Reached Gorgona We Got Acquainted With A Man Named John Briggs 
 From Wisconsin, And Lyman Ross From Rhode Island, And Concluded To 
 Travel In Company. Our Fare Thus Far Was Ten Dollars, And Two Horses To 
 Panama For Which We Paid Twelve Dollars Each. We Now Rode And Walked 
 Turn About, And When We Inquired About The Road We Were Told That Being 
 Once In It We Could Not Possibly Get Out Except At The Other End, And 
 Would Need No Guide, And At The End Of A Very Disagreeable Day's Work We 
 Reached The Big Gate At Panama And Entered The Ancient City. 
 
 
 
 Chapter 16 Pg 281 
   
   
   
 We Waited But Little Here Before Taking The Steamer Southerner, Bound 
 For San Francisco. Three Days After We Sailed Away One Of Our Passengers 
 Went Overboard, A Corpse, And Three Or Four More Died And Were Buried 
 Alongside Before We Reached Acapulco. 
   
   
   
 Here We Took On Water And Coal And Were Soon At Sea Again. Mccloud Soon 
 Had To Take His Place In The Sick Ward, And I Attended Him Most Of The 
 Time, But Was Not Allowed To Give Him Anything Without A Permit From The 
 Doctor, And The Long Delays Between The Administrations Of Medicine Made 
 The Sickness Hard To Endure. The Sick Could See The Dead Sewed Up In 
 Blankets With A Bucket Of Coal For A Weight; Then Resting On A Plank 
 With Sailors On Each Side, The Mate Would Read The Brief Services 
 Appropriate To A Burial At Sea, The Plank Was Tilted, And The Lifeless 
 Body Slid Down Into The Depths. Such Scenes Were No Benefit To The 
 Suffering, For Each Might Think His Turn Was Next, When A Bright Hope 
 And Prospect Would Be Better For His Recovery. 
   
   
   
 One Forenoon The Fire Gong Rang Out Sharply, And All Was In Confusion, 
 Supposing The Ship To Be On Fire, But Nothing Could Be Seen But A Dense 
 Fog, Except As A Gentle Wind Lifted It A Little And There, Dead Ahead, 
 Was A Rocky Island, Against Which It Seemed We Must Dash To Destruction, 
 For There Was No Beach And Very Little Chance For Any One To Be Saved. 
 Ten Minutes More In This Direction And We Were Lost, But The Officers 
 Quickly Changed The Course, And We Passed The Pile Of Rocks Scarcely A 
 Rifle Shot Away. Whose Fault It Was, This Danger So Miraculously 
 Avoided, We Did Not Know, The Captain's Or The Imperfect Chart, And 
 Opinions Were Freely Given Both Ways. 
   
   
   
 About Those Days The Air Felt Cooler The Fog Less Dense, And The Foggy 
 Rain-Bows We Had Seen So Much When The Sun Tried To Shine, Were Scarce, 
 While A More Northern Wind Created A Coolness That Made Sick Folks Feel 
 Refreshed And Hopeful. It Gave Me A Chance To Cheer Up My Sick Friend 
 Who Was Still In Bed, And Tell Him It Would Continue To Be Cooler As We 
 Went. 
   
   
   
 On The Fourth Of July The Officers Produced The Ship's Full Supply Of 
 Flags, And The Sailors Climbed High And Low, Fastening Them To Every 
 Rope Till We Had A Very Gay Independence Day Appearance. In This Gay 
 Dress We Steamed Into San Diego Harbor To Leave The Mail For A Few 
 Soldiers Stationed There, And Get Their Letters In Return. 
   
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 16 Pg 282 
 I Could See No Town In San Diego, But A Beautiful Harbor, And Some Poor 
 Looking Mustard Wigwams Some Way Off Seemed To Contain The Good People 
 Of That Place. 
   
   
   
 A Boat With A Small Crew Pulled Out And Came Alongside To Get The Mail 
 And Deliver Theirs, And Then We Turned To Sea Again. The Country All 
 Around This Beautiful Little Harbor Looked Mountainous And Extremely 
 Barren, And No One Wanted To Go On Shore. 
   
   
   
 About Dark We Had Made Sufficient Offing And Turned Northward, Plowing 
 Through Large Fields Of Kelp. The Next Morning The Forward Watch 
 Announced Land Ahead, Which Could Dimly Be Seen As The Fog Rose. The 
 Officers Rushed On Deck And Could See Not Far Ahead A Sandy Beach, And A 
 Moment More Showed That We Were Headed Directly For It, And That It Was 
 Not More Than A Quarter Of A Mile Away. Quickly The Helmsman Was Given 
 Orders To Steer Almost West Instead Of The North Course He Had Been 
 Following. He Was Asked Why He Kept On His North Course When He Saw 
 Danger Ahead, And Answered:--"It Is My Business To Steer According To 
 Orders, Even If The Ship Goes Ashore, And I Can Not Change Course Unless 
 Ordered To." The Captain Now Examined His Chart And Decided He Was In 
 San Pedro Harbor, Off Los Angeles. 
   
   
   
 The Sun Came Out Bright And Clear A Little Later, And I Got Mccloud Out 
 Of His Bed And Gave Him A Seat At The Ship's Side Where He Could See The 
 Green Grassy Hills Near The Beach, And Larger Hills And Mountains 
 Farther Back. We Could See Cattle Feeding In The Nearest Pastures, And 
 The Whole Scene Was A Pleasant One; And As We Sat On The Eastern Side Of 
 The Ship And Snuffed The Cool Breeze Which Came From The North, We 
 Thought We Were Comparatively Happy People, And Hoped That, If No 
 Accident Befell, We Would Soon Be At The End Of Our Voyage. 
   
   
   
 On The Seventh Day Of July, 1851, We Entered The Golden Gate, This Being 
 My Second Arrival In California. On Our Trip From Panama Seven Or More 
 Had Died And Been Buried At Sea, But The Remainder Of Us Were Quite Safe 
 And Sound. We Found The Heart Of The City Still Smoking, For A Fire Had 
 Broken Out On July Fourth And Burned Extensively, And These Broad, 
 Blackened Ruins Were The Result. Some Said The Work Had Been Done By The 
 Sidney "Ducks" And Their Numerous Helpers, Who Were Really The Rulers Of 
 The City. The Place Now Looked Much Worse Than It Did When I Left In 
 November Before. These Sidney "Ducks" Were English Convicts From 
 Australia, And Other Thieves And Robbers Joined Them As Agreeable 
 Companion, Making A Large Class That Seemed To Glory In Destruction And 
 A Chance For Booty. 
   
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 16 Pg 283 
 I Walked Around Over The Hills Where I Could See The Burned District And 
 The Destruction Of So Much Valuable Property, And When I Thought The 
 Civil Law Was Not Strong Enough To Govern, It Seemed To Me It Would Be A 
 Good Place For Such Men As The Helms Brothers Of Georgetown To Come Down 
 And Do A Little Hanging Business, For They Could Here Find Plenty To Do, 
 And They Could Carry Out Their Plan Of Letting No Guilty Man Escape. 
   
   
   
 About Four O'clock One Afternoon We Went Aboard The Sacramento Steamer, 
 Antelope, Paying Our Passage With Half An Ounce Apiece, And Were Soon On 
 Our Way Past The Islands And Up The Bay. When We Were Beyond Benicia, 
 Where The River Banks Were Close, Mccloud Sat Watching The Shore, And 
 Remarked That The Boat Ran Like A Greyhound, And It Seemed To Him, Beat 
 The Old Ocean Steamer Pretty Bad. 
   
   
   
 He Seemed To Be Nearly Well Again, And Complimented Me As The Best 
 Doctor He Ever Saw. Since He Had Been Sick I Had Paid Him All The 
 Attention I Could, And He Gave Me All The Praise I Deserved, Now That He 
 Was Getting To Feel Himself Again. 
   
   
   
 At Sacramento We Changed To Another Boat Bound For Marysville, Which 
 Place We Reached Without Special Incident. Here We Invested In A 
 Four-Ounce Donkey, That Is, We Paid Four Ounces Of Gold For Him, Just An 
 Ounce Apiece For Four Of Us--W.L. Manley, Robert Mccloud, Lyman Ross And 
 John Briggs. We Piled Our Blankets In A Pack Upon The Gentle, Four-Ounce 
 Donkey, And Added A Little Tea And Coffee, Dried Beef And Bread, Then 
 Started For The Yuba River, Ourselves On Foot. We Crossed The River At 
 Park's Bar, Then Went Up The Ridge By Way Of Nigger Tent, Came Down To 
 The River Again At Goodyear Bar, Then Up The Stream To Downieville. This 
 Town Was Named After John Downie, A Worthless Drunkard. I Remember That 
 He Once Reformed, But Again Back-Slid And Died A Drunkard's Death. 
   
   
   
 We Found This A Lively Mining Town About Sixty Miles Above Marysville, 
 On The North Fork Of The Yuba River, And Only Reached By A Pack Trail, 
 But Everything Was Flush Here, Even Four Aces. The Location Was A 
 Veritable Hole-In-The-Ground, For The Mountains Around Were Very High, 
 And Some Of Them Wore Their Caps Of Snow All Summer, Particularly Those 
 On The East. The Gold Dust We Found Here Was Coarser Than It Was Where I 
 Worked Before, Down South On The Merced River. Before I Came To 
 California I Always Supposed That Gold Dust Was Really Dust, And About 
 As Fine As Flour. 
   
   
   
 We Went Up The North Fork About A Mile Or Two Above Town And Camped On 
 Wisconsin Flat To Begin Our Mining Operations. Our Luck Was Poor At 
 First, And All Except Myself Were Out Of Money, And More Or Less In Debt 
 
 
 
 Chapter 16 Pg 284 
 To Me. We Made Expenses, However, And A Little More, And As Soon As Mr. 
 Ross Got His Small Debt Paid He Said He Was Discouraged Mining, And With 
 Blankets On His Shoulders Started Up The Trail Towards Galloway's Ranch, 
 On The Summit South Of Town. Mr. Ross Said The Work Was Too Hard For 
 Him, For He Was Not Strong Enough To Handle Pick And Shovel, And He 
 Believed He Could Go Down To Sacramento And Make More By His Wits Than 
 He Could Here. I Went With Him To Town And Saw Him Start Off With A Fair 
 Load On His Back, And Watched Him As He Toiled Up The Steep Mountain 
 Trail For About Two Miles, When He Went Out Of Sight. 
   
   
   
 The Rest Of Us Kept On Mining. Our Luck Was Not Very Good, But We 
 Persevered, For There Was Nothing To Be Gained By Fainting By The Way. I 
 Went Into An Old Abandoned Shaft About Ten Feet Deep And Found The 
 Bottom Filled With A Big Quartz Boulder, And As I Had Been A Lead Miner 
 In Wisconsin, I Began Drifting, And Soon Found Bed Rock, When I Picked 
 Up A Piece Of Pure Gold That Weighed Four Ounces. This Was What I Called 
 A Pretty Big Find, And Not Exactly What I Called Gold Dust. It Was Quite 
 A Surprise To Me, For The Gravel On The Bed Rock Was Only About Three Or 
 Four Inches Thick. 
   
   
   
 We Kept On Drifting For Some Time, Sometimes Making Good Wages, And On 
 The Whole So Satisfactory That We Concluded To Stay. We Now Located Some 
 Claims Back In The Flat Where The Ground Would Be Thirty Feet Deep, And 
 Would Have To Be Drifted. These We Managed To Hold Until Winter, And In 
 The Meantime We Worked Along The River And Could Make Something All The 
 Time. 
   
   
   
 We Put In A Flume Between Two Falls On The Middle Fork, But Made Only 
 Wages, And I Got My Arm Nearly Broken, And Had To Work With One Hand For 
 Nearly A Month. 
   
   
   
 One Afternoon I Went Crevicing Up The River, And Found A Crevice At The 
 Water's Edge About Half An Inch Wide, And The Next Day We Worked It Out 
 Getting Forty Ounces, And Many Of The Pieces Were About An Inch Long And 
 As Large Around As A Pipe-Stem. 
   
   
   
 Winter Was Now Near By, And We Set To Work To Build A Cabin And Lay In A 
 Stock Of Grub, Which Cost Quite A Good Deal, For The Self-Raising Flour 
 Which We Bought Was Worth Twenty Cents A Pound, And All Kinds Of Hog 
 Meat Fifty Cents, With Other Supplies In Proportion. Our New Claims Now 
 Paid Very Well. Snow Came Down To The Depth Of About Four Feet Around 
 Our Cabin, But As Our Work Was Under Ground, We Had A Comfortable Place 
 All Winter. 
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 16 Pg 285 
   
   
 In The Spring Mccloud And I Went To Sacramento And Sold Our Chunks Of 
 Gold (It Was All Very Coarse) To Page, Bacon & Co. Who Were Themselves 
 Surprised At The Coarseness Of The Whole Lot. When Our Savings Were 
 Weighed Up We Found We Had Made Half An Ounce A Day, Clear Of All 
 Expenses, For The Entire Year. 
   
   
   
 We Now Took A Little Run Down To San Francisco, Also To Santa Clara 
 Where We Staid A Night Or Two With Mr. Mccloud's Friend, Mr. Otterson, 
 And Then Went Back To Our Claims Again. In Taking Care Of Our Money We 
 Had To Be Our Own Bankers, And The Usual Way Was To Put The Slugs We 
 Received For Pay Into A Gallon Pickle Jar, And Bury This In Some Place 
 Known Only To Our Particular Selves, And These Vaults We Considered 
 Perfectly Safe. The Slugs Were Fifty Dollar Pieces, Coined For 
 Convenience, And Were Eight-Sided, Heavy Pieces. In The Western Counties 
 The People Called Them "Adobies," But Among The Miners They Were 
 Universally Known As "Slugs." 
   
   
   
 The Winter Proved A Little Lonesome, The Miners Mostly Staid At Home And 
 Worked. During The Year We Had Been Here I Had Not Seen A Respectable 
 Woman In This Mining Country. There Were Few Females Here, And They Were 
 Said To Be Of Very Doubtful Character. As A General Thing People Were 
 Very Patient With Their Wickedness, But Not Always. 
   
   
   
 Twice Only In The History Of California Were Women Made The Victims Of 
 Mob Violence, Once At Los Angeles And Once At Downieville. The Affair At 
 The Last-Named Place Occurred In 1851, And The Victim Was A Pretty 
 Little Spanish Woman Named Juanita. She And Her Husband, Like Many 
 Another Couple At That Time, Kept A Monte Game For The Delectation Of 
 The Miners Who Had More Money Than Sense, But Beyond This Fact 
 Absolutely Nothing Was Said Against Her Character. 
   
   
   
 There Was An English Miner Named Cannon Living In Town, Who Was Very 
 Popular Among A Large Number Of Gamblers And Others. He Got Drunk One 
 Night And About Midnight Went To The House Occupied By The Spanish Woman 
 And Her Husband And Kicked The Door Down. Early The Following Morning He 
 Told His Comrades That He Was Going To Apologize To The Woman For What 
 He Had Done. He Went Alone To The House, And, While Talking With The 
 Husband And Wife, The Woman Suddenly Drew A Knife And Stabbed Cannon To 
 The Heart. What Had Been Said That Provoked The Deed Was Never Known, 
 Further Than That Juanita Claimed She Had Been Grossly Insulted. 
   
   
   
 She Was Given A Mock Trial, But The Facts Of The Case Were Not Brought 
 
 
 
 Chapter 16 Pg 286 
 Out, As The Men Who Were With Cannon Were Too Drunk To Remember What Had 
 Happened The Previous Night. It Was A Foregone Conclusion That The Poor 
 Woman Was To Be Hanged, And The Leaders Of The Mob Would Brook No 
 Interference. A Physician Examined Juanita And Announced To The Mob That 
 She Was In A Condition That Demanded The Highest Sympathy Of Every Man, 
 But He Was Forced To Flee From Town To Save His Life. A Prominent 
 Citizen Made An Appeal For Mercy, But He Was Driven Down The Main Street 
 And Across The River By A Mob With Drawn Revolvers, And With Threats Of 
 Instant Death. The Well-Known John B. Weller Was In Town At The Time, 
 And Was Asked To Reason With The Mob, But Refused To Do So. 
   
   
   
 The Execution Was Promptly Carried Out. A Plank Was Put Across The 
 Supports Of The Bridge Over The Yuba, And A Rope Fastened To A Beam 
 Overhead. Juanita Went Calmly To Her Death. She Wore A Panama Hat, And 
 After Mounting The Platform She Removed It, Tossed It To A Friend In The 
 Crowd, Whose Nickname Was "Oregon," With The Remark, "Adios Amigo." Then 
 She Adjusted The Noose To Her Own Neck, Raising Her Long, Loose Tresses 
 Carefully In Order To Fix The Rope Firmly In Its Place, And Then, With A 
 Smile And Wave Of Her Hand To The Bloodthirsty Crowd Present, She 
 Stepped Calmly From The Plank Into Eternity. Singular Enough, Her Body 
 Rests Side By Side, In The Cemetery On The Hill, With That Of The Man 
 Whose Life She Had Taken. 
   
   
   
 On Sundays Downieville Was Full Of Men, None Very Old, And None Very 
 Young, But Almost Every One Of Middle Age. Nearly Every Man Was Coarsely 
 Dressed, With Beard Unshaved And Many With Long Hair, But On Any 
 Occasion Of Excitement It Was Not At All Strange To See The Coarsest, 
 Roughest Looking One Of All The Party Mount A Stump And Deliver As 
 Eloquent An Address As One Could Wish To Hear. On Sunday It Was Not At 
 All Unusual For Some Preacher To Address The Moving Crowd, While A Few 
 Feet Behind Him Would Be A Saloon In Full Blast, And Drinking, Gambling, 
 Swearing And Vulgar Language Could Be Plainly Seen And Heard At The Same 
 Time, And This Class Of People Seemed To Respect The Sunday Preacher 
 Very Little. The Big Saloon Was Owned By John Craycroft, Formerly A Mate 
 On A Mississippi River Steamboat, Who Gained Most Of His Money By 
 Marrying A Spanish Woman And Making Her A Silent Partner. 
   
   
   
 One Enterprising Man Who Was Anxious To Make Money Easily, Took A Notion 
 To Try His Luck In Trade, So, As Rats And Mice Were Troublesome In Shops 
 And Stores, He Went Down To The Valley And Brought Up A Cargo Of Cats 
 Which He Disposed Of At Prices Varying From Fifty To One Hundred Dollars 
 Each, According To The Buyer's Fancy. 
   
   
   
 During The Summer Kelley The Fiddler Came Up In The Mines To Make A 
 Raise, And Craycroft Made Him A Pulpit About Ten Feet Above The Floor In 
 His Saloon, Having Him To Play Nights And Sundays At Twenty Dollars Per 
 
 
 
 Chapter 16 Pg 287 
 Day. He Was A Big Uneducated Irishman, Who Could Neither Read Nor Write, 
 But He Played And Sang And Talked The Rich Irish Brogue, All Of Which 
 Brought Many Customers To The Bar. In The Saloon Could Be Seen All Sorts 
 Of People Dealing Different Games, And Some Were Said To Be Preachers. 
 Kelley Staid Here As Long As He Could Live On His Salary, And Left Town 
 Much In Debt, For Whiskey And Cards Got All His Money. 
   
   
   
 One Of The Grocers Kept Out A Sign, "Cheap John, The Packer," And Kept A 
 Mule To Deliver Goods, Which No Other Merchant Did, And In This Way 
 Gained Many Friends, And Many Now May Praise The Enterprise Of Cheap 
 John, The Packer. Prices Were Pretty High In Those Days. Sharpening 
 Picks Cost Fifty Cents, A Drink Of Whiskey One Dollar, And All Kinds Of 
 Pork, Fifty Cents Per Pound. You Could Get Meals At The Mcnutty House 
 For One Dollar. The Faro And Monte Banks Absorbed So Much Of The Small 
 Change That On One Occasion I Had To Pay Five Dollars For A Two Dollar 
 Pair Of Pants In Order To Get A Fifty Dollar Slug Changed. 
   
   
   
 No White Shirts Were Worn By Honest Men, And If Any Man Appeared In Such 
 A Garment He Was At Once Set Down As A Gambler, And With Very Little 
 Chance Of A Mistake. One Langdon Had The Only Express Office, And 
 Brought Letters And Packages From Sacramento. I Paid One Dollar Simply 
 To Get My Name On His Letter List, And When A Letter Came I Had To Pay 
 One Dollar For Bringing It Up, As There Was No Post Office At 
 Downieville. 
   
   
   
 Newspapers Were Eagerly Sought For, Such Was The Hunger For Reading. The 
 Western Folks Bought The St. Louis Papers, While Eastern People Found 
 The New York Tribune A Favorite. One Dollar Each For Such Papers Was The 
 Regular Price. It May Seem Strange, But Aside From The News We Got From 
 An Occasional Newspaper, I Did Not Hear A Word From The East During The 
 Two Years I Remained On Yuba River. Our Evenings Were Spent In Playing 
 Cards For Amusement, For No Reading Could Be Got. The Snow Between 
 Marysville And Downieville Was Deep And Impassable In Winter, But We 
 Could Work Our Drifting Claims Very Comfortably, Having Laid In A Stock 
 Of Provisions Early In The Season, Before Snowfall. The Nights Seemed 
 Tediously Long And Lonesome, For When The Snow Was Deep No One Came To 
 Visit Us, And We Could Go Nowhere, Being Completely Hemmed In. All The 
 Miners Who Did Not Have Claims They Could Work Underground, Went Down 
 Below The Winter Snow-Line To Find Work, And When The Snow Went Off Came 
 Back Again And Took Possession Of The Old Claims They Had Left. 
   
   
   
 After The Snow Went Off Three German Sailors Came Up And Took A River 
 Claim A Short Distance Above Us On A North Fork Of The North Fork Of The 
 Stream, Where One Side Of The Canon Was Perpendicular And The Other 
 Sloped Back Only Slightly. Here They Put Logs Across The River, Laid 
 Stringers On These, And Covered The Bottom With Fir Boughs. Then They 
 
 
 
 Chapter 16 Pg 288 
 Put Stakes At The Sides And Rigged A Canvas Flume Over Their Bridge 
 Through Which They Turned The Whole Current Of The River, Leaving A 
 Nearly Dry Bed Beneath. This We Called Pretty Good Engineering And 
 Management On The Part Of The Sailor Boys, For No Lumber Was To Be Had, 
 And They Had Made Themselves Masters Of The Situation With The Material 
 On Hand. 
   
   
   
 They Went To Work Under Their Log Aqueduct, And Found The Claim Very 
 Rich In Coarse Gold. They Went To Town Every Saturday Night With Good 
 Big Bags Of Dust, And As They Were Open-Hearted Fellows, Believing That 
 A Sailor Always Has The Best Of Luck, They Played Cards Freely, Always 
 Betting On The Jack And Queen, And Spent Their Money More Easily Than 
 They Earned It. They Were Quite Partial To The Ladies, And Patronizing 
 The Bar And Card Tables As Liberally As They Did, Usually Returned To 
 Camp On Monday Or Tuesday With A Mule Load Of Grub And Whiskey As All 
 The Visible Proceeds Of A Week's Successful Mining; But When Saturday 
 Night Came Around Again We Were Pretty Sure To See The Jolly Sailors 
 Going Past With Heavy Bags Of Gold. They Left One Nearly Pure Piece Of 
 Gold At Langdon's Express Office That Weighed Five Pounds, And Another 
 As Large As A Man's Hand, Of The Shape Of A Prickly Pear Leaf. 
   
   
   
 They Worked Their Claim With Good Success Until The Snow Water Came Down 
 And Forced Them Out. I Went One Day To See Them, And They Took A Pan Of 
 Dirt From Behind A Big Rock And Washed It Out, Getting As Much As Two 
 Teacupfuls Of Nuggets, Worth Perhaps A Thousand Dollars. When They Went 
 Away They Said They Would Go To Germany To See Their Poor Relatives And 
 Friends, And One Of Them Really Went Home, But The Other Two Had Spent 
 All Their Money Before They Were Ready To Leave San Francisco. These Men 
 Were, Without Doubt, The Inventors Of The Canvas Flume Which Was 
 Afterward Used So Successfully In Various Places. 
   
   
   
 While I Was Still Here The Now Famous Downieville Butte Quartz Mine Was 
 Discovered, But There Was No Way Then Of Working Quartz Successfully, 
 And Just At That Time Very Little Was Done With It, But Afterward, When 
 It Was Learned How To Work It, And The Proper Machinery Introduced, It 
 Yielded Large Sums Of Bullion. 
   
   
   
 The Miners Had A Queer Way Of Calling Every Man By Some Nickname Or 
 Other Instead Of His True Name, And No One Seemed Offended At It, But 
 Answered To His New Name As Readily As To Any. 
   
   
   
 It Was Nearly Fall When We Found We Had Worked Our Claims Out, And There 
 Were No New Ones We Could Locate Here, So We Concluded To Go Prospecting 
 For A New Locality. I Bought A Donkey In Town Of A Mr. Hawley, A 
 
 
 
 Chapter 16 Pg 289 
 Merchant, For Which I Paid Sixty Dollars, And Gave The Little Fellow His 
 Old Master's Name. We Now Had Two Animals, And We Packed On Them Our 
 Worldly Goods, And Started South Up The Mountain Trail By Way Of The 
 City Of Six, Where Some Half Dozen Men Had Located Claims, But The 
 Ground Was Dry And Deep, So We Went On. 
   
   
   
 We Still Went South, Down Toward The Middle Yuba River And When About 
 Half Way Down The Mountain Side Came To A Sort Of Level Bench Where Some 
 Miners Were At Work, But Hardly Any Water Could Be Had. They Called This 
 Minnesota. We Stayed Here A Day Or Two, But As There Seemed To Be No 
 Possible Further Development Of Water, Concluded To Go On Further. 
 Across The River We Could See A Little Flat, Very Similar To The One We 
 Were On, And A Little Prospecting Seemed To Have Been Done On The Side 
 Of The Mountain. We Had A Terribly Steep Canon To Cross, And A River 
 Also, With No Trail To Follow, But Our Donkeys Were As Good Climbers As 
 Any Of Us, So We Started Down The Mountain In The Morning, And Arrived 
 At The River About Noon. Here We Rested An Hour Or Two And Then Began 
 Climbing The Brushy Mountain Side. The Hill Was Very Steep, And The Sun 
 Beat Down On Us With All His Heat, So That With Our Hard Labor And The 
 Absence Of Any Wind We Found It A Pretty Hot Place. 
   
   
   
 It Was Pretty Risky Traveling In Some Places, And We Had To Help The 
 Donkeys To Keep Them From Rolling Down The Hill, Pack And All. It Took 
 Us Four Hours To Make A Mile And A Half Or Two Miles In That Dense 
 Brush, And We Were Nearly Choked When We Reached The Little Flat. Here 
 We Found Some Water, But No One Lived Here. From Here We Could See A 
 Large Flat Across A Deep Canon To The West, And Made Up Our Minds To Try 
 To Go To It. We Went Around The Head Of The Canon, And Worked Through 
 The Brush And Fallen Timber, Reaching Our Objective Point Just As Night 
 Was Coming On. This Flat, Like The One We Had Left, Was Quite Level, And 
 Contained, Perhaps, Nearly One Hundred Acres. Here We Found Two Men At 
 Work With A "Long Tom"--A Mr. Fernay And A Mr. Bloat. They Had Brought 
 The Water Of A Small Spring To Their Claim And Were Making Five Or Six 
 Dollars Per Day. We Now Prospected Around The Edge Of This Flat, And 
 Getting Pretty Fair Prospects Concluded We Would Locate Here If We Could 
 Get Water. 
   
   
   
 We Then Began Our Search For Water And Found A Spring About Three 
 Quarters Of A Mile Away, To Which We Laid Claim, And With A Triangle 
 Level Began To Survey Out A Route For Our Ditch. The Survey Was 
 Satisfactory, And We Found We Could Bring The Water Out High On The 
 Flat, So We Set To Work Digging At It, And Turned The Water In. The 
 Ground Was So Very Dry That All The Water Soaked Up Within Two Hundred 
 Yards Of The Spring. 
   
   
   
 By This Time We Were Out Of Grub, And Some One Must Go For A New Supply, 
 
 
 
 Chapter 16 Pg 290 
 And As We Knew The Trail To Downieville Was Terribly Rough, I Was Chosen 
 As The One To Try To Find Nevada City, Which We Thought Would Be Nearer 
 And More Easily Reached. So I Started South With The Donkeys, Up The 
 Mountain Toward The Ridge Which Lies Between The Middle And South Yuba 
 Rivers, And When I Got Well On The Ridge I Found A Trail Used Some By 
 Wagons, Which I Followed Till I Came To A Place Where The Ridge Was Only 
 Wide Enough For A Wagon, And At The West End A Faint Trail Turned Off 
 South Into The Rolling Hills. I Thought This Went About The Course I 
 Wanted To Go, So I Followed It, And After Two Or Three Miles Came To The 
 South Yuba River. This Seemed To Be An Indian Trail, No Other Signs On 
 It. I Climbed The Mountain Here, And When I Reached The Top I Found A 
 Large Tent Made Of Blue Drilling, And Here I Found I Was Four Or Five 
 Miles From Nevada City With A Good Trail To Follow. The Rolling Hills I 
 Then Passed Through Are Now Called North Bloomfield, And At One Time 
 Were Known As "Humbug." 
   
   
   
 I Started Along The Trail And Soon Reached The City Where I Drove My 
 Donkeys Up To A Store Which Had Out The Sign "Davis & Co.." I Entered 
 And Inquiring The Prices Of Various Sorts Of Provisions Such As Flour, 
 Bacon, Beans, Butter, Etc., Soon Had Selected Enough For Two Donkey 
 Loads. They Assisted Me In Putting Them In Pack, And When It Was Ready I 
 Asked The Amount Of My Bill, Which Was One Hundred And Fifty Dollars. 
 This I Paid At Once, And They Gave Me Some Crackers And Dried Beef For 
 Lunch On The Way. Davis Said--"That Is The Quickest Sale I Ever Made, 
 And Here The Man Is Ready To Go. I Defy Any One To Beat It." Before Sun 
 Down I Was Two Or Three Miles On My Way Back Where I Found Some Grass 
 And Camped For The Night, Picketed The Animals, Ate Some Of Mr. Davis' 
 Grub For Supper, And Arranged A Bed Of Saddle Blankets. I Arrived At 
 Camp The Next Day About Sun Down. 
   
   
   
 Next Day I Went On Up The Divide And Found A House On The Trail Leading 
 Farther East, Where Two Men Lived, But They Seemed To Be Doing Nothing. 
 There Were No Mines And Miners Near There, And There Seemed To Be Very 
 Little Travel On The Trail. The Fellows Looked Rough, And I Suspected 
 They Might Be Bad Characters. The Stream They Lived Near Was Afterward 
 Called Bloody Run, And There Were Stories Current That Blood Had Been 
 Shed There. 
   
   
   
 Here Was A Section Of Comparatively Level Land, For The Mountain Divide, 
 And A Fine Spring Of Good Cold Water, All Surrounded By Several Hundred 
 Acres Of The Most Magnificent Sugar Pines California Ever Raised, Very 
 Large, Straight As A Candle, And One Hundred Feet Or More To The Lowest 
 Limbs. This Place Was Afterward Called Snow Tent, And S.W. Churchill 
 Built A Sawmill At The Spring, And Had All This Fine Timber At The Mercy 
 Of His Ax And Saw, Without Anyone To Dispute His Right. He Furnished 
 Lumber To The Miners At Fifty Dollars Or More Per Thousand Feet. Bloody 
 Run No Doubt Well Deserves Its Name, For There Was Much Talk Of Killing 
 Done There. 
 
 
 
 Chapter 16 Pg 291 
   
   
   
 I, However, Went Up And Talked To The Men And Told Them I Wished To Hire 
 A Cross Cut Saw For A Few Days To Get Out Stuff For A Cabin, And Agreed 
 To Pay Two Dollars A Day For The Use Of It Till It Came Back. 
   
   
   
 We Cut Down A Large Sugar Pine, Cut Off Four Six Feet Cuts, One Twelve 
 Feet, And One Sixteen Feet Cut, And From These We Split Out A Lot Of 
 Boards Which We Used To Make A V-Shaped Flume Which We Placed In Our 
 Ditch, And Thus Got The Water Through. We Split The Longer Cuts Into Two 
 Inch Plank For Sluice Boxes, And Made A Small Reservoir, So That We 
 Succeeded In Working The Ground. We Paid Wages To The Two Men Who 
 Worked, And Two Other Men Who Were With Us Went And Built A Cabin. 
   
   
   
 I Now Went And Got Another Load Of Provisions, And As The Snow Could Be 
 Seen On The High Mountains To The East, I Thought The Deer Must Be 
 Crowded Down To Our Country, So I Went Out Hunting And Killed A Big Fat 
 Buck, And The Next Day Three More, So Fresh Meat Was Plenty. 
   
   
   
 About This Time A Man Came Down The Mountain With His Oxen And Wagon, 
 Wife And Three Or Four Children, The Eldest A Young Lady Of Fifteen 
 Years. The Man's Name Was H. M. Moore. We Had Posted Notices, According 
 To Custom, To Make Mining Laws, And Had Quite A Discussion About A Name 
 For The Place. Some Of The Fellows Wanted To Name It After The Young 
 Lady, "Minda's Flat," But We Finally Chose "Moore's Flat" Instead, Which 
 I Believe Is The Name It Still Goes By. Our Laws Were Soon Completed, 
 And A Recorder Chosen To Record Claims. We Gave Mr. Moore The Honor Of 
 Having A Prospecting Town Named After Him Because He Was The First Man 
 To Be On Hand With A Wife. 
   
   
   
 I Became Satisfied After A Little That This Place Would Be A Very Snowy 
 Place, And That From All Appearances It Would Fall From Two To Four Feet 
 Deep, And Not A Very Pleasant Place To Winter In. An Honest Acquaintance 
 Of Mine Came Along, Samuel Tyler And To Him I Let My Claim To Work On 
 Shares And Made Mccloud My Agent, Verbally, While I Took My Blankets And 
 Started For The Valley. 
   
   
   
 The First Town I Passed Through Was A Newly Discovered Mining Town 
 Called French Corral. Here I Found An Old Wisconsin Friend Wm. Sublet, 
 The Foster Father Of The Accomplishen Wife Of Mayor S.W. Boring Of San 
 Jose. From Here I Went To Marysville. The Storm Had Been Raging High In 
 The Mountains For Some Days, And The Yuba River Rising Fast, Overflowing 
 Its Banks As I Walked Into Town, And The Next Day The Merchants Were 
 
 
 
 Chapter 16 Pg 292 
 Very Busy Piling Their Goods Above High Water Mark. I Went To A Hotel 
 And Called For A Bed. "Yes," Says The Landlord "Is Your Name John Or 
 Peter?" I Told Him William, Which He Set Down In His Book And We Went Up 
 Stairs To The Best Room Which Was Fitted Up With Berths Three Tiers High 
 On Each Side, And Only One Or Two Empty Ones. He Looked Around For 
 Covers, But None Could Be Found Unoccupied, But One Fellow Who Was Sound 
 Asleep And Snoring Awfully, So He Took The Blanket Off From Him Saying: 
 "He Wont Know A Thing About It Till Morning, Be Jabers, So Don't Say A 
 Word." 
   
   
   
 Next Morning The River Was Booming, Its Surface Covered With All Sorts 
 Of Mining Outfit Such As Flume Timber, Rockers, Various Qualities Of 
 Lumber, Pieces Of Trees As Well As Whole Ones, Water Wheels And Other 
 Traps. The River Between Downieville And Here Must Have Been Swept Clean 
 Of All Material That Would Float, Including "Long Toms." The Water 
 Continued To Rise Till It Covered The Plaza, And In Two Days A Steamer 
 Came Up And Sailed Across The Public Square. This Looked Like A Wet 
 Season To Me, And When The Boat Was Ready To Go Down The River I Went On 
 Board, Bound For Sacramento. Here It Was Also Getting Terrible Wet And 
 Muddy, And The Rain Kept Pouring Down. In The Morning I Worked My Way Up 
 J Street And Saw A Six-Mule Team Wading Up The Streets The Driver On 
 Foot, Tramping Through The Sloppy Mud, Occasionally Stepping In A Hole 
 And Falling His Whole Length In The Mud. On The Street Where So Much 
 Trouble Was Met By The Teamsters, A Lot Of Idlers Stood On The Sidewalk, 
 And When A Driver Would Fall And Go Nearly Out Of Sight, They Would, 
 Like A Set Of Loafers, Laugh At Him And Blackguard Him With Much Noise, 
 And As They Were Numerous They Feared Nothing. 
   
   
   
 Suddenly A Miner, Who Had Lately Arrived From The Mountains, Raised His 
 Room Window In The Second Story Of A House, Put Out One Leg And Then His 
 Body, As Far As He Could, And Having Nothing On But His Night Clothes, 
 Shouted To The Noisy Crowd Below:--"Say Can't You D----D Farmers Plow 
 Now?" At This He Dodged Back Quickly Into His Window As If He Expected 
 Something Might Be Thrown At Him. The Rain Continued, And The Water Rose 
 Gradually Till It Began To Run Slowly Through The Streets, And All The 
 Business Stopped Except Gambling And Drinking Whisky, Which Were Freely 
 Carried On In The Saloons Day And Night. 
   
   
   
 While Here In Sacramento I Was Sufficiently Prompted By Curiosity To Go 
 Around To The Place On J Street Where The Legislature Was In Session. I 
 Stood Sometime Outside The Enclosure Listening To The Members Who Were 
 In Earnest Debate Over A Question Concerning The Size Of Mining Claims. 
 They Wanted Them Uniform In Size All Over The State, But There Was Some 
 Opposition, And The Debate On This Occasion Was Between The Members From 
 The Mining Counties On One Side And The "Cow" Counties On The Other. The 
 Miners Took The Ground That The Claims Were Of Different Richness In The 
 Different Mining Localities And That The Miners Themselves Were The Best 
 Judges Of The Proper Size Of Claims, And Were Abundantly Able To Make 
 
 
 
 Chapter 16 Pg 293 
 Their Own Laws As They Had Done Under The Present Mining Customs, And 
 Their Laws Had Always Been Respected, Making Any Further Legislative 
 Action Unnecessary. 
   
   
   
 While This Wrangle Was Going On. Capt. Hunt, Of San Bernardino (Our 
 Guide From Salt Lake In 1849), Came Along And Stopped Where I Stood, 
 Shaking Me Heartily By The Hand, Inquiring Where I Was From, And When I 
 Told Him I Was From The Mines He Said He Thought The Cow County Fellows 
 Were Trying To Make The Miners Some Trouble. I Told Him The Present 
 Mining Regulations Suited Us Very Well, And After He Had Talked With Me 
 A Little He Went Inside And Whispered To Some Of The Silent Members That 
 The Miners Wanted No Change, For He Had Just Consulted A Miner To That 
 Effect. When Occasion Offered He Called For A Vote Which Resulted In The 
 Defeat Of The Cow Counties And A Postponement Of The Measure 
 Indefinitely. 
   
   
   
 My Next Move Was To Try To Find A Dryer Place So I Took A Boat For 
 Benicia, Then For Stockton, Where I Found A Sea Of Mud, So That A Man 
 Needed Stilts Or A Boat To Cross The Street. 
   
   
   
 Here In A Livery Stable I Found My Old Platte River Boss, Chas. Dallas, 
 For Whom I Drove In 1849, But He Did Not Seem To Know Me And Took No 
 Notice Of Me, But Talked "Horse" And Horse-Racing To The Bystanders Very 
 Loudly. I Suppose That Dallas Had Made Money And Did Not Care For A Poor 
 Ox Driver, And On My Part I Did Not Care Very Much For His Friendship, 
 So I Walked Away And Left Him Without A Word. 
   
   
   
 Every Way I Looked Was A Sea Of Black, Sticky Mud; Dogs Mired In The 
 Streets And Died, And Teams And Animals Had Forsaken The Usual Route Of 
 Travel. The Gambling Houses And Saloons Were Crowded, Gum Boots In 
 Demand, And The Only Way To Get Out Of Town Was By Water. I Took This 
 Way Out, And On The Same Boat By Which I Came, Going To San Francisco. 
 This Was High And Dry Enough To Be Above The Highest Floods Of Yuba, 
 Sacramento Or San Joaquin, But All Business Except The Saloons Was Dull. 
 Fronting On Portsmouth Square Was The Hall Of Corruption. Inside Was A 
 Magnificently Furnished Bar, More Than One Keeper And Various Gambling 
 Tables, Most Of Them With Soiled Doves In Attendance. The Room Was 
 Thronged With Players And Spectators, And Coin And Dust Were Plenty. The 
 Dealers Drew Off Their Cards Carefully, And Seemed To Have The Largest 
 Pile Of Coin On Their Side. 
   
   
   
 I Climbed Russian Hill And To Take A Look Over The City. It Seemed 
 Poorly Built, But The Portion That Had Been Burned In July 1852, Had 
 Been Built Up Again. The Business Part Was Near The Beach And North Of 
 
 
 
 Chapter 16 Pg 294 
 Market Street. 
   
   
   
 I Had Never Lived In A Town And Did Not Know Its Ways, So I Strolled 
 Around Alone, For Without Acquaintance I Did Not Know Where To Go Nor 
 What To Look For. I Therefore Thought I Would See Some Other Part Of The 
 Country. I Found That A Schooner Was About To Sail For San Pedro, Near 
 Los Angeles. I Took Hold Of A Rope To Help Myself On Board, When It Gave 
 Way And I Found Myself Floundering In The Water. They Helped Me Out And 
 The Captain Gave Me A Dry Suit To Put On, I Was Profoundly Grateful For 
 The Favor, And Found Him A Generous Man. 
   
   
   
 We Sailed Away And Stopped At Monterey For 24 Hours Which Gave Me A Good 
 Chance For A Good Look At The Old Capitol Houses, Which Were Of Adobe, 
 And To Find That This City Was Also Liberally Supplied With Gambling, 
 Card And Billiard Tables. The Majority Of The People Were Spanish And 
 Fond Of Gaming, And The General Appearance Of The Place Was Old And 
 Without Good Improvements, Though There Were More Two-Story Houses Than 
 In Most Places In California. 
   
   
   
 Some Houses Were Of Stone, But More Of Adobe, And There Seemed To Be No 
 Fertile Country Round, And The Hills About Had Small Pines On Them. 
   
   
   
 Some Of The Sailors Went Out And Gathered A Large Bag Of Mussels And 
 Clams, From Which They Made A Liberal Allowance Of Chowder For The 
 Table. After Seven Or Eight Days We Arrived In San Pedro, And Found The 
 Town To Consist Of One Long Adobe House. The Beach Was Low And Sandy, 
 And We Were Wet Somewhat In Wading Through A Light Surf To Get On Shore. 
 We Had On Board A Mr. Baylis, Who We Afterward Learned Came Down With 
 Capt. Lackey On A Big Speculation Which Was To Capture All The Wild 
 Goats They Could On Catalina Island, And Take Them To San Francisco For 
 Slaughtering. 
   
   
   
 The Goats Were Easily Captured And Taken On Board The Schooner, And 
 Thence To Shore But Many Were Drowned In The Transit, And When Driven To 
 San Francisco The Dead Were Scattered All Along The Route. Although Wild 
 They Seemed To Lack The Vitality That Tame Goats Possess. The 
 Speculation Proved A Disappointment To The Projectors. 
   
   
   
 At The Adobe House, Kept By A Spaniard We Had Breakfast, Then Shouldered 
 Our Packs For The March Of Ten Leagues To Los Angeles For There Was No 
 Chance To Ride. It Was Night Before We Reached The City Of Angels, And 
 Here I Staid A Day To Take A Look At The First City I Saw In California 
 
 
 
 Chapter 16 Pg 295 
 In March 1850. 
   
   
   
 I Inquired For My Mining Companion, W.M. Stockton Who Worked With 
 Bennett And Myself Near Georgetown In 1850, And Found He Lived Near The 
 Old Mission Of San Gabriel Nine Miles Away, Whither I Walked And Found 
 Him And Family Well And Glad To See Me. He Had Jumped An Old Pear 
 Orchard Which Was Not Claimed By The Mission Fathers, Although It Was 
 Only Three-Fourths Of A Mile Away. The Trees Were All Seedlings And Very 
 Large, Probably 50 Or More Years Old. Some Of The Mission Buildings Were 
 Falling Down Since They Had Been Abandoned, And The Americans Would Go 
 To These Houses And Remove The Tile Flooring From The Porches And From 
 The Pillars That Supported Them. These Tiles Were Of Hard Burned Clay, 
 In Pieces About A Foot Square, And Were Very Convenient To Make Fire 
 Places And Pavements Before The Doors Of Their New Houses. Out-Side The 
 Enclosed Orange And Fig Orchard At This Place Were Some Large Olive And 
 Fig Trees, Apparently As Old As The Mission, Being A Foot Or More In 
 Diameter And About 50 Feet High. I Had Never Seen Olives, And When I Saw 
 These Trees Covered With Plenty Of Fruit About The Size Of Damson Plums 
 I Took The Liberty Of Tasting It And Found It Very Disagreeable, And 
 Wondered Of What Use Such Fruit Could Be. 
   
   
   
 Mr. Stockton Fenced His Orchard By Setting Posts And Tying Sycamore 
 Poles To Them To Keep The Stock Away, Built An Adobe House On The Claim 
 And Called The Property His. I Went To Work For Him At Once, Pruning The 
 Trees, Which Improved Their Appearance, And Then Turned On A Little 
 Stream Of Water Which Ran Through The Place, And On Down To The Mission. 
 With This Treatment The Trees Did Well Without Cultivation. 
   
   
   
 I Bought One Half The Stock Consisting Of Some Spanish Cows, One Yoke Of 
 Oxen And Some Horses, Worked Enough To Pay My Board, Watched The Stock 
 And Still Had Plenty Of Time To Ride Around Over The Adjoining Country. 
   
   
   
 When The Pears Were Ripe The Spanish Men, Women And Children Eagerly 
 Bought Them At 25 Cents Per Dozen And Some Sundays The Receipts For 
 Fruit Sold Would Be As High As $100. That Taken To Town Would Bring From 
 $5. To $8. Per Box, The Boxes Being A Little Larger Than Those In 
 Present Use. An Indian Woman, Widow Of A Mr. Reed, Claimed A Vineyard 
 Near The Orchard, And Laid Claim To The Whole Property, So Stockton Gave 
 Her $1000 For A Quit Claim Deed. 
   
   
   
 Near By Was A Small Artificial Lake Made By A Dam Of Cobble Stones, Laid 
 In Cement Across A Ravine, Which Was Built Perhaps 50 Years Before, And 
 Yet The Tracks Of A Child Who Had Walked Across Before The Cement Was 
 Dry, Were Plainly Seen. 
 
 
 
 Chapter 16 Pg 296 
   
   
   
 Stockton And I Visited Mr. Roland, An Old Settler Who Lived South Of San 
 Gabriel River, And Staid All Night With Him, Finding Him Very Sociable 
 And Hospitable. All His Work Was Done By Indians Who Lived Near By, And 
 Had Been There As Long As He. He Had A Small Vineyard, And Raised Corn, 
 Squashes, Melons And All That Are Necessary For His Table, Having Also A 
 Small Mill Near By For Grinding Corn And Wheat Without Bolting. The 
 Indians Made His Wine By Tramping The Grapes With Their Feet In A 
 Rawhide Vat Hung Between Four Poles Set In The Ground. The Workmen Were 
 Paid Off Every Saturday Night, And During Sunday He Would Generally Sell 
 Them Wine Enough To Get About All The Money Back Again. This Had Been 
 His Practice For Many Years, And No Doubt Suited Mr. Roland As Well As 
 The Red Men. 
   
   
   
 Roland Was An Old Rocky Mountain Trapper Who Came To California Long 
 Before Gold Was Discovered, And During The Evening The Talk Naturally 
 Ran To The Subject Of Early Days. 
   
   
   
 Mr. Roland Related That While His Party Were In Camp In The Upper 
 Colorado They Were Visited By A Small Band Of Indians Who Professed 
 Friendship And Seated Themselves Around The Fire. Suddenly They Made An 
 Attack And Each Trapper Had An Indian To Contend With, Except Mr. Roland 
 Who Was Left To Be Dispatched Afterwards. But As He Ran, A Squaw Among 
 Them Followed Him, And After A While Overtook Him And Showed Friendship. 
 He Had Neither Gun Or Knife And So Concluded To Put Faith In The Woman 
 Who Safely Guided Him In A Long Tramp Across The Desert Where They Both 
 Came Near Starving, But Finally Reached Los Angeles Valley, When The 
 Brave Squaw Mingled With Her Own People And He Lost Sight Of Her 
 Forever. 
   
   
   
 No White Man Could Alone Have Traversed That Desert Waste And Found Food 
 Enough To Last Him Half The Journey. 
   
   
   
 He Gradually Learned To Speak Spanish, And Was Granted The Piece Of Land 
 He Applied For, And Where He Then Lived; Married A Spanish Girl, With 
 Whom He Had A Happy Home And Raised A Large Family, And Grew Rich, For 
 They Were Both Industrious And Economical. The First Wife Died, And He 
 Was Persuaded To Marry A Texas Widow, And Now Had To Buy The First 
 Carriage He Ever Owned, And Furnish A Fine Turn-Out And Driver For The 
 Lady, Who Wore Much Jewelry And Fine Clothes, And Spent Money Freely. 
 Roland Was Not A Society Man, His Thoughts And Habits Were Different 
 From His Wife, And He Staid At Home, Better Contented There. 
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 16 Pg 297 
   
 There Were Many Other Pioneers In The Neighborhood, Dan Sexton, Col. 
 Williams, Of Chino Ranch, Workman, B.D. Wilson, Abel Stearns, Temple, 
 Wolfskill And Many Others, Scott And Granger Were Lawyers. Granger Was 
 The Same Man Who Read The Preamble And Resolutions That Were To Govern 
 Our Big Train As We Were About To Start From Utah Lake. 
   
   
   
 Scott Was Quite A Noted Member Of The Bar, And When Gen. Winfield Scott 
 Ran For President, Some Wide Awake Politicians Caused The Uneducated 
 Spaniards To Vote For Their Favorite Lawyer Instead Of The Redoubtable 
 General, And They Did This With A Good Will For They Thought The Famous 
 Avocado Was The Best Man, And Thus The Manipulators Lost Many Votes To 
 The Real Candidate. Scott Was Afterward Retained By Many Of The 
 Spaniards To Present Their Claims For Their Land To The U.S. Government 
 And Was Considered A Very Able Man. 
   
   
   
 Mr. Stockton Related That When He Left His Family Here To Go To The 
 Mines He Rented One Half A House Of Michael Blanco Who Had A Spanish 
 Wife And Children, And These And His Own Were Of Course Constant 
 Playmates. When He Returned In The Fall He Found His Children Had 
 Learned To Speak Spanish And Nearly Forgotten English, So That He Had To 
 Coax Them A Great Deal To Get Them To Talk To Him At All, And He Could 
 Not Understand A Word They Said. 
   
   
   
 I Now Tried To Learn The Language Myself. I Had Money To Loan, And The 
 Borrowers Were Spanish Who Gave Good Security And Paid From 5 To 25 Per 
 Cent Interest Per Month, On Short Time. Mrs. Stockton Assisted Me Very 
 Much As An Interpreter. 
   
   
   
 I Bought Young Steers For $8. Each And Gradually Added To My Herd. I Got 
 Along Well Until Next Spring When The Beef Eating Population Began To 
 Steal My Fat Cattle, And Seemed Determined I Should Get No Richer. The 
 Country Was Over-Stocked With Desperate And Lawless Renegades In Los 
 Angeles And From One To Four Dead Men Was About The Number Picked Up In 
 The Streets Each Morning. They Were Of Low Class, And There Was No 
 Investigation, Simply A Burial At Public Expense. 
   
   
   
 The Permanent Spanish Population Seemed Honest And Benevolent, But There 
 Were Many Bad Ones From Chili, Sonora, Mexico, Texas, Utah And Europe, 
 Who Seemed Always On An Errand Of Mischief A Murder, Thieving Or 
 Robbery. 
   
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 16 Pg 298 
 Three Or Four Suspicious Looking Men Came On Horseback And Made Their 
 Camp Near The Mission Under An Oak Tree, Where They Staid Sometime. They 
 Always Left Someone In Camp While The Others Went Away Every Day On 
 Their Horses, And Acted So Strangely That The Report Soon Became Current 
 That They Were Stealing Horses And Running Them Off To Some Safe Place 
 In The Mountains Till A Quantity Could Be Accumulated To Take To The 
 Mines To Sell. On This Information The Vigilance Committee Arrested The 
 Man In Camp And Brought Him To A Private Room, Where He Was Tried By 
 Twelve Men, Who Found Him Guilty Of Horse Stealing, And Sentenced To Be 
 Hung At Once, For Horse Stealing Was A Capital Offence In Those Days. 
   
   
   
 To Carry Out The Sentence They Procured A Cart, Put A Box On It For A 
 Seat, And With A Rope Around His Neck And Seated On The Box, The 
 Condemned Man Was Dragged Off By Hand To An Oak Tree Not Far Away, 
 Whither He Was Followed By All The Men, Women And Children Of The Place, 
 Who Where Nearly All Natives. While Preparations Were Being Made Under 
 The Tree Some One Called Out That Men Were Riding Rapidly From The 
 Direction Of Los Angeles, And From The Dust They Raised Seemed To Be 
 More Than Usually In Haste. So It Was Proposed To Wait Till They Came 
 Up. It Was Soon Known That An Indian Had Been Sent To Los Angeles To 
 Give News To The Man's Friends There, And They Had Come With All The 
 Speed Of Their Horses To Try To Save His Life. They Talked And Inquired 
 Around A Little And Then Proposed The Question Whether To Hang Him Or To 
 Turn Him Over To The Lawful Authorities For Regular Trial. This Was Put 
 To A Vote And It Was Decided To Spare Him Now. So The Rope Was Taken Off 
 His Neck, And He Was Turned Over To Mr. Mallard The Mission Justice Of 
 The Peace, Much To The Relief Of The Fellow Who Saw Death Staring Him In 
 The Face. 
   
   
   
 The Santa Anita Ranch, Now Owned By E.J. Baldwin, Was Owned By Henry 
 Dalton, An Englishman, Who Came With A Stock Of Goods Worth $75,000, 
 Years Before, But Now Had Only The Ranch Left. The Azuza, A Short 
 Distance South Was Occupied By His Brother. 
   
   
   
 I Became Well Acquainted With Many Of These Old California Natives, And 
 Found Them Honest In Their Dealings, Good To The Needy And In All My 
 Travels Never Found More Willing Hands To Bestow Upon Relatives, Friends 
 Or Strangers Ready Relief Than I Saw Among These Simple Natives. Their 
 Kindness To Our Party When We Came Starving On The Desert In 1850, Can 
 Never Be Praised Enough, And As Long As I Shall Live My Best Wishes 
 Shall Go With Them. 
   
   
   
 I Was One Day Riding With Vincent Duarte Down Toward Anaheim When He 
 Suddenly Dismounted To Kill A Large Tarantula By Pelting Him With 
 Stones. It Was The First One I Had Seen, And Seemed An Over-Grown 
 Spider. I Asked Him If The Thing Was Harmful, And He Replied With 
 
 
 
 Chapter 16 Pg 299 
 Considerable Warmth, "Mucho Malo Por Christianos" And I Wondered If The 
 Insect Knew Saints From Sinners. 
   
   
   
 This Spring We Concluded To Go To The Mormon Settlement At San 
 Bernardino And Secure Some American Bulls To Improve Our Stock, And 
 Starting Late One Day I Rode As Far As The Azuza Rancho Where I Staid 
 All Night With Mr. Dalton, Reaching The Holy City, A Branch Of Brigham 
 Young's Harem Next Day. Here I Found A Town Of Log Houses In A Circle, 
 Enclosing A Plaza. There Was A Passage Between The Houses. I Stopped At 
 The Principal Hotel Kept By A Vigorous And Enthusiastic Mormon Woman, 
 Who Delighted To Preach The Doctrine. 
   
   
   
 Walking Around On The Outside Of The Fortifications I Came Across Capt. 
 Hunt, The Man Who Was Hired In The Fall Of 1849 To Bring The Big Train 
 From Salt Lake To San Bernardino. 
   
   
   
 I Told Him Who I Was, And What I Wanted, And He Seemed To Know Me, 
 Inviting Me In The Most Friendly And Social Manner To Take Supper With 
 Him, Which I Did. He Sat At The Head Of The Table And Introduced Me To 
 His Three Wives. The Furnishing Of The House Was Cheap And Common, But 
 The Table Was Fairly Provided For. He Said He Would Help Me To Find The 
 Animals I Wanted, And In The Morning Showed Me Two Which He Had, That 
 Were Young And Suitable, And A Larger One Which He Said I Could Have If 
 I Could Drive Him. 
   
   
   
 I Soon Found Out That I Had Better Move Or Sell My Cattle, For With All 
 My Watching I Could Do They Gradually Disappeared, And Hungry Thieves 
 Who Could Live On Beef Alone, Visited My Little Band Of Cattle Too Often 
 And Took What They Wanted, And I Could Not Detect Them. I Soon Sold To 
 Four Buyers From The North, L.D. Stevens, David Grant, Sam Craig And Mr. 
 Wilson, And Hired Out With My Two Horses To Help Them Drive The Band 
 North, At A Salary Of $100 Per Month. 
   
   
   
 Disposing Most Of My Money With Palmer, Cook & Co., I Went To See My 
 Mine At Moore's Flat. There Were Two Boats Leaving At About The Same 
 Time, One For Stockton, And One For Sacramento, The Latter Of Which I 
 Took, And Rogers The Other. Both Landed At Benecia, And When We Swung 
 Away From That Wharf Rogers And I Saluted Each Other With Raised And 
 Swinging Hats, Shouted A Good Bye, And I Have Never Seen Him Since. 
   
   
   
 At Moore's Flat I Found My Mine Well And Profitably Worked By Mr. Tyler 
 And As His Lease Was Not Out I Returned To San Jose, As I Had Learned 
 
 
 
 Chapter 16 Pg 300 
 From Rogers That Mr. A. Bennett Was At Watsonville, And Mr. Arcane At 
 Santa Cruz, And I Desired To Visit Them. I Rode Back Across The Country 
 And Found Mr. Bennett And Family At The Point Where The Salinas River 
 Enters Monterey Bay. They Were All Well, And Were Glad To See Me For 
 They Did Not Know I Was In California. Mrs. Bennett Was Greatly Affected 
 At Our Meeting And Shed Tears Of Joy As She Shook Hands. 
   
   
   
 Bennett Had A Nice Whitehall Boat And We Had A Genuine Happy Time 
 Hunting, Fishing And Gathering Clams, And Also In Social Visits Among 
 The Neighbors And Old Acquaintances, Among Them One Jacob Rhodehouse Of 
 Wisconsin. 
   
   
   
 While Here I Rode My Horse Around To Monterey And To Carmel Mission, 
 Where I Staid Two Or Three Days, With Mr. Gourley, A Brother Of Mrs. 
 William M. Stockton, Who Was Here Engaged In Raising Potatoes. I Walked 
 Along The Beach Near Some Rocky Islands Near The Shore, And On These 
 Rocks Were More Sea Lions And Seals Than I Supposed The Whole Ocean 
 Contained--The Most Wonderful Show Of Sea Life On The California Coast. 
 Returning I Staid All Night At The Crossing Of The Salinas With A 
 Colored Family Who Gave Me Good Accommodations For Self And Horse. I 
 Heard Afterward That This Family Was Attacked By Robbers And All But One 
 Murdered. 
   
   
   
 Mrs. Bennett's Father D.J. Dilley Lived Near Here Also, And I Had Not 
 Seen Him Since The Time In Wisconsin, When He Hauled My Canoe Over To 
 The River In 1849. One Day While Fishing On The Beach We Found The Body 
 Of A Man, Which We Carried Above The Tide And Buried In The Sand. 
   
   
   
 I Gave One Of My Horses To Geo. Bennett, And Went Over To Santa Cruz, 
 Where I Found Mr. And Mrs. J.B. Arcane And Son Charles In A Comfortable 
 Home, Well Situated, And Overjoyed To See Me. 
   
   
   
 He Knew Everyone In Town, And As We Went About He Never Missed To 
 Introduce Me To Every One We Met, As The Man Who Helped Himself And 
 Family Out Of Death Valley, And Saved Their Lives. Arcane Was A Very 
 Polite Frenchman And Knew How To Manage Such Things Very Gracefully, But 
 With All His Grace And Heartiness It Made Me Feel Quite A Little 
 Embarrassed To Be Made So Much Of Publicly And Among Strangers. He Took 
 Me In His Buggy And We Drove Along The Beach, And To The Lime-Kiln Of 
 Cowel & Jordan, Also To The Court House When Court Was In Session. 
   
   
   
 Upon The Hill I Met Judge Watson, The Father Of Watsonville, And A Mr. 
 
 
 
 Chapter 16 Pg 301 
 Graham, An Old Settler And Land Owner, And On This Occasion He Pulled A 
 Sheet Of Ancient, Smoky Looking Paper From Beneath His Arm, Pointed To A 
 Dozen Or So Of Written Lines In Spanish And Then With A Flourish Of The 
 Precious Document In Watson's Face Dared Him To Beat That, Or Get Him 
 Off His Land. I Must Say That Never In My Life Was I Better Entertained 
 Than Here. 
   
   
   
 From Santa Cruz I Crossed The Mountain On A Lonely And Romantic Trail To 
 San Jose Again, Finding Very Few Houses On The Road. Here I Went To Work 
 For R. G. Moody Building A Gristmill On The Banks Of The Coyote Creek, 
 To Be Run By Water From Artesian Wells. When The Mill Was Done I Went 
 For My Horse, And On My Return I Ran Very Unexpectedly Upon Davenport 
 Helms, To Whom I Had Sold My Little Black Mule In 1850. Our Talk Was 
 Short But He Told Me He Had Killed A Man In Georgetown, And The Sheriff 
 Was Looking For Him. He Was Now Venturing To Town For Tobacco, And Would 
 Hurry Back To The Hills Again Where He Was Herding Cattle. 
   
   
   
 He Said He Kept Them Off At One Time By Getting In A Piece Of Chaparral 
 And Presenting His Gun To Them When They Came Near, They Dare Not 
 Advance On Him. Then He Laughed And Said--"And All The Time My Gun Was 
 Empty, For I Did Not Have A D----D Thing To Put Into It." "I Tell You 
 They Don't Catch Old Davenport. Now Don't You Tell On Me. Good-Bye." I 
 Saw Him No More After That. 
   
   
   
 The Town Of San Jose Was Now More Of A Town Than It Was A Few Years 
 Before. The "Forty Thieves," And Others, Commenced Building A City Hall 
 Of Brick On The Top Of Old Adobe Walls, And This Was The Principal 
 Improvement, Except The Moody Mill Near The Sutter House, One Street 
 North Of Julian. 
   
   
   
 After Finishing Work On The Mill I Drew My Money From The Bank In San 
 Francisco And Started For The Mines On Horseback. Near French Camp, On 
 The East Side Of The San Joaquin Valley, Many Cattle Were Feeding On The 
 Plains, And Among Them, Much To My Surprise I Found "Old Crump," The Ox 
 That Brought Bennett's And Arcane's Children Safe Through From Death 
 Valley In February, 1850. He Was Now Fat And Sleek And As Kind And 
 Gentle As When So Poor Upon The Terrible Journey. I Got Off My Horse And 
 Went Up To Him, And Patted My Old Friend. I Was Glad To Find Him So 
 Contented And Happy, And I Doubt Not That He Too Was Glad. I Met A Man 
 Near By And Asked Him About The Ox, And He Said That The Owner Would Not 
 Sell Him Nor Allow Him To Be Worked, For He Knew Of The Faithful Part He 
 Performed In The World, And Respected Him For It. 
   
   
   
 At Sacramento I Deposited My Money With Page, Bacon & Co., A Branch Of 
 
 
 
 Chapter 16 Pg 302 
 The St. Louis Firm Of The Same Name, Considered The Safest Bank In The 
 United States. Their Bills Were Taken In Payment Of Government Land. 
 Some Rascals Had Some Counterfeit Bills On Their Bank, And Traded Them 
 Off For Gold With The Missourians Who Were Going Home, And The Poor 
 Fellows Found Themselves Poor On Arrival. 
   
   
   
 Going To My Mine, Where I Left Only A Cabin Or Two, I Found Quite A 
 Village With Two Hotels And A Post Office. 
   
   
   
 News Soon Came That The Banks Had Closed Their Door, And Page And Bacon 
 Also, So I Concluded That I Was Broke. The "Pikers" Said Page And Bacon 
 Could Not, Nor Would Not Fail, But News Was Against Them. The Boys Now 
 Tried To Persuade Me To Go To Sacramento, And Try To Get My Money And If 
 I Succeeded, To Bring Up A Good Stock Of Goods And They Would Buy Of Me 
 In Preference To Any One Else. On This Showing I Went Down, And Finding 
 My Old Friend Lyman Ross (Well Known In San Jose) Who Was Keeping A 
 Fruit Store. I Told Him My Business And He Took Me To L.A. Booth, Carrol 
 & Co., And I Stated To Him The Facts About My Money In The Bank And The 
 Doors Closed. I Told Him If He Would Assist Me I Would Buy $2000 Worth 
 Of His Goods, And Send Them To Moore's Flat. I Endorsed The Certificate 
 Over To Him, And In Half An Hour He Came Back With The Coin. How He Got 
 It I Never Knew, But He Did Me A Great Favor, And We Have Been Good 
 Friends Ever Since. I Was No Merchant, Nor Had I Any Mercantile 
 Education, So I Took Lessons From Mr. Booth, And Allowed Him To Make Out 
 For Me A Bill Of Goods Such As He Well Knew I Needed. With These We 
 Loaded Up Two 6 Mule Teams, And Started For The Mountain. 
   
   
   
 I Had About $700 Left Besides Paying For The Goods, But I Felt A Very 
 Little Troubled As To My Prospect For Success, For It Was A New Business 
 To Me. Mr. Booth In A Business Way Was A True Father To Me, And The Much 
 Needed Points In Trade Which He Gave Me Were Stored Away For The Use I 
 Knew I Would Make Of Them. Of All Those Whom I Bear In Grateful 
 Remembrance None Stand Higher Than This Worthy Man. 
   
   
   
 I Went First Direct To Nevada City To Take Out A License That I Might 
 Best Protect Myself Against Oppositions And From There I Had A Walk Of 
 18 Miles Over A Rough Mountain Trail To My Selected Place Of Business. 
 Climbing The Great Hill Of The S. Yuba River I Often Tired And Sat Down 
 To Rest, And I Used This Time To Study My Bill Of Goods, And Add The 
 Freight And Profit To The Cost, So As To Be Well Posted, And Able To 
 Answer All Questions Readily When I Unloaded The Stock. The New Trade 
 Seemed Quite A Task To Learn, But I Felt That I Was Compelled To 
 Succeed, And I Worked Manfully At It. 
   
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 16 Pg 303 
 When I Reached Moore's Flat I Found That The Boys Had Rented A Store For 
 Me, And Their Welcome Was Very Hearty When They Found How Lucky I Had 
 Been In Securing My Money And Starting Out As Their "Grub Supplier." 
   
   
   
 Four Of Us Now Located Some Mining Claims, And Began A Tunnel Both To 
 Drain The Ground, And To Work Through The Bed-Rock. This We Named The 
 Paradise, And We Expected That Three Or Four Months Would Elapse Before 
 We Made It Pay, But There Was In Truth Two Years Of Solid Rock-Work 
 Before We Got Under The Ground, But It Paid Well In The End. 
   
   
   
 The Largest Nugget Of Gold Ever Found Before This Time Was A Quartz 
 Boulder From The Buckeye Sluice, About 8 By 10 Inches In Size, And When 
 Cleaned Up At The San Francisco Mint The Value Was About $10,000. 
   
   
   
 Two Of My Partners In The Work, L.J. Hanchett, And Jas. Clark Ran Out Of 
 Funds At The End Of The First Year, And I Took As Much Of The Expense As 
 I Could Upon My Own Shoulders. 
   
   
   
 About This Time Learning By A Letter From Her Father That Mrs. Bennett 
 Was Lying At The Point Of Death At Mr. L.C. Bostic's In San Jose, I Left 
 H. Hanchett In Charge Of My Business, And In Four Days I Stood Beside 
 The Bedside Of My Friend, Endeared Through The Trials When Death By 
 Thirst, Starvation And The Desert Sands, Stared Us In The Face With All 
 Its Ghastliness. 
   
   
   
 She Reached Out Her Arms And Drew Me Down To Her, And Embraced Me And 
 Said In A Faint Whisper--"God Bless You:--You Saved Us All Till Now, And 
 I Hope You Will Always Be Happy And Live Long." She Would Have Said 
 More, But Her Voice Was So Weak She Could Not Be Heard. She Was Very Low 
 With Consumption, And Easily Exhausted. I Sat With Her Much Of The Time 
 At Her Request And Though For Her Sake I Would Have Kept Back The Tears 
 I Could Not Always Do It. Two Doctors Came, One Of Them Dr. Spencer, And 
 As I Sat With My Face Partly Turned Away I Over Heard Dr. S. Say To His 
 Assistant--"He Is A Manly Man." 
   
   
   
 This Presence And The Circumstances Brought Back The Trying Death Valley 
 Struggles, When This Woman And Her Companions, And The Poor Children, So 
 Nearly Starved They Could Not Stand Alone, Were Only Prevented From 
 Sitting Down To Die In Sheer Despair By The Encouraging Words Of Rogers 
 And Myself Who Had Passed Over The Road, And Used Every Way To Sustain 
 Their Courage. 
 
 
 
 Chapter 16 Pg 304 
   
   
 She Died The Following Day; With Mr. Bennett, I Followed Her Remains To 
 Oak Hill Cemetery, Where She Was Buried Near The Foot Of The Hill, And A 
 Board Marked In Large Letters, "S.B." (Sarah Bennett) Placed To Mark The 
 Mound. The Grave Cannot Now Be Found, And No Records Being Then Kept It 
 Is Probably Lost. 
   
   
   
 I Went Home With Mr. Bennett To His Home Near Watsonville, And Spent 
 Several Days, Meeting Several Of Our Old Death Valley Party, And Mr. 
 D.J. Dilley, Mrs. Bennett's Father. Mrs. Bennett Left Surviving Her A 
 Young Babe. 
   
   
   
 I Returned To Moore's Flat, And Soon Sold Out My Store, Taking Up The 
 Business Of Purchasing Gold Dust Direct From The Miners, Which I 
 Followed For About Two Years, And In The Fall Of 1859 Sold Out The 
 Business To Marks & Powers. I Looked About Through Napa And Sonoma 
 Counties, And Finally Came To San Jose, Where I Purchased The Farm I Now 
 Own, Near Hillsdale, Of Bodley & Mccabe, For Which I Paid $4,000. 
   
   
   
 In The Fall Of The Same Year My Old Friend W.M. Stockton Of Los Angeles 
 Co. Persuaded Me To Come Down And Pay Him A Visit. His Wife Had Died And 
 He Felt Very Lonely. I Had Been There But A Few Days When My Old Friend 
 A. Bennett And His Children Also Came To Stockton's. The Children Had 
 Grown So Much I Hardly Knew Them, But I Was Glad Indeed To Meet Them. 
   
   
   
 I Found Mr. Bennett To Be A Poor Man. He Had Been Persuaded To Go To 
 Utah, Being Told That A Fortune Awaited His Coming There, Or Could Be 
 Accumulated In A Short Time. He Gave Away The Little Babe Left By His 
 Wife To Mrs. Scott, Of Scott's Valley, In Santa Cruz Co. And Sold His 
 Farm Near The Mouth Of The Salinas River. With What Money He Had 
 Accumulated He Loaded Two 4 Mule Teams With Dry Goods, Put His Four 
 Children Into His Wagon, And Went To Cedar City, Utah. 
   
   
   
 He Gave A Thrilling Account Of Passing Through Mountain Meadows, Where 
 He Saw, Here And There Little Groups Of Skeletons Of The Unhappy Victims 
 Of The Great Massacre At That Place Of Men, Women And Children, By J.D. 
 Lee, And His Mormon Followers And Told Me The Terrible Story, Which I 
 Here Omit. 
   
   
   
 Smarting Under The Terrible Taxation Of One Tenth Of Everything, Bennett 
 Grew Poorer And Poorer And At Last Resolved That He Must Go Away, But 
 
 
 
 Chapter 16 Pg 305 
 His Wife Could Not Leave Her Own People, And So He Set Off With His 
 Children, Somewhat Afraid He Might Be Shot Down, But He Reached Los 
 Angeles Co. In Safety. One Daughter Married A Lawyer In San Bernardino, 
 And Died A Few Years Afterwards. The Other Married A Capt. Johnson Of 
 Wilmington, And Bennett And Two Sons Went To Idaho. 
   
   
   
 A Few Years Ago In Passing From San Jose To The Coast, My Wife And I 
 Spent Sunday At Scott's Valley. Mrs. Scott Invited Us To Visit Them In 
 The Evening At The House When All Would Be At Home. Mrs. Scott Was The 
 Lady To Whom Bennett Gave His Girl Baby When He Started Away For Utah, 
 And I Felt Very Anxious To See Her Now She Was Grown Up. Mrs. Scott 
 Introduced Us, And I Sat And Looked At The Little Woman Quite A Long 
 Time, But Could Not See That She Resembled Either Father Or Mother. My 
 Mind Ran Back Over The Terrible Road We Came And I Pictured To Myself 
 The Woman As She Then Appeared. 
   
   
   
 I Studied Over Our Early Trials, Crossing The Plains Over The Deserts 
 And Our Trying Scenes Out Of Death Valley And Turned All Over In My Mind 
 For Some Time And Finally All Came To Me Like A Flash And I Could 
 Clearly See That The Little Lady Was A True Picture Of Her Mother; I Now 
 Began To Ask Questions About Her Folks, She Said Her Father Lived Near 
 Belmont, Nevada, And Her Grand-Father Died At The Monte, Los Angeles 
 County Cal.. Our Visit Now Became Very Interesting And We Kept A Late 
 Hour. 
   
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 17 Pg 306 
   
   
 Since Writing The Connected Story Which Has Thus Far Appeared, I Turn 
 Back To Give Some Incidents Of Life In The Mines, And Some Description 
 Of Those Pioneer Gold Days. 
   
   
   
 I Have Spoken Of Moore's Flat, Orleans Flat And Woolsey's Flat, All 
 Similarly Situated On Different Points Of The Mountain, On The North 
 Side Of The Ridge Between The South And Middle Yuba River, And All At 
 About The Same Altitude. A Very Deep Canon Lies Between Each Of Them, 
 But A Good Mountain Road Was Built Around The Head Of Each Canon, 
 Connecting The Towns. When The Snow Got To Be Three Or Four Feet Deep 
 The Roads Must Be Broken Out And Communication Opened, And The Boys Used 
 
 
 
 Chapter 17 Pg 307 
 To Turn Out _En Masse_ And Each One Would Take His Turn In Leading The 
 Army Of Road Breakers. When The Leader Got Tired Out Some One Would Take 
 His Place, For It Was Terrible Hard Work To Wade Through Snow Up To 
 One's Hips, And The Progress Very Slow. But The Boys Went At It As If 
 They Were Going To A Picnic, And A Sort Of Picnic It Was When They 
 Reached The Next Town, For Whisky Was Free And Grub Plenty To Such A 
 Party, And Jollity And Fun The Uppermost Thoughts. On One Such Occasion 
 When The Crowd Came Through Orleans Flat To Moore's Flat, Sid Hunt, The 
 Butcher, Was In The Lead As They Came In Sight Of The Latter Place, And 
 Both He And His Followers Talked Pretty Loud And Rough To The Moore's 
 Flat Fellows Calling Them "Lazy Pups" For Not Getting Their Road Clear. 
 Hunt's Helper Was A Big Stout, Loud Talking Young Man Named Williams, 
 And He Shouted To The Leader--"Sid Hunt, Toot Your Horn If You Don't 
 Sell A Clam." This Seemed To Put Both Sides In Good Humor, And The 
 Orleans Fellows Joined In A Plenty To Eat And Drink, Rested And Went 
 Home. Next Day, Both Camps Joined Forces And Broke The Road Over To 
 Woolsey's Flat, And The Third Day Crowded On Toward Nevada City, And 
 When Out And Across Bloody Run, A Stream Called Thus Because Some Dead 
 Men Had Been Found At The Head Of The Stream By The Early Settlers, And 
 It Was Suspected The Guilty Murderers Lived Not Far Off, They Turned 
 Down Into Humbug, A Town Now Called Bloomfield, And As They Went Down 
 The Snow Was Not So Deep. They Soon Met Sam Henry, The Express Man, 
 Working Through With Letters And Papers, And All Turned Home Again. 
   
   
   
 A Young Doctor Came To Moore's Flat And Soon Became Quite Popular, And 
 After A Little While Purchased A Small Drug Store At Orleans Flat. In 
 This Town There Lived A Man And His Family And Among Them A Little Curly 
 Headed Girl Perhaps One Or Two Years Old. She Was Sick And Died And 
 Buried While The Ground Was Covered Thick With Snow. A Little Time 
 After, It Was Discovered That The Grave Had Been Disturbed, And On 
 Examination No Body Was Found In The Grave. 
   
   
   
 Then It Was A Searching Party Was Organized, And Threats Of Vengeance 
 Made Against The Grave Robber If He Should Be Caught. No Tracks Were 
 Found Leading Out Of Town So They Began To Look About Inside, And There 
 Began To Be Some Talk About This Dr. Kittridge As The Culprit. He Was 
 The Very Man, And He Went To His Drug Store And Told His Clerk To Get A 
 Saddle Horse And Take The Dead Child's Body In A Sack To His Cabin At 
 Moore's Flat, And Conceal It In A Back Room. The Clerk Obeyed, And With 
 The Little Corpse Before Him On The Horse Started From The Back Door And 
 Rode Furiously To Moore's Flat, And Concealed The Body As He Had Been 
 Directed. 
   
   
   
 Some Noticed That He Had Ridden Unusually Fast, And Having A Suspicion 
 That All Was Not Right, Told Their Belief To The Orleans Flat People, 
 Who Visited The Doctor At His Store And Accused Him Of The Crime, And 
 Talked About Hanging Him On The Spot Without A Trial. At This The Doctor 
 Began To Be Greatly Frightened And Begged Piteously For Them To Spare 
 
 
 
 Chapter 17 Pg 308 
 His Life, Confessing To The Deed, But Pleading In Extenuation That It 
 Was For The Purpose Of Confirming A Question In His Profession, And 
 Wholly In The Interest Of Science That He Did It, And Really To Spare 
 The Feelings Of The Parents That He Did It Secretly. He Argued That No 
 Real Harm Had Been Done, And Some Of His Friends Sided With Him In This 
 View. But The Controversy Grew Warmer, And The House Filled Up With 
 People. Some Were Bloodthirsty And Needed No Urging To Proceed To Buy A 
 Rope And Use It. Others Argued, And Finally The Doctor Said That The 
 Body Had Not Been Dissected, And If They Would Allow Him, And Appoint A 
 Committee To Go With Him, He Would Produce The Body, And They Could 
 Decently Bury It Again And There It Might Remain Forever. This He 
 Promised To Do, And All Agreed To It, And He Kept His Word, Thus Ending 
 The Matter Satisfactorily And The Doctor Was Released. But The Feeling 
 Never Died Out. The Doctor's Friends Deserted Him, And No One Seemed To 
 Like To Converse With Him. At The Saloon He Would Sit Like A Perfect 
 Stranger, No One Noticing Him, And He Soon Left For New Fields. 
   
   
   
 The First Tunnel Run At Moore's Flat Was Called The Paradise, And Had To 
 Be Started Low On The Side Of The Mountain In Order To Drain The Ground, 
 And Had To Be Blasted Through The Bed Rock For About 200 Feet. 
   
   
   
 Four Of Us Secured Ground Enough By Purchase So We Could Afford To 
 Undertake This Expensive Job And We Worked On It Day And Night. Jerry 
 Clark And Len Redfield Worked The Day Shifts, And Sam King And Wm. Quirk 
 The Night Shift. When The Tunnel Was Completed About 100 Feet, The Night 
 Shift Had Driven Forward The Top Of The Tunnel As A Heading, Leaving The 
 Bottom, Which Was About A Foot Thick, Or More, To Be Taken Out By The 
 Day Shift. They Drilled A Hole About Two Feet Horizontally To Blast Out 
 This Bench. King Would Sit And Hold The Drill Between His Feet, While 
 Quirk Would Strike With A Heavy Sledge. When The Hole Was Loaded They 
 Tramped Down The Charge Very Hard So As To Be Sure It Would Not Blow 
 Out, But Lift The Whole Bench. One Day When They Were Loading A Hole, 
 King Told Quirk To Come Down Pretty Heavy On The Tamping, So As To Make 
 All Sure, And After A Few Blows Given As Directed, There Was An 
 Explosion, And Quirk Was Forced Some Distance Out Of The Tunnel, His 
 Eyes Nearly Put Out With Dirt Blown Into Them, And His Face And Body Cut 
 With Flying Pieces Of Rock. He Was At First Completely Stunned, But 
 After Awhile Recovered So As To Crawl Out, And Was Slowly Making His Way 
 Up The Hill On Hands And Knees When He Was Discovered And Helped To His 
 Cabin Where His Wounds Were Washed And Dressed. 
   
   
   
 Then A Party With Lighted Candles Entered The Tunnel To Learn The Fate 
 Of King, And They Found Him Lying On The Mass Of Rock The Blast Had 
 Lifted, Dead. On A Piece Of Board They Bore The Body To His Cabin. There 
 Was Hardly A Whole Bone Remaining. A Cut Diagonally Across His Face, 
 Made By A Sharp Stone, Had Nearly Cut His Head In Two. He Had Been 
 Thrown So Violently Against The Roof Of The Tunnel, About 6 Feet High, 
 That He Was Completely Mashed. 
 
 
 
 Chapter 17 Pg 309 
   
   
   
 He Had A Wife In Mass. And As I Had Often Heard Him Talk Of Her, And Of 
 Sending Her Money, I Bought A $100 Check And Sent It In The Same Letter 
 Which Bore The Melancholy News. King Had A Claim At Chip's Flat Which He 
 Believed Would Be Very Rich In Time, So I Kept His Interest Up In It 
 Till It Amounted To $500 And Then Abandoned The Claim And Pocketed The 
 Loss. 
   
   
   
 We Made A Pine Box, And Putting His Body In It, Laid It Away With 
 Respect. I Had Often Heard Him Say That If He Suffered An Accident, He 
 Wished To Be Killed Outright And Not Be Left A Cripple, And His Wish 
 Came True. 
   
   
   
 After This Accident The Blacksmith Working For The Paradise Co., Was 
 Making Some Repairs About The Surface Of The Air Shaft, And Among His 
 Tools Was A Bar Of Steel An Inch Square, And 8 Or 10 Feet Long, Which 
 Was Thrown Across The Shaft, And While Working At The Whim Wheel He 
 Slipped And Struck This Bar Which Fell To The Bottom Of The Shaft, 100 
 Feet Deep And The Blacksmith Followed. When The Other Workmen Went Down 
 To His Assistance They Found That The Bar Of Steel Had Stuck Upright In 
 The Bottom Of The Shaft, And When The Man Came Down It Pierced His Body 
 From Hip To Neck, Killing Him Instantly. He Was A Young Man, And I Have 
 Forgotten His Name. 
   
   
   
 Those Who Came To California These Later Years Will Not Many Of Them See 
 The Old Apparatus And Appliances Which Were Used In Saving The Gold In 
 Those Primitive Days. Among Them Was The Old "Rocker." This Had A Bottom 
 About 5 Feet Long And 16 Inches Wide, With The Sides About 8 Inches High 
 For Half The Length, And Then Sloped Off To Two Inches At The End. There 
 Was A Bar About An Inch High Across The End To Serve As A Riffle, And On 
 The Higher End Of This Box Is A Stationary Box 14 Inches Square, With 
 Sides 4 Inches High And Having A Sheet Iron Bottom Perforated With Half 
 Inch Holes. On The Bottom Of The Box Are Fastened Two Rockers Like Those 
 On The Baby Cradle, And The Whole Had A Piece Of Board Or Other Solid 
 Foundation To Stand On, The Whole Being Set At An Angle To Allow The 
 Gravel To Work Off At The Lower End With The Water. A Cleat Was Fastened 
 Across The Bottom To Catch The Gold, And This Was Frequently Examined To 
 See How The Work Was Paying, And Taking Out Such Coarse Pieces As Could 
 Be Readily Seen. To Work The Rocker A Pan Of Dirt Would Be Placed In The 
 Square Screen Box, And Then With One Hand The Miner Would Rock The 
 Cradle While He Poured Water With The Other From A Dipper To Wash The 
 Earth. After He Had Poured On Enough Water And Shaken The Box 
 Sufficiently To Pass All The Small Stuff Through He Would Stir Over What 
 Remained In The Screen Box, Examining Carefully For A Nugget Too Large 
 To Pass Through The Half Inch Holes. If The Miner Found That The Dirt 
 Did Not Pay He Took His Rocker On His Back And Went On In Search Of A 
 
 
 
 Chapter 17 Pg 310 
 Better Claim. 
   
   
   
 Another Way To Work The Dirt Was To Get A Small Head Of Water Running In 
 A Ditch, And Then Run The Water And Gravel Through A Series Of Boxes A 
 Foot Square And Twelve Feet Long, Using From One To Ten Boxes As 
 Circumstances Seemed To Indicate. At The Lower End Of These Boxes Was 
 Placed The "Long Tom" Which Was About Two Feet Wide At The Lower End, 
 And Having Sides Six Inches High At The Same Point. The Side Pieces 
 Extend Out About 3 Feet Longer Than The Wooden Bottom, And Are Turned Up 
 To A Point, Some Like A Sled Runner, And This Turned Up Part Has A 
 Bottom Of Sheet Iron Punched Full Of Holes, The Size Of The Sheet Iron 
 Being About 3 Feet By 16 Inches. 
   
   
   
 The Miners Shovel Dirt Into The Upper End Of The Boxes Slowly, And 
 Regulate The Water So That It Dissolves The Lumps And Chunks Very 
 Thoroughly Before It Reaches The Long Tom Where A Man Stands And Stirs 
 The Gravel Over, And If Nothing Yellow Is Seen Throws The Washed Gravel 
 Away, And Lets The Rest Go Through The Screen. Immediately Below This 
 Screen Was Placed What Was Called A "Riffle Box," 2 By 4 Feet In Size 
 With Bars 4 Inches High Across The Bottom And Sides, And This Box Is Set 
 At The Proper Angle. Now When The Water Comes Through The Screen It 
 Falls Perpendicularly In This Box With Force Enough To Keep The Contents 
 Continually In Motion, And As The Gold Is Much Heavier Than Any Other 
 Mineral Likely To Be Found In The Dirt, It Settles To The Bottom, And 
 All The Lighter Stuff Is Carried Away By The Water. The Gold Would Be 
 Found Behind The Bars In The Riffle Box. 
   
   
   
 These Methods Of Working Were Very Crude, And We Gradually Became Aware 
 That The Finest Dust Was Not Saved, And Many Improvements Were Brought 
 Into Use. In My Own Mine The Tailings That We Let Go Down The Mountain 
 Side Would Lodge In Large Piles In Different Places, And After Lying A 
 Year, More Gold Could Be Washed Out Of It Than Was First Obtained, And 
 Some Of It Coarser, So That It Was Plainly Seen That A Better Way Of 
 Working Would Be More Profitable. There Was Plenty Of Ground Called Poor 
 Ground That Had Much Gold In It But Could Not Be Profitably Worked With 
 The Rocker And Long Tom. The Bed Rock Was Nearly Level And As The Land 
 Had A Gradual Rise, The Banks Kept Getting Higher And Higher As They Dug 
 Farther In. Now It Was Really Good Ground Only Down Close To The Bed 
 Rock, But All The Dirt Had Some Gold In It, And If A Way Could Be 
 Invented To Work It Fast Enough, Such Ground Would Pay. So The Plan Of 
 Hydraulic Mining Was Experimented Upon. 
   
   
   
 The Water Was Brought In A Ditch Or Flume To The Top Of A High Bank, And 
 Then Terminated In A Tight Box. To This Box Was Attached A Large Hose 
 Made By Hand Out Of Canvas, And A Pipe And Nozzle Attached To The Lower 
 End Of The Hose. Now As The Bank Was Often 100 Feet Or More High The 
 
 
 
 Chapter 17 Pg 311 
 Water At This Head, When Directed Through The Nozzle Against The Bank, 
 Fairly Melted It Away Into Liquid Mud. Imagine Us Located A Mile Above 
 The River On The Side Of A Mountain. We Dug At First Sluices In The Rock 
 To Carry Off The Mud And Water, And After It Had Flowed In These A 
 Little Way A Sluice Box Was Put In To Pass It Through. These Were Made 
 On A Slope Of One In Twelve, And The Bottom Paved With Blocks, 3 Inches 
 Thick, So Laid As To Make A Cavity Or Pocket At The Corner Of The 
 Blocks. After Passing The First Sluice Box The Water And Gravel Would Be 
 Run In A Bed Rock Sluice Again, And Then Into Another Sluice Box And So 
 On For A Mile, Passing Through Several Sluice Boxes On The Way. 
 Quicksilver Was Placed In The Upper Sluice Boxes, And When The Particles 
 Of Gold Were Polished Up By Tumbling About In The Gravel, They Combined 
 With The Quicksilver Making An Amalgam. 
   
   
   
 The Most Gold Would Be Left In The First Sluice Boxes But Some Would Go 
 On Down To The Very Last, Where The Water And Dirt Was Run Off Into The 
 River. They Cleaned Up The First Sluices Every Week, A Little Farther 
 Down Every Month, While The Lower Ones Would Only Be Cleaned Up At The 
 End Of The Season. 
   
   
   
 In Cleaning Up, The Blocks Would Be Taken Out Of The Boxes, And Every 
 Little Crevice Or Pocket In The Whole Length Of The Sluice Cleaned Out, 
 From The Bottom To The Top, Using Little Hooks And Iron Spoons Made For 
 The Purpose. 
   
   
   
 The Amalgam Thus Collected Was Heated In A Retort Which Expelled The 
 Quicksilver In Vapor, Which Was Condensed And Used Again. 
   
   
   
 When They First Tried Hydraulic Work A Tinsmith Made A Nozzle Out Of 
 Sheet Iron, But When Put In Practice, Instead Of Throwing A Solid 
 Stream, It Scattered Like An Shotgun, And Up At Moore's Flat They Called 
 The Claims Where They Used It The "Shotgun" Claims. 
   
   
   
 From That Time Great Improvements Were Made In Hydraulic Apparatus Until 
 The Work Done By Them Was Really Wonderful. 
   
   
   
 In 1850 There Lived At Orleans Flat And Moore's Flat, In Nevada County A 
 Few Young, Energetic And Very Stirring Pioneers In The Persons Of Lads 
 From 10 To 15 Years Of Age, Always On The Search For A Few Dimes To 
 Spend, Or Add To An Already Hoarded Store, And The Mountain Air, With 
 The Wild Surroundings, Seemed To Inspire Them Always With Lively Vigor, 
 And Especially When There Was A Prospect Of A Two-Bit Piece Not Far 
 
 
 
 Chapter 17 Pg 312 
 Ahead. 
   
   
   
 In Winter When The Deep Snow Cut Off All Communication With The Valley, 
 Our Busy Tinner Ran Short Of Solder, And Seeing A Limited Supply In The 
 Tin Cans That Lay Thick About, He Engaged The Boys To Gather In A Supply 
 And Showed Them How They Could Be Melted Down To Secure The Solder With 
 Which They Had Been Fastened, And Thus Provide For His Immediate Wants. 
 So The Boys Ransacked Every Spot Where They Had Been Thrown, Under The 
 Saloon And Houses, And In Old Dump Holes Everywhere, Till They Had 
 Gathered A Pretty Large Pile Which They Fired As He Had Told Them, And 
 Then Panned Out The Ashes To Secure The Drops Of Metal Which Had Melted 
 Down And Cooled In Small Drops And Bits Below. This Was Re-Melted And 
 Cast Into A Mould Made In A Pine Block, And The Solder Made Into Regular 
 Form. About One-Third Was Made Up Thus In Good And Honest Shape. 
   
   
   
 But The Boys Soon Developed A Shrewdness That If More Fully Expanded 
 Might Make Them Millionaires, But In The Present Small Way They Hoped To 
 Put To Account In Getting A Few Extra Dimes. They Put A Big Chunk Of 
 Iron In The Mould And Poured In The Melted Solder Which Enclosed It 
 Completely, So That When They Presented The Bright Silvery Bar To The 
 Old Tinker He Paid The Price Agreed Upon And They Divided The Money 
 Between Them, And Then, In A Secure Place, They Laughed Till Their Sides 
 Ached At The Good Joke On The Tinman. 
   
   
   
 In Due Time The Man Found Out The Iron Core In His Bar Of Solder, And 
 Thought The Joke Such A Good One That He Told Of It In The Saloon, And 
 Had To Spend At Least $5 In Drinks To Ease Off The Laugh They Had On Him 
 As The Victim Of The Young California Pioneers. And These Young 
 Fellows--Some Have Paddled Their Own Canoe Successfully Into Quiet 
 Waters And Are Now In The Fullness Of Life, Happy In Their Possessions, 
 While Some Have Been Swamped On The Great Rushing Stream Of Business, 
 And Dwell In Memory On The Happy Times Gone By. 
   
   
   
 The Older Pioneers In These Mining Towns Were, In Many Respects A 
 Peculiar Class Of Men. Most Of Them Were Sober And Industrious, Fearless 
 And Venturesome, Jolly And Happy When Good Luck Came To Them, And In 
 Misfortune Stood Up With Brave, Strong, Manly Hearts, Without A Tear Or 
 Murmur. They Let The World Roll Merrily By, Were Ever Ready With Joke, 
 Mirth And Fun To Make Their Surroundings Cheerful. 
   
   
   
 Fortunes Came And Went; They Made Money Easily, And Spent It Just As 
 Freely, And In Their Generosity And Kindly Charity The Old 
 Expression--"He Has A Heart Like An Ox" Fitted Well The Character Of 
 Most Of Them. 
 
 
 
 Chapter 17 Pg 313 
   
   
   
 When Luck Turned Against Them They Worked The Harder, For The Next Turn 
 Might Fill Their Big Pockets With A Fortune, And Then The Dream Of 
 Capturing A Wife And Building Up A Home Could Be Realized, And They 
 Would Move Out Into The World On A Wave Of Happiness And Plenty. This 
 Kind Of Talk Was Freely Carried On Around The Camp Fire In The Long 
 Evenings, And Who Knows How Many Of These Royal Good Fellows Realized 
 Those Bright Hopes And Glorious Anticipations? Who Knows? 
   
   
   
 The Names Come Back In Memory Of Some Of Them, And Others Have Been 
 Forgotten. I Recall Washington Work, H. J. Kingman, A. J. Henderson, L. 
 J. Hanchett, Jack Hays, Seth Bishop, Burr Blakeslee, Jim Tyler, Who Was 
 The Loudest Laugher In The Town, And As He Lived At The Clifton House He 
 Was Called "The Clifton House Calf." These And Many Others Might Be 
 Mentioned As Typical Good Fellows Of The Mining Days. The Biggest Kind 
 Of Practical Joke Would Be Settled Amicably At The Saloon After The 
 Usual Style. 
   
   
   
 One Day Jack Hays Bought A Pair Of New Boots, Set Them Down In The Store 
 And Went To Turn Off The Miners Supply Of Water. When He Returned He 
 Found His Boots Well Filled With Refuse Crackers And Water. This He 
 Discovered When He Took Them Up To Go To Dinner, And As He Poured Out 
 The Contents At The Door, A Half Dozen Boys Across The Street Raised A 
 Big Laugh At Him, And Hooted At His Discomfiture. Jack Scowled An Awful 
 Scowl, And If He Called Them "Pukes" With A Few Swear Words Added, It 
 Was A Mild Way Of Pouring Out His Anger. But After Dinner The Boys 
 Surrounded Him And Fairly Laughed Him Into A Good Humor, So That He Set 
 Up Drinks For The Crowd. 
   
   
   
 Foot Races Were A Great Sunday Sport, And Dog Fights Were Not Uncommon. 
 One Dog In Our Camp Was Champion Of The Ridge, And Though Other Camps 
 Brought In Their Pet Canines To Eat Him Up, He Was Always The Top Dog At 
 The End Of The Scrimmage, And He Had A Winning Grip On The Fore Foot Of 
 His Antagonist. 
   
   
   
 A Big "Husky" Who Answered To The Name Of Cherokee Bob Came Our Way And 
 Stopped Awhile. He Announced Himself A Foot Racer, And A Contest Was 
 Soon Arranged With Soda Bill Of Nevada City, And Each Went Into A Course 
 Of Training At His Own Camp. Bob Found Some Way To Get The Best Time 
 That Bill Could Make, And Comparing It With His Own, Said He Could Beat 
 In That Race. So When It Came Off Our Boys Gathered Up Their Money, And 
 Loaded Down The Stage, Inside And Out, Departing With Swinging Hats And 
 Flying Colors, And Screaming In Wild Delight At The Sure Prospect Of 
 Doubling Their Dust. In A Few Days They All Came Back After The Style Of 
 
 
 
 Chapter 17 Pg 314 
 Half Drowned Roosters. 
   
   
   
 Bob Had 'Thrown' The Race And Skipped With His Money Before They Could 
 Catch Him. Had He Been Found He Would Have Been Urgently Hoisted To The 
 First Projecting Limb, But He Was Never Seen Again. The Boys Were Sad 
 And Silent For A Day Or Two, But A Look Of Cheerful Resignation Soon 
 Came Upon Their Faces As They Handled Pick And Shovel, And The World 
 Rolled On As Before. 
   
   
   
 One Fall We Had A County Election, And Among The Candidates For Office 
 Was Our Townsman, H.M. Moore, From Whom Moore's Flat Secured Its Name. 
 He Was The Democratic Nominee For County Judge, And On The Other Side 
 Was David Belden, He Whom Santa Clara County Felt Proud To Honor As Its 
 Superior Judge, And When Death Claimed Him, Never Was Man More Sincerely 
 Mourned By Every Citizen. 
   
   
   
 The Votes Were Counted, And Belden Was One Ahead. Moore Claimed Another 
 Count, And This Time A Mistake Was Discovered In The Former Count, But 
 Unfortunately It Gave Belden A Larger Majority Than Before, And His 
 Adversary Was Forced To Abandon The Political Fight. 
   
   
   
 In The Fifties I Traveled From The North Yuba River To San Bernardino On 
 Different Roads, And Made Many Acquaintances And Friends. I Can Truly 
 Say That I Found Many Of These Early Comers Who Were The Most Noble Men 
 And Women Of The Earth. They Were Brave Else They Had Never Taken The 
 Journey Through Unknown Deserts, And Through Lands Where Wild Indians 
 Had Their Homes. They Were Just And True To Friends, And To Real 
 Enemies, Terribly Bitter And Uncompromising. Money Was Borrowed And 
 Loaned Without A Note Or Written Obligation, And There Was No Mention 
 Made Of Statute Laws As A Rule Of Action. When A Real Murderer Or 
 Horsethief Was Caught No Lawyers Were Needed Nor Employed, But If The 
 Community Was Satisfied As To The Guilt And Identity Of The Prisoner, 
 The Punishment Was Speedily Meted Out, And The Nearest Tree Was Soon 
 Ornamented With His Swinging Carcass. 
   
   
   
 Many Of These Worthy Men Broke The Trail On The Rough Way That Led To 
 The Pacific Coast, Drove Away All Dangers, And Made It Safer For Those 
 Who Dared Not At First Risk Life And Fortune In The Journey, But, 
 Encouraged By The Success Of The Earliest Pioneers, Ventured Later On 
 The Eventful Trip To The New Gold Fields. I Cannot Praise These Noble 
 Men Too Much; They Deserve All I Can Say, And Much More, Too; And If A 
 Word I Can Say Shall Teach Our New Citizens To Regard With Reverent 
 Respect The Early Pioneers Who Laid The Foundations Of The Glory, 
 Prosperity And Beauty Of The California Of To-Day, I Shall Have Done All 
 
 
 
 Chapter 17 Pg 315 
 I Hope To, And The Historian Of Another Half Century May Do Them 
 Justice, And Give To Them Their Full Need Of Praise. 
   
   
   
 As Long As I Have Lived In California I Have Never Carried A Weapon Of 
 Defense, And Never Could See Much Danger. I Tried To Follow The Right 
 Trail So As To Shun Bad Men, And Never Found Much Difficulty In Doing 
 So. We Hear Much Of The Vigilance Committee Of Early Days. It Was An 
 Actual Necessity Of Former Times. The Gold Fields Not Only Attracted The 
 Good And Brave, But Also The Worst And Most Lawless Desperadoes Of The 
 World At Large. England's Banished Convicts Came Here From The Penal 
 Colonies Of Australia And Van Diemen's Land. They Had Wonderful Ideas Of 
 Freedom. In Their Own Land The Stern Laws And Numerous Constabulary Had 
 Not Been Able To Keep Them From Crime. A Colony Of Criminals Did Not 
 Improve In Moral Tone, And When The Most Reckless And Daring Of All 
 These Were Turned Loose In A Country Like California, Where The 
 Machinery Of Laws And Officers To Execute Them Was Not Yet In Order, 
 These Lawless "Sidney Ducks," As They Were Called, Felt Free To Rob And 
 Murder, And Human Life Or Blood Was Not Allowed To Stand Between Them 
 And Their Desires. Others Of The Same General Stripe Came From Mexico 
 And Chili, And Texas And Western Missouri Furnished Another Class Almost 
 As Bad. 
   
   
   
 The Vigilance Committee Of San Francisco Was Composed Of The Best Men In 
 The World. They Endured All That Was Heaped Upon Them By These Lawless 
 Men, And The Law Of Self Protection Forced Them To Organize For The 
 Swift Apprehension And Punishment Of Crime, And The Preservation Of 
 Their Property And Lives. No One Was Punished Unjustly, But There Was No 
 Delay, And The Evil-Doer Met His Fate Swiftly And Surely. Justice Was 
 Strict, And The Circumstances Were Generally Unfavorable To Thoughts Of 
 Mercy. I Was In San Francisco The Day After Casey And Cory Were Hung By 
 The Vigilance Committee. Things Looked Quite Military. Fort Gunny-Bags 
 Seemed Well Protected, And No Innocent Man In Any Danger. I Was Then A 
 Customer Of G.W. Badger And Lindenberger, Clothiers, And Was Present One 
 Day In Their Store When Some Of The Clerks Came In From General Duty, 
 And Their Comrades Shouldered The Same Guns And Took Their Places On 
 Guard. The Committee Was So Truly Vigilant That These Fire-Bugs, Robbers 
 And Cut-Throats Had To Hide For Safety. 
   
   
   
 Those Who Came Early To This Coast Were, Mostly, Brave, Venturesome, 
 Enduring Fellows, Who Felt They Could Outlive Any Hardship And Overcome 
 All Difficulties; They Were Of No Ordinary Type Of Character Or Habits. 
 They Thought They Saw Success Before Them, And Were Determined To Win It 
 At Almost Any Cost. They Had Pictured In Their Minds The Size Of The 
 "Pile" That Would Satisfy Them, And Brought Their Buckskin Bags With 
 Them, In Various Sizes, To Hold The Snug Sum They Hoped To Win In The 
 Wonderful Gold Fields Of The Then Unknown California. 
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 17 Pg 316 
   
 These California Pioneers Were Restless Fellows, But Those Who Came By 
 The Overland Trail Were Not Without Education And Refinement; They Were, 
 Indeed, Many Of Them, The Very Cream Of Americans. The New Scenes And 
 Associations, The Escape From The Influence Of Home And Friends, Of Wife 
 And Children, Led Some Off The Dim Track, And Their Restlessness Could 
 Not Well Be Put Down. Reasonable Men Could Not Expect All Persons Under 
 These Circumstances To Be Models Of Virtue. Then The Missouri River 
 Seemed To Be The Western Boundary Of All Civilization, And As These Gold 
 Hunters Launched Out On The Almost Trackless Prairies That Lay Westward 
 Of That Mighty Stream, Many Considered Themselves As Entering A Country 
 Of Peculiar Freedom, And It Was Often Said That "Law And Morality Never 
 Crossed The Missouri River." Passing This Great Stream Was Like The 
 Crossing Of The Rubicon In Earlier History, A Step That Could Not Be 
 Retraced, A Launching To Victory Or Death. Under This State Of Feeling 
 Many Showed The Cloven Foot, And Tried To Make Trouble, But In Any 
 Emergency Good And Honest Men Seemed Always In The Majority, And Those 
 Who Had Thoughts Or Desires Of Evil Were Compelled To Submit To 
 Honorable And Just Conclusions. 
   
   
   
 There Were Some Strange Developments Of Character Among These Travelers. 
 Some Who Had In Long Attendance At School And Church, Listened All Their 
 Lives To Teachings Of Morality And Justice, And At Home Seemed To Be 
 Fairly Wedded To Ideas Of Even Rights Between Man And Man, Seemed To 
 Experience A Change Of Character As They Neared The Pacific Coast. 
 Amiable Dispositions Became Soured, Moral Ideas Sadly Blunted, And Their 
 Whole Make-Up Seemed Changed, While Others Who At Home Seemed To Be Of 
 Rougher Mould, Developed Principles Of Justice And Humanity, Affection 
 Almost Unbounded, And Were True Men In Every Trial And In All Places. A 
 Majority Of All Were Thus Fair-Minded And True. 
   
   
   
 Men From Every State From New Hampshire To Texas Gathered On The Banks 
 Of The Missouri To Set Out Together Across The Plains. These Men Reared 
 In Different Climates, Amid Different Ways And Customs, Taught By 
 Different Teachers In Schools Of Religion And Politics, Made Up A 
 Strange Mass When Thus Thrown Together; But The Good And True Came To 
 The Surface, And The Turbulent And Bad Were Always In A Hopeless 
 Minority. Laws Seemed To Grow Out Of The Very Circumstances, And Though 
 Not In Print, Flagrant Violations Would Be Surely Punished. 
   
   
   
 Some Left Civilization With All The Luxuries Money Could Buy--Fine, 
 Well-Equipped Trains Of Their Own, And Riding A Fat And Prancing Steed, 
 Which They Guided With Gloved Hands, And Seemed To Think That Water And 
 Grass And Pleasant Camping Places Would Always Be Found Wherever They 
 Wished To Stop For Rest, And That The Great El Dorado Would Be A Grand 
 Pleasure Excursion, Ending In A Pile Of Gold Large Enough To Fill Their 
 Big Leather Purse. But The Sleek, Fat Horse Grew Poor; The Gloves With 
 Embroidered Gauntlet Wrists Were Cast Aside; The Trains Grew Small, And 
 
 
 
 Chapter 17 Pg 317 
 The Luxuries Vanished, And Perhaps The Plucky Owner Made The Last Few 
 Hundred Miles On Foot, With Blistered Soles And Scanty Pack, Almost 
 Alone. Many Of These Gay Trains Never Reached California, And Many A 
 Pioneer Who Started With High Hopes Died Upon The Way, Some Rudely 
 Buried, Some Left Where They Fell Upon The Sands Or Rocks. 
   
   
   
 Those Who Got Through Found A Splendid Climate And Promising Prospects 
 Before Them Of Filling Empty Stomachs And Empty Pockets, And Were Soon 
 Searching Eagerly For Yellow Treasure. When Fortunate They Recovered 
 Rapidly Their Exhausted Bodies To Health And Strength, And Gained New 
 Energy As They Saw Prosperity. 
   
   
   
 Prospectors Wandered Through The Mountains In Search Of New And Suitable 
 Gold Diggings, And When They Came To A Miner's Cabin The Door Was Always 
 Open, And Whether The Owner Was Present Or Absent They Could Go In, And 
 If Hungry, Help Themselves To Anything They Found In Shape Of Food, And 
 Go Away Again Without Fear Of Offense, For Under Such Circumstances The 
 Unwritten Law Said That Grub Was Free. 
   
   
   
 By The Same Unwritten Law, Stealing And Robbery, As Well As Murder, Were 
 Capital Offences, And Lawless Characters Were Put Down. Favors Were 
 Freely Granted, And Written Obligations Were Never Asked Or Given, And 
 Business Was Governed By The Rules Of Strictest Honor. The Great 
 Majority Of These Pioneers Were The Bone And Sinew Of The Nation, And 
 Possessed A Fair Share Of The Brains. In A Personal Experience With Them 
 Extending From Early Days To The Present Time I Have Found Them Always 
 Just And Honorable, And I Regret That It Is Not Within My Ability To 
 Give The Praise They Deserve. When A Stranger And Hungry I Was Never 
 Turned Away Without Food, And My Entertainment Was Free, And Given 
 Without Thought Of Compensation Or Reward. 
   
   
   
 In The Chambers Of My Mind Are Stored Up The Most Pleasant Recollections 
 Of These Noble Men Whose Good Deeds In Days Gone By Have Earned For Them 
 The Right To A Crown Of Glory Of Greatest Splendor. 
   
   
   
 These Noble Souls Who Came Here 40 Years Ago Are Fast Passing Away 
 Across The Mystic River, And Those Who Trod On Foot The Hot And Dusty 
 Trail Are Giving Way To Those Who Come In Swiftly Rolling Palace Cars, 
 And Who Hardly Seem To Give A Thought To The Difference Between Then And 
 Now. Those Who Came Early Cleared The Way And Started The Great Stream 
 Of Gold That Has Made America One Of The Richest Nations Of The World. 
   
   
   
 
 
 
 Chapter 17 Pg 318 
 I Have A Suggestion To Make To The Descendants Of These Noble Pioneers, 
 That To Perpetuate The Memory Of Their Fathers, And Do Reverence To 
 Their Good And Noble Deeds In The Early History Of This Grand State, 
 There Should Be Erected Upon The Highest Mountain Top A Memorial 
 Building Wherein May Be Inscribed The Names And Histories Of The Brave 
 Pioneers, So They May Never Be Blotted Out. 
   
   
   
 The Jayhawkers. 
   
   
   
 The Most Perfect Organization Of The Pioneers Who Participated More Or 
 Less In The Scenes Depicted In This Volume, Is That Of The Jayhawkers, 
 And, Strange To Say, This Organization Is In The East, And Has Its 
 Annual Meetings There, Although The Living Members Are About Equally 
 Divided Between The East And The Pacific Coast. As Related Elsewhere, 
 February 4th Is The Day Of The Annual Meeting, For On That Day They 
 Reached The Santa Clara Valley. 
   
   
   
 It Is Greatly Regretted That A More Direct And Complete Account Of The 
 Death Valley Experience Of The Jayhawkers Could Not Have Been Obtained 
 For This Work. To Be Sure It Was From The Lips Of A Living Witness Told 
 In Many Conversations, But No Doubt Many Striking Incidents Were Left 
 Out. It Is, However, A Settled Thing That These, And Other Individuals 
 With Whom He Was Immediately Connected, Were More Intimately Connected 
 With The Horrors Of The Sunken Valley Which Was Given Its Name By Them, 
 Than Were Any Other Persons Who Ever Crossed That Desert Region. 
   
   
   
 It Will Be Considered That This Was The Most Favorable Time Of Year 
 Possible, And That During The Spring Or Summer Not One Would Have Lived 
 To Tell The Tale. 
   
   
   
 The Author, To His Best, Has Done His Duty To All, And Concludes With 
 The Hope That This Mite May Authenticate One Of The Saddest Chapters In 
 The History Of The Golden State. 
   
   
   
 
 
 
 Conclusion Pg 319 
 This Story Is Not Meant To Be Sensational, But A Plain, Unvarnished Tale 
 Of Truth--Some Parts Hard And Very Sad. It Is A Narrative Of My Personal 
 Experience, And Being In No Sense A Literary Man Or Making Any Pretense 
 As A Writer, I Hope The Errors May Be Overlooked, For It Has Been To Me 
 
 
 
 Conclusion Pg 320 
 A Difficult Story To Tell, Arousing As It Did Sad Recollections Of The 
 Past. I Have Told It In The Plainest, Briefest Way, With Nothing 
 Exaggerated Or Overdone. Those Who Traveled Over The Same Or Similar 
 Routes Are Capable Of Passing A Just Opinion Of The Story. 
   
   
   
 Looking Back Over More Than 40 Years, I Was Then A Great Lover Of 
 Liberty, As Well As Health And Happiness, And I Possessed A Great Desire 
 To See A New Country Never Yet Trod By Civilized Man, So That I Easily 
 Caught The Gold Fever Of 1849, And Naught But A Trip To That Land Of 
 Fabled Wealth Could Cure Me. 
   
   
   
 Geography Has Wonderfully Changed Since Then. Where Omaha Now Stands 
 There Was Not A House In 1849. Six Hundred Miles Of Treeless Prairie 
 Without A House Brought Us To The Adobe Dwellings At Fort Laramie, And 
 400, More Or Less, Were The Long Miles To Mormondom, Still More Than 700 
 Miles From The Pacific Coast. Passing Over This Wilderness Was Like 
 Going To Sea Without A Compass. 
   
   
   
 Hence It Will Be Seen That When We Crossed A Stream That Was Said To 
 Flow To The Pacific Ocean, Myself And Comrades Were Ready To Adopt 
 Floating Down Its Current As An Easier Road Than The Heated Trail, And 
 For Three Weeks, Over Rocks And Rapids, We Floated And Tumbled Down The 
 Deep Canon Of Green River Till We Emerged Into An Open Plain And Were 
 Compelled To Come On Shore By The Indians There Encamped. We Had 
 Believed The Indians To Be A War-Like And Cruel People, But When We Made 
 Them Understand Where We Wanted To Go, They Warned Us Of The Great 
 Impassable Colorado Canon Only Two Days Ahead Of Us, And Pointed Out The 
 Road To "Mormonie" With Their Advice To Take It. This Was Chief Walker, 
 A Good, Well Meaning Red Man, And To Him We Owed Our Lives. 
   
   
   
 Out Of This Trouble We Were Once Again On The Safe Road From Salt Lake 
 To Los Angeles, And Again Made Error In Taking A Cutoff Route, And 
 Striking Across A Trackless Country Because It Seemed To Promise A 
 Shorter Distance, And Where Thirteen Of Our Party Lie Unburied On The 
 Sands Of The Terribly Dry Valley. Those Who Lived Were Saved By The 
 Little Puddles Of Rain Water That Had Fallen From The Small Rain Clouds 
 That Had Been Forced Over The Great Sierra Nevada Mountains In One Of 
 The Wettest Winters Ever Known. In An Ordinary Year We Should Have All 
 Died Of Thirst, So That We Were Lucky In Our Misfortune. 
   
   
   
 When We Came Out To The Fertile Coast Near Los Angeles, We Found Good 
 Friends In The Native Californians Who, Like Good Samaritans, Gave Us 
 Food And Took Us In, Poor, Nearly Starved Creatures That We Were, 
 Without Money Or Property From Which They Could Expect To Be Rewarded. 
 
 
 
 Conclusion Pg 321 
 Their Deeds Stand Out Whiter In Our Memories Than All The Rest, 
 Notwithstanding Their Skins Were Dark. It Seems To Me Such People Do Not 
 Live In This Age Of The World Which We Are Pleased To Call Advanced. I 
 Was Much With These Old Californians, And Found Them Honest And 
 Truthful, Willing To Divide The Last Bit Of Food With A Needy Stranger 
 Or A Friend. Their Good Deeds Have Never Been Praised Enough, And I Feel 
 It In My Heart To Do Them Ample Justice While I Live. 
   
   
   
 The Work That Was Laid Out For Me To Do, To Tell When And Where I Went, 
 Is Done. Perhaps In Days To Come It May Be Of Even More Interest Than 
 Now, And I Shall Be Glad I Have Turned Over The Scenes In My Memory And 
 Recorded Them, And On Some Rolling Stone You May Inscribe The Name Of 
 William Lewis Manley, Born Near St. Albans, Vermont, April 20th, 1820, 
 Who Went To Michigan While Yet It Was A Territory, As An Early Pioneer; 
 Then Onward To Wisconsin Before It Became A State, And For Twelve Long, 
 Weary Months Traveled Across The Wild Western Prairies, The Lofty 
 Mountains And Sunken Deserts Of Death Valley, To This Land Which Is Now 
 So Pleasant And So Fair, Wherein, After Over 40 Years Of Earnest Toil, I 
 Rest In The Midst Of Family And Friends, And Can Truly Say I Am Content. 
   
 
 
 Publication Date: June 4th 2014 https://www.bookrix.com/-azbdcf75988b535