"CONTENTdm"@en . "http://resolve.library.ubc.ca/cgi-bin/catsearch?bid=1611700"@en . "British Columbia Historical Books Collection"@en . "Early western travels 1748-1846"@en . "Farnham, Thomas Jefferson, 1804-1848"@en . "Thwaites, Reuben Gold, 1853-1913"@en . "2016-11-09"@en . "1906"@en . "\"750 complete sets printed.
A standard work, with valuable editorial matter, including bibliographical details of earlier editions of the works in the series. Includes some material on the Oregon Territory.
Partial contents: ... vol.6. Brackenridge's Journal up the Missouri. 1811.- Franchere's Voyage to the Northwest coast, 1811-1814.- vol.7. Ross's Adventures of the first settlers on the Oregon or Columbia river, 1810-1813.- ... vo1.28. Part 1 of Farnham's Travels in the Great western prairies, etc., October 21 - December 4, 1839; and De Smet's Oregon missions and travels over the Rocky mountains, 1845-46.- . . . vols.31-32. Analytical index to the series.\" -- Strathern, G. M., & Edwards, M. H. (1970). Navigations, traffiques & discoveries, 1774-1848: A guide to publications relating to the area now British Columbia. Victoria, BC: University of Victoria, p. 287."@en . ""@en . "https://open.library.ubc.ca/collections/bcbooks/items/1.0339973/source.json"@en . "380 pages : advertisements ; 25 cm"@en . "application/pdf"@en . " 1*1 Early Western Travels\n1748-1846\nVolume XXVIII Early Western Travels\n1748-1846\nA Series of Annotated Reprints of some of the best\nand rarest contemporary volumes of travel, descriptive of the Aborigines and Social and\nEconomic Conditions in the Middle\nand Far West, during the Period\nof Early American Settlement\nEdited with Notes, Introductions, Index, etc., by\nReuben Gold Thwaites, LL.D.\nEditor of \"The Jesuit Relations and Allied Documents,\" \"Original\nJournals ofthe Lewis and Clark Expedition,\" \"Hennepin's\nNew Discovery,\" etc.\nVolume XXVIII\nPart I of Farnham's Travels in the Great Western\nPrairies, etc., May 21-October 16, 1839\nCleveland, Ohio\nThe Arthur H. Clark Company\n1906\ni Copyright 1906, by\nTHE ARTHUR H. CLARK COMPANY\nALL RIGHTS RESERVED\nSte \u00C2\u00ABtLafttattif. 3fr\u00C2\u00AB\u00C2\u00BB\nK. R. DONNELLEY \u00C2\u00ABr SONS COMPANY\nCHICAGO CONTENTS OF VOLUME XXVIII\nPreface to Volumes XXVIII and XXLX. The Editor\nTravels in the Great Western Prairies, the Anahtjac\nand Rocky Mountains, and in the Oregon Country.\n[Part I, being Volume I and chapters i-iv of Volume II of\nthe London edition, 1843.] Thomas Jefferson Farnham.\nPreface by the First Editor\nAuthor's Preface\nAuthor's Introduction\nAuthor's Table of Contents\nText of Part I .\n25\n27\n29\n41\n45 y .\nILLUSTRATION TO VOLUME XXVIII\n\u00E2\u0080\u00A2Facsimile of title-page to Farnham's Travels, Vol. I . 23\n\u00C2\u00BB Il\nPREFACE TO VOLUMES XXVIII-XXIX\nWith these two volumes our series returns to Oregon, and\nto the question already shadowed forth upon the horizon,\nwhether this vast territory drained by the Columbia River\nshould belong to the United States or to Great Britain.\nSince the treaty of joint occupancy (1818) the English fur-\ntraders had been in almost exclusive control. From the\nupper waters of the great rivers that drain the Arctic plains\nthey had pushed their way across the Rockies down into\nthe fertile southern valleys, and had explored, mapped, and\nthreaded the entire region lying between Spanish territory on the south and Russian on the north. Between the\ngreat mountain barrier on the east, and the Pacific on the\nwest, they held the country as a vast preserve in which fur-\nbearing animals might be reared and hunted. For many\nyears the American right to joint occupancy lay in abeyance.\nAfter his thrilling journey of exploration and adventure,\nJedediah S. Smith was cordially received at Fort Vancouver (1828), his injuries by predatory Indians avenged, and\nhis furs purchased by the company's factor; in return for\nthis courtesy, however, he considered himself in honor\nbound to restrict the further trapping enterprises of his firm\nto the eastern side of the Rocky Mountains. When Captain\nBonneville, with his band of trappers, reached the forts on\nthe upper Columbia (1833) he was courteously but firmly\nrefused the privilege of trading at posts of the Hudson's\nBay Company. Thus, fifteen years after joint occupancy\nhad been arranged, there was scarcely an American in\nOregon.\ni IO\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nIn our volume xxi we traced the rise and fall of the trading adventures to this far Western territory of Captain\nNathaniel Wyeth of Massachusetts. His two expeditions\nleft on the Willamette River a small residuum of New Engenders, and before his departure he had seen the corning\nof the first American missionaries, pioneers then as now in\nadvancing American interests. The existence of Oregon\nhad now come to be known to a considerable body of our\npeople, its fertility and beauty had been enlarged upon by\nseveral writers, its advantages pictured, and its possession\ndesired.\nIn returning to the United States, one of the missionaries,\nJason Lee, undertook a tour through the border states of\nthe West, lecturing and raising funds for his work. In\nthe autumn of 1838 he stopped at the Illinois town of\nPeoria, where his glowing descriptions of the land whence\nhe came produced an impression sufficiently lasting to\nresult in the organization of an emigration society, which\nprepared to set forth for this land of promise early the following spring. Among the band was a young Vermont\nlawyer, Thomas Jefferson Farnham, who a few years earlier had removed to Illinois, and who now sought on the\nWestern prairies recuperation of his wasting health through\noutdoor exploits and change of scene. He also avowed a\npatriotic purpose to take possession of this fair territory of\nOregon for the American flag, and to aid in resisting the\nBritish fur-trade monopoly. His address and eloquence\nwon him the honor of being chosen captain of the small\nband of nineteen adventurers, none of whom knew aught\nof wilderness life or was prepared to endure the hardships of\nthe proposed journey.\nNotwithstanding the serious purpose expressed in the\nmotto worked by Mrs. Farnham upon the flag of the little\ncompany\u00E2\u0080\u0094\"Oregon or the Grave\"\u00E2\u0080\u0094they set forth in a 1839-18461\nPreface\n11\nholiday mood, ill-equipped for traversing the vast and\nrugged spaces lying between Illinois and the Pacific Slope.\nEach member of the \"Oregon Dragoons,\" as they styled\nthemselves, was expected to furnish $160 in money to serve\nfor outfit and provisions.\nThe thirtieth of May, 1839, found them leaving Independence, on the western border of Missouri, provided with\n\"bacon and flour, salt and pepper sufficient for four hundred miles,\" as well as the necessary arms and ammunition\ncarefully packed on horses and mules. By the advice of\ntwo experienced fur-traders returning from the mountains,\nthe travellers determined upon the Santa F\u00C3\u00A9 trail, probably\nbecause of the escort privileges in connection with the annual\ncaravan just setting forth. Therein they made a serious\nmistake, for the route across the mountains from the upper\nArkansas to Snake River valley was infinitely more difficult\nand dangerous than the ordinary Oregon Trail, by way of\nthe North Platte, Sweetwater, and South Pass; it was also\nless frequented by experienced mountain men, who could\noffer advice and assistance to the amateur travellers.\nMoreover the usual seeds of dissension and dissatisfaction\nhad already been sown in the litde party, each blaming\nothers for the hardships and trials already experienced.\nSome of Farnham's followers pronounced the leader\nincompetent. Several deserted at the Lower Crossing of\nthe Arkansas, preferring to follow the caravan to Santa F\u00C3\u00A9;\nwhile at Bent's Fort, on the upper trail, the remainder of\nthe party left their leader with but four companions, one\nof these a man who had been accidentally wounded in\ncrossing the plains. Of the \"mutineers,\" who crossed to\nFort St. Vrain, above Denver, the majority arrived in Oregon that or the following year.\nFarnham, however, having secured a competent guide,\nwith undiminished energy pushed on across the ranges of\n1 12\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nthe Colorado mountains, through the mazes of its parks and\npasses, and halted awhile at Brown's Hole. This was the\nmost difficult part of the journey. With graphic touches\nour author makes us feel the hardships, hunger and thirst,\nthe Indian alarms, and the surprise and joy of meeting\nmountain men; while at the same time he is not oblivious\nto the rugged grandeur of the scenery, or the delicate tints\nof sunrise and sunset, and the majesty of the starlit nights\namong the hills. At Fort David Crockett, in Brown's Hole,\ntwo more of Farnham's comrades turned back, discouraged\nby the gloomy prospects, and the disheartening accounts of\nOregon furnished by a returning guide. Here also Kelly,\nthe unerring scout, was to leave the party, now consisting of\nbut three travellers, who were under the necessity of trusting\nto the guidance of Shoshoni Indian \" Jim\" as far as the hospitable gates of Fort Hall. Here, the Shoshoni guide was\nexchanged for a Wallawalla, who contracted to conduct\nthe party across the arid wastes of Snake River valley, halting briefly at Fort Bois\u00C3\u00A9, and leading the way over the Blue\nMountains to the valley of the Wallawalla and the upper\nColumbia. There meeting a Christian Cayuse on his way\nto Dr. Whitman's mission at Waiilatpu, Farnham turned\naside for a brief rest at this hospitable station, whose\nowners were \"desirous to ask me how long a balloon line\nhad been running between the States and the Pacific.\"\nResting a few days under their mission roof, Farnham\ngives a favorable report of the activities and the success of\nthe missionaries. Passing on his way by Fort Wallawalla\ndown the Columbia to the Hudson's Bay Company's\nheadquarters at Fort Vancouver, he there received the\ncustomary courtesy extended to all travellers in that\ndistant region, this account closing our volume xxviii.\nThree weeks' recuperation from the hardships of the four\nmonths of difficult journeying refreshed our traveller suffi- 1839-1846]\nPreface\n13\nciendy to set him forth on an exploration of the settied portions of the country. He visited the Willamette valley, where\nhe met the Methodist missionaries, and his presence\nfurnished the opportunity to discuss the desirability of\nAmerican occupation. A petition was thereupon set\non foot, of which Farnham was undoubtedly the author,\nsigned by seventy settlers of the valley, praying the United\nStates to take them under its protection and describing\nthe country as \" one of the most favored portions of\nthe globe.\" The language of the petition being much\nmore favorable to Oregon than Farnham's later writings,\nthese latter caused some acrimony among his Willamette\nhosts, one of whom told Commodore Wilkes, the following\nyear, that a few days before Farnham left his party were\nlost in the woods and obliged to pass a cold and dark night,\nstanding up to their ankles in mire, which cured the visitor\nof his enthusiasm for the country.1 Certain it is that Farnham wrote from the Sandwich Islands early in January,\n1840, that everything in the Oregon country had been much\noverrated except the seat of the Methodist mission.3\nWhatever may have been the cause of Farnham's change\nof heart, after a brief sojourn, he left Oregon on the Hudson's Bay Company's vessel bound for Hawaii. Thence\nhe took passage for the coast of California, where he arrived\nat Monterey during one of those tempestuous revolutions\nto which Latin-American governments are subject. A\nnumber of American residents had been imprisoned by the\nsuccessful revolutionists on charge of complicity with the\nlosing party. According to Farnham's own account,3 given\nin somewhat grandiloquent style, it was largely due to his\n1 Charles Wilkes, Narrative o] United States Exploring Expedition (Philadelphia\n1844), iv, p. 348.\n2 Niles' Register, lviii, p. 242.\n* Travels in the Calijornias and Scenes in the Pacific Ocean (New York, 1844).\n\u00E2\u0096\u00A0ana 14\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nefforts that the lives of the Americans were saved, and that\nthey were shipped on transports to Mexico for trial. Lingering a few days longer to enjoy a fiesta on the seashore near\nMonterey, and to visit the neighboring Carmelo mission, our\ntraveller embarked for Santa Barbara, finally arriving at\nSan Bias on the sixteenth of May, 1840. Thence he undertook a hurried journey across Mexico and through its gulf\nto New Orleans, which brought him once more to the\nconfines of his native land. He now \"ascended the\nFather of Waters to the holy and blooming plains of my\nPrairie Home\u00E2\u0080\u0094to wife\u00E2\u0080\u0094and the graves of those I loved\namong the trees at Prairie Lodge.\"\nThe remainder of Farnham's life was passed in literary\nlabors, and in travels throughout the United States in search\nof health. In 1841 he was in New York City. At one\ntime the family moved to Wisconsin for a brief period, but\nsoon settled in the neighborhood of Alton, Illinois. About\n1846 Farnham returned to California, where he died at San\nFrancisco in September, 1848. His wife, Eliza Woodson\nFarnham, acquired some reputation as an author and philanthropist. She successfully attempted prison reform\namong the women inmates at Sing Sing, for a time assisted\nDr. Howe in the Massachusetts Institute for the Blind, and\nrevisited California, of whose early days she wrote entertainingly.\nNo doubt Farnham's books did much to awaken interest in the Western country, and to call attention to its possibilities. Written in an easy, attractive style, although\nsomewhat garrulous in tone and inclined to speculative\ndigressions, they were in their day popular works and ran\nthrough several editions, being widely read in the Eastern\nand Middle States.4 Their interest for our present series\n* In successive editions, his books appear under different titles; but the subject\nmatter is largely the same, one detailing his experiences crossing the continent and 1839-1846]\nPrefc\nace\n15\nlies chiefly in the description of the journey across the plains,\nby a route differing much from those of other travellers.\nFarnham's descriptions are detailed and well phrased.\nThe first after Pike to thread the passes of the upper\nArkansas, he vividly portrays the Colorado mountain valleys, streams, and ranges, the grandeur and nobility of the\nviews, and the fertility of the great parks, and makes his\nreaders realize the hardy endurance needed for such\nmountain journeyings in that early day. Encounters with\nIndians were rare in these regions, but occasional meetings\nwith solitary trappers add a human interest to the picture\nof the wilderness. The life of these mountain men \u00E2\u0080\u0094\ntheir Indian families, their poverty, generosity, recklessness, and almost passionate attachment for the wild life\nthat claimed them \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Farnham describes with a sympathetic touch. He also gathered information at first hand\nconcerning the Indians of the region, the status of the\nfur-trade, and the far-reaching operations of the Hudson's\nBay Company. His information on Oregon is, to be sure,\nlargely the report of hearsay. He includes in his descriptions the vast region of New Caledonia, whose factors\nhe met at Fort Vancouver, and whose resources and geography he describes in general terms. The value of his\nOregon material lies chiefly in the reports of his own experiences and impressions. It is interesting for us to know\nhow the Western missionary operations, the progress of\nearly Willamette settlement, and the aspect of the new land\nimpressed a vivacious and observant New Englander with\na gift for easy narrative. His book is thus an important\ncontribution to our series.\nThe experiences of Father Pierre Jean de Smet, the inde-\nin Oregon, the other narrating the California visit. To the latter was added in\nlater editions a history of the American conquest of California. Farnham also\npublished a work on Mexico, in style similar to the others. i6\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nfatigable Jesuit missionary traveller, were introduced to our\nreaders in volume xxvii of this series, where the initiation of\nhis Flathead mission, in Bitterroot valley, was narrated,\ntogether with his subsequent return to St. Louis by way of\nthe country of the Crows and the Missouri River. The\nsecond account of his work, which we here republish, is\nentitled Oregon Missions and Travels over the Rocky Mountains in 184.5-46 (New York, 1847).\nAfter returning from his second journey to the Flathead\ncountry, which included his first visit to the Columbia and\nthe Oregon settlements (1840-42), Father de Smet went to\nEurope to obtain re-inforcements for bis mission and apostolic sanction for his work. Gathering a company of sisters\nof Notre Dame to lay the foundation of a convent and school\nin the Willamette valley, and enlarging his mission forces\nby the addition of a Belgian and three Italian priests, Father\nde Smet embarked from Antwerp for a sea voyage to the\nNorthwest Coast. This was sighted July 28, 1844, after a\ntedious passage of eight months around Cape Horn.\nHaving established the nuns in their convent on the Willamette, Father de Smet set forth across the mountains to\nvisit his aboriginal neophytes, who had been gathered at\nthe missions of St. Mary and St. Francis Borgia. On his\nway he instituted the mission of St. Ignatius for the Pend\nd'Oreilles on the lake of that name. The following year,\na great journey was accomplished by the intrepid missionary\nin search of the warlike Blackfeet, whose raids were so\ndisastrous to the peaceable Indians surrounding the missions. TMnking best to approach them through the medium\nof the Hudson's Bay Company's traders, De Smet proceeded\nto the head of Columbia River, crossed the divide to the\nwaters of the Saskatchewan, and found himself at the company's Rocky Mountain House on October 5, 1845. After\nnegotiations with the Blackfeet, he proceeded thence to\n_ 1839-1846]\nPrefc\nace\nl7\nFort Augustus, where were spent the early weeks of the\nwinter of 1846. Impatient to be at work, the eager traveller\nleft his comfortable quarters early in March, proceeding on\nthe ice to Jasper House, at the eastern end of Athabasca\nPass, pressing on to the \"Foot of the Great Glaci\u00C3\u00A8re,\" there\nawaiting the Columbian fur-trade brigade which arrived\nearly in May. The traders reported the pass in a dangerous condition, for the snow was deep and in a melting\nstate, and snowshoes were the only possible means of\ntravelling. Despite his unwieldy bulk, and bis unacquaint-\nance with such mode of travelling, the resolute missionary\nimmediately donned the prescribed foot-gear and amid much\nhardship and suffering made his way with his faithful Indian guides over the mountain barrier to the forts of New\nCaledonia. Thence he descended the Columbia to Fort\nColville which he reached by the end of May. Allowing\nhimself but a brief rest, he once more made the round of his\nOregon missions, going to Vancouver and the Willamette,\nback across the Spokane plains to the C\u00C5\u0093ur d'Al\u00C3\u00AAne mission,\nand finally to St. Mary's, \"the nursery of our missionary\noperations in the Far West.\"\nThe expenses of the enlarging missions required consideration, so Father de Smet was deputed to visit St. Louis in\ntheir behalf. On the way he once more sought his cherished\nobject of securing peace with the Blackfeet. This time his\nmission proved successful, for after three weeks in a Blackfoot camp the good priest had the happiness not only to\nestablish an alliance between the Flathead chiefs who\naccompanied Hm and their redoubtable foes, but also of\nreconciling among the Blackfeet themselves two warring\nbands of Blood and Piegan Indians. With a thankful\nheart the missionary embarked from Fort Lewis, near the\nsite of the later Fort Benton, leaving Father Point to continue\nhis labors among the new admirers of the \"black gowns.\" IHUW-WWHI\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nFloating in a tiny skiff down the upper Missouri, Fort\nUnion was reached October 11 ; Fort Berthold was passed\nseven days later, and the end of the month found our tireless traveller the guest of Honor\u00C3\u00A9 Picotte at the American Company's Fort Pierre. Just below Council Bluffs he\nencountered Brigham Young and his settlement of ten thousand Mormons, whose persecutions and sufferings the good\nfather declares, \"will one day probably form a prominent\npart of the history of the Far West.\" Once more in St.\nLouis, the missionary terminates his volume with a sketch\nof a Potawatomi mission and a graphic account of the custom of human sacrifice among the Pawnee Loups.\nThe later career of Father de Smet falls without the field\nof our inquiry. Although in \"labors abundant\" until the\nend of his days, he never returned as missionary to the mountain tribes among whom his earlier days were so happily\nbut strenuously spent. The superiors of his society found\nother work for him in the province of St. Louis, permitting\nhim only an occasional visit of supervision to his \"dear Indians\" of the Far West. Thrice his aid was requested by\nthe United States government to assist in pacification,\nand in important Indian negotiations. His influence\nand fame among the red men was so great that a sight\nof his black robe was sufficient to impel them to a peaceful\nhumor. His services to Western settlement were thus\nincalculable.\nIn the volume of Oregon Missions, which we here republish, De Smet is seen in the fullness of his powers, physical\nand mental. With few words, but with graphic touches,\nhe describes the regions through which he passes, and the\nIndian tribes and their customs \u00E2\u0080\u0094 thus adding much to\nthe material on far Western geography and ethnology\nwhich has already been included in our series.\nIn the preparation of both these volumes for the press, the 1839-1846]\nPreface\n!9\nEditor has had the assistance of Louise Phelps Kellogg,\nPh.D., his editorial assistant on the staff of the Wisconsin\nHistorical Library.\nR. G. T.\nMadison, Wis., June, 1906.\nI\nII Part I of Farnham's Travels in the Great Western:\nPrairies, etc., May 2i-October 16, 1839\nReprint of Volume I and chapters i-iv of Volume II of original\nLondon edition, 1843 TRAVELS\nIN THE\nGREAT WESTERN PRAIRIES,\nTHE ANAHUAC AND ROCKY MOUNTAINS,\nTHE OREGON TERRITORY.\nBY THOMAS J. FARNHAM.\nIN TWO VOLUMES.\nVOL. I.\nLONDON:\nRICHARD BENTLEY, NEW BURLINGTON STREET,\n^uNtefcrr in \u00C2\u00A9rBinarp to T$tt JHettat\u00C3\u00A7\n1843. PREFACE BY THE FIRST EDITOR\nThis authentic account of the Great Western Prairies and\nOregon Territory supplies a deficiency which has been felt\nfor a long time. The author, by his own personal observations, has been enabled to furnish a very interesting narrative of travel; and whether he treats of the Prairies, or of\nthe Oregon region, the various incidents related by him cannot fail to give entertainment and instruction.\nWith respect to the Introduction, in which the Author\nasserts the claims of the United States to the Oregon\nTerritory little need be said here: the subject will no\ndoubt receive the full consideration of the Governments\ninterested in the decision of the question.\nLondon, 1843.\nm PREFACE\nIt was customary in old times for all Authors to enter the\nworld of letters on their knees, and with uncovered head, and\na bow of charming meekness write themselves some brainless dolt's \"most humble and obedient servant.\" In later\ndays, the same feigned subserviency has shown itself in other\nforms. One desires that some will kindly pardon the weakness and imbecility of his production; for, although these\nfaults may exist in his book, he wrote under \"most adverse\ncircumstances,\" as the crying of a hopeful child, the quarrels\nof his poultry, and other disasters of the season.\nAnother, clothed with the mantle of the sweetest self-\ncomplacency, looks out from his Preface, like a sun-dog\non the morning sky, and merely shines out the query, \"Am\nI not a Sun? \" while he secures a retreat for his self-love,\nin case any body should suppose he ever indulged such a\nsingular sentiment.\n[viii] A few others of our literary shades make no pretentions to modesty. They hold out to the world no need\nof aid in laying the foundations of their fame; and, however adverse the opinions of the times may be to their\nclaims to renown, they are sure of living hereafter, and\nonly regret they should have lived a hundred years before\nthe world was prepared to receive them.\nThere is another class, who, confident that they understand the subjects they treat of, if nothing else, and that,\nspeaking plain truth for the information of plain men, they\ncannot fail to narrate matter of interest concerning scenes\nor incidents they have witnessed, and sensations they have\nexperienced \u00E2\u0080\u0094 trouble not themselves with the qualms\n\u00E2\u0080\u00A2>* 28\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nof inability, or lack of polish, but speak from the heart.\nThese write their names on their title-pages, and leave\ntheir readers at leisure to judge of their merits as they\ndevelop themselves in the work itself, without any special\npleading or any deprecatory prayers to the reviews, by\nTHE AUTHOR\n. INTRODUCTION\nThe Oregon Territory forms the terminus of these\nTravels; and, as that country is an object of much interest\non both sides of the Atlantic, I have thought proper to\npreface my wanderings there by a brief discussion of the\nquestion as to whom it belongs.\nBy treaties between the United States and Spain and\nMexico and Russia, the southern boundary of Oregon is\nfixed on the 42nd parallel of north latitude; and the northern\non an east and west line, at 540 40' north.1 Its natural\nboundary on the east is the main ridge of the Rocky Mountains, situated about four hundred miles east of the Pacific\nOcean, which washes it on the west. From these data the\nreader will observe that it is about six hundred miles in\nlength, and four hundred in breadth.\nAccording to the well-established laws of nations applicable to the premises, the title to the sovereignty over it\ndepends upon the prior discovery and occupancy [x] of it, and\nupon cessions by treaty from the first discoverer and occupant.\nThese several important matters I proceed to examine, with\nGreenough's History of the North-west Coast of America, and\nthe works therein named, before me as sources of reference.2\n1 Our treaty with Spain, made in 1819, adjusted the boundary as far as the Pacific\nOcean, between the latter's possessions in North America and those of the United\nStates; see Gregg's Commerce oj the Prairies, in our volume xix, p. 217, note 52.\nBy this convention the United States considered itself the heir of all Spanish claims\nnorth of the international boundary line (420).\nOur treaty with Mexico, in 1828, ratified the boundary as defined by the\nSpanish treaty of 1819.\nBy our convention with Russia in 1824, the two countries agreed to make no\nsettlements north or south, respectively, of the Une 54\u00C2\u00B0 40'. This by no means established the United States claim as far as the line specified.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n2 Robert Greenhow, born in Virginia in 1800, was educated at William and Mary\nfl m\n30 Early Western Travels [Vol. 28\nFrom the year 1532 to 1540, the Spanish government sent\nfour expeditions to explore the north-west coast of America,\nin search of what did not exist \u00E2\u0080\u0094 a water communication\nfrom the Pacific to the Atlantic. These fleets were severally\ncommanded by Mazuela, Grijalva, Becera, and Ulloa.\nThey visited the coast of California, and the south-western\nshore of Oregon.3\nThe next naval expedition, under the same Power, commanded by Bartoleme Ferrello, penetrated to the north as\nfar as latitude 430, and discovered Cape Blanco.4\nJuan de Fuca discovered and entered the Straits that\nbear his name in the year 1592. He spent twenty days\nwithin the Straits in making himself acquainted with the\nsurrounding country, trading with the natives, and in taking\nCollege and later studied medicine in New York, afterwards spending some years\nin Europe. In 1828 he was appointed clerk in the department of state at Washington, where he soon rose to the position of official translator and librarian, an\noffice retained until 1850, when he went to California with the United States Land\nCommission, dying in San Francisco in 1854. In 1837 he prepared, at the request\nof the senate, a History oj the Discovery offyhe Northwest Coast, published in Senate Docs., 26 Cong., 1 sess., 174. This was later expanded into a History oj Oregon and Calijornia (Boston, 1845). His access to the records of the state department, and his knowledge of Spanish sources, make Greenhow's books authoritative in their field.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n8 In his History oj Oregon and Calijornia, Greenhow adds information to that\ngiven in his first volume, regarding these expeditions. His chief source of information was the work of Herrera, although he secured journals of some of the voyagers from W. H. Prescott. All of these expeditions were inspired by Hernando\nde Cortez. The first (1532) was headed by his kinsman Hurtado de Mendoza,\nwhose lieutenant Juan de Mazuela brought back one vessel after his superior officer\nhad been killed. In 1533, Hernando Grivalja and Diego Becerra were sent\nto search for the survivors. The former returned without touching mainland;\nBecerra was killed in a mutiny, and his pilot, Fortuno Ximenes, is supposed to\nhave touched the southern end of the peninsula of Lower California. Farnham\nomits mention of Cortez's own expedition of 1535-36, when he also is supposed\nto have reached Lower California. In 1539-40, Francisco de Ulloa proved that\nthis was not an island, and explored its coast to about 300 north latitude.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n* This relates to the voyage (1542-43) of Juan Rodriguez de Cabrillo. The\nleader of the expedition died upon one of the Santa Barbara Islands (January,\nI543)> but his pilot Bartolom\u00C3\u00A9 Ferrelo sailed farther north. The location of his 1839]\nFarnham's Travels\n31\npossession of the adjacent territories in the name of the\nSpanish Crown.5 The Straits de Fuca enter the land in\nlatitude 490 north, and, running [xi] one hundred miles in\na south-easterly direction, change their course north-west-\nwardly, and enter the ocean again under latitude 510 north.\nThus it appears that Spain discovered the Oregon Coast\nfrom latitude 420 to 490 north two hundred and fifty-one\nyears ago; and, as will appear by reference to dates, one\nhundred and eighty-four years prior to the celebrated English Expedition under Captain Cook.'\nIn 1602, and subsequent years, Corran and Viscaino, in\nthe employment of Spain, surveyed many parts of the Oregon Coast, and in the following year Aguiler, in the same\nservice, discovered the mouth of the Umpqua River in latitude 440 north.7\nnorthern point of exploration is given as 430, which would be near Cape Blanco;\nbut recent editors consider that there was an early error of calculation, and that\nCape Mendocino is the more probable point. Ferrelo in all likelihood advanced\nas far as the southern boundary of Oregon. See translation of journal of the expedition, with valuable notes by H. W. Henshaw, in United States Geographical\nSurveys West oj the One Hundredth Meridian (Washington, 1879), vii, pp. 293-\n314.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n5 The voyage of Juan de Fuca is generally considered apocryphal. Greenhow, however, thinks it probable, from the correspondence of the straits now\ncalled by his name with the great passage he claimed to have entered. The only\nauthority for the alleged voyage of De Fuca, who was a Greek pilot in the service\nof Spain, is the relation of Michael Lok, an Englishman, who claimed to have met\nDe Fuca at Venice. Lok's story was published by Purchas in his Pilgrims (1625)\nand on its face was a bid for patronage from the English court.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n\u00E2\u0080\u00A2 For Cook's discovery of the Hawaiian Islands and his death thereupon, see\nFranch\u00C3\u00A8re's Narrative in our volume vi, p. 209, note 21. During his northward\nexpedition he skirted the entire Northwest Coast from Cape Mendocino to North\nCape, in the Arctic Ocean, not finding, however, either the entrance to the Columbia or to Puget Sound.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n>\" The expedition commanded by Admiral Torribio Gomez de Corvan and\nSebastian Vizcaino was equipped by the Mexican governor, Count de Monterey\n(1602). Corvan returned home from the harbor of Monterey, while Vizcaino\nwith his lieutenant Martin Aguilar pushed northward. The identification of the\nheadlands which they named, is now difficult. H. H. Bancroft, History oj the\nNorthwest Coast (San Francisco, 1886), i, p. 148, concludes that neither Vizcaino\n|j\u00C3\u00AE|ggMtaK\u00C2\u00A3\u00C2\u00A3 32\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nIn August, 1774, Parez and Martinez, under the Spanish\nflag, discovered and anchored in Nootka Sound. It lies\nbetween 490 and 500 of north latitude.8\nIn 1774 and 1775 the north-west coast was explored by\nParez and Martinez of the Spanish service, as far north as\nthe 58th parallel of latitude.9\nOn the 6th day of May, 1789, the Spanish Captain Martinez, commanding two national armed vessels, took possession of Nootka Sound and the adjoining country, [xii]\nPrevious to this event, say the authorities referred to, no\njurisdiction had been exercised by the subjects of any civilized power on any part of the north-west coast of America\nbetween 370 and 6o\u00C2\u00B0 of north latitude.\nThus is it shown on how firm and incontrovertible data\nthe Spanish claims rest to the prior discovery and occupancy\nof the Oregon Territory.\nBut as against England this claim was rendered if possible more certain by the treaty of February 10th, 1763, between Spain, England and France \u00E2\u0080\u0094 by which England\nwas confirmed in her Canadian possessions, and Spain in\nher discoveries and purchased possessions west of the Mississippi. If, then, England has any claim to Oregon as derived\nfrom Spain, it must rest on treaty stipulations entered into\nsubsequently to the 10th of February, 1763.\nnor Aguilar passed 420 latitude. Farnham's identification of the river described\nby Aguilar as the Umpqua appears to rest upon his own authority.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n8 The account of the expedition of Juan Perez, who with his lieutenant Est\u00C3\u00A9van\nMartinez penetrated to the northern end of Queen Charlotte's Island, and passed\nsome months in a bay probably to be identified with Nootka Sound, was not given\nto the world by the Spaniards until years later; the English therefore considered\nthemselves, in the person of Captain Cook, the discoverers of this portion of the\nNorthwest Coast.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n\" This refers to the voyage of Bruno Heceta in 1775, Juan Perez being second\nin command. This expedition discovered the mouth of the Columbia and took\npossession for Spain of the entire Northwest Coast from 420 to 550 of north latitude.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. 1839]\nFarnham's Travels\n33\nWe accordingly find her to have formed a treaty with\nSpain in the year 1800, settling the difficulties between the\ntwo powers in relation to Nootka Sound. By the first\narticle of the convention, Spain agreed to restore to England\nthose portions of the country around Nootka Sound which\nEngland [xiii] has so occupied in regard to time and manner as to have acquired a right to them. The 5th article\nstipulates as follows:\n\" 5th. As well in the places which are to be restored to\nthe British subjects by virtue of the first article as in all other\nports of the North-West Coast of North America, or of the\nIsland, adjacent, situate to the north of the coast already\noccupied by Spain wherein the subjects of either of the\ntwo Powers shall have made settlements since the month\nof April 1789, or shall hereafter make any. The subjects\nof the other shall have free access and shall cany on their\ntrade without any disturbance or molestation.\" 10\nThe inquiries that naturally arise here are, on what places\nor parts of the North-West Coast did this article operate;\nwhat rights were granted by it, and to what extent the\nUnited States, as the successors of Spain, in the ownership\nof Oregon, are bound by this treaty?\nThese will be considered in their order.\nClearly the old Spanish settlements of the Californias\n10 This is a brief but imperfect r\u00C3\u00A9sum\u00C3\u00A9 of what is known as the Nootka Sound\ncontroversy. Martinez seized three English vessels, and carried them as a prize\nto San Bias, Mexico. The English resenting this, war nearly ensued, but the\ndifficulty was adjusted by the Nootka convention, signed October 28, 1790 (not\n1800). The Washington State Historical Society has recently signalized this event\nby erecting a monument at Nootka Sound, containing the following inscription:\n\"Vancouver and Quadra [English and Spanish representatives respectively] met\nhere in August 1792 under the treaty between Spain and Great Britain of October 1790. Erected by the Washington University State Historical Society, August,\n1903.\" The matter was not wholly adjusted until 1795. Consult Bancroft,\nNorthwest Coast, i, pp. 204-238; Greenhow, Oregon and Calijornia, pp. 185-215,\nand particularly W. R. Manning, \"Nootka Sound Controversy,\" in American\nHistorical Association Report, 1904, pp. 283-475.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. 34 Early Western Travels [Vol. 28\nwere not included among the places or parts of the North-\nWest Coast on which this article was intended to operate,\nfor the reason that England, the party in [xiv] interest, has\nnever claimed that they were. But on the contrary, in all her\ndiplomatic and commercial intercourse with Spain since\n1800, she has treated the soil of the Californias with the\nsame consideration that she has any portion of the Spanish\nterritories in Europe.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 And since that country has formed\na department of the Mexican Republic, England has set up\nno claims within its limits under this treaty.\nWas Nootka Sound embraced among the places referred\nto in this article? That was the only settlement on the\nNorth West Coast, of the subjects of Spain or England,\nmade between the month of April, 1787, and the date of the\ntreaty, and was undoubtedly embraced in the Fifth Article.\nAnd so was the remainder of the coast, lying northward of\nNootka, on which Spain had claims. It did not extend\nsouth of Nootka Sound. Not an inch of soil in the valley\nof the Columbia and its tributaries was included in the provisions of the treaty of 1763.\nOur next inquiry relates to the nature and extent of the\nrights at Nootka, and northward, which England acquired\nby this treaty. They are denned in the concluding phrase\nof the article before cited. The subjects [xv] of both\nthe contracting Powers \"shall have free access, and shall\ncarry on their trade without disturbance or molestation.\"\nIn other words the subjects of England shall have the same\nright to establish trading posts and carry on a trade with\nthe Indians, as were, or should be enjoyed by Spanish\nsubjects in those regions. Does this stipulation abrogate\nthe sovereignty of Spain over those territories? England\nherself can scarcely urge with seriousness a proposition\nso ridiculously absurd. A grant of an equal right to\nsettle in a country for purposes of trade, and a guarantee i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n35\nagainst \" disturbance \" and \" molestation,\" does not, in\nany vocabulary, imply a cession of the sovereignty of the\nterritory in which these acts are to be done.\nThe number and nature of the rights granted to England\nby this treaty, are simply a right to the joint occupancy of\nNootka and the Spanish territories to the northward, for\npurposes of trade with the Indians; a joint tenancy, subject\nto be terminated at the will of the owner of the title to the\nfee and the sovereignty; and, if not thus terminated, to be\nterminated by the operations of the necessity of things \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nthe annihilation of the trade [xvi] \u00E2\u0080\u0094 the destruction of\nthe Indians themselves as they should fall before the\nmarch of civilisation. It could not have been a perpetual\nright, in the contemplation of either of the contracting\nparties.\nBut there are reasons why the provisions of the treaty of\n1763 never had been, and never can be binding on the\nUnited States as the successors of Spain in the Oregon territory.\nThere is the evidence of private gentlemen of the most\nundoubted character to show, that Spain neither surrendered\nto England any portion of Nootka, or other parts of the\nnorth-west coast; for that if she offered to do so, the offer\nwas not acted upon by England; and testimony to the\nsame effect in the debates of the times in the Parliament\nof Britain, in which this important fact is distinctly asserted,\nauthorise us to declare that the treaty of 1763 was annulled\nby Spain, and so considered by England herself. And\nif England did not mean to show the world that she\nacquiesced in the non-fulfilment of Spain, she should have\nre-asserted her rights, if she thought she had any, and not\nleft third parties to infer that she had quietly abandoned\nthem. The United States had every reason to infer [xvii]\nsuch abandonment; and in view of it, thus manifested, Ml\n36\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\npurchased Oregon of Spain. Under these circumstances,\nwith what justice can England, after the lapse of nearly\nhalf a century, come forward and demand of the successor\nof Spain rights in Oregon which she thus virtually abandoned \u00E2\u0080\u0094 which were refused by Spain, and to which she\nnever had the shadow of a right on the score of prior\ndiscovery, occupancy or purchase? The perpetually controlling and selfishness of her policy is the only plea\nthat history will assign to her in accounting for her\npretensions in this matter.\nEngland also places her claim to Oregon upon the right\nof discovery. Let us examine this : \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nThe first English vessel which visited that coast was commanded by Francis Drake. He entered the Pacific in 1770 u\nand sailed up the coast to the 45th parallel of north latitude,\nand then returned to the 38th degree; accepted the crown\nof the native Prince in the name of his Queen \u00E2\u0080\u0094 called the\ncountry New Albion, returned to England and was knighted.\n[xviii] The portions of Oregon seen by Drake had\nbeen seen and explored by the Spaniards several times\nwithin the previous thirty years.12\nSir Thomas Cavendish next came upon the coast; but\ndid not see so much of it as Drake had seen.18\nThe celebrated Captain Cook followed Cavendish. He\nu This date is incorrect. It was in 1577; and he sailed to the 48th parallel of\nnorth latitude.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 English Editor.\nls Much has been written on Drake's famous voyage of circumnavigation (1577-\n80), when first of any known Englishmen he explored the Northwest Coast of\nAmerica, searching for a Northwest passage. Bancroft concludes (Northwest\nCoast, p. 145) that he did not go north of 430 north latitude. See also on this subject, Julian S. Corbett, Drake and the Tudor Navy (New York, 1898), i, p. 306;\nand especially Miller Christy, Silver Map oj the World (London, 1904), p. 20,\nwherein, on the evidence of the chart, Drake's voyage is traced as far north as 480.\nFor Drake's Bay, see our volume vi, p. 257, note 66.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n18 It is generally conceded that Sir Thomas Cavendish's freebooting expedition of 1587 did not proceed north of the peninsula of Lower California.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. 1839]\nFarnham's Travels\n37\nsaw the coast in latitude 43 and 48 degrees. He passed\nthe Straits de Fuca without seeing them, and anchored in\nNootka Sound on the 16th February, 1779.\" In trading\nwith the Indians there, he found that they had weapons of\niron, ornaments of brass, and spoons of Spanish manufacture. Nootka had been discovered and occupied by the\nSpaniards four years before Cook arrived.\nThe subsequent English navigators\u00E2\u0080\u0094Messrs. Vancouver,15\nand others, so far as the Oregon coast was the field of then-\nlabours, were followers in the tracks pointed out by the\nprevious discoveries of the Spaniards.\nSo ends the claim of England to Oregon, on the right of\nprior discovery. As opposed to England, Spain's rights on\nthis principle were incontestible.\n[xix] By the treaty of Florida, ratified February 22d, 1819,\nSpain ceded to the United States her right in the Oregon\nterritory, in the following words: \" His Catholic Majesty\ncedes to the said United States all his rights, claims, and pretensions to any territories eastjfand north of said line;\"\nmeaning the 42d parallel of north latitude, commencing at\nthe head waters of the Arkansas, and running west to the\nPacific; 1 and for himself, his heirs and successors, renounces\nall claim to the said territories for ever.\"\nBut the United States have rights to Oregon which of\nthemselves annihilate the pretensions not only of England\nbut the world. Her citizens first discovered that the country on which Nootka Sound is situated was an island; they\nfirst navigated that part of the Straits of Fuca lying between\nPuget's Sound andQueen Charlotte's Island, and discovered\nthe main coast of north-west America, from latitude 480 to\n500 north. American citizens also discovered Queen Char-\n! He was killed on the 14th February, 1779.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 English Ed.\n\" For Vancouver see Franch\u00C3\u00A8re's Narrative, given in our volume vi, p. 184,\nnote 2.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. WM\n38 Early Western Travels [Vol. 28\nlotte's Island, sailed around it, and discovered the main land\nto the east of it, as far north as latitude 55\u00C2\u00B0.ie\nEngland can show no discoveries between these latitudes\nso important as these; and consequently has not equal rights\nwith the [xx] Americans as a discoverer, to that part of Oregon north of the 49th degree of latitude. We also discovered\nthe Columbia River;17 and its whole valley, in virtue of\nthat discovery, accrues to us under the laws of nations.\nOne of these laws is that the nation which discovers the\nmouth of a river, by implication discovers the whole country\nwatered by it. We discovered the mouth of the Columbia\nand most of its branches; and that valley is ours against the\nworld \u00E2\u0080\u0094 ours, also, by purchase from Spain, the first discoverer and occupant of the coast \u00E2\u0080\u0094 ours by prior occupancy\nof its great river and valley, and by that law which gives us,\nin virtue of such discovery and occupancy, the territories\nnaturally dependent upon such valley.18 We are the rightful and sole owner of all those parts of Oregon, which are\nla Farnham here refers to the voyages of the \"Columbia\" and \"Washington\"\n(1787), sent out by Boston merchants under command of Captains John Kendrick and Robert Gray. After wintering at Nootka (1788-89), Gray explored the\ncoast to the northward. Unaware of earlier English explorations, he christened\nQueen Charlotte's as Washington Island. The question of Kendrick's exploration (1790) of Puget Sound is much in doubt. Farnham makes a specious plea\nat this point \u00E2\u0080\u0094 his cited authority, Greenhow, admits the discovery (1787) of\nQueen Charlotte's Island by Dixon, and by Berkely (1787) of the Straits of Juan\nde Fuca. A recent historian of Oregon (H. S. Lyman, History oj Oregon, ii, p.\n93), however, claims that the Americans by their boldness of exploration and exact charting of the northern shores, were the real discoverers of the territory as\nfar as 540 40'.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n17 Referring to the second voyage of Captain Robert Gray. See our volume\nvi, p. 183, note 1.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n18 The prior occupancy was the settlement at Astoria, for which see prefaces\nto Franch\u00C3\u00A8re's Narrative, in our volume vi, and Ross's Oregon Settlers in our volume vii. After the close of the War of 1812-15, the United States made application in accordance with the Treaty of Ghent for the restoration of Astoria, which\naccordingly was formally transferred, October 6, 1818, to Commissioner J. H.\nPr\u00C3\u00A9vost and Captain J. Biddle. No use was made, however, of this sovereignty,\nthe treaty of joint occupancy being signed October 20, of the same year.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. 1839]\nFarnham's Travels\n39\nnot watered by the Columbia, lying on its northern and\nsouthern border, and which, in the language of the law, are\nnaturally dependent upon it. Oregon territory, for all these\nreasons is the rightful property of the United States. CONTENTS\nCHAPTER I\nThe Rendezvous \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Destination \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Education of Mules\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Santa F\u00C3\u00A9 Traders \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Mormons\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Holy War \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nEntrance upon the Indian Territory \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Scene \u00E2\u0080\u0094 An Encampment \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Loss \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Hunt \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Osage River \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Meeting\nand Parting \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Kauzaus Indians \u00E2\u0080\u0094 An Indian Encampment \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nCouncil Grove \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ruins \u00E2\u0080\u0094 An Indian and his Wants \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Elk \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nA Tempest \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Captain Kelly \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A comfortless Night\n45\nCHAPTER H\nScarcity of Food \u00E2\u0080\u0094 An Incident \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Looing and Bleating \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nMessrs. Bents \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Trade \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Little Arkansas \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Nauseous Meal\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Flood \u00E2\u0080\u0094 An Onset \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Hard Ride \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Deliverance \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nThe Arkansas \u00E2\u0080\u0094 An Attack \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Similitude of Death \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nThe Feast and a bit of Philosophy \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Traders Walworth\nand Alvarez's Teams \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Fright \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Nation of Indians \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nTheir Camp and Hunts \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Treaty \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Tempest \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Indian\nButchering \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Hunt among the Buffalo \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Wounded Man\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Drive \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Storm and its Enemy \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Night among the Buffalo \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Country and the Heavens \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Ford \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Mutiny\nand its Consequences \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Blistered Fingers \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Liberty \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Bent's\nFort \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Disbanding .... ....\nVH\n69\n[xxii] CHAPTER HI\nThe Great Priarie Wilderness\u00E2\u0080\u0094Its Rivers and Soil \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Its People\nand their Territories \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Choctaws \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Chickasaws \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Cherokees\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Creeks \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Senecas and Shawnees \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Seminoles \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Pottawa-\ntamies \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Weas \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Pionkashas \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Peorias and Kaskaskias \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nOt.towas \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Shawnees or Shawanoes \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Delawares \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Kausaus\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Kickapoos \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Sauks and Foxes \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Iowas \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Otoes \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ome-\nhas \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Puncahs \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Pawnees, remnants \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Carankauas \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Cu-\nmanche, remnants \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Knistineaux \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Naudowisses or Sioux \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nChippeways, and their traditions ......\n108\nCHAPTER TV\nFort William \u00E2\u0080\u0094 its Structure, Owners, People, Animals, Business,\nAdventures, and Hazards \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Division \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A March \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Fort el Il\n42\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nPuebla \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Trappers and Whisky \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Genius \u00E2\u0080\u0094 An Adventurous\nIroquois \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Kentuckian \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Horses and Servant \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Trade\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Start \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Arkansas and Country \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Wolfano Mountains \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nCreeks \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Rio Wolfano \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Plague of Egypt \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Cordilleras \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nJames' Peak\u00E2\u0080\u0094Pike's Peak \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Bath\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Prison of the\nArkansas\u00E2\u0080\u0094Entrance of the Rocky Mountains \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Vale . 161\nCHAPTER V\nAn Ascent \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Misfortune \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Death \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Mountain of the\nHoly Cross\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Leaping Pines\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Killing a Buffalo [xxiii] \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Asses\nand Tyrants \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Panther, &c.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Geography \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Something about\ndescending the Colorado of the West \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Dividing Ridges \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A\nScene \u00E2\u0080\u00A2\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Tumbleton's Park \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A War Whoop \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Meeting of Old\nFellow Trappers \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Notable Tramp \u00E2\u0080\u0094 My Mare \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The etiquette of the Mountains \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Kelly's Old Camp, &c.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Great\nHeart \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Little Bear River \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Vegetables and Bitterness \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Two\nWhite Men, a Squaw and Child \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Dead Shot \u00E2\u0080\u0094 What is\nTasteful\u00E2\u0080\u0094Trapping\u00E2\u0080\u0094Blackfoot and Sioux\u00E2\u0080\u0094A Bloody Incident \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Cave \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Hot Spring \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Country \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Surprise\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 American and Canadian Trappers \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Grand River \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nOld Park \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Death before us \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Mule \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Despair\n213\n[v] CHAPTER VI [I of Vol. n, original \u00C3\u00A9d.]\nBear Hunt\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Sulphur Puddle \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The River \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Wolves and their\nFare \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Dog Eating \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Little Snake River \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Thirst \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Deserts\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Mountains \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Mountain Hottentots \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Brown's Hole \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nFort David Crockett \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Traders \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Winter and its Hilarities\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Love \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Way to get a Wife \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Recommendation to Civilized People -\u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Colorado of the West \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Club\nIndians \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Shoshonies \u00E2\u0080\u0094 An Indian Temperance Society\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Crows \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Blackfeet \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Unburied Skeletons \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The\nArrapahoes, and Citizenship among them \u00E2\u0080\u0094 War Parties \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nLodge of the Great Spirit \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Religious Ceremonies \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Vow\nand an Incident \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The First Shoshonie who saw a White Man\n243\nCHAPTER VII [II of Vol. II]\nAn Arrival from Fort Hall \u00E2\u0080\u0094 An Account from Oregon \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Return\nof two of my companions to the States \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A startling Condition\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 An Indian Guide \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Farewell \u00E2\u0080\u0094 [vi] How a Horse studies\nGeology \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Camp \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Dog Mutton superseded \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Scene \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nSheetskadee \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Butes \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Desolation \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Midnight Scene in the\nMountains \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Indian Jim and the Buffalo \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Hungry Stomachs\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 A fat Shot \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Fine Eye-sight \u00E2\u0080\u0094 An old Trapper picked\nup\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Beautiful Desert\u00E2\u0080\u0094\"Hos, Hos\"\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Meek the Bear Killer\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 A wild Vale \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Steamboat Spring \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Natural Soda Foun- 1839]\nFarnham's Travels\n43\ntains \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Neighbouring Landscape\u00E2\u0080\u0094A hard Drive \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Valley\nof Chasm \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Nature's Vase \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A heavy March \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Passing the\nMountains \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A charming Gorge \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Entrance into Oregon \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nThe South Branch of the Columbia \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Fort Hall and its\nHospitalities . . . . . . . . .274\nCHAPTER VIII [HI of Vol. H]\nThe Rocky Mountains and their Spurs \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Geography of the\nMountain Region \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Wyeth \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Outset \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Beaver\nCatcher's Bride \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Trois Butes \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Addition from a Monastery\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Orisons \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Merry Mountain Trapper \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Root Diggers \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nEnormous Springs \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Volcanic Hearths and Chasms \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Carbo\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 An old Chief \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Bluff \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Boisais River \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Incident of\nTrade \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Bonaks \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Dead Wail \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Fort Boisais, its\nSalmon, Butter, and Hearty Cheer \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Mons. Payette \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Curiosity \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Departure \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Passing the Blue Mountains \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The\nGrandeur of them \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Their Forests, Flowers, and Torrents\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Descent of the Mountains \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Plain, a Christian Crane \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nArrival at Dr. Whitman's Mission \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Wallawalla \u00E2\u0080\u0094 People\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Farm \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Mill \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Learning \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Religion \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Mr.\" Ermitinger \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nBlair \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Nez Perc\u00C3\u00A9s \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Racing \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Indian Horse Training \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nSabbath and its joys in the Wilderness .....\n303\n[vii] CHAPTER IX [TV of Vol. II]\nTarting with Friends \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Wallawalla Valley \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Fort Wallawalla \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nMr. Pambrun \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Columbia \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Country down its banks\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 What was seen of Rock Earth \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Wood, Fire, and Water \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nDanger, &c. from the Heights \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Falling Mountain \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Morning Hymn to God \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Giant's Causeway \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A View of the Frozen\nSublime \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Turn Turn Orter' and other appurtenances \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Dalles\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Methodist Episcopal Mission \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Mr. and Mrs. Perkins \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nMr. Lee \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Mission Premises \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Egyptian Pyramids \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Indians\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 How Fifty Indians can fight One \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Boston \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Result\nof a War \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Descent of the Columbia in a Canoe \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Night on\nthe River \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Poetry of the Wilderness \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Cascades \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nPostage \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Dr. McLaughlin \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Indian Tombs \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Death \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A\nRace \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The River and its Banks \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Night again \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Mounts\nWashington and Jefferson \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Arrival \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Fort Vancouver \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nBritish Hospitality 346 I TRAVELS IN THE GREAT WESTERN\nPRAIRIES, &c, &c.\n[PART I]\nCHAPTER I\nThe Rendezvous \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Destination \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Education of Mules \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nThe Santa F\u00C3\u00A9 Traders \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Mormons \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Holy War \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Entrance upon the Indian Territory \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Scene \u00E2\u0080\u0094An Encampment \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nA Loss \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Hunt \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Osage River \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Meeting and Parting \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nKauzaus Indians \u00E2\u0080\u0094 An Indian Encampment \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Council Grove \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nRuins \u00E2\u0080\u0094 An Indian and his Wants \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Elk \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Tempest \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Captain\nKelly \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A comfortless Night.\nOn the 21st of May, 1839, the author and sixteen others\narrived in the town of Independence, Missouri.19 Our destination was the Oregon Territory. Some of our number\nsought health in the wilderness \u00E2\u0080\u0094 others sought the wilderness for its own sake \u00E2\u0080\u0094 and others sought a residence\namong the ancient forests and lofty heights of the valley of\nthe Columbia; and each actuated by his own peculiar reasons, or interest, began his preparations for leaving the\nfrontier.20 [2] Pack mules and horses and pack-saddles were\npurchased and prepared for service. Bacon and flour, salt\nand pepper, sufficient for four hundred miles, were secured\nin sacks; our powder-casks were wrapt in painted canvas,\n18 For a sketch of Independence see Gregg's Commerce oj the Prairies, in\nour volume xix, p. 189, note 34.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n*> When Jason Lee, the Methodist missionary, went east (1838-39) for reinforcements, he took with him two Indian youths to be educated. Meetings were\nheld in many cities; at Peoria, Illinois, one of the lads being taken ill, was left\nbehind. His presence continued the interest aroused by Lee's representations,\nso that early in 1839 a company of young men, not one of whom had ever been\nwest of St. Louis, was organized to undertake the Oregon migration. The party\nconsisted at first of nineteen persons. See Robert Shortess, \"First Emigrants\nto Oregon,\" in Oregon Pioneer Association Transactions, 1896.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. 46 Early Western Travels [Vol. 28\nand large oil-cloths were purchased to protect these and\nour sacks of clothing from the rains; our arms were thoroughly repaired; bullets were moulded; powder-horns and\ncap-boxes filled; and all else done that was deemed needful, before we struck our tent for the Indian territory.\nBut before leaving this little woodland town, it will be\ninteresting to remember that it is the usual place of rendezvous and \"outfit\" for the overland traders to Santa F\u00C3\u00A9 and\nother Mexican states. In the month of May of each year,\nthese traders congregate here, and buy large Pennsylvania\nwaggons, and teams of mules to convey their calicoes, cottons, cloths, boots, shoes, etc. over the plains to that distant\nand hazardous market. It is quite amusing to greenhorns,\nas those are called who have never been engaged in the trade,\nto see the mules make their first attempt at practical pulling.\nThey are harnessed in a team, two upon the shaft, and the\nremainder two abreast in [3] long swinging iron traces; and\nthen, by way of initiatory intimation that they have passed\nfrom a life of monotonous contemplation, in the seclusion\nof their nursery pastures, to the bustling duties of the \" Santa\nF\u00C3\u00A9 trade,\" a hot iron is applied to the thigh or shoulder of\neach, with an embrace so cordially warm, as to leave there,\nin blistered perfection, the initials of their last owner's name.\nThis done, a Mexican Spaniard, as chief muleteer, mounts\nthe right-hand wheel mule, and another, the left hand one of\nthe span next the leaders, while four or five others, as foot-\nguard, stand on either side, armed with whips and thongs.\nThe team is straightened \u00E2\u0080\u0094 and now comes the trial of\npassive obedience. The chief muleteer gives the shout of\nmarch, and drives his long spurs into the sides of the animal that bears him; his companion before follows his\nexample; but there is no movement. A leer \u00E2\u0080\u0094 an unearthly\nbray, is the only response of these martyrs to human\nsupremacy. Again the team is straightened, again the 1839]\nFarnham' s Travels\n47\nrowel is applied, the body-guard on foot raise the shout, and\nall apply the lash at the same moment. The untutored\nanimals kick and leap, rear and plunge, and fall in their\nharness. In. fine, they act the mule, [4] and generally\nsucceed in breaking neck or limb of some one of their\nnumber, and in raising a tumult that would do credit to\nany order of animals accustomed to long ears.\nAfter a few trainings, however, of this description, they\nmove off in fine style. And, although some luckless animal may at intervals brace himself up to an uncompromising resistance of such encroachment upon his freedom,\nstill, the majority preferring passive obedience to active\npelting, drag him onward, till, like themselves, he submits\nto the discipline of the traces.\n\u00E2\u0080\u00A2Independence' was the first location of the Mormons\nwest of the Mississippi. Here they laid out grounds for\ntheir temple, built the ' Lord's store,' and in other ways.\nprepared the place for the permanent establishment of their\ncommunity. But, becoming obnoxious to their neighbours,\nthey crossed the Missouri, and founded the town of 'Far\nWest.' In 1838 they recommenced certain practices of\ntheir faith in their new abode, and were ejected from the\nstate by its military forces.21\nThe misfortunes of these people seem to have arisen\nfrom proceeding upon certain rules of action peculiar to\nthemselves. The basis of these rules is the assumption that\n[5] they are the \"Saints of the Most High,\" to whom the\nLord promised of old the inheritance of the earth; and that\nas such they have the right to take possession of whatever they may be inspired to desire. Any means are justifiable, in their belief, to bring about the restoration to the\n\"Children of God\" of that which He has bequeathed to\na For the Mormons in Missouri consult our volume xx, pp. 93-99, with accompanying notes.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\nmm 481 Early Western Travels [Vol. 28\nthem. In obedience to these rules of action, any Mormon or\n\"Latter-Day Saint\" labouring for hire on a \"worldly\"\nman's plantation, claimed the right to direct what improvements should be made on the premises; what trees should\nbe felled, and what grounds should, from time to time, be\ncultivated. If this prerogative of saintship were questioned\nby the warm-blooded Missourians, they were with great coolness and gravity informed that their godly servants expected\nin a short time to be in comfortable possession of their\nemployers' premises; for that the Latter-Days had come,\nand with them the Saints; that wars and carnage were to\nbe expected; and that the Latter-Day Prophet had learned,\nin his communications with the Court of Heaven, that the\nMissourians were to be exterminated on the first enlargement\nof the borders of \"Zion;\" and that over the graves of those\n\"enemies [6] of all righteousness\" would spring that vast\nspiritual temple which was \"to fill the earth.\"\nThe prospect of being thus immolated upon the altar of\nMormonism, did not produce so much humility and trembling among these hardy frontiersmen as the prophet Joe\nhad benevolently desired. On the contrary, the pious\nintimation that their throats would be cut to glorify God,\nwas resisted by some ruthless and sinful act of self-defence;\nand all the denunciations of the holy brotherhood were\nimpiously scorned as idle words. However, in spite of the\nirreligious wrath of these deluded, benighted Missourians,\nthe Saints cut timber wherever they listed on the domains\nwhich were claimed by the people of the world. And if\nthe \"Lord's hogs or horses\" wanted corn, the farms in the\nhands of the wicked were resorted to at a convenient hour\nof the night for a supply. In all these cases, the \"Saints\"\nmanifested a kind regard to the happiness even of the\nenemies of their faith. For whenever they took corn from\nfields in possession of the world's people, they not only 1839]\nFarnham's Travels\n49\navoided exciting unholy wrath by allowing themselves to\nbe seen in the act, but, in order that peace might [7] reign\nin the bosoms of the wicked, even, the longest possible\ntime, they stripped that portion of the harvest field which\nwould be last seen by the ungodly owner.\nThe I Church militant,\" however, being inefficient and\nweak, the Prophet Joe declared that it was their duty to\nuse whatever means the Lord might furnish to strengthen\nthemselves. And as one powerful means would be the keeping its doings as much as possible from the world, it was\nhe said, the will of Heaven, revealed to him in proper form,\nthat in no case, when called before the ungodly tribunals of\nthis perverse and blind generation, should they reveal, for\nany cause, any matter or thing which might, in its consequences, bring upon the brotherhood the infliction of those\npretended rules of Justice, by the world called Laws. Under\nthe protection of this prophecy, a band of the brethren was\norganized, called the \"Tribe of Dan,\" whose duty it was to\ntake and bring to the \"Lord's store,\" in the far West, any\nof the Lord's personal estate which they might find in the\npossession of the world, and which might be useful to the\n\"Saints,\" in advancing their kingdom. Great good is said\nto have been done by this Tribe of Dan; [8] for the Lord's\nstore was soon filled, and the Saints praised the name of\nJoe. The Prophet's face shone with the light of an all-\nsubduing delight at the increase of \" Zion,\" and the\nefficiency of his administration.\nThe Missourians, however, were destitute of the Latter-\nDay Faith, and of just views of the rights devised to those,\nwho, in the Lord's name, should destroy his adversaries,\nand restore the earth to the dominion of millennial righteousness. Poor mortals and deluded sinners! They believed\nthat the vain and worldly enactments of legislative bodies\nwere to prevail against the inspirations of the Latter-Day mm\n\u00C3\u00A7o Early Western Travels [Vol. 28\nProphet Joe; and in their unsanctified zeal, declared the\nSaints to be thieves, and unjust, and murderous; and the\nTribe of Dan to be a pest to the constitutional and acknowledged inherent and natural right to acquire, possess, and\nenjoy property. From this honest difference of opinion\narose the \"Mormon War,\" whose great events are recorded\nin the narrative of the \"Latter-Day Saints? \" Some events,\nthere were, however, not worthy to find record there, which\nmay be related here.\nThe Governor of the Missouri *2 ordered [9] out the State\ntroops to fight and subdue the Mormons, and take from\nthem the property which the \"Tribe of Dan\" had deposited\nin the \"Lord's brick store\" in the \"citadel of Zion,\" called\n\"Far West.\" It was in 1838 they appeared before the\ncamp of the \"Saints\" and commanded them to surrender.\nIt was done in the manner hereafter described. But before\nthis event transpired, I am informed that the Prophet Joe\nopened his mouth in the name of the Lord, and said it had\nbeen revealed to him that the scenes of Jericho were to be\nre-enacted in Far West; that the angelic host would appear\non the day of battle, and by their power give victory to the\n\"Saints.\"\nTo this end he ordered a breast-work of inch pine boards\nto be raised around the camp, to show by this feeble protection against the artillery of their foes, that their strength\nwas in the \"breast-plate of righteousness,\" and that they\nwere the soldiers of the militant portion of the Kingdom of\nHeaven. There were moments of awful suspense in the\ncamp of the \"Saints.\" The Missouri bayonets bristled\nbrightly near their ranks, and an occasional bullet carelessly penetrated the pine-board rampart, regardless of\nthe inhibition of the [10] Prophet. The Heavens were gazed\na The governor of Missouri (1836-40) was Lilburn W. Boggs, for whom see\nour volume xx, p. 98, note 65.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. i839l\nFarnham's Travels\n51\nupon for the shining host, and listening ears turned to catch\nthe rushing of wings through the upper air. The demand\nof surrender was again and again repeated; but Faith\nhad seized on Hope, and Delay was the offspring.\nAt this juncture of affairs, a sturdy old Missourian approached the brick store, pickaxe in hand, apparently determined to do violence to the sacred depository. One of the\nsisters in robes of white accosted him, and with proper solemnity made known that the \"Lord of the Faithful\" had revealed to Joe, the Prophet, that every hand raised against\nthat \"holy structure\" would instantly be withered. The\nfrontiersman hesitated, but the hardihood characteristic of\nthese men of the rifle returning, he replied, \"Well, old gal,\nI'll go it on one hand any how.\" The awful blow was\nstruck; the hand did not wither! \"I doubles up now,\"\nsaid the daring man, and with both hands inflicted a heavy\nblow upon a corner brick. It tumbled to the ground, and\nthe building quickly fell under the weight of a thousand\nvigorous arms. The confidence of the Saints in their\nProphet waned, and a surrender followed. [11] Some of\nthe principal men were put in custody, but the main body\nwere permitted to leave the State without farther molestation. We afterwards met many of them with their herds,\n&c, on the road from Far West to Quincy, Illinois. It was\nstrongly intimated by the planters in that section of country,\nthat these emigrating | saints \" found large quantities of\nthe \"Lord's corn\" on their way, which they appropriated\nas need suggested to their own and their animals' wants.\nThe origin of the \"Book of Mormon\"23 was for some\ntime a mystery. But recent developements prove it to have\nbeen written in 1812 by the Rev. Solomon Spaulding, of\nNew Salem, in the state, Ohio. It was composed by that\ngentleman as a historical romance of the long extinct race\n\" Consult the references in our volume xxiv, pp. 119, 120, notes 99, 100.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. C2 Early Western Travels [Vol. 28\nwho built the mounds and forts which are scattered over\nthe valley States. Mr. Spaulding read the work while composing it to some of his friends, who, on the appearance of\nthe book in print, were so thoroughly convinced of its identity with the romance of their deceased pastor, that search\nwas made, and the original manuscript found among his\npapers. But there was yet a marvel how the work could\nhave got into the hands of Joe [12] Smith. On further\ninvestigation, however, it appeared that the reverend author had entertained thoughts of publishing it; and, in\npursuance of his intention, had permitted it to lie a long\ntime in the printing office in which Sidney Rigdon, who has\nfigured so prominently in the history of the Mormons, was\nat the time employed.2* Rigdon, doubtless, copied poor\nSpaulding's novel, and with it, and the aid of Joe Smith,\nhas succeeded in building up a system of superstition, which,\nin vileness and falsehood, is scarcely equalled by that of\nMahomet.\nSolomon Spaulding was a graduate of Dartmouth College.\nOn the 30th of May, we found ourselves prepared to\nmove for the Indian Territory.25 Our pack-saddles being\ngirded upon the animals, our sacks of provisions, &c. snugly\nlashed upon them, and protected from the rain that had begun to fall, and ourselves well mounted and armed, we took\nthe road that leads off southwest from Independence in the\ndirection of Santa F\u00C3\u00A9.28 But the rains which had accompanied us daily since we left Peoria, seemed determined to\nM See a brief sketch of Rigdon in Flagg's Far West, our volume xxvi, p. 358,\nnote 209.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\nM For the use of this term Indian Territory \u00E2\u0080\u0094 which did not at that time\ncorrespond with our present Indian Territory \u00E2\u0080\u0094 see Wyeth's Oregon in our\nvolume xxi, p. 50, note 31.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n\u00C2\u00BB* The Santa F\u00C3\u00A9 route was taken in preference to the Oregon trail on the advice of Andrew Sublette and Philip Thompson, who had just returned from the\nmountains. See Shortess's \"Sketch,\" cited in note 20, above.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. 1839]\nFarnham's Travels\n53\nescort us still, our ill-natured scowls to the contrary notwithstanding: for we had travelled only three miles when\n[13] such torrents fell, that we found it necessary to take\nshelter in a neighbouring schoolhouse for the night. It was\ndismal enough; but a blazing fire within, and a merry song\nfrom a jovial member of our company imparted as much\nconsolation as our circumstances seemed to demand, till we\nresponded to the howling storm the sonorous evidence of\nsweet and quiet slumber.\nThe following morning was clear and pleasant, and we\nwere early on our route. We crossed the stream called Big\nBlue, a tributary of the Missouri,27 about twelve o'clock,\nand approached the border of the Indian domains. All\nwere anxious now to see and linger over every object which\nreminded us we were still on the confines of that civilization\nwhich we had inherited from a thousand generations; a\nvast and imperishable legacy of civil and social happiness.\nIt was, therefore, painful to approach the last frontier\nenclosure \u00E2\u0080\u0094 the last habitation of the white man \u00E2\u0080\u0094 the last\nsemblance of home. At length the last cabin was approached.\nWe drank at the well and travelled on. It was now behind\nus. All, indeed was behind us with which the sympathies\nof our young days had mingled their holy memories. Before\nus were the treeless [14] plains of green, as they had been\nsince the flood \u00E2\u0080\u0094 beautiful, unbroken by bush or rock; un-\nsoiled by plough or spade; sweetly scented with the first\nblossomings of the spring. They had been, since time commenced, the theatre of the Indian's prowess \u00E2\u0080\u0094 of his hopes,\njoys, and sorrows. Here, nations, as the eve of deadly battle\nclosed around them, had knelt and raised the votive offering\nto Heaven, and implored the favour and protection of the\nGreat Spirit who had fostered their fathers upon the wintry\n\" For this stream see James's Long's Expedition, in our volume xiv, p. 184,\nnote 153.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\nSBSm f*m\n54\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nmountains of the North, and when bravely dying, had borne\nthem to the islands of light beneath the setting sun. A\nlovely landscape this, for an Indian's meditation! He\ncould almost behold in the distance where the plain and\nsky met, the holy portals of his after-state \u00E2\u0080\u0094 so mazy and\nbeautiful was the scene !\nHaving travelled about twenty-five miles over this beautiful prairie, we halted on the banks of a small stream at a\nplace called Elm Grove.28 Here we pitched our tent, tied\nour horses to stakes, carried for that purpose, and after considerable difficulty having obtained fuel for a fire, cooked\nand ate for the first time in the Indian Territory.\nAt this encampment final arrangements [15] were made\nfor our journey over the Prairies. To this end provisions,\narms, ammunition, packs and pack-saddles, were overhauled, and an account taken of our common stock of goods\nfor trade with the Indians. The result of this examination\nwas, that we determined to remain here a while, and send\nback to the Kauzaus Indian mill for two hundred pounds of\nflour. We were induced to take this step by assurances\nreceived from certain traders whom we met coming from the\nmountains, that the buffalo had not advanced so far north\nas to furnish us with their fine hump-ribs so early by a\nweek or fortnight as we had expected. Officers were also\nchosen and their powers defined; and whatever leisure\nwe found from these duties during a stay of two days, was\nspent in regaling ourselves with strawberries and gooseberries, which grew in great abundance near our camp.\nOur friends having returned from the mill with the flour\nfor which they had been despatched, we left Elm Grove on\nthe 3d of June, travelled along the Santa F\u00C3\u00A9 trail about\nfifteen miles, and encamped upon a high knoll, from\n28 This is probably the same as Round Grove, for which see Gregg's Commerce\noj the Prairies, in our volume xix, p. 193, note 35.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. 1839]\nFarnham's Travels\n55\nwhich we had an extensive view of the surrounding plains.\nThe grass was now about four inches in height, and\n[16] bent and rose in most sprightly beauty under the gusts\nof wind which at intervals swept over it. We remained\nhere a day and a half, waiting for two of our number\nwho had gone in search of a horse that had left our\nencampment at Elm Grove. The time, however, passed\nagreeably. We were, indeed, beyond the sanctuaries of\nsociety, and severed from the kind pulsations of friendship;\nbut the spirit of the Red Man, wild and careless as the\nstorms he buffets, began to come over us; and we\nshouldered our rifles and galloped away for a deer in the\nlines of timber that threaded the western horizon. Our\nfirst hunt in the depths of the beautiful and dreadful\nwilderness! It was attended with no success, however,\nbut was worth the effort. We had begun to hunt our\nfood.\nIn the afternoon of the 4th, our friends returned with the\nstrayed animals. The keepers immediately fired the signal-\nguns, and all were soon in camp. Our road on the 5th was\nthrough a rich, level prairie, clothed with the wild grass common to the plains of the West. A skirt of black oak timber occasionally lined the horizon or strayed up a deep\nravine near the trail. The extreme care of the pioneers in\nthe [17] overland Santa F\u00C3\u00A9 trade was every where noticeable,\nin the fact that the track of their richly-loaded waggons never\napproached within musket-shot of these points of timber.\nFifteen miles' march brought us to our place of encampment. A certain portion of the company allotted to that\nlabour, unpacked the company's mules of the common-\nstock property, provisions, ammunitions, &c. ; another portion pitched the tent; another gathered wood and kindled\na fire; whilst others brought water, and still others again\nput seething-pots and frying-pans to their appropriate m\nSa\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nduties. So that at this, as at many a time before and after,\na few minutes transposed our little cavalcade from a moving troop into an eating, drinking, and joyous camp. A\nthunder-storm visited us during the night. The lightning\nwas intensely vivid, and the explosions were singularly frequent and loud. The sides of the heavens appeared to\nwar like contending batteries in deadly conflict. The rain\ncame in floods; and our tent, not being ditched around,\nwas flooded soon after the commencement of the storm, and\nourselves and baggage thoroughly drenched.\nThe next day we made about fifteen miles through the\nmud and rain, and stopped for [18] the night near a solitary\ntree upon the bank of a small tributary of the Konzas river.\nHere fortune favoured our fast decreasing larder. One\nof the company killed a turtle, which furnished us all with\nan excellent supper. This was the only description of game\nthat we had seen since leaving the frontier.\nOn the 7th, as the sun was setting, we reached Osage\nRiver \u00E2\u0080\u0094 a stream which flows into the Missouri below Jefferson City. The point where we struck it, was one hundred miles south-west of Independence.29 We pitched our\ntent snugly by a copse of wood within a few yards of it;\nstaked down our animals near at hand, and prepared, and\nate in the usual form, our evening repast. Our company\nwas divided into two messes, seven in one, and eight in the\nother. On the ground, each with a tin pint cup and a\nsmall round plate of the same material, the first filled with\ncoffee, tea, or water, the last with fried bacon and dough\nfried in fat; each with a butcher-knife in hand, and each\nmess sitting, tailor-like, around its own frying-pan, eating\n20 The Osage rises in Kansas south of Kansas River, and as Farnham states,\nflows in a general easterly course into the Missouri. The usual camping place\non the Santa F\u00C3\u00A9 trail was about a hundred miles out, on what was called One\nHundred and Ten Mile Creek, indicative of its distance from Fort Osage.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. Wm\nFarnham's Travels\n57\nwith the appetite of tigers formed the coup-d'ceil of our\ncompany at supper on the banks of the Osage.\n[19] Near us were encamped some waggoners on their\nreturn to Missouri, who had been out to Council Grove with\nthe provisions and that part of the goods of the Santa F\u00C3\u00A9\ntraders which the teams of untrained mules had been unable to draw when they left Independence. With these men\nwe passed a very agreeable evening; they amused us with\nyarns of mountain-life, which from time to time had floated\nin, and formed the fireside legends of that wild border. In\nthe morning, while we were saddling our animals, two of\nthe Kauzaus Indians came within a few rods of our camp,80\nand waited for an invitation to approach. They were armed\nwith muskets and knives. The manner of carrying their\nfire-arms was peculiar, and strongly characteristic of Indian caution. The breech was held in the right hand, and\nthe barrel rested on the left arm; thus they are always prepared to fire. They watched us narrowly, as if to ascertain\nwhether we were friends or foes, and upon our making\nsigns to them to approach, they took seats near the fire, and\nwith most imperturbable calmness, commenced smoking\nthe compound of willow-bark and tobacco with which they\nare wont to regale themselves. When we left the ground,\none of [20] the men threw away a pair of old boots, the soles\nof which were fastened with iron nails. Our savage visitors\nseized upon them with the greatest eagerness, and in their\npantomimic language, aided by harsh, guttural grunts, congratulated themselves upon becoming the possessors of so\nmuch wealth. At eight o'clock we were on march.\nThe morning breezes were bland, and a thousand young\nflowers gemmed the grassy plains. It seemed as if the\ntints of a brighter sky and the increasing beauty of the earth\nwere lifting the clouds from the future, and shedding vigour\n39 For the Kansa, see Bradbury's Travels, in our volume v, p. 67, note 37.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. r\n58\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nupon our hopes. But this illusion lasted but a moment.\nThree of my valuable men had determined to accompany\nthe waggoners to the States; and as they filed off and\nbade adieu to the enterprise in which they had embarked,\nand blighted many cheering expectations of social intercourse along our weary way-faring to Oregon, an expression of deep discouragement shaded every face. This was\nof short duration. The determination to penetrate the\nvalleys of Oregon soon swept away every feeling of depression, and two hunters being sent forward to replenish our\nlarder, we travelled happily onward.\nThe Osage River at this place is one [21] hundred yards\nwide, with about two-and-a-half feet of water. Its banks\nare clothed with timber of cotton-wood, ash and hickory.\nWe crossed it at eight o'clock in the morning, passed\nthrough the groves which border it, and continued to follow\nthe Santa F\u00C3\u00A9 trail. The portion of country over which it\nran was undulating and truly beautiful; the soil rich,\nvery deep, and intersected by three small streams, which\nappeared from their courses to be tributaries of the Osage.\nAt night-fall, we found ourselves upon a height overlooking a beautiful grove. This we supposed to be Council\nGrove. On the swell of the hill were the remains of an old\nKauzaus' encampment; a beautiful clear spring gushed out\nfrom the rock below. The whole was so inviting to us, weary\nand hungry as we were, that we determined to make our\nbed there for the night. Accordingly, we fired signal-guns\nfor the hunters, pitched our tents, broke up the boughs\nwhich had been used by the Indians in building their wigwams, for fuel, and proceeded to cook our supper. This\nencampment had been made by the Kauzaus six years ago,\nwhen on their way south to their annual buffalo-hunt.\nA semi-circular piece of ground was enclosed by the outer\nlodges. [22] The area was filled with wigwams, built in\nmm i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n59\nstraight lines, running from the diameter to the circumference. They were constructed in the following manner.\nBoughs of about two inches in diameter were inserted by\ntheir butts into the ground, and withed together at the top\nin an arched form; over these were spread blankets, skins\nof the buffalo, etc. Fires were built in front of each: the\ngrass beneath, covered with skins, made a delightful couch,\nand the Indian's home was complete. Several yards from\nthe outer semi-circular row of lodges and parallel to it, we\nfound large stakes driven firmly into the earth, for the purpose\nof securing their horses during the night. We appropriated\nto ourselves, without hesitation, whatever we found here of\nearth, wood or water, which could be useful to us, and were\nsoon very comfortable. About nine o'clock, our signal-\nguns were answered by the return of our hunters. They\nhad scoured the country all day in quest of game, but found\nnone. Our hopes were somewhat depressed by this result.\nWe had but one hundred pounds of flour and one side of\nbacon left; and the buffalo, by the best estimates we could\nmake, were still three hundred miles distant; the country\nbetween [23] us and these animals, too, being constantly\nscoured by Indian hunters, afforded us but little prospect\nof obtaining other game. However, we did not dwell very\nminutely upon the evils that might await us, but having put\nourselves upon short allowance, and looked at our horses as\nthe means of preventing starvation, we sought rest for\nthe fatigues of the next day's march.\nIn the morning we moved down the hill. Our way lay\ndirectly through the litde grove already referred to; and,\nhowever we might have admired its freshness and beauty,\nwe were deterred from entering into the full enjoyment\nof the scene by the necessity, which we supposed existed, of\nkeeping a sharp look-out among its green recesses for the\nlurking savage. The grove is the northern limit of the 6o Early Western Travels [Vol. 28\nwanderings of the Cumanches \u00E2\u0080\u0094 a tribe of Indians who\nmake their home on the rich plains along the western\nborders of the republic of Texas.81 Their ten thousand\nwarriors, their incomparable horsemanship, their terrible\ncharge, the unequalled rapidity with which they load\nand discharge their fire-arms, and their insatiable hatred,\nmake the enmity of these Indians more dreadful than\nthat of any other tribe of aborigines. Fortunately for us,\nhowever, [24] these Spartans of the plains did not appear,\nand right merrily did we cross the little savannah between\nit and Council Grove, a beautiful lawn of the wilderness,\nsome of the men hoping for the sweets of the bee-tree,\nothers for a shot at a turkey or a deer, and others again\nthat among the drooping boughs and silent glades might\nbe found the panting loins of a stately elk.\nCouncil Grove derives its name from the practice among\nthe traders, from the commencement of the overland commerce with the Mexican dominions, of assembling there for\nthe appointment of officers and the establishment of rules\nand regulations to govern their march through the dangerous\ncountry south of it. They first elect their commander-in-\nchief.82 His duty is to appoint subordinate leaders, and to\ndivide the owners and men into watches, and to assign\nthem their several hours of duty in guarding the camp\nduring the remainder of their perilous journey. He also\ndivides the caravan into two parts, each of which forms a\ncolumn when on march. In these lines he assigns each\nteam the place in which it must always be found. Having\narranged these several matters, the council breaks up; and\nthe commander, with the guard on [25] duty, moves off in\nadvance to select the tract and anticipate approaching dan-\n31 On the Comanche, see our volume xvi, p. 233, note 109.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n33 See Gregg's description of this place, and the method of forming a caravan,\nin our volume xix, pp. 196-203, with accompanying notes.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n61\nger. After this guard the head teams of each column lead\noff about thirty feet apart, and the others follow in regular\nlines, rising and dipping gloriously; two hundred men, one\nhundred waggons, eight hundred mules; shoutings and\nwhippings, and whistlings and cheerings, are all there; and,\namidst them all, the hardy Yankee move happily onward to\nthe siege of the mines of Montezuma. Several objects are\ngained by this arrangement of the waggons. If they are\nattacked on march by the Cumanche cavalry or other foes,\nthe leading teams file to the right and left, and close the\nfront; and the hindermost, by a similar movement, close\nthe rear; and thus they form an oblong rampart of waggons laden with cotton goods that effectually shields teams\nand men from the small arms of the Indians. The same\narrangement is made when they halt for the night.\nWithin the area thus formed are put, after they are fed,\nmany of the more valuable horses and oxen. The remainder of the animals are \ staked '\u00E2\u0080\u0094 that is, tied to stakes, at\na distance of twenty or thirty yards, around the line. The\nropes by which [26] they are fastened are from thirty to\nforty feet in length, and the stakes to which they are attached\nare carefully driven, at such distances apart, as shall prevent their being entangled one with another.\nAmong these animals the guard on duty is stationed,\nstanding motionless near them, or crouching so as to discover every moving spot upon the horizon of night. The\nreasons assigned for this, are, that a guard in motion would\nbe discovered and fired upon by the cautious savage before\nhis presence could be known; and farther, that it is impossible to discern the approach of an Indian creeping among\nthe grass in the dark, unless the eye of the observer be so\nclose to the ground as to bring the whole surface lying within the range of vision between it and the line of light around\nthe lower edge of the horizon. If the camp be attacked, 6 2 Early Western Travels [Vol. 28\nthe guard fire and retreat to the Waggons. The whole body\nthen take positions for defence; at one time sallying out,\nrescue their animals from the grasp of the Indians; and at\nanother, concealed behind their waggons, load and fire upon\nthe intruders with all possible skill and rapidity. Many\nWere the bloody battles fought on the 'trail,' and such were\nsome of the anxieties [27] and dangers that attended and\nstill attend the f Santa F\u00C3\u00A9 Trade.' Many are the graves,\nalong the track, of those who have fallen before the terrible\ncavalry of the Cumanches. They slumber alone in this\nocean of plains; no tears bedew their graves; no lament\nof affection breaks the stillness of their tomb. The tramp\nof savage horsemen \u00E2\u0080\u0094 the deep bellowing of the buffalo \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nthe nightly howl of the hungry wolf \u00E2\u0080\u0094 the storms that sweep\ndown at midnight from the groaning caverns of the ' shining\nheights;' or, when Nature is in a tender mood, the sweet\nbreeze that seems to whisper among the wild flowers that\nnod over his dust in the spring \u00E2\u0080\u0094 say to the dead, \"You are\nalone; no kindred bones moulder at your side.\"\nWe traversed Council Grove with the same caution and\nin the same manner as we had the other; a platoon of four\npersons in advance to mark the first appearance of an ambuscade; behind these the pack animals and their drivers; on\neach side an unincumbered horseman; in the rear a platoon\nof four men, all on the look-out, silent, with rifles lying on\nthe saddles in front, steadily winding along the path that\nthe heavy waggons of the traders had made among the [28]\nmatted under-brush. In this manner we marched half a\nmile, and emerged from the Grove at a place where the\ntraders had, a few days before, held their council. The\ngrass in the vicinity had been gnawed to the earth by their\nnumerous animals; their fires were still smouldering and\nsmoking; and the ruts in the road were fresh. These\nindications of our vicinity to the great body of the traders 1839]\nFarnham's Travels\n63\nproduced an exhilarating effect on our spirits; and we\ndrove merrily away along the trail, cheered with renewed\nhopes that we should overtake our countrymen, and be\nsaved from starvation.\nThe grove that we were now leaving was the largest and\nmost beautiful we had passed since leaving the frontier of\nthe States. The trees, maple, ash, hickory, black walnut,\noaks of several kinds, butternut, and a great variety of\nshrubs clothed with the sweet foliage of June \u00E2\u0080\u0094 a pure\nstream of water murmuring along a gravelly bottom, and\nthe songs of the robin and thrush, made Council Grove a\nsource of delight to us, akin to those that warm the hearts\nof pilgrims in the great deserts of the East, when they behold, from the hills of scorching sands, the green thorn-tree,\nand [29] the waters of the bubbling spring. For we also\nwere pilgrims in a land destitute of the means of subsistence,\nwith a morsel only of meat and bread per day, lonely and\nhungry; and although we were among the grassy plains\ninstead of a sandy waste, we had freezing storms, tempests,\nlightning and hail, which, if not similar in the means, were\ncertainly equal in the amount of discomfort they produced,\nto the sand-storms of the Great Sahara.\nBut we were leaving the Grove and the protection it might\nyield to us in such disagreeable circumstances. On the\nshrubless plain again ! To our right the prairie rose gradually, and stretched away for ten miles, forming a beautiful\nhorizon. The whole was covered with a fine coat of grass\na foot in height, which was at this season of the deepest and\nrichest green. Behind us lay a dark line of timber, reaching\nfrom the Grove far into the eastern limits of sight, till the\nleafy tops seemed to wave and mingle among the grass of the\nwild swelling meadows. The eyes ached as we endeavoured to embrace the view. A sense of vastness was the\nsingle and sole conception of the mind ! I\n64 Early Western Travels [Vol. 28\nNear this grove are some interesting Indian [30] ruins.\nThey consist of a collection of dilapidated mounds, seeming\nto indicate the truth of the legend of the tribes, which says,\nthat formerly this was the Holy ground of the nations,\nwhere they were accustomed to meet to adjust their difficulties, exchange the salutations of peace, and cement the bonds\nof union with smoking, and dancing, and prayers, to the\nGreat Spirit.\nWe had advanced a few miles in the open country when\nwe discovered, on the summit to the right, a small band of\nIndians. They proved to be a party of Caws or Kauzaus.\nAs soon as they discovered our approach, two of them\nstarted in different directions at the top of their speed, to\nspread the news of our arrival among the remote members\nof the party. The remainder urged on with the utmost\nvelocity their pack-horses laden with meat, skins, blankets,\nand other paraphernalia of a hunting excursion. We pursued our way, making no demonstrations of any kind, until\none old brave left his party, and came towards us, stationing himself beside our path, and awaiting our near approach.\nHe stood quite upright and motionless. As we advanced,\nwe noted closely his appearance [31] and position. He had\nno clothing, except a blanket tied over the left shoulder and\ndrawn under the right arm. His head was shaven entirely\nbare, with the exception of a tuft of hair about two inches\nin width, extending from the center of the occiput over the\nmiddle of the head to the forehead. It was short and\ncoarse, and stood erect, like a comb of a cock. His figure\nWas the perfection of physical beauty. It was five feet nine\nor ten inches in height, and looked the Indian in every\nrespect. He stood by the road-side, apparently perfectly at\nease; and seemed to regard all surrounding objects, with as\nmuch interest as he did us. This is a distmguishing characteristic of the Indian. If a thunderbolt could be embodied t839]\nFarnham's Travels\n65\nand put in living form before their eyes, it would not startle\nthem from their gravity. So stood our savage friend, to\nall appearance unaware of our approach. Not a muscle of\nhis body or face moved, until I rode up and proffered him\na friendly hand. This he seized eagerly and continued to\nshake it very warmly, uttering meanwhile with great emphasis and rapidity, the words \"How de,\" \"how,\" \"how.\"\nAs soon as one individual had withdrawn his hand from\nhis grasp, he [32] passed to another, repeating the same process and the same words. From the careful watch we had\nkept upon his movements since he took his station, we had\nnoticed that a very delicate operation had been performed\nupon the lock of his gun. Something had been warily removed therefrom, and slipped into the leathern pouch worn\nat his side. We expected, therefore, that the never-failing\nappeal to our charity would be made for something; and in\nthis we were not disappointed. As soon as the greetings\nwere over, he showed us, with the most solicitous gestures,\nthat his piece had no flint. We furnished him with one;\nand he then signified to us that he would like something to\nput in the pan and barrel; and having given him something\nof all, he departed at the rapid swinging gait so peculiar to\nhis race.\nAs we advanced, the prairie became more gently undulating. The heaving ridges which had made our trail thus\nfar appear to pass over an immense sea, the billows of which\nhad been changed to waving meadows the instant they had\nescaped from the embraces of the tempest, gave place to\nwide and gentle swells, scarcely perceptible over the increased expanse in sight. Ten [33] miles on the day's\nmarch; the animals were tugging lustily through the mud,\nwhen the advance guard shouted \"Elk! Elk!\" and \"steaks\nbroiled,\" and \"ribs boiled,\" and \"marrow bones,\" and\n\"no more hunger!\" \"Oregon for ever, starve or live,\" as m\n66 Early Western Travels [Vol. 28\nan appointed number of my companions filed off to the\nchase.\nThe hunters circled around the point of the sharp ridge\non which the Elk were feeding, in order to bring them between themselves and the wind; and laying closely to their\nhorses' necks, they rode slowly and silently up the ravine\ntowards them. While these movements were making, the\ncavalcade moved quietly along the trail for the purpose of\ndiverting the attention of the Elk from the hunters. And\nthus the latter were enabled to approach within three hundred yards of the game before they were discovered. But\nthe instant \u00E2\u0080\u0094 that anxious instant to our gnawing appetites\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 the instant that they perceived the crouching forms of\ntheir pursuers approaching them, tossing their heads in the\nair, and snuffing disdainfully at such attempt to deceive\ntheir wakeful senses, they put hoof to turf in fine style. The\nhunters attempted pursuit; but having to ascend one side of\nthe ridge, [34] while the Elk in their flight descended the\nother, they were at least four hundred yards distant, before\nthe first bullet whistled after them. None were killed.\nAnd we were obliged to console our hunger with the hope\nthat three hunters, who had been despatched ahead this\nmorning, would meet with more success. We encamped\nsoon after this tourney of ill luck \u00E2\u0080\u0094 ate one of the last\nmorsels of food that remained \u00E2\u0080\u0094 pitched our tent, stationed\nthe night-guard, &c, and, fatigued and famished, stretched\nourselves within it.\nOn the following day we made twenty-five miles over a\nprairie nearly level, and occasionally marshy. In the afternoon we were favoured with what we had scarcely failed,\nfor a single day, to receive since the commencement of our\njourney, viz: all several and singular, the numerous benefits of a thunder-storm. As we went into camp at night,\nthe fresh ruts along the trail indicated the near vicinity of 1839]\nFarnham's Travels\n67\nsome of the Santa F\u00C3\u00A9 teams. No sleep; spent the night in\ndrying our drenched bodies and clothes.\nOn the 12th under weigh very early: and travelled briskly\nalong, intending to overtake the traders before nightfall.\nBut [35] another thunder-storm for a while arrested the\nprosecution of our desires.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 It was about three o'clock\nwhen a black cloud arose in the south-east, another in the\nsouth-west, and another in the north-east; and involving\nand evolving themselves like those that accompany tornadoes of other countries, they rose with awful rapidity\ntowards the zenith. Having mingled their dreadful masses\nover our heads, for a moment they struggled so terrifically\nthat the winds appeared hushed at the voice of their dread\nartillery \u00E2\u0080\u0094 a moment of direful battle; and yet not a breath\nof wind. We looked up for the coming catastrophe indicated by the awful stillness; and beheld the cloud rent in\nfragments, by the most terrific explosion of electricity we\nhad ever witnessed. Then, as if every energy of the destroying elements had been roused by this mighty effort, peal\nupon peal of thunder rolled around, and up and down the\nheavens; and the burning bolts appeared to leap from cloud\nto cloud across the sky, and from heaven to earth, in such\nfearful rapidity, that the lurid glare of one had scarcely\nfallen on the sight, when another followed of still greater\nintensity. The senses were absolutely [36] stunned by the\nconflict. Our animals, partaking of the stopifying horror\nof the scene, madly huddled themselves together and became immovable. They heeded neither whip nor spur;\nbut with backs to the tempest drooped their heads, as if\nawaiting their doom. The hail and rain came down in\ntorrents. The plains were converted into a sea; the sky,\noverflowing with floods, lighted by a continual blaze of\nelectric fire ! It was such a scene as no pen can adequately\ndescribe. w\n68 Early Western Travels [Vol. 28\nAfter the violence of the storm had in some degree abated,\nwe pursued our way, weary, cold and hungry. About six\no'clock we overtook a company of Santa F\u00C3\u00A9 traders, commanded by Captain Kelly. The gloom of the atmosphere\nwas such, that when we approached his camp, Captain\nKelly supposed us to be Indians, and took measures accordingly to defend himself. Having stationed his twenty-nine\nmen within the barricade formed by his waggons, he himself, accompanied by a single man, came out to reconnoitre.\nHe was not less agreeably affected, to find us whites and\nfriends, than were we at the prospect of society and food.\nTraders always carry a supply of wood over these naked\nplains, [37] and it may be supposed that, drenched and\npelted as we had been by the storm, we did not hesitate to\naccept the offer of their fire to cook our supper, and warm\nourselves. But the rain continued to fall in cold shivering\nfloods; and, fire excepted, we might as well have been elsewhere as in company with our countrymen, who were as badly\nsheltered and fed, as ourselves. We, therefore, cast about\nfor our own means of comfort. While some Were cooking\nour morsel of supper, others staked out the animals, others\npitched our tent; and all, when their tasks were done,\nhuddled under its shelter. We now numbered thirteen.\nWe ate our scanty suppers, drank the water from the\npuddles, and sought rest. But all our packs being wet, we\nhad no change of wardrobe, that would have enabled us to\nhave done so with a hope of success. We, however, spread\nour wet blankets upon the mud, put our saddles under\nour heads, had a song from our jolly Joe, and mused and\nshivered until morning.\nAs the sun of the 13th rose, we drove our animals through\nCottonwood creek.33 It had been very much swollen by the\n33 For the Cottonwood see our volume xix, p. 204, note 42. The crossing was\nnearly two hundred miles from Independence.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. 1839]\nFarnham's Travels\n69\nrains of the previous day; and our packs [38] and ourselves, were again thoroughly wet. But, once out of the\nmire and the dangers of the flood, our hearts beat merrily\nas we lessened, step by step, the distance from Oregon.\nCHAPTER II\nScarcity \"f '\u00E2\u0096\u00A0'nod\u00E2\u0080\u0094An Incident\u00E2\u0080\u0094Looing and Bleating \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Messrs.\nBents \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Trade \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Little Arkansas \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Nauseous Meal \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Flood\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 An Onset \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Hard Ride \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Deliverance \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Arkansas\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 An Attack \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Similitude of Death \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Feast and a bit\nof Philosophy \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Traders Walworth and Alvarez's Teams \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nA Fright \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Nation of Indians \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Their Camp and Hunts \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nA Treaty \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Tempest \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Indian Butchering \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Hunt among\nthe Buffalo \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Wounded Man \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Drive \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Storm and its\nEnemy \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Night among the Buffalo \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Country and the\nHeavens \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Ford \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Mutiny and its Consequences \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nBlistered Fingers \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Liberty \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Bent's Fort \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Disbanding.\nOur hunters, who had been despatched from Council\nGrove in search of game, had rejoined us in Kelly's camp.\nAnd as our larder had not been improved by the hunt,\nanother party was sent out, under orders to advance to the\nbuffalo with all possible dispatch, and send back to the\nmain body a portion of the first meat that should be taken.\nThis was a day of mud and discomfort. Our pack and\nriding animals, constantly annoyed by the slippery clay\n[40] beneath them, became restive, and not unfrequently\nrelieved themselves of riders or packs, with little apparent\nrespect for the wishes of their masters. And yet, as if a\nthousand thorns should hatchel out at least one rose, we\nhad one incident of lively interest. For, while halting to\nsecure the load of a pack-mule, whose obstinacy would have\nentitled him to that name, whatever had been his form, we\nespied upon the side of a neighbouring ravine several elk\nand antelope. The men uttered pleas for their stomachs at\nthe sight of so much fine meat, and with teeth shut in the jo Early Western Travels [Vol. 28\nagony of expectation, primed anew their rifles, and rushed\naway for the prize.\nHope is very delusive, when it hunts elk upon the open\nplain. This fact was never more painfully true, than in the\npresent instance. They were approached against the wind\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 the ravines that were deepest, and ran nearest the elk,\nwere traversed in such a manner that the hunstmen were\nwithin three hundred yards of them before they were\ndiscovered; and then never did horses run nearest their\ntopmost speed for a stake in dollars than did ours for a\nsteak of meat. But, alas! the little advantage gained at\nthe start, from the bewildered [41] inaction of the game,\nbegan to diminish as soon as those fleet coursers of the\n. prairie laid their nimble hoofs to the sward, and pledged\nlife upon speed. In this exigency a few balls were sent\nwhistling after them, but they soon slept in the earth,\ninstead of the panting hearts they were designed to render\npulseless; and we returned to our lonely and hungry march.\nAt sunset we encamped on the banks of a branch of the\nArkansas.84 Our rations were now reduced to one-eighth of\na pint of flour to each man. This, as our custom was, was\nkneaded with water, and baked or rather dried in our\nfrying-pan, over a fire sufficiently destitute of combustibles\nto have satisfied the most fastidious miser in that line.\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nThus refreshed, and our clothing dried in the wind during\nthe day, we hugged our rifles to our hearts, and soundly slept.\nThe sun of the following morning was unusually bright,\nthe sky cloudless and delightfully blue. These were new\npleasures; for the heavens and the earth had, till that morning, since our departure from borne, scourged us with every\ndiscouragement which the laws of matter could produce.\nNow all around us smiled. Dame [42] Nature, a prude\n84 Turkey Creek, for which see our volume xix, p. 205, note 44.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. 1839]\nFarnham's Travels\n7*\nthough she be, seemed pleased that she had belaboured our\ncourage with so little success. To add to our joy, a herd\nof oxen and mules were feeding and lowing upon the opposite bank of the stream. They belonged to the Messrs.\nBents, who have a trading post upon the Arkansas. One\nof the partners and tliirty odd men were on their way to St.\nLouis, with ten waggons laden with peltries. They were\nalso driving down two hundred Santa F\u00C3\u00A9 sheep, for the\nMissouri market. These animals are usually purchased\nfrom the Spaniards; and if the Indians prove far enough\nfrom the track so as to permit the purchaser to drive them\ninto the States, his investment is unusually profitable. The\nIndians, too, residing along the Mexican frontier, not infre-\nquendy find it convenient to steal large numbers of mules,\n&c, from their no less swarthy neighbours; and from the\nease with which they acquire them, find themselves able and\nwilling to sell them to traders for a very easily arranged\ncompensation.\nOf these several sources of gain, it would seem the Messrs.\nBents35 avail themselves; since, on meeting the gentleman\nin charge of the waggons before spoken of, he informed [43]\nus that he had lost thirty Mexican mules and seven horses;\n35 Silas Bent of St. Louis (1768-1827), judge of the superior court of the territory and prominent at the bar, had seven sons. The third, John ^803-45),\nremained in St. Louis, was admitted to the bar, and held the office of district\nattorney. The others went out upon the frontier. In 1826 William W., Charles,\nRobert, and George formed a partnership with Ceran St. Vrain and built a picket\nfort high up on the Arkansas. The following year they removed somewhat farther\neast, and built an adobe. William W. Bent was the chief founder of the enterprise. A daring Indian fighter, tradition describes his defeat of two hundred\nsavages after a three days' battle. He married a Cheyenne woman, and made\nhis home at Bent's Fort. In 1847-48 he acted as guide for the American army\nagainst New Mexico, whence his title of colonel. For one year (1859) he served\nas Indian agent, and died at his home in Colorado, May 19, 1869. Robert and\nGeorge both died young, about the year 1841. They were buried near the fort,\ntheir remains afterwards being removed to St. Louis. For Charles Bent, who\nmade his home at Taos, see our volume xix, p. 221, note 55.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. ff\n72 Early Western Travels [Vol. 28\nand desired us, as we intended to pass his post, to recover\nand take them back. A request of any kind from a white\nface in the wilderness is never denied. Accordingly, we\nagreed to do as he desired, if within our power.\nWe made little progress to-day. Our packs, that had\nbeen soaked by storm and stream, required drying, and\nfor that purpose we went early into camp. The country in\nwhich we now were, was by no means sacred to safety of\nlife, limb or property. The Pawnee and Cumanche war-\nparties roam through it during the spring and summer\nmonths, for plunder and scalps. The guards, which we\nhad had on the alert since leaving Council Grove, were\ntherefore carefully stationed at night-fall among the\nanimals around the tent, and urged to the most careful\nwatchfulness. But no foe molested us. In the expressive\nlanguage of the giant of our band, prefaced always with an\nappropriate sigh and arms akimbo, \"We were not murdered yet.\"\nAbout twelve o'clock of the 14th, we passed the Little\nArkansas.8\" Our hunters had been there the previous night,\nand had succeeded in taking a dozen cat-fish. Their [44]\nown keen hunger had devoured a part of them without\npepper, or salt, or bread, or vegetable. The remainder we\nfound attached to a bush in the stream, in an unwholesome\nstate of decomposition. They were, however, taken up\nand examined by the senses of sight and smell alternately;\nand viewed and smelt again in reference to our ravenous\npalates; and although some doubt may have existed in\nregard to the Hebrew principle of devouring so unclean\na thing, our appetites allowed of no demur. We roasted\nand ate, as our companions had done.\nI had an opportunity at this place to observe the great\n38 Concerning the crossing of the Little Arkansas, consult our volume xix,\np. 207, note 45.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n73\nextent of the rise and fall of these streams of the plains in\na single day or night. It would readily be presumed, by\nthose who have a correct idea of the floods of water that the\nthunder-storms of this region pour upon the rolling prairies,\nthat a few miles of the channels of a number of the creeks\nover which the storms pass may be filled to the brim in\nan hour; and that there are phenomena of floods and falls\nof wafer occurring in this vast den of tempests, such as\nare found nowhere else. Still, bearing this evidently true\nexplanation in mind, it was with some [45] difficulty that I\nyielded to the evidences on the banks of the Little Arkansas,\nthat that stream had fallen fifteen feet during the last twelve\nhours. It was still too deep for the safety of the pack animals to attempt to ford it in the usual way. The banks,\nalso, at the fording-place were left by the retiring flood, a\nquagmire; so soft, that a horse without burthen could, with\nthe greatest difficulty, drag himself through it to the water\nbelow. In our extremity, however, we tied our lashing-\nlines together, and, attaching one end to a strong stake on\nthe side we occupied, sent the other across the stream, and\ntied it firmly to a tree. Our baggage, saddles and clothing\nsuspended to hooks running to and fro on this line, were\nsecurely passed over. The horses being then driven\nacross at the ill-omened ford, and ourselves over by\nswimming and other means, we saddled and loaded our\nanimals with their several burthens, and recommenced our\nmarch.\nThe 14th, 15th, and 16th, were days of more than ordinary hardships. With barely food enough to support life,\ndrenched daily by thunder-storms and by swimming and\nfording the numerous drains of this alluvial [46] region, and\nwearied by the continual packing and unpacking of our\nanimals, and enfeebled by the dampness of my couch at\nnight, I was so much reduced when I dismounted from my 74\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nhorse on the evening of the 16th, that I was unable to loosen\nthe girth of my saddle or spread my blanket for repose.\nThe soil thus far from the frontier appeared to be from\nthree to six feet in depth; generally undulating, and occasionally, far on the western horizon, broken into ragged and\npicturesque bluffs. Between the swells, we occasionally\nmet small tracts of marshy ground saturated with brackish\nwater.\nOn the night of the 16th, near the hour of eight o'clock,\nwe were suddenly roused by the rapid trampling of animals\nnear our camp. \"Indians!\" was the cry of the guard,\n\"Indians!\" We had expected an encounter with them as\nwe approached the buffalo, and were consequently not\nunprepared for it. Each man seized his rifle, and was\ninstantiy in position to give the intruders a proper reception. On they came, rushing furiously in a dense column\ntill within thirty yards of our tent; and then wheeling\nshort to the lift, abruptly halted. [47] Not a rifle-ball or\nan arrow had yet cleft the air. Nor was it so necessary\nthat they should; for we discovered that, instead of\nbipeds of bloody memory, they were the quadrupeds that\nhad eloped from the fatherly care of Mr. Bent, making a\ncall of ceremony upon their compatriot mules, &c, tied to\nstakes within our camp.\n17th. We were on the trail at seven o'clock. The sun of\na fine morning shone upon our ranks of beasts and men.\nWere I able to sketch the woe-shrivelled visages of my starving men, with occasional bursts of wrath upon Mr. Bent's\nmules as they displayed their ungrateful heels to us, who\nhad restored them from the indecencies of savage life to\nthe dominion of civilized beings, my readers would say that\nthe sun never looked upon a more determined disregard\nof the usages of social life. A long march before us \u00E2\u0080\u0094 the\nArkansas and its fish before us, the buffalo with all 1839]\nFarnham's Travels\n75\nthe delicate bits of tender loin and marrow bones, (even the\nremembrance of them inspires me) \u00E2\u0080\u0094 with all these before\nus, who that has the sympathies of the palate sensibilities\nwithin him, can suppose that we did not use the spur, whip\nand goad with a right good will on that memorable day ?\n[48] Thirty or forty miles, none but the vexed plains can tell\nwhich, were travelled over by one o'clock. The afternoon\nhours, too, were counted slowly. High bluffs, and butes, and\nrolls, and salt marshes alternately appearing and falling\nbehind us, with here and there a plat of the thick short\ngrass of the upper plains and the stray bunches of the\nbranching columnar and foliated prickly pear, indicated\nthat we were approaching some more important course of\nthe mountain waters than we had yet seen since leaving\nthe majestic Missouri. \"On, merrily on,\" rang from our\nparched and hungry mouths; and if the cheerful shout did\nnot allay our appetites or thirst, it quickened the pace of our\nmules, and satisfied each other of our determined purpose\nto behold the Arkansas by the light of that day.\nDuring the hurried drive of the afternoon we became\nseparated from one another among the swells over which\nour track ran. Two of the advanced platoon took the\nliberty, in the absence of their commander, to give chace\nto an antelope which seemed to tantalize their forbearance\nby exhibiting his fine sirloins to their view. Never did men\nbetter earn forgiveness for disobedience of orders. One\nof them crept as I [49] learned half a mile upon his hands\nand knees to get within rifle shot of his game; \u00E2\u0080\u0094 shot at\nthree hundred yards' distance and brought him down ! And\nnow, who, in the tameness of an enough-and-to-spare state\nof existence, in which every emotion of the mind is surfeited\nand gouty, can estimate our pleasure at seeing these men\ngallop into our ranks with this antelope ? You may \" guess, \"\nreader, you may \"reckon,\" you may \"calculate,\" or if y 6 Early Western Travels [Vol. 28\nlearned in the demi-semi-quavers of modern exquisiteness,\nyou may thrust rudely aside all these wholesome and fat\nold words of the heart, and \"shrewdly imagine,\" and still\nyou cannot comprehend the feelings of that moment ! Did\nwe shout? were we silent? no, neither. Did we gather\nquickly around the horse which bore the slaughtered animal? No, nor this. An involuntary murmur of relief\nfrom the most fearful forebodings, and the sudden halt of\nthe riding animals in their tracks were the only movements, the only acts that indicated our grateful joy at\nthis deliverance.\nOur intention of seeing the Arkansas that night, however,\nsoon banished every other thought from the mind. Whips\nand spurs therefore were freely used upon our animals [50]\nas they ascended tediously a long roll of prairies covered\nwith the wild grasses and stinted stalks of the sun-flower.\nWe rightly conceived this to be the bordering ridge of the\nvalley of the Arkansas. For on attaining its summit we\nsaw ten miles of that stream lying in the sunset like a beautiful lake among the windings of the hills. It was six miles\ndistant \u00E2\u0080\u0094 the sun was setting. The road lay over sharp\nrolls of land that rendered it nearly impossible for us to keep\nour jaded animals on a trot. But the sweet water of that\nAmerican Nile, and a copse of timber upon its banks that\noffered us the means of cooking the antelope to satisfy our\nintolerable hunger, gave us new energy; and on we went at\na rapid pace while sufficient fight remained to show us the\ntrail.87\nWhen within about a mile and a half of the river a\nmost annoying circumstance crossed our path. A swarm\n37 The trail reached the Arkansas in the neighborhood of the northern reach\nof the Great Bend; but Farnham's party must have wandered from the regular\nroute, in order to employ three days and a half from the crossing of the Little\nArkansas \u00E2\u0080\u0094 a distance of not more than thirty-five miles.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\nI 1 i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n77\nof the most gigantic and persevering musquitoes that ever\ngathered tribute from human kind, lighted on us and\ndemanded blood. Not in the least scrupulous as to the\nmanner in which they urged their claims, they fixed themselves boldly and without ceremony upon our organs of\nsight, smell, and whipping, [51] in such numbers, that in\nconsequence of the employment they gave us in keeping\nthem at the distance, and the pain which they inflicted\nupon our restive animals, We lost the trail. And now came\nquagmires, flounderings, and mud, such as would have\ntaught the most hardened rebel in morals that deviations\nfrom the path of duty lead sometimes to pain, sometimes to\nswamps. Long perseverance at length enabled us to reach\nthe great \"River of the Plains.\"\nWe tarried for a moment upon the banks of the stream\nand cast about to extricate ourselves from the Egyptian\nplagues around us. To regain our track in the darkness of\nnight, now mingled with a dense fog, was no easy task. We,\nhowever, took the lead of a swell of land that ran across it,\nand in thirty minutes entered a path so well marked that\nwe could tread our way onward till we should find wood\nsufficient to cook our supper. This was a dreary ride. The\nstars gave a littie light among the mist, which enabled us\nto discern, on the even line of the horizon, a small speck\nthat after three hours' travel we found to be a small grove of\ncotton wood upon an island. We encamped near it; and\nafter our baggage was piled up so [52] as to form a circle\nof breastworks for defence, our weariness was such that we\nsank among it supperless, and slept with nothing but the\nheavens over us. And although we were in the range of\nthe Cumanche hunting as well as war-parties, the guard\nslept in spite of the savage eyes that might be gloating vengeance on our little band. No fear or war-whoop could\nhave broken the slumbers of that night. It was a temporary Il\n78\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\ndeath. Nature had made its extreme effort, and sunk in\nhelplessness till its ebbing energies should reflow.\nOn the morning of the 18th of June we were up early \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nearly around among our animals to pull up the stakes to\nwhich they were tied, and drive them fast again, where they\nmight graze while we should eat. Then to the care of ourselves. We wrestled manfully with the frying-pan and\nroasting-stick; and anon in the very manner that one sublime act always follows its predecessor, tore bone from\nbone the antelope ribs, with so strong a grip and with such\nunrestrained delight that a truly philosophic observer might\nhave discovered in the flash of our eyes and the quick energetic motion of the nether portions of our [53] physiognomies, that eating, though an uncommon, was nevertheless\nour favourite occupation.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Then \"catch up,\" \"saddles on,\"\n\"packs on,\" \"mount,\" \"march,\" were heard on all sides,\nand we were on the route, hurry-scurry, with forty loose\nmules and horses leering, kicking and braying, and some\nsix or eight pack animals making every honourable effort\nto free themselves from servitude, while we were applying\nto their heads and ears certain gentle intimations that such\nambitious views accorded not with their master's wishes.\nIn the course of the day we crossed several tributaries\nof the Arkansas. At one of these, called by the traders\nBig Turkey Creek,88 we were forced to resort again to our\nChilian bridge. In consequence of the spongy nature of\nthe soil and the scarcity of ,timber, we here found more\ndifficulty in procuring fastenings for our ropes, than in any\nprevious instance. At length, however, we obtained pieces\nof flood-wood, and drove them into the soft banks \"at an\n38 Either Walnut or Ash Creek, the only two tributaries before reaching Pawnee Fork. Farnham seems, however, to have written from memory, and possibly confuses this stream with Turkey Creek, an affluent of the Little Arkansas.\nSee ante, p. 70, note 34.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. i\u00C2\u00AB39l\nFarnham's Travels\n79\ninclination,\" said he of the axe, \"of precisely 450 to the\nplane of the horizon.\" Thus supported, the stakes stood\nsufficiently firm for our purposes; [54] and our bags, packs,\nselves, and beasts were over in a trice, and in the half of\nthat mathematical fraction of time, we were repacked,\nremounted, and trotting off at a .generous pace, up the\nArkansas. The river appeared quite unlike the streams of\nthe East, and South, and Southwest portion of the States in\nall its qualities. Its banks were low \u00E2\u0080\u0094 one and a half feet\nabove the medium stage of water, composed of an alluvium\nof sand and loam as hard as a public highway, and generally covered with a species of wiry grass that seldom grows\nto more than one and a half or two inches in height. The\nsun-flower of stinted growth, and a lonely bush of willow, or\nan ill-shaped sapless, cotton-wood tree, whose decayed trunk\ntrembled under the weight of years, together with occasional\nbluffs of clay and sand-stone, formed the only alleviating\nfeatures of the landscape. The stream itself was generally\nthree-quarters of a mile in width, with a current of five\nmiles per hour, water three and a half to four feet, and of\na chalky whiteness. It was extremely sweet, so delicious\nthat some of my men declared it an excellent substitute\nfor milk.\n[55] Camped on the bank of the river where the common\ntall grass of the prairie grew plentifully; posted our night-\nguard, and made a part of our meat into soup for supper.\nI will here give a description of the manner of making this\nsoup. It was indeed a rare dish; and my friends of the\ntrencher \u00E2\u0080\u0094 ye who have been spiced, and peppered, and\nsalted, from your youth up, do not sneer when I declare\nthat of all the innovations upon kitchen science which\ncivilization has engrafted upon the good old style of the\npatriarchs, nothing has produced so depraving an effect\nupon taste, as these self-same condiments of salt, pepper, &c. *\u00E2\u0080\u00A2\u00E2\u0096\u00A0**\ni\n-'t\n80\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nBut to our soup. It was made of simple meat and water\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 of pure water, such as kings drank from the streams\nof the good old land of pyramids and flies, and of the wild\nmeat of the wilderness, untainted with any of the aforesaid\ncondiments \u00E2\u0080\u0094 simply boiled, and then eaten with strong,\ndurable iron spoons and butcher-knives. Here I cannot\nrestrain from penning one strong and irrepressible emotion\nthat I well remember to have experienced while stretched\nupon my couch after our repast. The exceeding comfort\nof body and mind [56] at that moment undoubtedly gave\nit being. It was an emotion of condolence for those of\nmy fellow mortals who are engaged in the manufacture\nof rheumatisms and gout. Could they only for an hour\nenter the portals of prairie life \u00E2\u0080\u0094 for one hour breathe the\ninspiration of a hunter's transcendentalism \u00E2\u0080\u0094 for one hour\nfeed upon the milk and honey and marrow of life's pure\nunpeppered and unsalted viands, how soon would they\nforsake that ignoble employment \u00E2\u0080\u0094 how soon would their\nhissing and vulgar laboratories of disease and graves be\nforsaken, and the crutch and Brandreth's pills be gathered\nto the tombs of our fathers!\nOur next day's march terminated in an encampment\nwith the hunters whom I had sent forward for game. They\nhad fared even worse than ourselves. Four of the\nseven days they had been absent from the company,\nand had been without food. Many of the streams, too,\nthat were forded easily by us, were, when they passed, wide\nand angry floods. These they were obliged to swim, to\nthe great danger of their lives.\nOn the 18th, however, they overtook Messrs. Walworth\nand Alvarez's teams,89 [57] and were treated with great\nhospitality by those gentlemen. On the same day they\nkilled a buffalo bull, pulled off the flesh from the back, and\n30 For Manuel Alvarez see our volume xx, p. 26, note 5.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 1839]\nFarnham's Travels\n81\ncommenced drying it over a slow fire preparatory to packing.\nOn the morning of the 19th, two of them started off for us\nwith some strips of meat dangling over the shoulders of\ntheir horses. They met us about four o'clock, and with us\nreturned to the place of drying the meat. Our horses were\nturned loose to eat the dry grass, while we feasted ourselves\nupon roasted tongue and liver. After this we \"caught up\"\nand went on with the intention of encamping with the Santa\nF\u00C3\u00A9\u00C3\u00A2ns; after travelling briskly onward for two hours, we\ncame upon the brow of a hill that overlooks the valley of\nPawnee Fork, the largest branch of the Arkansas on its\nnorthern side. The Santa F\u00C3\u00A9 traders had encamped on\nthe east bank of the stream. The waggons surrounded an\noval piece of ground, their shafts or tongues outside, and\nthe forward wheel of each abreast of the hind wheel of the\none before it. This arrangement gave them a fine aspect,\nwhen viewed from the hill, over which we were passing.\nBut we had scarcely time to see the [58] little I described,\nwhen a terrific scream of \"Pawnee! Pawnee !\" arose from\na thousand tongues on the farther bank of the river; and\nIndian women and children ran and shrieked horribly,\n\"Pawnee! Pawnee!\" as they sought the glens and bushes\nof the neighbourhood. We were puzzled to know the\nobject of such an outburst of savage delight, as we deemed\nit to be, and for a time thought that we might well expect\nour blood to slumber with the buffalo, whose bones lay\nbleaching around us. The camp of the traders also was in\nmotion; arms were seized and horses saddled with \"hot\nhaste.\" A moment more, and two whites were galloping\nwarily near us; a moment more brought twenty savage\nwarriors in full paint and plume around us. A quick\nreconnoitre, and the principal chief rode briskly up to me,\nshook me warmly by the hand, and with a clearly apparent\nfriendship said \"Sacre fcedus\" (holy league,) \"Kauzaus,\" 82\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\n\"Caw.\" His warriors followed his example. As soon as\nour friendly greetings were discovered by some of the minor\nchiefs, they galloped their fleet horses at full speed over the\nriver, and the women and children issued from their concealments, and lined the bank with their dusky forms. The\nchiefs rode [59] with us to our camping ground, and remained\ntill dark, examining with great interest the various articles\nof our travelling equipage; and particularly our tent as it\nunfolded its broadsides like magic, and assumed the form\nof a solid white cone. Every arrangement being made to\nprevent these accomplished thieves from stealing our horses,\n&c, we supped, and went to make calls upon our neighbours.\nThe owners of the Santa F\u00C3\u00A9 waggons were men who had\nseen much of life. Urbane and hospitable, they received\nus in the kindest manner, and gave us much information\nin regard to the mountains, the best mode of defence, &c.,\nthat proved in our experience remarkably correct. During\nthe afternoon, the chiefs of the Kauzaus sent me a number\nof buffalo tongues, and other choice bits of meat. But the\nfilth discoverable on their persons generally deterred us\nfrom using them. For this they cared little. If their\npresents were accepted, an obligation was by their laws\nincurred on our part, from which we could only be relieved\nby presents in return. To this rule of Indian etiquette we\nsubmitted; and a council was accordingly held between\nmyself and the principal chief through an interpreter, [60]\nto determine upon the amount and quality of my indebtedness in this regard. The final arrangement was, that in\nconsideration of the small amount of property I had then\nin possession, I would give him two pounds of tobacco, a\nside-knife, and a few papers of vermillion; but that, on my\nreturn, which would be in fourteen months, I should be\nvery rich, and give him more. To all these obligations 1839]\nFarnham's Travels\n83\nand pleasant prophecies, I of course gave my most hearty\nconcurrence.\nThe Caws, or Kauzaus, are notorious thieves. We\ntherefore put out a double guard at night, to watch their\npredatory operations, with instructions to fire upon them,\nif they attempted to take our animals. Neither guard nor\ninstructions, however, proved of use; for the tempest,\nwhich the experienced old Santa F\u00C3\u00A9\u00C3\u00A2ns had seen in the\nheavens, thunder-cloud in the northwest at sunset, proved\na more efficient protection than the arm of man. The cloud\nrose slowly during the earby part of the night, and appeared\nto hang in suspense of executing its awful purpose. The\nlightning and heavy rumbling of the thunder were frightful.\nIt came to the zenith about twelve o'clock. When in that\nposition, the cloud covered one-half the heavens, and for\n[61] some minutes was nearly stationary. After this, the\nwind broke forth upon it at the horizon, and rolled up the\ndark masses over our heads \u00E2\u0080\u0094 now swelling, now rending\nto shreds its immense folds. But as yet not a breath of air\nmoved over the plains. The animals stood motionless and\nsilent at the spectacle. The nucleus of electricity was at\nthe zenith, and thence large bolts at last leaped in every\ndirection, and lighted for an instant the earth and skies so\nintensely, that the eye could not endure the brightness. The\nreport which followed was appalling. The ground trembled \u00E2\u0080\u0094 the horses and mules shook with fear, and attempted\nto escape. But where could they or ourselves have found\nshelter? The clouds at the next moment appeared in the\nwildest commotion, struggling with the wind. \"Where\nshall we fly ? \" could scarcely have been spoken, before the\nwind struck our tent, tore the stakes from the ground,\nsnapped the centre pole, and buried us in its enraged folds.\nEvery man, we were thirteen in number, immediately seized\nsome portion and held it with all his might. Our opinion 84 Early Western Travels [Vol. 28\nat the time was, that the absence of the weight of a single\nman would have given the storm the victory \u00E2\u0080\u0094 our tent\nwould have eloped in the [62] iron embraces of the tempest.\nWe attempted to fit it up again after the violence of the\nstorm had in some degree passed over, but were unable\nso to do. The remainder of the night was consequentiy\nspent in gathering up our loose animals, and in shivering\nunder the cold peltings of the rain.\nThe Santa F\u00C3\u00A9\u00C3\u00A2ns, when on march through these plains,\nare in constant expectation of these tornadoes. Accordingly,\nwhen the sky at night indicates their approach, they chain\nthe wheels of adjacent waggons strongly together to prevent\nthem from being upset \u00E2\u0080\u0094 an accident that has often happened, when this precaution was not taken. It may well\nbe conceived, too, that to prevent their goods from being\nwet in such cases, requires a. covering of no ordinary powers\nof protection. Bows in the usual form, except that they\nare higher, are raised over long sunken Pennsylvania\nwaggons, over which are spread two or three thicknesses\nof woollen blankets; and over these, and extended to the\nlower edge of the body, is drawn a strong canvas covering,\nwell guarded with cords and leather straps. Through this\ncovering these tempests seldom penetrate.\nAt seven o'clpck on the morning of the 27th, \"Catch up,\ncatch up,\" rang round [63] the waggons of the Santa F\u00C3\u00A9\u00C3\u00A2ns.\nImmediately each man had his hand upon a horse or mule;\nand ere we, in attempting to follow their example, had our\nhorses by the halter, the teams were harnessed and ready\nfor the \"march.\" A noble sight those teams were, about\nforty in number, their immense waggons still unmoved,\nforming an oval breastwork of wealth, girded by an impatient mass of near four hundred mules, harnessed and\nready to move again along their solitary way. But the\ninterest of the scene was much increased when, at the call\n\t i839l\nFarnham's Travels\n85\nof the commander, the two lines, team after team, straightened themselves into the trail, and rode majestically away\nover the undulating plain. We crossed the Pawnee Fork,40\nand visited the Caw Camp. Their wigwams were constructed of bushes inserted into the ground, twisted together\nat the top, and covered with the buffalo hides which they\nhad been gathering for their winter lodges. Meat was\ndrying in every direction. It had been cut in long narrow\nstrips, wound around sticks standing upright in the ground,\nor laid over a rick of wicker-work, under which slow fires are\nkept burning. The stench, and the squalid appearance of\nthe women and children, [64] were not sufficiently interesting to detain us long; and we travelled on for the buffalo\nwhich were bellowing over the hills in advance of us.\nThere appeared to be about one thousand five hundred\nsouls, almost in a state of nudity, and filthy as swine.\nThey make a yearly hunt to this region in the spring, lay\nin a large quantity of dried meat, return to their own\nterritory in harvest time, gather their beans and corn, make\nthe buffalo hides, (taken before the hair is long enough for\nrobes), into conical tents, and thus prepare for a long and\nmerry winter.\nThey take with them, on these hunting excursions, all the\nhorses and mules belonging to the tribe, which can be\nspared from the labour of their fields upon the Konzas\nRiver, go south till they meet the buffalo, build their distant\nwigwams, and commence their labour. This is divided in\nthe following manner between the males, females, and\nchildren: \u00E2\u0080\u0094The men kill the game. The women dress and\ndry the meat, and tan the hides. The instruments used\nin killing vary with the rank and wealth of each individual.\nThe high chief has a lance, with a handle six feet and blade\nthree feet in length. This in hand, mounted [65] upon a\n*\u00C2\u00B0 For Pawnee Fork see our volume xvi, p. 227, note 105.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. in\u00E2\u0080\u0094\u00C2\u00BB\n86\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nfleet horse, he rides boldly to the side of the flying buffalo,\nand thrusts it again and again through the liver or heart of\none, and then another of the affrighted herd till his horse\nis no longer able to keep near them. He is thus able to kill\nfive or six, more or less, at a single hit. Some of the\ninferior chiefs also have these lances; but they must all be\nshorter than that of his Royal Darkness. The common\nIndians use muskets and pistols. Rifles are an abomination to them. The twisting motion of the ball as it enters,\nthe sharp crack when discharged, and the direful singing\nof the lead as it cuts the air, are considered symptoms of\nwitchcraft that are unsafe for the Red Man to meddle with.\nThey call them medicines \u00E2\u0080\u0094 inscrutable and irresistible\nsources of evil. The poorer classes still use the bow and\narrow. Nor is this, in the well-trained hand of the Indian,\na less effective weapon than those already mentioned.\nAstride a good horse, beside a bellowing band of wild beef,\nleaning forward upon the neck, and drawing his limbs close\nto the sides of his horse, the naked hunter uses his national\nweapon with astonishing dexterity and success. Not unfre-\nquently, when hitting no bones, does he throw his arrows\nquite through the buffalo. Twenty [66] or thirty thus variously armed, advance upon a herd. The chief leads the\nchase, and by the time they come alongside the band, the\ndifferent speed of the horses has brought them into a single\nfile or line. Thus they run until every individual has a\nbuffalo at his side. Then the whole line fire guns, throw\narrows or drive lances, as often and as long as the speed of\nthe horses will allow; and seldom do they fail in encounters\nof this kind, to lay upon the dusty plain numbers of these\nnoble animals.\nA cloud of squaws who had been hovering in the neighbourhood,' now hurry up, astride of pack-animals, strip off\nhides, cut off the best flesh, load their pack saddles, mount\u00C2\u00BB i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n87\nthemselves on the top, and move slowly away to the camp.\nThe lords of creation have finished their day's labour. The\nladies cure the meat in the manner described above, stretch\nthe hides upon the ground, and with a blunt wooden adze\nhew them into leather. The younger shoots of the tribe\nduring the day are engaged in watering and guarding the\nhorses and mules that have been used in the hunt \u00E2\u0080\u0094 changing their stakes from one spot to another of fresh grass,\nand crouching along the heights around the camp to notice\nthe approach of [67] foes, and sound the alarm. Thus\nthe Konzas, Kausaus, or Caws, lay in their annual stores.\nUnless driven from their game by the Pawnees, or some\nother tribe at enmity with them, they load every animal\nwith meat and hides about the first of August, and commence the march back to their fields, fathers, and wigwams,\non the Konzas River.\nThis return-march must present a most interesting scene\nin savage life \u00E2\u0080\u0094 seven hundred or eight hundred horses or\nmules loaded with the spoils of the chase, and the children\nof the tribe holding on to the pack with might and main,\nnaked as eels, and shining with buffalo grease, their fathers\nand mothers loafing on foot behind, with their guns poised\non the left arm, or their bows and arrows swung at their\nback ready for action, and turning their heads rapidly and\nanxiously for lurking enemies \u00E2\u0080\u0094 the attack, the screams of\nwomen and children, each man seizing an animal for a\nbreastwork, and surrounding thus their wives and children,\nthe firing, the dying, the conquest, the whoop of victory and\nrejoicings of one party, and the dogged, sullen submission\nof the other \u00E2\u0080\u0094 all this and more has occurred a thousand\ntimes upon [68] these plains, and is still occurring. But if\nvictory declare for the Caws, or they march to their home\nwithout molestation, how many warm affections spring up\nin their untamed bosoms, as they see again their parents\nm I\nI\n88\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nand children, and the ripened harvest, the woods, the streams,\nand bubbling springs, among which the gleeful days of\nchildhood were spent! And when greetings are over, and\nwelcomes are said, embraces exchanged, and their homes\nseen and smiled upon ; in fine, when all the holy feelings of\nremembrance, and their present good fortune, find vent in\nthe wild night-dance, who, that wears a white skin and ponders upon the better lot of civilized men, will not believe\nthat the Indian too, returned from the hunt and from war,\nhas not as much happiness, if not in kind the same, and as\nmany sentiments that do honour to our nature, as are\nwrapped in the stays and tights of a fantastic, mawkish\ncivilization \u00E2\u0080\u0094 that flattering, pluming, gormandizing, unthinking, gilded life, which is beginning to measure mental\nand moral worth by the amount of wealth possessed, and\nthe adornment of a slip or pew in church.\nWe travelled eight miles and encamped. [69] A band of\nbuffalo cows were near us. In other words, we were determined upon a hunt \u00E2\u0080\u0094 a determination the consequences of\nwhich, as will hereafter appear were highly disastrous.\nOur tent having been pitched, and baggage piled up, the\nfleetest horses selected, and the best marksmen best mounted,\nwe trotted slowly along a circling depression of the plain,\nthat wound around near the herd on the leeward side.\nWhen we emerged in sight of them, we put the horses into\na slow gallop till within three hundred yards of our game;\nand then for the nimblest heel! Each was at his utmost\nspeed. We all gained upon the herd. But two of the\nhorses were by the side of the lubbers before the rest were\nwithin rifle-reach; and the rifles and pistols of their riders\ndischarged into the sleek, well-larded body of a noble bull.\nThe wounded animal did not drop; the balls had entered\nneither liver nor heart; and away he ran for his life. But\nhis unwieldy form moved slower and slower, as the dripping i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n89\nblood oozed from the bullet-holes in his loins. He ran\ntowards our tent; and we followed him in that direction,\ntill within a fourth of a mile of it, when our heroes of\nthe rifle laid him wallowing in his blood, a mountain of\nflesh [70] weighing at least three thousand pounds. We\nbutchered him in the following manner: Having turned\nhim upon his brisket, split the skin above the spine, and\npared it off as far down the sides as his position would\nallow, we cut off the flesh that lay outside the ribs as\nfar back as the loins. This the hunters call \"the fleece.\"\nWe next took the ribs that rise perpendicularly from\nthe spine between the shoulders, and support what is\ntermed the \" hump.\" Then we laid our heavy wood-axes\nupon the enormous side-ribs, opened a cavity, and took out\nthe tender-loins, tallow, &c,\u00E2\u0080\u0094 all this a load for two\nmules to carry into camp.\nIt was prepared for packing as follows: the fleece was\ncut across the grain into slices an eighth of an inch in thickness, and spread upon a scaffolding of poles, and dried and\nsmoked over a slow fire. While we were engaged in this\nprocess, information came that three of Mr. Bent's mules\nhad escaped. The probability was that they had gone\nto the guardianship of our neighbours, the Caws. This was\na misfortune to our honourable intention of restoring them'\nto their lawful owners. Search was immediately ordered\nin the Indian camp and elsewhere for them. It was [71]\nfruitless. The men returned with no very favourable\naccount of their reception by the Caws, and were of opinion\nthat farther search would be in vain. Being disposed to\ntry my influence with the principal chief, I gave orders to\nraise the camp and follow the Santa F\u00C3\u00A9ans, without reference\nto my return, and mounting my horse, in company with\nthree men, sought his lodge. The wigwams were deserted,\nsave by a few old women and squalid children, who were 9\u00C2\u00B0\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nwallowing in dirt and grease, and regaling themselves upon\nthe roasted intestines of the buffalo. I inquired for the\nchiefs, for the mules, whether they themselves were human\nor bestial; for, on this point, there was room for doubt: to all\nwhich inquiries, they gave an appropriate grunt. But no\nchief or other person could be found, on whom any responsibility could be thrown in regard to the lost mules. And\nafter climbing the heights to view the plains, and riding\nfrom band to band of His Darkness's quadrupeds for three\nhours in vain, we returned to our camp sufficiently vexed\nfor all purposes of comfort.\nYet this was only the beginning of the misfortunes of the\nday. During my absence, one of those petty bickerings, so\ncommon [72] among men released from the restraints of\nsociety and law, had arisen between two of the most quarrelsome of the company, terminating in the accidental\nwounding of one of them. It occurred, as I learned in the\nfollowing manner: a dispute arose between the parties as to\ntheir relative moral honesty in some matter, thing, or act in\nthe past. And as this was a question of great perplexity in\ntheir own rninds, and doubt in those of others, words ran\nhigh and abusive, till some of the men, more regardful of\ntheir duty than these warriors, began preparations to strike\nthe tent. The redoubtable combatants were within it; and\nas the cords were loosed, and its folds began to swing upon\nthe centre pole, the younger of the braves, filled with wrath\nat his opponent, attempted to show how terrible bis ire\nwould be if once let loose among his muscles. For this purpose, it would seem he seized the muzzle of his rifle with\nevery demonstration of might, &c, and attempted to drag\nit from among the baggage. The hammer of the lock\ncaught, and sent the contents of the barrel into his side.\nEvery thing was done for the wounded man that his condition required, and our circumstances permitted. Doctor i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n91\nWalworth, [73] of the Santa F\u00C3\u00A9 caravan, then eight miles in\nadvance, returned, examined, and dressed the wound, and\nfurnished a carriage for the invalid. During the afternoon\nthe high chief of the Caws also visited us; and by introducing\ndiscoloured water into the upper orifice, and watching its\nprogress through, ascertained that the ball had not entered\nthe cavity. But notwithstanding that our anxieties about\nthe life of Smith41 were much lessened by the assurances of\nDr. Walworth, and our friend the Chief, yet we had others\nof no less urgent nature, on which we were called to act.\nWe were on the hunting-ground of the Caws. They were\nthieves; and after the Santa F\u00C3\u00A9 traders should have left the\nneighbourhood, they would without scruple use their superior force in appropriating to themselves our animals,\nand other means of continuing our journey. The Pawnees,\ntoo, were daily expected. The Cumanches were prowling\nabout the neighbourhood. To remain, therefore, in our\npresent encampment, until Smith could travel without\npain and danger, was deemed certain death to all. To\ntravel on in a manner as comfortable to the invalid, as our\n[74] condition would permit\u00E2\u0080\u0094painful to him and tedious\nto us though it should be \u00E2\u0080\u0094 appeared therefore the only\nmeans of safety to all, or any of us. We accordingly covered\nthe bottom of the carriole with grass and blankets, laid\nSmith upon them, and with other blankets bolstered him\nin such manner that the jolting of the carriage would not\nroll him. Other arrangements necessary to raising camp\nbeing made, I gave the company in charge of my lieutenant;\n11 Sidney W. Smith, who afterwards reached Oregon in a destitute condition,\nwas cared for at Dr. Whitman's mission, and went on to the Willamette where\nhe settled with Ewing Young. He acquired considerable property, and was influential in the establishment of the provisional government, serving as its secretary, as captain of militia, and on the first provisional committee. He acquired\nthe name of \" Blubbermouth Smith\" among the early pioneers, but became a man\nof sterling ability and founder of a prominent Oregon family.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. 02\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nand ordering him to lead on after me as fast as possible,\ntook the reins of the carriage and drove slowly along the\ntrail of the Santa F\u00C3\u00A9\u00C3\u00A2ns.\nThe trail was continually crossed by deep paths made\nby the buffalo, as a thousand generations of them had in\nsingle file followed their leaders from point to point through\nthe plains. These, and other obstructions, jolted the carriage at every step, and caused the wounded man to groan\npitiably. I drove on till the stars indicated the hour of\nmidnight; and had hoped by this time to have overtaken\nthe traders, but was disappointed. In vain I looked through\nthe darkness for the white embankment of their waggons.\nThe soil over which they had passed was [75] now so hard,\nthat the man in advance of the carriage could no longer\nfind the trail; and another storm was crowding its dark pall\nup the western sky. The thunder aroused and enraged\nthe buffalo bulls. They pawed the earth and bellowed, and\ngathered around the carriage madly, as if they considered\nit a huge animal of their own species, uttering thunder in\ndefiance of them. It became dangerous to move. It was\nuseless also; for the darkness thickened so rapidly that we\ncould not keep the track. My men, too, had not come up;\nthey had doubtiess lost the trail \u00E2\u0080\u0094 or, if not, might join\nme if I waited there till the morning. I therefore halted\nin a deep ravine, which would partially protect me from\nthe maddened buffalo and the storm, tied down my animals\nhead to foot, and sought rest. Smith was in great pain.\nHis groans were sufficient to prevent sleep. But had he\nbeen comfortable and silent, the storm poured such torrents of rain and hail, with terrible wind and lightning,\naround us, that life instead of repose became the object of\nour solicitude. The horseman who had accompanied me,\nhad spread his blankets on the ground under the carriage,\nand, [76] with his head upon his saddle, attempted to 1839]\nFarnham's Travels\n93\ndisregard the tempest as an old-fashioned stoic would the\ntoothache. But it beat too heavy for his philosophy. His\nMackinaw blankets~and slouched hat, for a time protected\nhis ungainly body from the effects of the tumbling flood.\nBut when the water began to stream through the bottom of\nthe carriage upon him, the ire of the animal burst from his\nlank cheeks like the coming of a rival tempest. He cursed\nhis stars, and the stars behind the storm, his garters, and the\ngarters of some female progenitor, consigned to purgatory\nthe thunder, lightning, and rain, and waggon, alias poor\nSmith; and gathering up the shambling timbers of his\nmortal frame, raised them bolt upright in the storm, and\nthus stood, quoted Shakspeare, and ground his teeth till\ndaylight.\nAs soon as day dawned I found the trail again, and at\nseven o'clock overtook the Santa F\u00C3\u00A9ans. Having changed\nSmith's bedding, I drove on in the somewhat beaten track\nthat forty odd waggons made. Still every small jolt caused\nthe unfortunate man to scream with pain. The face of\nthe country around Pawnee Fork was, when we saw it, [77]\na picture of beauty. The stream winds silentiy among\nbluffs covered with woods, while from an occasional ravine,\nlong groves stretch out at right angles with its main course\ninto the bosom of the plains. The thousand hills that\nswelled on the horizon, were covered with dark masses of\nbuffalo peacefully grazing, or quenching their thirst at the\nsweet streams among them. But the scene had now changed.\nNo timber, not a shrub was seen to-day. The soft rich\nsoil had given place to one of flint and sand, as hard as\nM'Adam's pavements; the green, tall prairie grass, to a\ndry, wiry species, two inches in height. The water, too,\ndisgusting remembrance! There was none, save what we\nscooped from the puddles, thick and yellow with buffalo\noffal. 94\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nWe travelled fifteen miles, and halted for the night. Smith\nwas extremely unwell. His wound was much inflamed and\npainful. Dr. Walworth dressed it, and encouraged me\nto suppose that no danger of life was to be apprehended.\nMy company joined me at twelve o'clock, on the 22d,\nand we followed in the rear of the cavalcade. After\nsupper was over, and Smith made comfortable, [78] I sought\nfrom some of them a relation of their fortunes during\nthe past night. It appeared they had found the buffalo\ntroublesome as soon as night came on; that the bands of\nbulls not unfrequently advanced in great numbers within\na few feet of them, pawing and bellowing in the most\nthreatening manner; that they also lost the trail after midnight, and spent the remainder of the night in firing upon\nthe buffalo, to keep them from running over them. Their\nsituation was dangerous in the extreme; for when buffalo\nbecome enraged, or frightened in any considerable number,\nand commence running, the whole herd start simultaneously, and pursue nearly a right-line course, regardless of\nobstacles. So that, had they been frightened by the Santa\nF\u00C3\u00A9\u00C3\u00A2ns, or myself, or any other cause, in the direction of\nmy companions, they must have trampled them to death.\nThe danger to be apprehended from such an event, was\nrendered certain in the morning, when we perceived that\nthe whole circle of vision was one black mass of these\nanimals. What a sea of life \u00E2\u0080\u0094 of muscular power \u00E2\u0080\u0094 of\nanimal appetite \u00E2\u0080\u0094 of bestial enjoyment ! And if lashed\nto rage by some pervading cause, how fearful [79] the\nebbing and flowing of its mighty wrath !\nOn the 23d the buffalo were more numerous than ever.\nThey were arranged in long lines from the eastern to the\nwestern horizon. The bulls were forty or fifty yards in\nadvance of the bands of cows to which they severally intended to give protection. And as the moving embankment i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n95\nof waggons, led by the advanced guard, and flanked by\nhorsemen riding slowly from front to rear, and guarded in\nthe rear by my men, made its majestic way along, these\nfiery cavaliers would march each to his own band of dames\nand misses, with an air that seemed to say \"we are here;\"\nand then back again to their lines, with great apparent satisfaction, that they were able to do battle for their sweet ones\nand their native plains. We travelled fifteen or sixteen\nmiles; distance usually made in a day by the traders.\nSmith's wound was more inflamed and painful; the wash\nand salve of the Indian chief, however, kept it soft, and\nprevented to a great extent the natural inflammation of the\ncase.\nThe face of the country was still an arid plain \u00E2\u0080\u0094 the water\nas on the 22d \u00E2\u0080\u0094 fuel, dried [80] buffalo offal \u00E2\u0080\u0094 not a shrub\nof any kind in sight. Another storm occurred to-night.\nIts movements were more rapid than that of any preceding\none which we had experienced. In a few moments after\nit showed its dark outline above the earth, it rolled its pall\nover the whole sky, as if to build a wall of wrath between\nus and the mercies of heaven. The flash of the lightning,\nas it bounded upon the firmament, and mingled its thunder\nwith the blast, that came groaning down from the mountains; the masses of inky darkness crowding in wild tumult\nalong, as if anxious to lead the leaping bolt upon us \u00E2\u0080\u0094 the\nwild world of buffalo, bellowing and starting in myriads, as\nthe drapery of this funeral scene of nature, a vast cavern\nof fire was lighted up; the rain roaring and foaming like a\ncataract \u00E2\u0080\u0094 all this, a reeling world tottering under the great\narm of its Maker, no eye could see and be unblenched; no\nmind conceive, and keep its clayey tenement erect.\nI drew the carriole in which Smith and myself were\nattempting to sleep, close to the Santa F\u00C3\u00A9 waggons, secured\nthe curtains as firmly as I was able to do, spread blankets 96\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nover the top and around the sides, and [81] lashed them\nfirmly with ropes passing over, under, and around the carriage in every direction; but to little use. The penetrating\npowers of that storm were not resisted by such means.\nAgain we were thoroughly drenched. The men in the tent\nfared still worse than ourselves. It was blown down with\nthe first blast; and the poor fellows were obliged to lie\nclosely and hold on strongly to prevent it and themselves\nfrom a flight less safe than parachuting.\nOn the morning of the 24th, having given Smith in charge\nof my excellent Lieutenant, with assurance that I would\njoin him at the \"Crossings,\" I left them with the traders,\nand started with the remainder of my company for the\nArkansas.\nThe buffalo during the last three days had covered the\nwhole country so completely, that it appeared oftentimes\nextremely dangerous even for the immense cavalcade of the\nSanta F\u00C3\u00A9 traders to attempt to break its way through them.\nWe travelled at the rate of fifteen miles a day. The length\nof sight on either side of the trail, 15 miles; on both sides,\n30 miles: \u00E2\u0080\u009415 x 3 = 45 x 30 = 1,350 square miles of [82] country, so thickly covered with these noble animals, that when\nviewed from a height, it scarcely afforded a sight of a square\nleague of its surface. What a quantity of food for the sustenance of the Indian and the white pilgrim of these plains!\nIt would have been gratifying to have seen the beam kick\nover the immense frames of some of those bulls. But all\nthat any of us could do, was to 'guess' or 'reckon' their\nweight, and contend about the indubitable certainty of\nour several suppositions. In these disputes, two butchers\ntook the lead; and the substance of their discussions that\ncould interest the reader is, \"that many of the large bulls\nwould weigh 3,000 pounds and upwards; and that, as a\ngeneral rule, the buffalo were much larger and heavier than i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n97\nthe domesticated cattie of the States.\" We were in view\nof the Arkansas at four o'clock, p. m. The face of the earth\nwas visible again; for the buffalo were now seen in small\nherds only, fording the river, or feeding upon the bluffs.\nNear nightfall we killed a young bull, and went into\ncamp for the night.\nOn the 25th we moved slowly along up the bank of the\nriver. Having travelled [83] ten miles, one of the men shot\nan antelope, and we went into camp, to avoid if possible\nanother storm that was lowering upon us from the northwest; but in spite of this precaution, we were again most\nuncomfortably drenched.\nOn the 26th we struck across a southern bend in the\nriver, and made the Santa F\u00C3\u00A9 \"Crossings\" at four o'clock,\np. m. ; 27th. we lay at the \" Crossings,\" waiting for the Santa\nF\u00C3\u00A9\u00C3\u00A2ns, and our wounded companion.42 On this day a\nmutiny, which had been ripening ever since Smith was\nwounded, assumed a clear aspect. It now appeared that\ncertain individuals of my company had determined to leave\nSmith to perish in the encampment where he was shot;\nbut failing in supporters of so barbarous a proposition,\nthey now endeavoured to accomplish their design by less\nobjectionable means. They said it was evident, if Smith\nremained in the company, it must be divided; for that they,\npure creatures, could no longer associate with so impure a\nman. And that, in order to preserve the unity of the company, they would propose that arrangements should be\nmade with the Santa F\u00C3\u00A9\u00C3\u00A2ns to take him along with them.\n[84] In this wish a majority of the company, induced by a\nlaudable desire for peace, and the preservation of our small\nforce entire, in a country filled with Indian foes, readily\na For the Crossings see our volume xix, p. 218, note 54. The trading caravans proceeded by the Cimarron route, while Farnham's party took the mountain trail.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n\u00E2\u0080\u00A2 9 8 Early Western Travels [Vol. 28\nunited. I was desired to make the arrangement; but my\nefforts proved fruitiess. The traders were of the opinion that\nit would be hazardous for Smith, destitute of the means of\nsupport, to trust himself among a people of whose language\nhe was ignorant, and among whom he could consequently\nget no employment; farther, that Smith had a right to\nexpect protection from his comrades; and they would not,\nby any act of theirs, relieve them from so sacred a duty.\nI reported to my company this reply, and dwelt at length\nupon the reasons assigned by the traders.\nThe mutineers were highly displeased with the strong\ncondemnation contained in them, of their intention to desert him; and boldly proposed to leave Smith in the carriole,\nand secretly depart for the mountains. Had we done this\ninhuman act, I have no doubt that he would have been\ntreated with great humanity and kindness, till he should\nhave recovered from his wound. But the meanness of the\nproposition to leave a sick companion [85] on the hands of\nthose who had shown us unbounded kindness, and in violation of the solemn agreement we had all entered into on the\nfrontier of Missouri \u00E2\u0080\u0094 \"to protect each other to the last\nextremity\"\u00E2\u0080\u0094was so manifest, as to cause C. Wood, Jour-\ndan, Oakley, J. Wood, and Blair, to take open and strong\ngrounds against it. They declared, that \"however unworthy Smith might be, we could neither leave him to be\neaten by wolves, nor to the mercy of strangers; and that\nneither should be done while they had life to prevent it.\"\nHaving thus ascertained that I could rely upon the cooperation of these men, two of the company made a litter,\non which the unfortunate man might be borne between two\nmules. In the afternoon of the 28th, I went down to the\ntraders, five miles below us, to bring him up to my camp.\nThe traders generously refused to receive anything for the\nuse of their carriage, and furnished Smith, when he left them, i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n99\nwith every little comfort in their power for his future use.\nIt was past sunset when We left their camp. Deep darkness\nsoon set in, and we lost our course among the winding bluffs.\n[86] But as I had reason to suppose that my presence in the\ncamp the next morning with Smith was necessary to his\nwelfare, I drove on till three o'clock in the morning. It was\nof no avail: the darkness hid heaven and earth from view.\nWe therefore halted, tied the mules to the wheels of the carriage, and Waited for the sight of morning. When it came,\nwe found that we had travelled during the night at one\ntime up and at another time down the stream, and were\nthen within a mile and a half of the trader's camp.\nOn reaching my encampment, I found every thing ready\nfor marching, sent back the carriole to its owners, and attempted to swing Smith in his litter for the march; but to\nour great disappointment, it would not answer the purpose.\nHow it was possible to convey him, appeared an inquiry of\nthe most painful importance. We deliberated long; but\nan impossibility barred every attempt to remove its difficulties. We had no carriage; we could not carry him upon\nour shoulders; it seemed impossible for him to ride on\nhorseback; the mutineers were mounted ; the company was\nafraid to stay longer in the vicinity of the Cumanche Indians,\n[87] with so many animals to tempt them to take our lives;\nthe Santa F\u00C3\u00A9 waggons were moving over the hills ten miles\naway on the other side of the river; I had adjured the\ncommand, and had no control over the movements of the\ncompany; two of the individuals who had declared for\nmercy towards Smith had gone with the traders;43 there was\nbut one course left \u00E2\u0080\u0094 one effort that could be made; he\nmust attempt to ride an easy, gentle mule. If that failed,\nthose who had befriended him would not then forsake him.\n*\u00C2\u00BB From the later narrative it is apparent that these were Chauncey Wood\nand Quinn Jordan.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n1 lOO\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nAbout eleven o'clock, therefore, on the 29th, Smith being\ncarefully mounted on a pacing mule, our faces were turned\nto Bent's trading post, one hundred and sixty miles up the\nArkansas. One of the principal mutineers, a hard-faced\nvillain of no honest memory among the traders upon the\nPlatte, assumed to guide and command. His malice towards Smith was of the bitterest character, and he had an\nopportunity now of making it felt. With a grin upon his\nlong and withered physiognomy, that shadowed out the\nfiendish delight of a heart long incapable of better emotions,\nhe drove off at a rate which none but a man in health could\nhave long endured. His motive [88] for this was easi'y\nunderstood. If we fell behind, he would get rid of the\nwounded man, whose presence seemed to be a living evidence of his murderous intentions, thwarted and cast back\nblistering upon his already sufficiently foul character. He\nwould, also, if rid of those persons who had devoted themselves to saving him, be able to induce a large number of\nthe remainder of the company to put themselves under his\nespecial guardianship in their journey through the mountains; and if we should be destroyed by the Cumanche\nIndians who were prowling around our way, the blackness\nof his heart might be hidden, awhile at least, from the world.\nThe rapid riding, and the extreme warmth, well-nigh\nprostrated the remaining strength of the invalid. He\nfainted once, and had nearly fallen headlong to the ground ;\nbut all this was delight to the self-constituted leader; and\non he drove, belabouring his own horse unmercifully to\nkeep up the pace; and quoting Richard's soliloquy with a\nsatisfaction and emphasis, which seemed to say \"the winter\"\nof his discontent had passed away, as well as that of his\nancient prototype in villany.\n[89] The buffalo were seldom seen during the day: the\nherds now becoming fewer and smaller. Some of the men,\n\u00E2\u0096\u00A0 i839]\nFarnham's Travels\nloi\nwhen it was near night, gave chase to a small band near\nthe track, and succeeded in killing a young bull. A fine\nfresh steak, and night's rest, cheered the invalid for the\nfatigues of a long ride the following day. And a long one\nit was. Twenty-five .miles under a burning sun, with a\nhigh fever, and three broken ribs, required the greatest\nattention from his friends, and the exertion of the utmost\nremaining energies of the unfortunate man. Base though\nhe was in everything that makes a man estimable and valuable to himself and others, Smith was really an object of\npity and the most assiduous care. His couch was spread\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 his cup of water fresh from the stream, was always by\nhis side \u00E2\u0080\u0094 and his food prepared in the most palatable\nmanner which our circumstances permitted. Everything\nindeed that his friends (no, not his friends, for he was\nincapacitated to attach either the good or the bad to his\nperson, but those who commiserated his condition), could\ndo, was done to make him comfortable.\nIn connexion with this kindness bestowed [90] on Smith,\nshould be repeated the name of Blair, an old mechanic\nfrom Missouri, who joined my company at the Crossings\nof the Arkansas. A man of a kinder heart never existed.\nFrom the place where he joined us to Oregon Territory,\nwhen I or others were worn with fatigue, or disease, or\nstarvation, he was always ready to administer whatever\nrelief was in his power. But towards Smith in his helpless condition he was especially obliging. He dressed his\nwound daily. He slept near him at night, and rose to\nsupply his least want. And in all the trying difficulties\nthat occurred along our perilous journey, it was his greatest\ndelight to diffuse peace, comfort, and contentment, to the\nextent of his influence. I can never forget the good old\nman. He had been cheated out of his property by a near\nrelative of pretended piety, and had left the chosen scenes I02\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nof his toils and hopes in search of a residence in the wilderness beyond the mountains. For the purpose of getting to\nthe Oregon Territory, he had hired himself to a gentleman\nof the traders' caravan, with the intention of going to the\ncountry by the way of New Mexico and California. An\nhonest man \u00E2\u0080\u0094 an honourable [91] man\u00E2\u0080\u0094a benevolent,\nkind, sympathizing friend\u00E2\u0080\u0094he deserves well of those who\nmay have the good fortune to become acquainted with\nhis unpretending worth.44\nOn the 30th, twenty-five miles up the river.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 This morning the miscreant who acted as leader exchanged horses,\nthat he might render it more difficult for Smith to keep in\ncompany. During the entire day's march, Shakspeare\nwas on the tapis. If there be ears of him about the ugly\nworld, to hear his name bandied by boobies, and his immortal verse mangled by barbarians in civilized clothing, those\nears stood erect, and his dust crawled with indignation, as\nthis savage in nature and practice discharged from his\npolluted mouth the inspirations of his genius.\nThe face of the country was such as that found ever since\nwe struck the river. Long sweeping bluffs swelled away\nfrom the water's edge into the boundless plains. The\nsoil was a composition of sand, clay, and gravel \u00E2\u0080\u0094 the only\nvegetation \u00E2\u0080\u0094 the short furzy grass, several kinds of prickly\npear, a stinted growth of sun-flower, and a few decrepid\ncotton-wood trees on the margin of the stream. The south\nside of the river [92] was blackened by the noisy buffalo.\nIt was amusing when our trail led us near the bank, to observe the rising wrath of the bulls. They would walk with\na stately tread upon the verge of the bank, at times almost\nyelling out their rage, and trampling, pawing, falling upon\n** W. Blair was a millwright, and upon reaching Oregon found employment\nin Spaulding's mill at the Lapwai mission. Afterwards he went to the Willamette, and finally emigrated to California, where he died.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. \u00E2\u0080\u00A2w*\n1839]\nFarnham's Travels\n103\ntheir knees, and tearing the earth with their horns; till, as if\nunable to keep down the safety-valve of their courage any\nlonger, they would tumble into the stream, and thunder,\nand wade, and swim, and whip the waters with their tails,\nand thus throw off a quantity of their bravery. But, like\nthe wrath and courage of certain members of the biped\nrace, these manifestations were not bullet proof, for the\ncrack of a rifle, and the snug fit of a bullet about their\nribs operated instantaneously as an anodyne to all such\nlike nervous excitation.\nWe pitched our tent at night near the river. There was\nno timber near; but after a long and tedious search we\ngathered fire-wood enough to make our evening fire.\nThe fast riding of the day had wearied Smith exceedingly.\nAn hour's rest in camp however, had restored him, to such\nan extent, [93] that our anxiety as to his ability to ride to\nBent's was much diminished. His noble mule proved too\nnimble and easy to gratify the malice of the vagabond leader.\nThe night brought us its usual tribute \u00E2\u0080\u0094 a storm. It was\nas severe as any we had experienced. If we may distinguish between the severities of these awful tumults of nature,\nthe thunder was heavier, deeper. The wind also was very\nsevere. It came in long gusts, loaded with large drops of\nrain, which struck through the canvas of our tent, as if it\nhad been gauze.\nThe last day of June gave us a lovely morning. The\ngrass looked green upon the flinty plains. Nor did the\napparent fact that they were doomed to the constant recurrence of long draughts take from them some of the interest\nwhich gathers around the hills and dales within the lines of\nthe States. There is indeed a wide difference in the outline of the surface and the productions of these regions. In\nthe plains are none of the evergreen ridges, the cold clear\nsprings, and snug flowering valleys of New England; none \u00E2\u0080\u00A2\u00C2\u00AB''\u00E2\u0096\u00A0\u00E2\u0096\u00A0\u00E2\u0096\u00A0\u00E2\u0096\u00A0\u00E2\u0096\u00A0'\u00E2\u0096\u00A0\u00E2\u0096\u00A0\u00E2\u0096\u00A0\u00C2\u00AB\u00E2\u0096\u00A0\u00E2\u0080\u00A2\u00E2\u0080\u00A2Mi\u00C2\u00BB!\nf\nIS\n104\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nof the pulse of busy men that beats from the Atlantic through\nthe great body of human industry to the western border\nof the [94] republic; none of the sweet villages and homes\nof the old Saxon race; but there are the vast savannahs,\nresembling molten seas of emerald sparkling with flowers,\narrested while stormy and heaving, and fixed in eternal\nrepose. Nor are lowing herds to be found there, and bleating flocks, which d\u00C3\u00A9pendance on man has rendered subservient to his will; but there are thousands of fleet and silent\nantelope, myriads of the bellowing buffalo, the perpetual\npatrimony of the wild, uncultivated red man. And however other races may prefer the haunts of their childhood,\nthe well-fenced domain and the stall-pampered beast \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nstill, even they cannot fail to perceive the same fitness of\nthings in the beautiful adaptation of these conditions of\nnature to the wants and pleasures of her uncultivated lords.\nWe made fifteen miles on the 1st of July. The bluffs\nalong the river began now to be striped with strata of lime\nand sand-stone. No trees that could claim the denomination of timber appeared in sight. Willows of various kinds,\na cotton-wood tree, at intervals of miles, were all; and so\nutterly sterile was the whole country that, as night approached, we were obliged carefully to search along [95]\nthe river's bends for a plat of grass of sufficient size to feed\nour animals. Our encampment was twelve miles above\nChoteau's Island.45 Here was repeated, for the twentieth\ntime, the quarrel about the relative and moral merits of the\ncompany. This was always a question of deep interest\nwith the mutineers; and many were the amusing arguments\nadduced and insisted upon as incontestible, to prove themselves great men, pure men, and saints. But as there was\nmuch difference of opinion, I shall not be expected to remember all the important judgments rendered in the premises.\n46 For Chouteau's Island see our volume xix, p. 185, note 26.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n105\nIf, however, my recollection serves me, it was adjudged,\nthat our distinguished leader was the only man among\nus that ever saw the plains or mountains, the only one\nof us that ever drove an ox-waggon up the Platte, stole a\nhorse and rifle from his employers, opened and plundered\na \"cache\" of goods, and ran back to the States with well-\nfounded pretensions to an \" honest character.\"\nMatters of this kind being thus satisfactorily settled, we\ngave ourselves to the musquitoes for the night. These\ncompanions of our sleeping hours were much attached to\nus \u00E2\u0080\u0094 an amiable quality which [96] \"runs in the blood;\"\nand not unlike the birthright virtues of another race in its\neffect upon our happiness.\nIt can scarcely be imparting information to my readers to\nsay that we passed a sleepless night. But it is due to the\nguards outside the tent, to remark, that each and every one\nof them manifested the most praiseworthy vigilance, and\nindustry, during the entire night. So keen a sense of duty\ndid musquito beaks impart.\nThe next day we travelled twelve miles, and fell in with\na band of buffalo. There being a quantity of wood near at\nhand wherewithal to cure meat, we determined to dry, in\nthis place, what might be needed, till we should fall in with\nbuffalo again beyond the hunting-grounds of the Messrs.\nBents. Some of the men, for this purpose, filed off to the\ngame, while the remainder formed the encampment. The\nchase was spirited and long. They succeeded, however, in\nbringing down two noble bullocks: and led their horses in,\nloaded with the choicest meat.\nIn preparing and jerking our meat, our man of the stolen\nrifle here assumed extraordinary powers in the management of [97] affairs. Like other braves, arm in hand, he\nrecounted the exploits of his past life, consisting of the entertainment of serious intentions to have killed some of the io6\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nmen who had left, had they remained with us; and also, of\nhow dangerous his wrath would have been in the settlements\nand elsewhere, had any indignity been offered to his honourable person, or his plantation; of which latter he held the\nfee simple title of a \"squatter.\" On this point, \"let any\nman, or Government even,\" said he, \"attempt to deprive\nme of my inborn rights, and my rifle shall be the judge\nbetween us. Government and laws! what are they but\nimpositions upon the freeman.\" With this ebullition of\nwrath at the possibility that the institutions of society might\ndemand of him a rifle, or the Government a price of a portion of the public lands in his possession, he appeared satisfied that he had convinced us of his moral acumen, and sat\nhimself down, with his well-fed and corpulent coadjutor,\nto slice the meat for drying. While thus engaged, he again\nraised the voice of wisdom. \"These democratic parties\nfor the plains, what are they? what is equality any where?\nA fudge. One must [98] rule; the rest obey, and no grumbling, by G !\"\nThe mutineers were vastiy edified by these timely instructions; and the man of parts ceasing to speak, directed his\nattention to drying the meat. He, however, soon broke\nforth again, found fault with every arrangement which had\nbeen made,, and with his own mighty arm wrought the\nchanges he desired.\nMeanwhile, he was rousing the fire, already burning\nfiercely, to more and more activity, till the dropping grease\nblazed, and our scaffold of meat was wrapped in flames.\n\"Take that meat off,\" roared he. No one obeyed, and\nhe stood still. \"Take that meat off,\" he cried again, with\nthe emphasis and mien of an Emperor; not deigning him-^\nself to soil his rags, by obeying his own command. No one\nobeyed. The meat burned rapidly. His ire waxed high;\nyet, no one was so much frightened as to heed his command. Hi\nFarnham's Travels\n107\nAt length his sublime forbearance had an end. The great\nman seized the blazing meat, dashed it upon the ground,\nraised the temperature of his fingers to the blistering\npoint, and rested from his labours.\n[99] Three days more fatiguing travel along the bank of\nthe Arkansas brought us to the trading-post of the Messrs.\nBents. It was about two o'clock in the afternoon of the\n5th of July, when we came in sight of its noble battlements,\nand struck our caravan into a lively pace down the swell\nof the neighbouring plain. The stray mules that we had\nin charge belonging to the Bents, scented their old grazing\nground, and galloped cheerfully onward. And our hearts,\nrelieved from the anxieties which had made our camp for\nweeks past a travelling Babel, leaped for joy as the gates\nof the fort were thrown open; and \"welcome to Fort William\"\u00E2\u0080\u0094 the hearty welcome of fellow-countrymen in the\nwild wilderness, greeted us. Peace again \u00E2\u0080\u0094 roofs again \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nsafety again from the winged arrows of the savage; relief\nagain from the depraved suggestions of inhumanity; bread,\nah ! bread again : and a prospect of a delightful tramp over\nthe snowy heights between me and Oregon, with a few men\nof true and generous spirit, were some of the many sources\nof pleasure which struggled with my slumbers on the first\nnight's tarry among the hospitalities of \"Fort William.\" 48\n[100] My company was to disband here ; the property held in\ncommon to be divided ; and each individual to be left to his own\nresources. And while these and other things are being done,\nthe reader will allow me to introduce him to the Great Prairie\nWilderness, and the beings and matters therein contained.\n*\u00C2\u00BB For a brief history of this post see our volume xx, p. 138, note 92; see also\npost, chapter iv. A cut of the fort may be seen in J. T. Hughes, Doniphan's Expedition (Cincinnati, 1847), p. 35. Fremont visited there in 1844 and speaks of\nthe hospitable treatment accorded him. In the palmy days of the fur-trade the\nBents employed from eighty to a hundred men who made their headquarters at\nthis post.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\nmWk Ill\n108\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nCHAPTER III\nThe Great Prairie Wilderness \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Its Rivers and Soil \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Its People and\ntheir Territories \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Choctaws \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Chickasaws \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Cherokees \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Creeks\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Senecas and Shawnees \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Seminoles \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Pottawotamies \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Weas\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Pionkashas \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Peorias and Kaskaskias \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ottowas \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Shawnees or\nShawanoes \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Delawares \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Kausaus \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Kickapoos \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Sauks and\nFoxes \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Iowas \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Otoes \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Omehas \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Puncahs \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Pawnees, remnants \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Carankauas \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Cumanche, remnants \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Knistineaux \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nNaudowisses or Sioux\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Chippeways, and their traditions.\nThe tract of country to which I have thought it fitting to\napply the name of the \"Great Prairie Wilderness,\" embraces the territory lying between the States of Louisiana,\nArkansas, and Missouri, and the Upper Mississippi on the\neast, and the* Black Hills, and the eastern range of the\nRocky and the Cordilleras mountains on the west. One\nthousand miles of longitude, and two thousand miles of\nlatitude, 2,000,000 square miles, equal to 1,280,000,000\nacres of an almost unbroken plain! The sublime Prairie\nWilderness !\nThe portion of this vast region, two [102] hundred miles\nin width, along the coast of Texas and the frontier of the\nStates of Louisiana, Arkansas, and Missouri, and that lying\nwithin the same distance of the Upper Mississippi in the\nIowa Territory, possess a rich, deep, alluvial soil, capable\nof producing the most abundant crops of grains, vegetables,\n&c, that grow in such latitudes.\nAnother portion lying west of the irregular western line\nof that just described, five hundred miles in width, extending\nfrom the mouth of St. Peter's River to the Rio del Norte,\nis an almost unbroken plain, destitute of trees, except here\nand there one scattered at intervals for many miles along\nthe banks of the streams. The soil, except the intervals of\nsome of the rivers, is composed of coarse sand and clay, so\nthin and hard that it is difficult for travellers to penetrate 1839]\nFarnham' s Travels\n109\nit with the stakes they carry with them wherewithal to fasten their animals or spread their tents. Nevertheless it is\ncovered thickly with an extremely nutritious grass peculiar\nto this region of country, the blades of which are wiry and\nabout two inches in height.\nThe remainder of this Great Wilderness, lying three hundred miles in width along [103] the eastern radices of the\nBlack Hills and that part of the Rocky Mountains between\nthe Platte and the Cordilleras-range east of the Rio del\nNorte, is the arid waste usually called the \" Great American\nDesert.\" \" Its soil is composed of dark gravel mixed with\nthe sand. Some small portions of it, on the banks of the\nstreams, are covered with tall prairie and bunch grass; others,\nwith wild wormwood; but even these kinds of vegetation\ndecrease and finally disappear as you approach the mountains. It is a scene of desolation scarcely equalled on the\ncontinent, when viewed in the dearth of midsummer from\nthe base of the hills. Above, rise in sublime confusion,\nmass upon mass, shattered cliffs through which is struggling the dark foliage of stinted shrub-cedars; while below\nyou spreads far and wide the burnt and arid desert, whose\nsolemn silence is seldom broken by the tread of any other\nanimal than the wolf or the starved and thirsty horse which\nbears the traveller across its wastes.\nThe principal streams that intersect the Great Prairie\nwilderness are the Colorado, the Brasos, Trinity, Red,\nArkansas, Great Platte and the Missouri. The latter is\nin many respects a noble stream; not so [104] much so\nindeed for the intercourse it opens between the States and\nthe plains, as the theatre of agriculture and the other dut-\nsuits of a densely populated and distant interior; for these\nplains are too barren for general cultivation. As a channel\nfor the transportation of heavy artillery, military stores,\n\" See on this subject our volume xvi, p. 174, note 81.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. Ill\nI IO\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\ntroops, &c. to posts that must ultimately be established\nalong our northern frontier, it will be of the highest use.\nIn the months of April, May, and June it is navigable\nfor steam-boats to the Great Falls; but the scarcity of water\nduring the remainder of the year, as well as the scarcity of\nwood and coal along its banks, its steadily rapid current,\nits tortuous course, its falling banks, timber imbedded in\nthe mud of its channel, and its constantly shifting sand\nbars, will ever prevent its waters from being extensively\nnavigated, how great soever may be the demand for it. In\nthat part of it which lies above the mouth of the Little\nMissouri and the tributaries flowing into it on either side,\nare said to be many charming and productive valleys,\nseparated from each other by secondary rocky ridges sparsely\ncovered with evergreen trees; and high over all, far in southwest, west and north-west, tower into [105] view, the ridges\nof the Rocky Mountains, whose inexhaustible magazines of\nice and snow have, from age to age, supplied these valleys\nwith refreshing springs \u00E2\u0080\u0094 and the Missouri \u00E2\u0080\u0094 the Great\nPlatte \u00E2\u0080\u0094 the Columbia \u00E2\u0080\u0094 and Western Colorado rivers with\ntheir tribute to the seas.\nLewis and Clark, on their way to Oregon in 1805, made\nthe Portage at the Great Falls eighteen miles. In this\ndistance the water descends three hundred and sixty-\ntwo feet. The first great pitch is ninety-eight feet, the\nsecond nineteen, the third forty-eight, and the fourth\ntwenty-six. Smaller rapids make up the remainder of\nthe descent. After passing over the Portage with their\nboats and baggage, they again entrusted themselves to the\nturbulent stream \u00E2\u0080\u0094 entered the chasms of the Rocky Mountains seventy-one miles above the upper rapids of the\nFalls, penetrated them one hundred and eighty miles,\nwith the mere force of their oars against the current, to\nGallatin, Madison and Jefferson's Forks \u00E2\u0080\u0094 and in the ^\n1839]\nFarnham's Travels\niii\nsame manner ascended Jefferson's River two hundred and\nforty-eight miles to the extreme head of navigation, making\nfrom the mouth of the Missouri, whence they started, three\nthousand and ninety-six [106] miles; four hundred and\ntwenty-nine of which lay among the sublime crags and\ncliffs of the mountains.48\nThe Great Platte has a course by its northern fork of\nabout one thousand five hundred miles; and by its southern\nfork somewhat more than that distance; from its entrance\ninto the Missouri to the junction of these forks about four\nhundred miles. The north fork rises in Wind River Mountain, north of the Great Pass through Long's range of the\nRocky Mountains, in latitude 420 north.49 The south fork\nrises one hundred miles west of James Peak, and within\nfifteen miles of the point where the Arkansas escapes from\nthe chasms of the mountains, in latitude 390 north.60 This\nriver is not navigable for steamboats at any season of the\nyear. In the spring floods, the batteaux of the American\nfur traders descend it from the forts on its forks. But even\nthis is so hazardous that they are beginning to prefer taking\ndown their furs in waggons by the way of the Konsas River\nto Westport, Missouri, thence by steamboat to St. Louis.\nDuring the summer and autumn months its waters are too\nshallow to float a canoe. In the winter it is bound in ice.\nUseless as it is for [107] purposes of navigation, it is destined to be of great value in another respect.\n48 Farnham is quoting from the Biddle (1814) edition of the journals of\nLewis and Clark. Consult R. G. Thwaites, Original Journals oj the Lewis and\nClark Expedition (New York, 1903-05), ii, pp. 159-339.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n\" For the sources of North Platte see James's Long's Expedition, our volume\nxv, pp. 234-236, with accompanying note.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n50 Long's expedition of 1819-20 followed the South Platte nearly to its source.\nSee our volume xv, pp. 241-305, especially p. 292, note 141. James's Peak was\nthe name bestowed by Long upon what is now known as Pike's Peak, because\nDr. Edwin James was the first to make the ascent. Fremont restored the name\nof Pike in 1843. See our volume xvi, pp. 11-36, especially note 15.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\nmm \u00E2\u0096\u00A07\n112\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nThe overland travel from the States to Oregon and California will find its great highway along its banks. So that\nin years to come, when the Federal Government shall take\npossession of its Territory West of the Mountains, the banks\nof this stream will be studded with fortified posts for the\nprotection of countless caravans of American citizens emi\ngrating thither to establish their abode; or of those that\nare willing to endure or destroy the petty tyranny of the\nCalifornian Government, for a residence in that most beautiful, productive country. Even now, loaded waggons can\npass without serious interruption from the mouth of the\nPlatte to navigable waters on the Columbia River in\nOregon, and the Bay of San Francisco, in California.61\nAs it may interest my readers to peruse a description of\nthese routes given me by different individuals who had often\ntravelled them, I will insert it: \"Land on the north side of\nthe mouth of the Platte; follow up that stream to the Forks,\nfour hundred miles; in this distance only one stream where\na raft will be needed, and that near the Missouri; all the\nrest fordable. At the Forks, take the north side of [108]\nthe North one; fourteen days' travel to the Black Hills;\nthence leaving the river's bank, strike off in a North West\ndirection to the Sweet-water branch, at \"Independence\nRock,\" (a large rock in the plain on which the old trappers\nmany years ago carved the word \"Independence\" and their\nown names; oval in form;) follow up the sweet-water three\ndays; cross it and go to its head; eight or ten days travel\nthis; then cross over westward to the head waters of a small\ncreek running southwardly into the Platte, thence westward to Big Sandy creek two days, (this creek is a large\n\u00C2\u00BBl For the first wagons on the Oregon Trail see De Smet's Letters, in our volume\nxxvii, p. 243, note 116. The Whitman party in 1836 succeeded in conveying\nwagons as far as Fort Boise, on Lewis River. There is no record that wagons had\ngone through to Walla Walla at the time of Farnham's journey.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. i\u00C2\u00AB39]\nFarnham's Travels\nll3\nstream coming from Wind river Mountains in the North;)\nthence one day to Little Sandy creek \u00E2\u0080\u0094 thence westward\nover three or four creeks to Green River, (Indian name\nSheetskadee,) strike it at the mouth of Horse creek \u00E2\u0080\u0094 follow it down three days to Pilot Bute; thence strike westward one day to Ham's Fork of Green River \u00E2\u0080\u0094 two days\nup Ham's Fork \u00E2\u0080\u0094 thence West one day to Muddy Branch\nof Great Bear River \u00E2\u0080\u0094 down it one day to Great Bear\nRiver \u00E2\u0080\u0094 down this four days to Soda Springs; turn to the\nright up a valley a quarter of a mile below the Soda Springs;\nfollow it up a north west direction two days to its head;\nthere take the left hand valley leading over the dividing\n[109] ridge; one day over to the waters of Snake River at\nFort Hall;62 thence down Snake River twenty days to the\njunction of the Lewis and Clark Rivers \u00E2\u0080\u0094 or twenty days\ntravel westwardly by the Mary's River \u00E2\u0080\u0094 thence through\na natural and easy passage in the California Mountains to\nthe navigable waters of the San Joiquin \u00E2\u0080\u0094 a noble stream\nemptying into the Bay of San Francisco.\" 6S\n52 This is a good brief description of the Oregon Trail as far as Fort Hall. See\nour volume xxi, Wyeth's Oregon, pp. 52, 53, and notes 32-34; also Townsend's\nNarrative, pp. 187-211, notes 36, 43, 44, 45, 51.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n68 This description regarding the California route shows the indefiniteness\nof the knowledge then current. No one is known to have passed t-tifa way save\nJedediah S. Smith (1827) and Joseph Walker, sent by Captain Bonneville (1833).\nWhen Bidwell and Bartleson went out in 1841, they found no one who could give\nthem detailed information of the route from Fort Hall to California, and they\nstumbled through the wilderness in great confusion. See John Bidwell, \"First\nEmigrant Train to California,\" in Century Magazine, xix (new series), pp. 106-\n129. Mary River is that now known as the Humboldt, which rises a hundred\nmiles west of Great Salt Lake and after a course of nearly three hundred miles\nwest and southwest flows into Humboldt Lake or Sink. This river was originally named Ogden for Peter Skeen Ogden, a Hudson Bay factor, whose Indian\nwife was known as Mary. The name Humboldt was assigned by Lieutenant\nFremont (1845), who does not appear to have connected it with Mary River, which\nhe sought the preceding year. This explorer also proved (1844) that the San\nJoaquin and other affluents of San Francisco Bay do not \"form a natural and easy\npassage \" through the California or Sierra Nevada Mountains.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n!*M.\nvt\nHi ii4\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nThe Platte therefore when considered in relation to our\nintercourse with the habitable countries on the Western\nOcean assumes an unequal importance among the streams\nof the Great Prairie Wilderness! But for it, it would be\nimpossible for man or beast to travel those arid plains,\ndestitute alike, of wood, water and grass, save what of each\nis found along its course. Upon the head waters of its\nNorth Fork, too, is the only way or opening in the Rocky\nmountains at all practicable for a carriage road through\nthem. That traversed by Lewis and Clark, is covered\nwith perpetual snow; that near the debouchure of the\nSouth Fork of the river is over high and nearly impassable\nprecipices; that travelled by myself farther south, is, and\never will be impassable for wheel carriages. But the Great\nGap, nearly [no] on a right line between the mouth of\nMissouri and Fort Hall on Clark's River \u00E2\u0080\u0094 the point\nwhere the trails to California and Oregon diverge \u00E2\u0080\u0094 seems\ndesigned by nature as the great gateway between the\nnations on the Atlantic and Pacific seas.64\nThe Red River has a course of about one thousand five\nhundred miles. It derives its name from a reddish colour\nof its water, produced by a rich red earth or marl in its\nbanks, far up in the Prairie Wilderness. So abundantly\nis this mingled with its waters during the spring freshets,\nthat as the floods retire, they leave upon the lands they have\noverflowed a deposit of half an inch in thickness. Three\nhundred miles from its mouth commences what is called\n\"The Raft,\" a covering formed by drift-wood, which conceals the whole river for an extent of about forty miles.\nAnd so deeply is this immense bridge covered with the sediment of the stream, that all kinds of vegetable common in\nits neighbourhood, even trees of a considerable size, are\nm By the \"Great Gap\" Farnham intends South Pass, for which see Wyeth's\nOregon in our volume xxi, p. 58, note 37.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n-\u00E2\u0080\u0094 1839]\nFarnham's Travels\nIJ5\ngrowing upon it. The annual inundations are said to be\ncutting a new channel near the hill. Steamboats ascend\nthe river to the Raft, and might go fifty leagues above, if\nthat obstruction were removed.66 Above this latter point\n[in] the river is said to be embarrassed by many rapids,\nshallows, falls, and sand-bars. Indeed, for seven hundred\nmiles its broad bed is represented to be an extensive and\nperfect sand-bar; or rather a series of sand-bars; among\nwhich during the summer months, the water stands in ponds.\nAs you approach the mountains, however, it becomes contracted within narrow limits over a gravelly bottom, and a\nswift, clear, and abundant stream. The waters of the Red\nRiver are so brackish when low, as to be unfit for common\nuse.\nThe Trinity River, the Brazos, and the Rio Colorado,\nhave each a course of about twelve hundred miles, rising in\nthe plains and mountains on the north and north-west side\nof Texas, and running south south-east into the Gulf of\nMexico.\nThe Rio Bravo del Norte 68 bounds the Great Prairie\nWilderness on the south and south-west. It is one thousand\nsix hundred and fifty miles long. The extent of its navigation is littie known. Lieutenant Pike remarks in regard to\nit, that \"for the extent of four or five hundred miles before\nyou arrive near the mountains, the bed of the river is extensive and a perfect sand-bar, which at a certain season is\ndry, at least the waters stand [112] in ponds, not affording\nsufficient to procure a running course. When you come\nnearer the mountains, you find the river contracted, a\ngravelly bottom and a deep navigable stream. From these\n66 For this obstruction, and the clearing of it, see our volume xvii, p. 70, note\n64. \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n\u00C2\u00BB For this river see Pattie's Personal Narrative in our volume xviii, p. 75, note\n45-\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. il\n116\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\ncircumstances it is evident that the sandy soil imbibes all\nthe waters which the sources project from the mountains,\nand render the river in dry seasons less navigable five hundred miles, than two hundred from its source.\" Perhaps\nwe should understand the Lieutenant to mean that five\nhundred miles of sand bar and two hundred miles immediately below its source being taken from its whole course,\nthe remainder, nine hundred and fifty miles, would be the\nlength of its navigable waters.67\nThe Arkansas, after the Missouri, is the most considerable\nriver of the country under consideration. It takes its rise\nin that cluster of secondary mountains which lie at the\neastern base of the Anahuac Ridge, in latitude 410 north \u00E2\u0080\u0094\neighty or ninety miles north-west of James Peak. It runs\nabout two hundred miles \u00E2\u0080\u0094 first in a southerly and then in\na south-easterly direction among these mountains; at one\ntime along the most charming valleys and at another through\nthe most awful chasms \u00E2\u0080\u0094 till it rushes from them with a\nfoaming [113] current in latitude 390 north. From the\nplace of its debouchure to its entrance into the Mississippi\nis a distance of 1981 miles; its total length 2173 miles.\nAbout fifty miles below a tributary of this stream, called\nthe Grand Saline,68 a series of sand-bars commence and run\ndown the river several hundred miles. Among them, during the dry season, the water stands in isolated pools, with\nno apparent current. But such is the quantity of water\n57 For a brief biography of Zebulon M. Pike, see our volume viii, p. 280, note\n122. The journals of his expedition have been edited by Elliott Coues, Expeditions oj Zebulon M. Pike (New York, 1895).\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n58 Anahuac was a native Mexican word originally applied to the low coastal\nlands, but gradually transferred to the great central plateau of Mexico, with its\nmountainous ranges. Farnham considers the Rocky Mountain range south of\nSouth Pass an integral part of this Mexican system, as it was in his time under\nthe Mexican government.\nThe Grand Saline branch of the Arkansas is probably intended for the Ne-\ngracka, now called Salt Fork. See our volume xvi, p. 243, note 114.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n117\nsent down from the mountains by this noble stream at the\ntime of the annual freshets, that there is sufficient depth,\neven upon these bars, to float large and heavy boats; and\nhaving once passed these obstructions, they can be taken\nup to the place where the river escapes from the crags of\nthe mountains. Boats intended to ascend the river, should\nstart from the mouth about the 1st of February. The\nArkansas will be useful in conveying munitions of war to\nour southern frontier. In the dry season, the waters of this\nriver are strongly impregnated with salt and nitre.\nThere are about 135,000 Indians inhabiting the Great\nPrairie. Wilderness,59 of whose social and civil condition,\nmanners and customs, &c. I will give a brief account. [114]\nIt would seem natural to commence with those tribes which\nreside in what is called \"The Indian Territory;\" a tract\nof country bounded south by the Red River, east by the\nStates of Arkansas and Missouri \u00E2\u0080\u0094 on the north-east and\nnorth by the Missouri and Punch Rivers,60 and west by\nthe western limit of habitable country on this side of the\nRocky Mountains. This the National Government has\npurchased of the indigenous tribes at specific prices; and\nunder treaty stipulations to pay them certain annuities in\ncash, and certain others in facilities for learning the useful arts, and for acquiring that knowledge of all kinds of\ntruth which will, as is supposed, in the end excite the wants,\ncreate the industry, and confer upon them the happiness\nof the civilized state.\nThese benevolent intentions of Government, however,\nhave a still wider reach. Soon after the English power\n69 This estimate of population would seem to be fair. Compare Gregg's tables\nin our volume xx, pp. 317-341, notes 204-215, compiled from the report of the Indian commissioner in 1844.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n\u00E2\u0080\u00A20 Ponca (Punca) Creek, which in 1837 formed the northern boundary of what\nwas known as \"Indian Territory.\" See our volume xxii, p. 291, note 253.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. n8\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nhad been extinguished here, the enlightened men who had\nraised over its ruins the temples of equal justice, began to\nmake efforts to restore to the Indians within the colonies the\nfew remaining rights that British injustice had left within\ntheir power to return; and so to exchange property with\nthem, as to [115] secure to the several States the right of\nsovereignty within their several limits, and to the Indians,\nthe functions of a sovereign power, restricted in this, that\nthe tribes should not sell their lands to other person or body\ncorporate, or civil authority, beside the Government of the\nUnited States; and in some other respects restricted, so as\nto preserve peace amongthe tribes, prevent tyranny, and lead\nthem to the greatest happiness they are capable of enjoying.81\nVarious and numerous were the efforts made to raise and\nameliorate their condition in their old haunts within the\nprecincts of the States. But a total or partial failure followed them all. In a few cases, indeed, there seemed a\ncertain prospect of final success, if the authorities of the\nStates in which they resided had permitted them to remain\nwhere they were. But as all experience tended to prove that\ntheir proximity to the whites induced among them more vice\nthan virtue.;; and as the General Government, before any\nattempts had been made to elevate them, had become\nbound to remove them from [116] many of the States in\nwhich they resided, both the welfare of the Indians, and the\nduty of the Government, urged their colonization in a portion of the western domain, where, freed from all questions\nof conflicting sovereignties, and under the protection of the\nUnion, and their own municipal regulations, they might\nfind a refuge from those influences which threatened the\nannihilation of their race.\n61 This is a gratuitous remark. The conduct of the British Government Will\ncompare most favourably with that of the United States. The English have not\nthought of hunting Indians with blood-hounds.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 English Ed. i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n119\nThe \"Indian Territory\" has been selected for this purpose. And assuredly if an inexhaustible soil, producing all\nthe necessaries of life in greater abundance, and with a\nthird less labour than they are produced in the Atlantic\nStates, with excellent water, fine groves of timber growing by the streams, rocky cliffs rising at convenient distances\nfor use among the deep alluvial plains, mines of iron and\nlead ore and coal, lakes and springs and streams of salt\nwater, and innumerable quantities of buffalo ranging\nthrough their lands, are sufficient indications that this country is a suitable dwelling-place for a race of men which is\npassing from the savage to the civilized condition, the Indian Territory has been well chosen as the home of these\nunfortunate people. Thither the Government, for the last\nthirty years, has been endeavouring [117] to induce those\nwithin the jurisdiction of the States to emigrate.82\nThe Government purchase the land which the emigrating\ntribes leave \u00E2\u0080\u0094 giving them others within the Territory;\ntransport them to their new abode; erect a portion of their\ndwellings; plough and fence a portion of their fields;\nfurnish them teachers of agriculture, and implements of\nhusbandry, horses, cattle, &c. ; erect schoolhouses, and\nsupport teachers in them the year round; make provision\nfor the subsistence of those who, by reason of their recent\nemigration, are unable to support themselves; and do\nevery other act of benevolence necessary to put within\ntheir ability to enjoy, not only all the physical comforts\nthat they left behind them, but also every requisite, facility,\nand encouragement to become a reasoning, cultivated, and\nhappy people.\nNor does this spirit of liberality stop here. The great\ndoctrine that Government is formed to confer upon its\n** See on this subject Gregg's Commerce oj the Prairies, in our volume xx, p. 300,\nnote 191.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. msm\n120\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nI \u00C3\u00A0\nsubjects a greater degree of happiness than they could\nenjoy in the natural state, has suggested that the system of\nhereditary chieftaincies, and its dependant evils among the\ntribes, should yield, as circumstances may permit, to the\nordination of nature, the supremacy [118] of intellect and\nvirtue. Accordingly, it is contemplated to use the most\nefficient means to abolish them, making the rulers elective,\nestablishing a form of government in each tribe, similar\nin department and duties to our State Governments, and\nuniting the tribes under a General Government, similar in\npowers and functions to that at Washington.83\nIt is encouraging to know that some of the tribes have\nadopted this system; and that the Government of the\nUnion has been so far encouraged to hope for its adoption\nby all those in the Indian Territory, that in 1837 orders\nwere issued from the Department of Indian affairs, to the\nSuperintendent of Surveys, to select and report a suitable\nplace for the Central Government. A selection was accordingly made of a clrarming and valuable tract of land\non the Osage river, about seven miles square; which, on\naccount of its equal distance from the northern and southern line of the Territory, and the beauty and excellence\nof the surrounding country, appears in every way adapted\nto its contemplated use. It is a little more than sixteen\nmiles from the western line of Missouri. Any member of\nthose tribes which come into the confederation, may own\nproperty in the district, and no other.84\nM See our volume xx, pp. 308-315, with accompanying notes.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\nM This plan for a general federation of the tribes west of the Mississippi was\npopular in 1836-37. Rev. Isaac McCoy was appointed agent and detailed to approach the tribes with explanations. He chose the site for a central government\nas here described by Farnham. See 25 Cong., 2 sess., Senate Docs., i, pp. 579-584.\nThe following year a change in the administration of the commissionership of\nIndian affairs brought about a reversal of policy. The difficulties were enlarged\nupon, and the reluctance of the more civilized tribes made an excuse for dropping\nthe project.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. 1839]\nFarnham' s Travels\n121\n[119] The indigenous, or native tribes of the Indian\nTerritory, are \u00E2\u0080\u0094 the Osages, about 5,510; the Kauzaus or\nCaws, 1,720; the Omahas, 1,400; the Otoe and Missouri,\n1,600; the Pawnee, 10,000; Puncah, 800; Quapaw, 600 \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nmaking 21,660. The tribes that have emigrated thither\nfrom the States, are \u00E2\u0080\u0094 the Choctaw, 15,600 (this estimate\nincludes 200 white men, married to Choctaw women, and\n600 negro slaves); the Chickasaws, 5,500; the Cherokees,\n22,000 (this estimate includes 1,200 negro slaves owned by\nthem); the Cherokees (including 900 slaves), 22,000; the\nCreeks (including 393 negro slaves) 22,500; the Senecas\nand Shawnees, 461; the Seminoles, 1,600; the Pottawa-\ntamies, 1,650; the Weas, 206; the Piankashas, 157; the\nPeorias and Kaskaskias, 142; the Ottawas, 240; the Shawnees, 823; the Del\u00C3\u00A0 wares, 921; the Kickapoos, 400; the\nSauks, 600; the Iowas, 1,000. It is to be understood that\nthe numbers assigned to these tribes represent only those\nportions of them which have actually removed to the Territory. Large numbers of several tribes are still within the\nborders of the States. It appears from the above tables,\nthen, that 72,200 have had lands assigned them; and,\nabating the relative [120] effects of births and deaths\namong them, in increasing or diminishing their numbers,\nare actually residing in the Territory. These, added to\n21,000 of the indigenous tribes, amount to 94,860 under\nthe fostering care of the Federal Government, in a fertile\nand delightful country, six hundred miles in length from\nnorth to south, and east and west from the frontier of the\nRepublic to the deserts of the mountains.\nThe Choctaw country lies in the extreme south of the\nTerritory. Its boundaries are \u00E2\u0080\u0094 on the south, the Red\nRiver, which separates it from the Republic of Texas; on\nthe west, by that line running from the Red River to the\nArkansas River, which separates the Indian American \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nHIS\n122\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nTerritory from that of Mexico;85 on the north, by the Arkansas and the Canadian Rivers; and on the east, by the State\nof Arkansas. This tract is capable of producing the most\nabundant crops, the small grains, Indian corn, flax, hemp,\ntobacco, cotton, &c. The western portion of it is poorly\nsupplied with timber; but all the distance from the Arkansas' frontier westward, two hundred miles, and extending\none hundred and sixty miles from its northern to its southern\nboundary, the country is capable of supporting [121] a\npopulation as dense as that of England. 19,200,000 acres\nof soil suitable for immediate settlement, and a third as\nmuch more to the westward that would produce the black\nlocust in ten years after planting, of sufficient size for\nfencing the very considerable part of it which is rich\nenough for agricultural purposes, will, doubtless, sustain\nany increased population of this tribe that can reasonably\nbe looked for during the next five hundred years.\nThey have suffered much from sickness incident to settlers in a new country. But there appear to be no natural\ncauses existing, which, in the known order of things, will\nrender their location permanently unhealthy. On the\nother hand, since they have become somewhat inured to\nthe change of climate, they are quite as healthy as the whites\nnear them; and are improving in civilization and comfort;\nhave many large farms; much live stock, such as horses,\nmules, cattle, sheep, and swine; three flouring-mills, two\ncotton-gins, eighty-eight looms, and two hundred and\ntwenty spinning-wheels; carts, waggons, and other farming\nutensils. Three or four thousand Choctaws have not yet\nsettled on the lands assigned to them. A part of these are\nin [122] Texas, between the rivers Brazos and Trinity, 300\nin number, who located themselves there in the time of the\ngeneral emigration; and others in divers places in Texas,\n66 That is, the one hundredth meridian of west longitude.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n123\nwho emigrated thither at various times twenty, thirty, and\nforty years ago. Still another band continues to reside east\nof the Mississippi.\nThe Choctaw Nation, as the tribe denominates itself, has\nadopted a written constitution of Government, similar to\nthe Constitution of the United States. Their Declaration\nof Rights secures to all ranks and sects equal rights, liberty\nof conscience, and trial by jury, &c. It may be altered or\namended by a National Council. They have divided their\ncountry into four judicial districts. Three of them annually\nelect nine, and the other thirteen, members of the National\nAssembly. They meet on the first Monday in October\nannually; organize by the election of a Speaker, the necessary clerks, a light-horseman (sergeant-at-arms), and doorkeeper; adopt by-laws, or rules for their governance, while\nin session; and make other regulations requisite for the\nsystematic transaction of business. The journals are kept\nin the English language; but in the progress of business are\nread off [123] in Choctaw. The preliminary of a law is,\n\"Be it enacted by the General Council of the Choctaw\nNation.\"\nBy the Constitution, the Government is composed of\nfour departments, viz.: Legislative, Executive, Judicial\nand Military. Three judges are elected in each district by\npopular vote, who hold inferior and superior courts within\ntheir respective districts. Ten light-horse men in each district perform the duties of sheriffs. An act has been passed\nfor the organization of the militia. Within each judicial\ndistrict an officer is elected, denominated a chief, who holds\nhis office for the term of four years. These chiefs have\nhonorary seats in the National Council. Their signatures\nare necessary to the passage of a law. If they veto an\nact, it may become a law by the concurrence of two-thirds\nof the Council. Thus have the influences of our institu- liiif\n124\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\ntions begun to tame and change the savages of the western\nwilderness.68\nAt the time when the lights of religion and science had\nscarcely begun to dawn upon them \u00E2\u0080\u0094 when they had scarcely\ndiscovered the clouds of ignorance that had walled every\navenue to rational life \u00E2\u0080\u0094 even while the dust of antiquated\nbarbarism was [124] still hanging upon their garments \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nand the night of ages, of sloth, and sin held them in its cold\nembraces \u00E2\u0080\u0094 the fires on the towers of this great temple of\ncivil freedom arrested their slumbering faculties, and they\nread on all the holy battlements, written with beams of\nliving light, \"All men are, and of right ought to be, free and\nequal.\" This teaching leads them. It was a pillar of fire\nmoving over the silent grave of the past \u00E2\u0080\u0094 enlightening the\nvista of coming years \u00E2\u0080\u0094 and, by its winning brightness,\ninviting them to rear in the Great Prairie wilderness, a\nsanctuary of republican liberty \u00E2\u0080\u0094 of equal laws \u00E2\u0080\u0094 in which\nto deposit the ark of their own future well-being.\nThe Chickasaws have become merged in the Choctaws.\nWhen they sold to the Government their lands east of the\nMississippi, they agreed to furnish themselves with a home.\nThis they have done in the western part of the Choctaw\n66 This constitution was adopted in 1838; later it was amended, and brought\nmore into harmony with the Cherokee constitution, which was modelled upon\nthat of Mississippi. The modified document provided for a single executive,\ncalled the principal chief, elected for two years, and ineligible for more than four\nyears in six; two houses of legislature; courts of judiciary, etc. After the War\nof Secession this constitution was further amended, slavery being then abolished.\nIn 1897 the Choctaw entered into the Atoka agreement with the commission to\nthe Five Civilized Tribes, whereby the judicial functions of their tribal government have passed to the United States courts erected in the territory. Tribal\ngovernment itself was to have ceased March 6, 1906; at that time, all lands\nbeing allotted, it was expected that the Choctaw became full-fledged American\ncitizens. But owing to complications involved in settling the estates, an act of\npostponement was passed by Congress in the spring of that year, providing that\n\"tribal existence and present tribal governments are continued in full force until\notherwise provided by law. ' ' See article, \"The End of the Civilized Tribes, ' ' in\nThe Independent (New York, 1906), lx, pp. ino, mi.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n125\ncountry for the sum of \u00C2\u00A3106,000. It is called the\nChickasaw district; and constitutes an integral part of\nthe Choctaw body politic in every respect, except that the\nChickasaws, like the Choctaws, received and invest for\ntheir own sole use, the annuities and other moneys proceeding from the sale of their lands east of the Mississippi.87\n[125] The treaty of 1830 provides for keeping forty\nChoctaw youths at school, under the direction of the President of the United States, for the term of twenty years.\nAlso, the sum of \u00C2\u00A3500 is to be applied to the support of\nthree teachers of schools among them for the same length\nof time. There is, also, an unexpended balance of former\nannuities, amounting to about \u00C2\u00A35,000, which is to be applied\nto the support of schools, at twelve different places. School-\nhouses have been erected for this purpose, and paid for,\nout of this fund. Also, by the treaty of 1825, they are\nentitled to an annuity of \u00C2\u00A31,200, for the support of schools\nwithin the Choctaw district.\nThe treaty of the 24th of May, 1834, provides that \u00C2\u00A3600\nannually, for fifteen years, shall be applied, under the direction of the Secretary of War, to the education of the Chickasaws. These people have become very wealthy, by the\ncession of their lands east of the Mississippi to the United\nStates. They have a large fund applicable to various\nobjects of civilization; \u00C2\u00A32,000 of which is, for the present,\napplied to purposes of education.68\nThe country assigned to the Cherokees is bounded as\nfollows: beginning on the [126] north bank of Arkansas\n87 On the Chickasaw see our volume xx, p. 310, note 199. The Chickasaw\nwere embraced in the Atoka agreement (see preceding note), and the allotment\nof their lands is about completed. As in succeeding paragraphs Farnham has\nhere changed the sums originally indicated in American currency to their corresponding equivalents in English money.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n68 On the subject of education and the Choctaw Academy see our volume\nxx, p. 306, with accompanying notes.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. u-mi\n126\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nill '\nRiver, where the western line of the State of Arkansas\ncrosses the river; thence north 70 35' west, along the line of\nthe State of Arkansas, seventy-seven miles to the south-west\ncorner of the State of Missouri; thence north along\nthe line of Missouri, eight miles to Seneca River; thence\nwest along the southern boundary of the Senecas to\nNeosho River; thence up said river to the Osage lands;\nthence west with the South boundary of the Osage lands,\ntwo hundred and eighty-eight and a half miles; thence\nsouth to the Creek lands, and east along the north line\nof the creeks, to a point about forty-three miles west of\nthe State of Arkansas, and twenty-five miles north of\nArkansas River, thence south to Verdigris River, thence\ndown Verdigris to Arkansas River; thence down Arkansas\nRiver to the mouth of Neosho River; thence South 530\nwest one mile; thence south 180 19' west thirty-three miles;\nthence south four miles, to the junction of the North Fork\nand Canadian Rivers; thence down the latter to the\nArkansas; and thence down the Arkansas, to the place\nof beginning.89\nThey also own a tract, described, by beginning at the\nsouth-east corner of the Osage lands, and running north with\nthe Osage line, fifty miles; thence east twenty-five [127] miles\nto the west line of Missouri; thence west twenty-five-miles,\nto the place of beginning.\nThey own numerous Salt Springs, three of which are\nworked by Cherokees. The amount of Salt manufactured\nis probably about 100 bushels per day. They also own two\nLead Mines. Their Salt Works and Lead Mines are in the\nEastern portion of their country. All the settlements yet\nformed are there also. It embraces about 2,500,000 acres.\nThey own about 20,000 head of cattle, 3,000 horses, 15,000\n\u00C2\u00AB\u00C2\u00BB This is an accurate description of the present boundary of the Cherokee\nNation, but \" state of Kansas \" should be read for \"Osage lands.\"\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. 1839]\nFarnham's Travels\n127\nhogs, 600 sheep, no waggons, often several ploughs to one\nfarm, several hundred spinning wheels, and one hundred\nlooms. Their fields are enclosed with rail fences. They\nhave erected for themselves good log dwellings, with stone\nchimenys and plank floors. Their houses are furnished\nwith plain tables, chairs, and bedsteads, and with table and\nkitchen furniture, nearly or quite equal to the dwellings of\nwhite people in new countries.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 They have seven native merchants, and one regular physician, [beside several \"quacks.\"\nHouses of entertainment, with neat and comfortable accommodation, are found among them.\nTheir settlements are divided into four districts, each of\nwhich elects for the term [128] of two years, two members\nof the National Council \u00E2\u0080\u0094 the title of which is, \"The\nGeneral Council of the Cherokee Nation.\" By law, it\nmeets annually on the first Monday in October. They\nhave three chiefs, which till lately have been chosen by the\nGeneral Council. Hereafter, they are to be elected by\nthe people. The approval of the chiefs is necessary to the\npassage of a law; but an act upon which they have fixed\ntheir veto, may become a law by a vote of two thirds of\nthe Council. The Council consists of two branches. The\nlower is denominated the Committee, and the upper, the\nCouncil. The concurrence of both is necessary to the\npassage of a law. The chiefs may call a Council at pleasure. In this, and in several other respects, they retain in\nsome degree the authority common to hereditary chiefs.\nTwo Judges belong to each district, who hold courts when\nnecessary. Two officers, denominated Light-horsemen,\nin each district perform the duties of Sheriffs. A company\nof six or seven Light-horsemen, the leader of whom is styled\ncaptain, constitute a National Corps of Regulators, to prevent\ninfractions of the law, and to bring offenders to justice.70\n70 Compare a similar description by Gregg in our volume xx, p. 306.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. 128\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nIt is stipulated in the treaty of the 6th [129] of May, 1823,\nthat the United States will pay \u00C2\u00A3400 annually to the Cherokees for ten years, to be expended under the direction of the\nPresident of the United States, in the education of their\nchildren, in their own country, in letters and mechanic arts.\nAlso \u00C2\u00A3200 toward the purchase of a printing-press and types.\nBy the treaty of December 29, 1835, the sum of \u00C2\u00A330,000 is\nprovided for the support of common schools, and such a\nliterary institution of a higher order as may be established\nin the Indian country. The above sum is to be added to an\neducation fund of \u00C2\u00A310,000 that previously existed, making\nthe sum of \u00C2\u00A340,000 which is to remain a permanent school\nfund, only the interest of which is to be consumed. The\napplication of this money is to be directed by the Cherokee\nNation, under the supervision of the President of the United\nStates. The interest of it will be sufficient constantly to\nkeep in a boarding-school two hundred children; or eight\nhundred, if boarded by their parents.\nThe country of the Creeks joins Canadian river, and the\nlands of the Choctaws on the south, and the Cherokee lands\non the east and north. Their eastern limit is about sixty-\ntwo miles from north to south; [130] their western limit the\nMexican boundary.71\nTheir country is fertile, and exhibits a healthy appearance;\nbut of the latter Creek emigrants who reached Arkansas in\nthe winter and spring of 1837, about two hundred died on\nthe road; and before the 1st of October succeeding the\narrival, about three thousand five hundred more fell victims to bilious fevers. In the same year three hundred of\nthe earlier emigrants died. They own salt springs, culti-\n71 In 1856 the Creeks ceded part of the western portion of their strip to the Seminole ; and again in 1866, both Creeks and Seminole ceded to the United States\na portion of their western territory, which makes a large part of the present Oklahoma. The Creek western boundary is, therefore, a trifle east of 970.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. 1839]\nFarnham's Travels\n129\nvate corn, vegetables, &c, spin, weave and sew, and follow other pursuits of civilised people. Many of them have\nlarge stocks of cattle. Before the crops of 1837 had been\ngathered, they had sold corn to the amount of upwards of\n\u00C2\u00A37,800; and vast quantities still remained unsold. Even\nthe emigrants who arrived in their country during the winter\nand spring, previous to the cropping season of 1837, broke\nthe turf, fenced their fields, raised their crops for the first\ntime on the soil, and sold their surplus of corn for \u00C2\u00A32,000.\nThey have two native merchants.\nThe civil government of this tribe is less perfect than\nthat of the Cherokees. There are two bands; the one\nunder Mcintosh, the other under Little Doctor.72 That led\n[131] by the former, brought with them from their old home\nwritten laws which they enforce as the laws of their band.\nThat under the latter, made written laws after their arrival.\nEach party holds a general council. The members of each\nare hereditary chiefs, and a class of men called councillors.\nEach of these great bands is divided into lesser ones; which\nseverally may hold courts, try civil and criminal causes,\nsentence, and execute, &c. Laws, however, are made\nby the general councils only; and it is becoming customary\nto entertain trials of cases before these bodies, and to detail\nsome of their members for executioners. The legislative,\n72 The Creek confederacy was divided into two parts, known as Upper and\nLower Creeks. The former were the chief aggressors in the Creek War of r8i3,\nwhich was in fact largely a civil outbreak. General William Mcintosh, half-\nbreed son of Roderick Mcintosh, a Highland emigrant to West Florida, was an\ninfluential chief of the Lower Creeks and loyal to the Americans. He led the\nparty favoring removal to Indian Territory, and signed the treaty of Indian\nSprings (1825) whereupon he was put to death by the band opposed to emigration. His sons Chilly and Roily Mcintosh became leaders of the emigration\nparty and removed west of the Mississippi (1826-27). One of the chiefs of the\nEastern band was Little Doctor, who volunteered to aid the United States in the\nSeminole War (1835-42). He came west with his band about r836. It was not\nuntil 1867 that the two factions united under a written constitution and a republican form of government.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n\u00C3\u00A8L 13\u00C2\u00B0\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\njudicial, and executive departments of their government\nare thus becoming strangely united in one.\nThe treaty of the 6th of March, 1832, stipulates that an\nannuity of \u00C2\u00A3600 shall be expended by the United States,\nunder the direction of the President, for the term of twenty\nyears, in the education of their children. Another \u00C2\u00A3200\nby the treaty of the 14th of February, 1833, is to be annually\nexpended during the pleasure of Congress for the same\nobject, under the direction of the President.\nIn location and government the Seminoles [132] are\nmerged in the Creeks.78 In the spring of 1836, about four\nhundred of them emigrated from the east, and settled on\nthe north fork of Canadian river. In October, 1837, they\nwere reduced by sickness nearly one-half. During these\nawful times of mortality among them, some of the dead\nwere deposited in the hollows of the standing and fallen\ntrees, and others, for want of these, were placed in a temporary inclosure of boards, on the open plains. Guns and\nother articles of property were often buried with the dead,\naccording to ancient custom; and so great is said to have\nbeen the terror of the time, that, having abandoned themselves awhile to their wailings around the burial-places of\ntheir friends, they fled to the western deserts till the\npestilence subsided. Of the two thousand and twenty-\nthree emigrants who had reached their new homes prior to\n73 The Seminole who made their home in Florida, were a branch of the Creeks.\nAfter the Creek War (1813-14) the majority of the hostiles made their way to the\nSeminole. When attempt was made to remove these tribesmen to Indian Territory (1832-34), they resisted sharply and finally war broke out which was prolonged until 1842. As various bands surrendered to the United States or were\ncaptured, they were sent out to the territory, so that by 1839 (the year of Farnham's journey) there were nineteen hundred Seminole among the Creeks. In\n1856 they attempted autonomy, and with the consent of the United States bought\n200,000 acres of Creek land; two years later the remainder of the band from Florida, under their chief Bowlegs, came out and joined their tribe. In 1881-82 they\nadded 175,000 acres to their tract.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. 1839]\nFarnham's Travels\nl3*\nOctober, 1832, not more than one thousand six hundred\nremained alive.\nThe Senecas consist of three bands, namely: Senecas\ntwo hundred, Senecas and Shawanoes two hundred and\neleven, Mohawks fifty; in all four hundred and sixty-one.\nThe lands of the Senecas proper adjoin those of the Cherokees on the south, [133] and abutting on the Missouri border, the distance of thirteen miles, extend north to Neosho\nriver. The lands of the mixed band of Senecas and Shawanoes, extend north between the State of Missouri and\nNeosho river, so far as to include sixty-thousand acres.74\nThese people, also, are in some measure civilized. Most\nof them speak English. They have fields inclosed with\nrail fences, and raise corn and vegetables sufficient for their\nown use. They own about eight-hundred horses, twelve\nhundred cattie, thirteen yoke of oxen, two hundred hogs,\nfive waggons, and sixty-seven ploughs; dwell in neat, hewn log\ncabins erected by themselves, and furnished with bedsteads,\nchairs, tables, &c, of their own manufacture; and own one\ngrist and saw-mill, erected at the expense of the United States.\nThe country of the Osages lies north of the western portion of the Cherokee lands, commencing twenty-five miles\nwest of the State of Missouri, and thence, in a width of fifty\nmiles, extends westward as far at the country can be inhabited. In 1817, they numbered ten thousand five hundred.\nWars with the Sioux, and other causes, have left only five\nthousand five hundred. [134] About half the tribe reside\non the eastern portion of their lands; the residue in the\nCherokee country, in two villages on Verdigris river.76\n74 The majority of the Seneca refused to leave New York State \u00E2\u0080\u0094 see our volume viii, p. 183, note 41; and volume xxiv, p. 163, note 176. The mixed bands\nin Kansas were removed to Indian Territory in 1867, and located on the Quapaw\nAgency. They are now citizens, having lands allotted in severalty (about 1889)\nin the northeastern part of Indian Territory.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n75 On the Osage see our volume v, p. 50, note 22. Their Kansas lands having mm\n132\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nii!\nThis tribe has made scarcely any improvement. Their\nfields are small and badly fenced. Their huts are constructed of poles inserted in the ground, bent together at\nthe top, and covered with bark, mats, &c, and some of\nthem with buffalo and elk skins. The fire is placed in\nthe centre, and the smoke escapes through an aperture at\nthe top. These huts are built - in villages, and crowded\ntogether without order or arrangement, and destitute of\nfurniture of any kind, except a platform raised about two\nfeet upon stakes set in the ground. This extends along\nthe side of the hut, and may serve for a seat, a table, or a\nbedstead. The leggings, and mocassins for the feet, are\nseldom worn except in cold weather, or when they are\ntravelling in the grass. These, with a temporary garment fastened about the loins, and extending downwards,\nand a buffalo robe or blanket thrown loosely around them,\nconstitute the sole wardrobe of the males and married\nfemales. The unmarried females wear also a strip of\nplain cloth eight or nine inches wide, which they throw\nover [135] one shoulder, draw it over the breasts, and\nfasten it under the opposite arm.\nThe Osages were, when the whites first knew them, brave,\nwarlike, and in the Indian sense of the term, in affluent\ncircumstances. They were the hardiest and fiercest enemies of the terrible Sioux; but their independent spirit is\ngone, and they have degenerated into the miserable condition of insolent, starving thieves. The government has\nbeen, and is making the most generous efforts to elevate\nthem. The treaty of 1825 provides, \" that the President\nof the United States shall employ such persons to aid the\nbecome very valuable, in 1865 they made a treaty ceding them to the United States,\nand removed to Indian Territory. Their reservation is now in northeast Oklahoma. They are the richest tribe in the United States, and for that reason somewhat unprogressive.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. mm\nFarnham's Travels\n!33\nOsages in their agricultural pursuits, as to him may seem\nexpedient.\" Under this stipulation, \u00C2\u00A3240 annually have\nbeen expended, for the last fifteen years. This bounty of\nthe government, however, has not been of any permanent\nbenefit to the tribe. The same treaty of 1825, required\nfifty-four sections of land to be laid off and sold under the\ndirection of the President of the United States, and the\nproceeds to be applied to the education of Osage children.\nEarly in the year 1838, government made an arrangement\nby which they were to be paid two dollars per acre, for the\nwhole tract of fifty-four sections, [136] 34,560 acres. This\ncommutation has secured to the Osage tribe, the sum of\n\u00C2\u00A313,824 for education; a princely fund for five thousand\nfive hundred and ten individuals. Government hereditary\nchieftaincies.\nThe band of Quapaws was originally connected with the\nOsages. Their lands lie immediately north of the Senecas\nand Shawanoes, and extend north between the state of\nMissouri on the east, and Neosho River on the west, so far\nas to include 96,000 acres. Their country is south-east of,\nand near to the country of the Osages. Their habits are\nsomewhat more improved, and their circumstances more\ncomfortable than those of the last named tribe. They subsist by industry at home, cultivate fields enclosed with rail\nfences; and about three-fourths of them have erected for\nthemselves small log dwellings with chimneys. Unfortunately for the Quapaws, they settled on the lands of the\nSenecas and Shawanoes, from which they must soon remove to their own. A small band of them, forty or fifty\nin number, have settied in Texas, and about thirty others\nlive among the Choctaws.78\nThe Pottawatamies, in emigrating to the west, have\nunfortunately been divided into two bands. One thousand\n76 For the Quapaw see our volume xiii, p. 117, note 84.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. BBS\u00C2\u00BB\"\nH\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nor fifteen hundred [137] have located themselves on the\nnorth-east side of the Missouri River, two hundred and\nforty miles from the country designated by government as\ntheir permanent residence. Negotiations have been made\nto effect their removal to their own lands, but without success. About fifteen hundred others have settled near the\nSauks, on the Mississippi, and manifest a desire to remain\nthere. The country designated for them lies on the sources\nof the Osage and Neosho rivers; it commences sixteen\nmiles and four chains west of the State of Missouri, and in\na width of twenty-four miles, extends west two hundred\nmiles. By the treaty of 1833, they are allowed the sum\nof \u00C2\u00A314,000 for purposes of education and the encouragement of the useful arts. Also by the same treaty, is\nsecured to them the sum of \u00C2\u00A330,000 to be applied in the\nerection of mills, farmhouses, Indian houses, and blacksmiths' shops; to the purchase of agricultural implements\nand live stock, and for the support of physicians, millers,\nfarmers, and blacksmiths, which the President of the United\nStates shall think proper to appoint to their service.77\nThe Weas and Piankashas are bands of Miamis. Their\ncountry lies north of the [138] Pottawatamies, adjoins the\nState of Missouri on the east, the Shawanoes on the north,\nand the Peorias and Kaskaskias on the west \u00E2\u0080\u0094 160,000 acres.\nThese people own a few cattle and swine. About one-half\nof their dwellings are constructed of logs, the remainder\nof bark, in the old native style. Their fields are enclosed\n77 For the early history of the Potawatomi see our volume i, p. 115, note 84;\nxxvii, p. 153, note 23 (De Smet). In 1837 a large tract was marked out for this tribe\nin southwest Miami County, Kansas, where they settled for ten years, and made\nimprovements, but they were again removed (1847) to a reservation in northeast Kansas, where in 1850 they were joined by a large accession from Michigan.\nIn 1861 a part of their lands was allotted, and a reservation in Jackson County\nsecured, whereon about six hundred still live. The Mission band removed to\nIndian Territory, and are now over sixteen hundred in number, citizens of Oklahoma. A few of the tribe yet remain in Michigan.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\nm 183 9]\nFarnham's Travels\n135\nwith rails, and they cultivate corn and vegetables sufficient\nfor a comfortable subsistence. The Piankasha band is\nless improved than the Weas. The former have a field of\nabout fifty acres, made by the government; the latter have\nmade their own improvements.\nThe Peorias and Kaskaskias are also bands of the Miamis.\nTheir land fies immediately west of the Weas; adjoins the\nShawanoes on the north, and the Ottowas on the west.\nThey own 96,000 acres. They are improving, live in log-\nhouses, have small fields generally enclosed with rail-fences,\nand own considerable numbers of cattle and swine.78\nThe lands of the Ottowas lie immediately west of the\nPeorias and Kaskaskias, and south of the Shawanoes.\nThe first band of emigrants received 36,000 acres, and one\nwhich arrived subsequently, 40,000 acres, adjoining the\nfirst. They all live in good [139] log cabins, have fields\nenclosed with rail-fences, raise a comfortable supply of\ncorn and garden vegetables, are beginning to raise wheat,\nhave horses, cattle and swine, a small grist-mill in operation,\nand many other conveniences of life, that indicate an increasing desire among them to seek from the soil, rather\nthan the chase, the means of life. About five thousand\nOttowas, residing in Michigan, are soon to be removed to\ntheir brethren in the Territory. The country of the Ottowas lies upon the western verge of the contemplated Indian\n78 For the early history of the Piankeshaw and Wea (Ouiatanon) Indians see\nCroghan's Journals in our volume i, pp. 117,142, notes 85 and 115 respectively.\nThey ceded their Indiana lands by 1818, and removed first to the vicinity of Ste.\nGenevi\u00C3\u00A8ve, Missouri, until in 1832 they emigrated to the present Miami County,\nKansas. In 1854 the greater part of their reservation was ceded to the United\nStates, and in 1867 they removed to the Quapaw Reserve, where a remnant still\nlive on allotted lands.\nj The Peoria and Kaskaskia were Illinois, not Miami bands\u00E2\u0080\u0094see our volume\nxxvi, pp. 97, 106, notes 63 and 71 respectively. When they removed from Illinois\n(1818) they confederated with the Piankeshaw and Wea, with whom they\nhave since been associated. In 1904 their population was reported as about two\nhundred.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. 136\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nsettlement, and consequently opens an unlimited range to\nthe westward. Their government is based on the old system of Indian chieftaincies.79\nImmediately on the north of the Weas and Piankashas\nthe Peorias and Kaskaskias and Ottowas, lies the country\nof the Shawnees, or Shawanoes. It extends along the line\nof the State of Missouri, north, twenty-eight miles to the\nMissouri River at its junction with the Konzas, thence\nto a point sixty miles on a direct course to the lands of the\nKauzaus, thence south on the Kauzaus line six miles, and\nfrom these lines, with a breadth of about nineteen miles to\na north and south line, one hundred and twenty miles west\nof the State of Missouri, [140] containing 1,600,000 acres.\nTheir principal settiements are on the north-east corner of\ntheir country, between the Missouri border and the Konzas\nRiver. Most of them live in neatly hewn log-cabins, erected\nby themselves, and partially supplied with furniture of their\nown manufacture. Their fields are inclosed with rail-\nfences, and sufficiently large to yield plentiful supplies of\ncorn and culinary vegetables. They keep cattle and swine,\nwork oxen, and use horses for draught, and own some\nploughs, waggons and carts. They have a saw and gristmill, erected by government at an expense of about \u00C2\u00A31,600.\nThis, like many other emigrant tribes, is much scattered.\nBesides the two bands on the Neosho, already mentioned,\n79 For the early habitat of the Ottawa see our volume i, p. 76, note 37. The\nband that removed west were a part of the Detroit Ottawa who had lived on Mau-\nmee River, Ohio, contiguous with the Miami and Potawatomi. By a treaty of\n1831 they agreed to remove to the Kansas region, and emigration thither was completed about 1836. Their reservation grew valuable and in 1867 the Ottawa\nmade a treaty with the federal government whereby in five years their lands were\nto be allotted, and the residue sold. Finding their position uncomfortable, they\npetitioned for a reservation and the remnant of the tribe removed to that of the\nQuapaw, in Indian Territory, where about two hundred now live on recently\nallotted lands. There is no evidence that any considerable number of Michigan Ottawa ever migrated to Kansas.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n**Mfe\u00C3\u0080i i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n!37\nthere is one on Trinity River, in Texas, and others in divers\nplaces.\nUnder the superintendance of Missionaries of various\ndenominations, these people are making considerable progress in Education and the Mechanic Arts. They have a\nprinting press among them, from which is issued a monthly\nperiodical, entitled the \"Shauwawnoue Kesauthwau\"\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nShawanoe Sun.80\nThe lands of the Del\u00C3\u00A0 wares lie north of the Shawanots, in\nthe forks of the Konzas [141] and Missouri Rivers; extending up the former to the Kauzaus lands, thence north\ntwenty-four miles, to the north-east corner of the Kauzaus\nsurvey, up the Missouri twenty-three miles, in a direct\ncourse to Cantonment Leavenworth, thence with a line\nwestward to a point ten miles north of the north-east corner\nof the Kauzaus survey, and then a slip not more than ten\nmiles wide, it extends westwardly along the northern boundary of the Kauzaus, two-hundred and ten miles from the\nState of Missouri.\nThey live in the eastern portion of their country, near\nthe junction of the Konzas and Missouri Rivers; have\ngood hewn log-houses, and some furniture in them; in-\n80 For the early history of the Shawnee see our volume i, p. 23, note 13. In\n1793 one portion of this tribe emigrated, together with a band of Delaware, to the\nwest of the Mississippi, where they dwelt on a Spanish grant near Cape Girardeau. In 1825 they relinquished this grant for the Kansas reservation described\nby Farnham, where they were joined (1832-33) by the remainder of the tribe from\nOhio. In 1854 they ceded their lands to the federal government, save a reservation of 200,000 acres, where they established a form of government and made\na body of laws. In 1869 about the half of the tribe bought lands of the Cherokee, and became incorporated with the latter tribe. A small band known as\nEastern Shawnee are on the Quapaw reservation, while the remainder have been\nallotted lands in Oklahoma, near the town of Shawnee. Methodists, Baptists,\nand Friends all established missions for the Shawnee \u00E2\u0080\u0094 see our volume xxvii,\np. 194, note 72 (De Smet), for the first-named denomination. The Baptist\nmission, begun in 1831, had a printing press (1834) whereupon Rev. Jotham\nMeeker printed several books after a phonographic system that he had adapted\nto their language.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. i38\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nclose their fields with rail fences; keep cattie and hogs;\napply horses to draught; use oxen and ploughs; cultivate\ncorn and garden vegetables, sufficient for use: have commenced the culture of wheat; and own a grist and saw-mill,\nerected by the United States. Some of these people remain\nin the Lake country; -a few are in Texas; about one-\nhundred reside on the Choctaw lands near Arkansas River,\none hundred and twenty miles west of the state of Arkansas.\nThese latter have acquired the [142] languages of the\nCumanches, Keaways, Pawnees, &c, and are extensively\nemployed as interpreters by traders from the Indian Territory. The Treaty of September, 1829, provides that thirty-\nsix sections of the best land within the district at that time\nceded to the United States, be selected and sold, and the proceeds applied to the support of Schools for the education of\nDelaware children. In the year 1838, the Delawares agreed\nto a commutation of two dollars per acre, which secures to\nthem an Education Fund of \u00C2\u00A39,000.81\nThe country of the Kauzaus lies on the Konzas River. It\ncommences sixty miles west of the State of Missouri, and\nthence, in a width of thirty miles, extends westward as far as\nthe plains can be inhabited. It is well watered and timbered ;\nand in every respect delightful. They are a lawle s, dissolute race. Formerly they committed many depredations\n81 For the early history of the Delaware see our volume xxii, p. 96, note 37. Before the Louisiana Purchase (1803) several bands had gone west of the Mississippi. In 1818 they ceded all their lands in the East, and migrated to Missouri,\nwhere they lived upon James Fork of White River, near the present Springfield.\nIn 1829 they were given a large cession between the Kansas and Missouri rivers,\nwhich they possessed until 1854. After the treaty of cession in that year, they\npreserved a considerable reservation, which was sold (1866) to the Union Pacific\nRailway Company, whereupon they bought land of the Cherokee, and became\nincorporated into the latter tribe, although in certain relations maintaining autonomy. The band that removed farther west (1829) are still among the Wichita,\nat Kiowa Agency. At the close of Wayne's campaign (1794-95), a considerable\nportion of the tribe removed to Canada, in company with the Moravian missionaries.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n139\nupon their own traders, and other persons ascending the\nMissouri River. But, being latterly restrained in this\nregard by the United States, they have turned their predatory operations upon their red neighbours. In language,\nhabits and condition in life, they are in effect the same as\nthe Osages. In [143] matters of peace and war, the two\ntribes are blended. They are virtually one people.\nLike the Osages, the Kauzaus are ignorant and wretched\nin the extreme; uncommonly servile, and easily managed by\nthe white men who reside among them.82 Almost all o\nthem live in villages of straw, bark, flag and earth huts.\nThese latter are in the form of a cone; wall two feet in\nthickness, supported by wooden pillars within. Like the\nother huts, these have no floor except the earth. The fire\nis built in the centre of the interior area. The smoke\nescapes at an opening in the apex of the cone. The door is\na mere hole, through which they crawl, closed by the skin\nof some animal suspended therein.88 They cultivate small\npatches of corn, beans and melons. They dig the ground\nwith hoes and sticks. Their fields generally, are not fenced.\nThey have one, however, of three hundred acres, which\nthe United States six years ago ploughed and fenced for\nthem. The principal Chiefs have log-houses built by the\nGovernment Agent.\nIt is encouraging, however, to know that these miserable\ncreatures are beginning to yield to the elevating influences\naround [144] them. A missionary has induced some of\nthem to leave the villages, make separate settlements, build\nlog-houses, &c. The United States have furnished them\nwith four yoke of oxen, one waggon, and other means of\n82 See descriptions of the Kansa villages in our volume xxi, pp. 48, 49 145-\n148.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n83 See our volume xiv, pp. 188-209, *ko *be cut \u00C2\u00B0f t^ interior of a Kansa lodge,\np. 208.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n\u00C3\u008E! 1\ni \"P?\n140\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\ncultivating the soil. They have succeeded in stealing a\nlarge number of horses and mules; .own a very few hogs;\nno stock cattle. By a treaty formed with them in 1825,\nthirty-six sections, or 23,040 acres, of good land were to be\nselected and sold to educate Kauzaus children within\ntheir territory. But proper care not having been taken\nin making the selection, 9,000 acres only have been sold.\nThe remaining 14,040 acres of the tract, it is said, will\nscarcely sell at any price, so utterly worthless is it. Hence\nonly \u00C2\u00A32,250 have been realised from this munificent\nappropriation. By the same treaty, provision was made\nfor the application of \u00C2\u00A3120 per annum, to aid them in\nagriculture.84\nThe Kickapoo lands lie on the north of the Del\u00C3\u00A0 wares;\nextend up the Missouri river thirty miles direct, thence westward about forty five miles, and thence south twenty miles\nto the Delaware line, embracing 768,000 acres.\nThey live on the south-eastern extremity [145] of their\nlands, near Cantonment Leavenworth.86 In regard to\ncivilization, their condition is similar to that of the Peorias.\nThey are raising a surplus of the grains, &c. have cattle and\nhogs, \u00C2\u00A3140 worth of the latter, and three hundred and forty\nhead of the former from the United States, in obedience to\ntreaty stipulations; have about thirty yoke of oxen, fourteen yoke of them purchased chiefly with the produce of\ntheir farms; have a saw and grist mill, erected by the United\nStates. Nearly one-half of the tribe are unsettled and scattered, some in Texas, others with the southern tribes, and\n81 The Missouri Methodists maintained a mission among the Kansa for several years succeeding 1830. The tribe became, however, much addicted to\nintemperance, and is now reduced to somewhat under two hundred. They are,\nhowever, wealthy, their allotment being 406 acres of land per capita, besides\ninterest from their fund.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n86 For Cantonment or Fort Leavenworth see our volume xxii, p. 253, note\n204. \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n\u00E2\u0080\u00A2\u00E2\u0080\u00A2** i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n141\nstill others ranging the mountains. The treaty of October\n24th, 1832, provides that the United States shall pay \u00C2\u00A3100\nper annum for ten successive years, for the support of a\nschool, purchase of books, &c. for the benefit of the Kickapoo tribe on their own lands. A school-house and teacher\nhave been furnished in conformity with this stipulation.\nThe same treaty provides \u00C2\u00A3200 for labour and improvements on the Kickapoo lands.88\nThe Sauks, and Reynards or Foxes, speak the same language, and are so perfectly consolidated by intermarriages\nand other ties of interest, as, in fact, to be one nation.87\n8,1 The early history of the Kickapoo is sketched in our volume i, p. 139, note\nin. By the treaty of 1819 they ceded all their lands east of the Mississippi for\na tract in Missouri, south of the Osage River, which in turn was exchanged (1832 )\nfor the tract described by Farnham; see our volume xxii, p. 254, note 206. This\nwas ceded in 1854, save a reservation of a hundred and fifty thousand acres in\nBrown County, Kansas. The Kickapoo have always been wanderers; about\n1832 a large band emigrated to Texas, later to Mexico, and have since been known\nas Mexican Kickapoo. About half of these were brought back, their descendants now living in Oklahoma, near the Shawnee.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n87 For the early history of the Sauk and Foxes, see our volume ii, p. 185, note\n85; or more particularly, Wisconsin Historical Collections, xvi, xvii. About the\nbeginning of the nineteenth century they were located on both banks of the Mississippi, from the mouth of the Wisconsin down to the mouth of the Missouri.\nBy the treaty of 1804 a large amount of land was ceded to the United States, but\nthe cession was repudiated by many of the tribe; during the War of 1812-15, these\nprotestants were among the hostiles. Treaties of peace (1815 and 1816) were\nconcluded with the two divisions of the tribe \u00E2\u0080\u0094 the Missouri and Rock River\nbands respectively. By the treaties of 1824, 1830, and 1836, the former relinquished all their Missouri territory for a reservation in Kansas and Nebraska,\nnorth of the Kickapoo; see Townsend's Narrative in our volume xxi, p. 122,\nnote 2. This was largely reduced by the treaty of 1861; so that there is now but\na small reservation in northern Brown County, Kansas, where about eighty of\nthe Missouri band still live and maintain a day school. The Rock River band\ndivided into two factions, under Keokuk and Black Hawk. The latter waged war\nwith the United States in 1832 (see Thwaites, \"Black Hawk War,\" in How George\nRogers Clark won the Northwest, pp. 115-198), after which a large cession of lands\nwas made. These the tribesmen attempted to recover (1836), but by 1842 they\nhad ceded all their Iowa lands. Migration had already begun (1840) to Kansas,\nwhere they settled upon Marais des Cygnes, in Osage County, the last Foxes\nremoving thither in 1847. Here the confederacy between the allied tribes, after\nexisting for over a hundred years, began to dissolve. The Sauk largely removed \u00E2\u0080\u0094m\nll\u00C3\u00AFfi\n142\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\n[146] They formerly owned the north-western half of the\nState of Illinois, and a large part of the State of Missouri.\nNo Indian tribe, except the Sioux, has shown such daring\nintrepidity, and such implacable hatred towards other\ntribes. Their enmity, when once excited, was never known\nto be appeased, till the arrow and tomahawk had for ever\nprostrated their foes. For centuries the prairies of Illinois\nand Iowa were the theatre of their extenninating prowess;\nand to them is to be attributed the almost entire destruction\nof the Missouris, the Illinois, Cahokias, Kaskaskias, and\nPeorias. They were, however, steady and sincere in their\nfriendship to the whites; and many is the honest old settler\non the borders of their old dominion, who mentions with\nthe warmest feelings, the respectful treatment he has received from them, while he cut the logs for his cabin, and\nploughed his \"potato patch\" on that lonely and unprotected\nfrontier.\nLike all the tribes, however, this also dwindles away at\nthe approach of the whites. A melancholy fact. The\nIndians' bones must enrich the soil, before the plough of\ncivilized man can open it. The noble heart, educated by\nthe tempest to [147] endure the last pang of departing life\nwithout a cringe of a muscle; that heart educated by his\ncondition to love with all the powers of being, and to hate\nwith the exasperated malignity of a demon; that heart,\neducated by the voice of its own existence \u00E2\u0080\u0094 the sweet\nwhisperings of the streams \u00E2\u0080\u0094 the holy flowers of spring \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nto Indian Territory, and in 1904 four hundred and ninety-one were dwelling upon\nallotted lands in Oklahoma. The Foxes had begun in 1853 to return to Iowa\nin small bands. Ingratiating themselves with the settlers, they purchased lands\non Iowa River, in Tama County; but not until 1867 did the federal government\nrecognize these as their legal residence. There are now about three hundred and\nfifty in this locality, somewhat progressive \u00E2\u0080\u0094 owning wagons, sewing-machines,\ntypewriters, etc. \u00E2\u0080\u0094 but still clinging to traditional customs, probably the most\nconservative of all tribesmen who have been so long in contact with the whites.\nSee \"Last of the Musquakes,\" in Iowa Historical Record, xvii, pp. 307-320.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. 1839]\nFarnham's Travels\n43\nto trust in, and adore the Great producing and sustaining\nCause of itself, and the broad world and the lights of the\nupper skies, must fatten the corn hills of a more civilized\nrace ! The sturdy plant of the wilderness droops under the\nenervating culture of the garden. The Indian is buried\nwith his arrows and bow.\nIn 1832 their friendly relations with their white neighbours\nwere, I believe, for the first time, seriously interrupted. A\ntreaty had been formed between the chiefs of the tribe and\ncommissioners, representing the United States, containing,\namong other stipulations, the sale of their lands north of\nthe Rock River, &c. in the State of Illinois. This tract of\ncountry contained the old villages and burial-places of the\ntribe. It was, indeed, the sanctuary of all that was venerable and sacred among them. They wintered and summered\nthere long before the date of their historical legends. And\non [148] these flowering plains the spoils of war \u00E2\u0080\u0094 the\nloves of early years \u00E2\u0080\u0094 every thing that delights man to\nremember of the past, clung closely to the tribe, and made\nthem dissatisfied with the sale. Black-Hawk was the principal chief. He, too, was unwilling to leave his village in a\ncharming glen, at the mouth of Rock River, and increased\nthe dissatisfaction of his people by declaring that \"the white\nchiefs had deceived himself and the other contracting chiefs\"\nin this, \"that he had never, and the other chiefs had never\nconsented to such a sale as the white chiefs had written, and\nwere attempting to enforce upon them.\" They dug up the\npainted tomahawk with great enthusiasm, and fought\nbravely by their noble old chief for their beautiful home.\nBut, in the order of nature, the plough must bury the hunter.\nAnd so [it was with this truly great chief and his brave tribe.\nThey were driven over the Mississippi to make room for the\nmarshalled host of veteran husbandmen, whose strong\nblows had levelled the forests of the Atlantic States; and H\n144\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nyet unwearied with planting the rose on the brow of the\nwilderness, demanded that the Prairies also should yield\nfood to their hungry sickles.88\n[149] The country assigned them as their permanent\nresidence, adjoins the southern boundary of the Kickapoos,\nand on the north and north east the Missouri river. They\nare but little improved. Under treaty stipulations, they\nhave some few houses and fields made for them by the United\nStates, and are entitled to more. Some live stock has been\ngiven them, and more is to be furnished. The main body\nof the Sauks, usually denominated the Sauks and Foxes,\nestimated at four thousand six hundred souls, reside on the\nIowa river, in Iowa Territory. They will ultimately be\nremoved to unappropriated lands adjoining those already\noccupied by their kindred within the Indian Territory.\nBoth these bands number twelve thousand four hundred.\nBy the treaty of Prairie du Chien of 1830, the Sauks are\nentitled to \u00C2\u00A3100 a year for the purposes of education. By\ntreaty of September, 1836, they are entitled to a schoolmaster, a farmer, and blacksmith, as long as the United\nStates shall deem proper. Three comfortable houses are\nto be erected for them, two hundred acres of prairie land\nfenced and ploughed, such agricultural implements furnished\nas they may need for five years, one ferry-boat, two hundred\nand [150] five head of cattle, one hundred stock hogs, and\na flouring mill. These benefits they are receiving, but are\nmaking an improvident use of them.\nThe country of the Iowas contains one hundred and\ntwenty-eight thousand acres adjoining the north eastern\nboundaries of the Sauks, with the Missouri river on the\nnorth east, and the great Nemaha river on the north. Their\n88 For Black Hawk and the uprising of his band see Townsend's Narrative\nin our volume xxi, p. 123, note 3; also Maximilian's Travels in our volume xxii,\npp. 217, 225, 228, with notes 127, 147, 151.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. i839]\nFarnham's Travels\nH5\ncondition is similar to that of the Sauks. The aid which\nthey have received, and are to receive from the government,\nis about the same in proportion to their numbers. The\nvillages of the Sauks and Iowas, are within two miles of\neach other.88\nThe Otoes are the descendants of the Missouris, with\nwhom they united after the reduction of the latter tribe by\nthe Sauks and Foxes. They claim a portion of land lying\nin the fork between Missouri and Great Platte rivers. The\ngovernment of the United States understand, however, that\ntheir lands extend southward from the Platte down the\nMissouri to Little Nemaha river, a distance of about forty\nmiles; thence their southern boundary extends westward up\nLittle Nemaha to its source, and thence due west. Their\nwestern and northern boundaries are not particularly [151]\ndefined. Their southern boundary is about twenty-five\nmiles north of the Iowa's land.90\nBy treaty, such of their tribe as are related to the whites,\nhave an interest in a tract adjoining the Missouri river, and\nextending from the Little Nemaha to the Great Nemaha, a\nlength of about twenty-eight miles, and ten miles wide.\nNo Indians reside on this tract.\nThe condition of this people is similar to that of the\nOsages and Kauzaus. The United States Government\n84 For the Iowa see Brackenridge's Journal in our volume vi, p. 51, note 13.\nThey were closely associated with the Sauk and Foxes, and in 1836 ceded all their\nIowa lands and removed to Kansas, where their reservation adjoined that of the\nformer. In 1854 and 1861 they ceded most of their new reservation, a small band\nremoving to Oklahoma with the Sauk, the majority still residing in Doniphan\nCounty, Kansas, where two hundred and twenty were reported in 1904. They\nhave a large preponderance of white blood, and now desire full citizenship.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n80 See on the Oto, our volume v, p. 74, note 42. This tribe several times changed\ntheir village site. First upon the Platte, in the time of Lewis and Clark (1804),\nthey removed to the site of Omaha, whence they had before 1819 returned to the\nPlatte. They finally settled on the site of Nebraska City, where they remained\nuntil 1854, when they retired to their reservation on the southeastern border of I M\nI46\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nhas fenced and ploughed for them one hundred and thirty\nacres of land. In 1838, they cultivated three hundred\nacres of corn. They own six ploughs, furnished by Government. Their progenitors, the Missouris, were, when the\nFrench first knew the country, the most numerous tribe in\nthe vicinity of Saint Louis; and the great stream, on whose\nbanks they reside, and the State which has risen upon their\nhunting grounds when the race is extinct, will bear their\nname to the generations of coming time. They are said\nto have been an energetic and thrifty race before they were\nvisited by the small-pox, and the destroying vengeance of\nthe Sauks and Foxes. The site of their ancient village is to\nbe seen on the north bank of the [152] river, honoured with\ntheir name, just below where Grand river now enters it.81\nTheir territory embraced the fertile country lying a considerable distance along the Missouri, above their village \u00E2\u0080\u0094 and\ndown to the mouth of the Osage, and thence to the Mississippi. The Osages consider them their inferiors, and treat\nthem oftentimes with great indignity. .\nThe Omahas own the country north of the mouth of the\nGreat Platte. The Missouri river is considered its northeastern limit; the northern and western boundaries are\nundefined. This tribe was formerly the terror of their\nneighbours. They had, in early times, about one thousand\nwarriors, and a proportionate number of women and children. But the small-pox visited them in 1802, and reduced\nthe tribe to about three hundred souls This so disheartened\nthose who survived, that they burnt their village and became\na wandering people. They have at last taken possession\nNebraska. Thence they migrated to Indian Territory. Their reservation there\nwas abolished in 1904, and made part of Pawnee and Noble counties, Oklahoma,\nwherein the Oto now dwell on their allotments. They have a good Indian school,\nand are reported bright and intelligent.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\na See our volume v, p. 56, note 26, for the site of this village.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n!47\nagain of their country, and built a village on the southwest bank of the Missouri, at a place chosen for them by\nthe United States. Their huts are constructed of earth,\nlike those of the Otoes. A treaty made with them in July,\n1830, provides that an annuity of five hundred [153] dollars\nshall be paid to them in agricultural implements, for ten\nyears thereafter, and longer if the President of the United\nStates thinks proper. A blacksmith also, is to be furnished\nthem for the same length of time. Another treaty obliges\nthe United States to plough and fence one hundred acres of\nland for them, and to expend, for the term of ten years,\n\u00C2\u00A3100 annually, in educating Omaha children.92\nThe Puncahs, or Ponsars, are the remnant of a nation of\nrespectable importance, formerly living upon Red river, of\nLake Winnipeg. Having been nearly destroyed by the\nSioux, they removed to the west side of the Missouri river,\nwhere they built a fortified village, and remained some\nyears; but being pursued by their ancient enemies, the\nSioux, and reduced by continual wars, they joined the\nOmahas, and so far lost their original character as to be\nundistinguished from them. They, however, after a while,\nresumed a separate existence, which they continue to maintain. They reside in the northern extremity of the Indian\nTerritory.93 Their circumstances are similar to those of\nthe Pawnees.\nw For the Omaha see our volume v, p. 86, note 49. Recent reports show that\nthe trust period will soon be ended, when they will become full-fledged citizens.\nThe system of leasing lands has been somewhat demoralizing, enabling them\nwhile idle to live in comfort.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\nM For the Ponca see our volume v, p. 96, note 63. Their migrations have been\ncarefully traced by J. O. Dorsey, \"Omaha Sociology,\" in U. S. Bureau of Ethnology Report, 1881-82, pp. 211-213. He does not find that they advanced as far\nas the Red River of the North \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Pipestone, Minnesota, was the northern limit\nof their wanderings- On their Nebraska history and their harrying by the Sioux,\nsee J. A. Barnett, \"Pon\u00C3\u00A7as,\" in Nebraska Historical Society Proceedings and Collections, 2nd series, ii, pp. 11-25.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. 148\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 2 8\nThe Pawnees own an extensive country lying west of the\nOtoes and Omahas, on [154] the Great Platte river. Then-\nvillages are upon this stream and its lower tributaries.\nThey are said to have about two thousand five hundred\nwarriors. Among them are still to be found every custom of\nold Indian fife. The earth-hut, the scalping-knife, the\ntomahawk, and the scalps of their foes dangling from the\nposts in their smoky dwellings, the wild war cries, the venerated medicine bag, with the calumet of peace, the sacred\nwampum that records their treaties, the feasts and dances of\npeace and of war, those of marriage and of sacrifice, the\nmoccasins, and leggings and war-caps, and horrid paintings;\nthe moons of the year, as March, the 'worm moon,' April,\nthe 'moon of plants,' May, the 'moon of flowers,' June, the\n'hot moon,' July, the 'buck moon,' August, the 'sturgeon\nmoon,' September, the 'corn moon,' October, the 'travelling moon,' November, the 'beaver moon,' December,\nthe 'hunting moon,' January, the 'cold moon,' February'\nthe ''snow moon,' and in reference to its phases, the \"dead\nmoon\" and \"live moon;\" and days are counted by \"sleeps,\"\nand their years by \"snows.\" In a word, the Pawnees are\nas yet unchanged by the enlightening influences of knowledge and [155] religion. The philanthropy of the United\nStates Government, however, is putting within their reach\nevery inducement to improvement. By treaty, \u00C2\u00A3400 worth\nof agricultural implements is to be furnished them annually\nfor the term of five years, or longer, at the discretion of the\nPresident of the United States; also, \u00C2\u00A3200 worth of live\nstock whenever the President shall believe them prepared\nto profit thereby; also, \u00C2\u00A3400 annually are to be expended to\nsupport two smitheries, with two smiths in each, for supplying iron, steel, &c, for the term of ten years; also four grist\nmills, propelled by horse power; also four farmers during\nthe term of five years. Also the sum of \u00C2\u00A3200 annually, for i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n149\nten years, is to be allowed for the support of schools among\nthem.94\nThese are the emigrant and native Indians within the\n\"Indian Territory,\" and their several conditions and circumstances, so far as I have been able to leam them. The\nother Indians in the Great Prairie Wilderness will be briefly\nnoticed under two divisions \u00E2\u0080\u0094 those living south, and those\nliving north of the Great Platte river.\nThere are living on the head waters of Red river, and\nbetween that river and the [156] Rio Bravo del Norte, the\nremains of twelve different tribes \u00E2\u0080\u0094 ten of which have an\naverage population of two hundred souls; none of them\nnumber more than four hundred. The Carankouas and\nTetaus, or Cumanches, are more numerous. The former\nlive about the Bay of St. Bernard. They were always inimical to the Mexicans and Spaniards; never would succumb\nto their authority, or receive their religious teachers. And\nmany hard batties were fought in maintaining their independence in these respects. In 1817, they amounted to\nabout three thousand, of which six hundred were warriors.9\nThe Cumanches are supposed to be twenty thousand\nM For the Pawnee see our volumes vi, p. 61, note 17; and xiv, p. 233, note 179.\nA visit to their villages is related in our volume xv, pp. 143-165. The treaty here\ndescribed was drawn up at the Pawnee village in 1833 by Commissioner Henry\nL. Ellsworth, the payments being in return for a cession of all their claims south\nofthe Platte. See also De Smet's Letters in our volume xxvii, pp. 207, 208, 210,\nnotes 81-83. \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n\" The Karankawa (Carancahua) were a tribe of Texan Indians whose habitat\nwas the bays and river-openings of the coast south and west from Galveston.\nThey were first known to Europeans through contact with La Salle's colonists,\nwhose remnant they captured. In the eighteenth century the Spanish attempted\nseveral missions to this people, but without much success; their contact with\nwhites appeared to have made them more sanguinary and ferocious, and increased\ntheir tendencies to cannibalism. Bad treatment by Lafitte's pirate colony made\nthem hostile to the Austin settlers, who in 1825 rallied and inflicted upon them\na severe defeat. They made part of the Mexican army in the attack on the Alamo,\nand after the conclusion of the war kept peace with the Texans through fear of\nthe latter's revenge. Successive hostilities, however, weakened their strength\n3fi\u00C2\u00AB i5\u00C2\u00B0\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nstrong. They are a brave vagrant tribe, and never reside\nbut a few days in a place, but travel north with the buffalo\nin the summer, and, as winter comes on, return with them\nto the plains west of Texas. They traverse the immense\nspace of country extending from the Trinity and Brazos to\nthe Red River, and the head waters of the Arkansas, and\nColorado to the west, to the Pacific Ocean, and thence to\nthe head streams of the Missouri, and thence to their winter haunts. They have tents made of neatly dressed skins,\nin the form of cones. These, when they stop, are pitched\nso as to [157] form streets and squares. They pitch and\nstrike these tents in an astonishingly short space of time.\nTo every tent is attached two pack-horses, the one to carry\nthe tent, and the other the polished cedar poles with which\nit is spread. These loaded in a trice \u00E2\u0080\u0094 the saddle horses\nharnessed in still less time \u00E2\u0080\u0094 twenty thousand savages \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nmen, women, and children, warriors and chiefs \u00E2\u0080\u0094 start at\na signal whoop, travel the day, again raise their city of tents\nto rest and feed themselves and animals for another march.98\nThus passes life with the Cumanches. Their plains are\ncovered with buffalo, elk, deer, and wild horses. It is said\nthat they drink the blood of the buffalo warm from the veins.\nand numbers, and after 1836 the few survivors took refuge in Mexico. There a\nremnant existed for some years, an attack upon them by some rancheros of Texas,\nin revenge for robbery, being noted as late as 1858. The tribe is now extinct,\nbut a vocabulary and a knowledge of their manners and customs have been preserved. Consult Peabody Museum of American Archaeology and Ethnology,\nHarvard University, Papers (Cambridge, 1891), i, no. 2.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n90 For the Comanche see our volume xvi, p. 233, note 109; also xviii, pp. 65-71;\nand xx, pp. 342-352. These \"Arabs of the Plains \" were first met by Louisiana\ncolonists in 1699. They had already adopted the horse, and become skillful\nriders. On the borders of Mexican and American settlements, they -alternately\nmade depredations upon each, as suited their purposes. The frontiers of Texas\nwere long harried by their raiding parties. It was not until 1875 that the last\nhostile band surrendered, and was settled on the Wichita reservation in Oklahoma,\nwhere they are still watched by troops stationed at Fort Sill. They are, however,\nbecoming sedentary, most of their land now being allotted.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n151\nThey also eat the liver in its raw state, using the gall as sauce.\nThe dress of the women is a long loose robe which reaches\nfrom the chin to the ground, made of deer skin dressed very\nneatly, and painted with figures of different colours and\nsignifications. The dress of the men is close pantaloons,\nand a hunting shirt or frock made of the same beautiful\nmaterial. They are a warlike and brave race, and stand in\nthe relation of conquerors among the tribes in the south.\nThe Spaniards of New Mexico [158] are all acquainted with\nthe strength of their enemy, and their power to punish those\nwhom they hate. For many are the scalps and death-dances\namong these Indians, which testify of wars and tomahawks\nwhich have dug tombs for that poor apology of European extraction. They are exceedingly fond of stealing the\nobjects of their enemies' affection. Female children are\nsought with the greatest avidity, and adopted or married.\n\"About sixty years ago,\" as the tale runs, \"the daughter\nof the Governor-General at Chilhuahua, was stolen by\nthem. The father immediately pursued, and by an agent,\nafter some weeks had elapsed, purchased her ransom. But\nshe refused to return to her parents, and sent them these\nwords: 'That the Indians had tattooed her face according\nto their style of beauty \u00E2\u0080\u0094 had given her to be the wife of a\nyoung man by whom she believed herself enceinte \u00E2\u0080\u0094 that\nher husband treated her well, and reconciled her to his\nmode of life \u00E2\u0080\u0094 that she would be made more unhappy by\nreturning to her father under these circumstances, than by\nremaining where she was.' She continued to five with her\nhusband in the nation, and raised a family of children.\"\n[159] There are the remains of fifteen or twenty tribes in\nthat part of the Great Prairie Wilderness north of the Great\nPlatte, and north and west of the Indian Territory. They\naverage about eight hundred each. The Sioux and the\nsmall-pox have reduced them thus. i\u00C3\u00872 Early Western Travels [Vol. 28\nThe Knistineaux chiefly reside in the British possessions\nalong the northern shores of Lake Superior. Some bands\nof them have established themselves south of latitude 490\nnorth, near the head waters of these branches of Red River\nof Lake Winnipeg, which rise south of the sources of the\nMississippi. They are moderate in stature, well proportioned, and of great activity. Mackenzie remarks that\ntheir countenances are frank and agreeable, that the females\nare well-formed, and their features are more regular and\ncomely than those of any other tribe he saw upon the continent. They are warlike \u00E2\u0080\u0094 number about three thousand ;\nbut the Sioux are annihilating them.97\nThe Sioux claim a country equal in extent to some of the\nmost powerful empires of Europe. Their boundaries\n\"commence at the Prairie du Chien, and ascend the\nMississippi on both sides to the River De [160] Corbeau,\nand up that to its source, from thence to the sources of\nthe St. Peter's, thence to the ' Montaigne de la Prairie,'\nthence to the Missouri, and down that river to the Omahas,\nthence to the sources of the River Des Moines, and thence\nto the place of beginning.\" They also claim a large\nterritory south of the Missouri.9'\n07 For the Knistineaux (Cr\u00C3\u00A9e) Indians see our volume ii, p. 168, note 75. Mackenzie is sketched in Franch\u00C3\u00A8re's Narrative, our volume vi, p. 185, note 4. \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n98 Farnham here quotes from Z. M. Pike, Account oj Expeditions to the Sources\noj the Mississippi River and through the Western Parts oj Louisiana (Baltimore,\n1810). See Coues's edition (New York, 1895), pp. 348-350. Our author has\nnot noted the more detailed boundary arranged by the treaty (1825) at Prairie du\nChien, under the supervision of William Clark and Lewis Cass, with Sioux, Chippewa, Sauk and Foxes, Iowa, etc.; this stood for years as the standard limit for\nthe Sioux tribe.\nRivi\u00C3\u00A8re de Corbeau was the present Crow Wing River, in upper Minnesota.\nRising in Hubbard County, flowing through Wadena, and forming the boundary\nbetween Cass, Todd, and Morrison counties, it enters the Mississippi opposite\nthe town of Crow Wing. By means of this river, there was reached a famous\nportage to Red River of the North; its affluent Leaf River was followed to a carrying trail leading over to Otter Tail Lake, one of the sources of the Red.\nFor the St. Peter's see our volume xxii, p. 342, note 315.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\nK i839]\nFarnham's Travels\nIS3\nThe country from Rum River *8 to the River de Corbeau is claimed by them and the Chippeways, and has been\nthe source of many bloody encounters for the past two hundred years. These Indians have conquered and destroyed\nimmense numbers of their race. They have swept the\nbanks of the Missouri from the Great Falls to the mouth of\nthe Great Platte and the plains that lie north of the latter\nstream, between the Black Hills and the Mississippi. They\nare divided into six bands, viz.: the Menowa Kontong,\nwhich resides around the falls of St. Anthony, and the\nlower portion of St. Peter's River; the Washpetong, still\nhigher on that stream; the Sussetong, on its head waters\nand those of Red River, of Lake Winnipeg; the Yanktons of\nthe north, who rove over the plains on the borders of the\nMissouri valley south of the sources of the St. Peter's;\nthe Yonktons Ahnah, who [161] live on the Missouri\nnear the entrance of James River; the Tetons Brulos;\nTetons Okandandas; Tetons Minnekincazzo, and Tetons\nSahone, who reside along the banks of the Missouri from\nthe Great Bend northward to the villages of the Riccarees.100\nTheirs is the country from which is derived the colouring\nmatter of that river. The plains are strongly impregnated\nwith Glauber salts, alum, copperas, and sulphur. In the\nspring of the year immense bluffs fall in the stream; and\nthese, together with the leachings from these medicated\nprairies, give to the waters their mud colour, and purgative\nqualities.\nS9 Rum River was so designated by Carver in 1767, and is the river which\nFather Louis Hennepin nearly a hundred years earlier designated River St.\nFrancis. It is the outlet of Mille Lacs, flows south and southeast, and unites with\nthe Mississippi at Anoka.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\nl\u00C2\u00B0\u00C2\u00B0 Farnham's classification of the Dakota bands is quite correct; see our volume\nxxii, pp. 278, 305, 326, notes 235, 263, 287. He follows Pike in his spelling of several of the tribal names, and Lewis and. Clark in naming the Teton bands.\nFor the location of the Ankara villages see our volume v, p. 127, note 83.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n1 *54\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nThese bands comprise about twenty-eight thousand souls.\nThey subsist upon buffalo meat, and the wild fruits of their\nforests. The former is prepared for winter, and for travelling use, in the following manner:\u00E2\u0080\u0094The lean parts of the\nbuffalo are cut into thin slices, dried over a slow fire, in the\nsun, or by exposing it to frost\u00E2\u0080\u0094pounded fine, and then,\nwith a portion of berries, mixed with an equal quantity\nof fat from the humps and brisket, or with marrow, in\na boiling state, and sewed up tightly in sacks of green\nhide, or packed closely in baskets of wicker work. This\ni pemican,\" as they call it, will keep [162] for several\nyears. They also use much of the wild rice, a vena fatua,\nwhich grows in great abundance on the St. Peter's, and\namong the lakes and head streams of Red River, of Winnipeg, and in other parts of their territory. It grows in water\nfrom four to seven feet deep with a muddy bottom. ' The\nplant rises from four to eight feet above the surface of the\nwater, about the size of the red cane of Tennessee, full of\njoints, and of the colour and texture of bull-rushes: the\nstalks above the water, and the branches which bear the\ngrain, resemble oats.101\nTo these strange grain fields the wild duck and geese\nresort for food in the summer. And to prevent it from\nbeing devoured by them, the Indians tie it, When the kernel is in the milky state, just below the head, into large\nbunches. This arrangement prevents these birds from\npressing the heads down within their reach. When ripe,\nthe Indians pass among it with canoes lined with blankets,\ninto which they bend the stalks, and whip off the grain with\nsticks; and so abundant is it, that an expert squaw will soon\nfill a canoe. After being gathered, it is dried and put into\n101 For wild rice, called by the French jolie avoine (Latin equivalent, avena\njatua) see Franch\u00C3\u00A8re's Narrative, our volume vi, p. 384, note 205, and reference\ntherein cited.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. i839]\nFarnham's Travels\nl55\nskins or baskets for use. They boil or parch it, and eat it in\nthe winter season [163] with their pemican. This plant\nis found no farther south than Illinois, no farther east than\nSandusky Bay, and north nearly to Hudson's Bay. The\nrivers and lakes of the Sioux and Chippeway country are\nsaid to produce annually several million bushels of it. It\nis equally as nutritious and palatable as the Carolina rice.\nCarver also says that the St. Peter's flows through a country\nproducing spontaneously all the necessaries of life in the\ngreatest abundance. Besides the wild rice, he informs us\nthat every part of the valley of that river \"is filled with trees\nbending under their loads of plums, grapes, and apples;\nthe meadows with hops, and many sorts of vegetables,\nwhile the ground is stored with edible roots, and covered\nwith such amazing quantities of sugar-maple, that they\nwould produce sugar enough for any number of inhabitants.\" 102\nMr. Carver seems to have been, to say the least, rather\nan enthusiastic admirer of nature; and although later\ntravellers in the country of the Naudowessies (Sioux) have\nnot been able to find grouped within it all the fruits and\nflowers of an Eden, yet that their lands lying on the Mississippi, the St. Peter's, and the Red Rivers, produce a luxurious\nvegetation, groves of fine timber separated [164] by open\nplains of the rich wild grasses, and by lakes and streams\nof pure water well stored with fish; that there are many\nvaluable edible roots there: and the whortleberry, blackberry, wild plum and crab-apple, other and later travellers\nhave seen and declared ; so that no doubt can be entertained\nthat this talented and victorious tribe possess a very desir-\n1M For Jonathan Carver see J. Long's Voyages, in our volume ii, p. 30, note 5.\nRecent investigation throws much doubt upon the authenticity of Carver's work,\nalthough it is probable that he made the journey up St. Peter's River; see Wisconsin Historical Society, Bulletin oj Injormation, no. 24 (January, 1905); also.\nAmerican Historical Review, xi, pp. 287-302.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\nM \u00C3\u00AF\tr<\n111\ni56\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nable and beautiful country. A revolted band of the Sioux\ncalled Osinipoilles, live near the Rocky Mountains upon the\nSascatchiwine river, a pleasant champaign country, abounding in game. They subsist by the chase, and the spoils of\nwar. Their number is estimated to be eight thousand.\nTheir dwellings are neat conical tents of tanned buffalo\nskins.103\nThe Chippewyans or Chippeways, were supposed by\nLewis and Clark to inhabit the country lying between the\n60th and 65th parallels of north latitude, and ioo\u00C2\u00B0 and no\u00C2\u00B0\nof west longitude.104 Other authorities, and I believe more\ncorrect, assert that they also occupy the head waters of the\nMississippi, Ottertail, and Leach, De Corbeau and Red\nrivers, and Winnipeg lake. They are a numerous tribe,\nspeak a copious language, are timorous, vagrant, and\nselfish; stature rather low; features coarse; hair [165] lank,\nand not unfrequently a sunburnt brown; women more\nagreeable (and who can doubt the fact) than the men; but\n*<\u00C2\u00BB For the Assiniboin, and their revolt from the Sioux, see Maximilian's Travels,\nin our volume xxii, p. 370, note 346.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n10* The Chippewayan and Chippewa belong to two distinct Indian families.\nThe former are of Athabascan (or Tinneh) stock, and range from Hudson Bay\nto the Pacific, and from the Saskatchewan to the Arctic. The Chippewa (Ojibwa,\nSaulteurs, see our volume ii, p. 79, note 38) are the largest and most important\nbranch of the Algonquian family, first being encountered by the French at the outlet of Lake Superior. According to tradition, their original habitat was the St.\nLawrence, whence they passed slowly westward to the Great Lakes. At Lake\nSuperior they divided, one portion going north and west to Lake Winnipeg, the\nother following the southern shore of the lake. For many years their chief settlement was at La Pointe on Chequamegon Bay. As allies of the French they\njoined in the French and Indian War and in Pontiac's Conspiracy\u00E2\u0080\u0094 see, J. Bain\n(ed ), Alexander Henry's Travels (Boston, 1901), pp. 79-106. They also aided\nthe English in the American Revolution and the War of 1812-15. In the eighteenth century they drove the Sioux from the upper waters of the Mississippi, and\nthe band known as Pillagers established themselves on Leach Lake. For the\nboundary between them and the Sioux see ante, p. 152, note 98. See Minnesota\nHistorical Collections, v, for complete history of this tribe. In Michigan, Wisconsin, and Minnesota, there are still about twenty thousand of these people, besides a large number in Canada.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. Il\n1839]\nFarnham's Travels\n157\nhave an awkward gait; which proceeds from their being\naccustomed, nine months in the year, to wear snow shoes,\nand drag sledges of a weight from two hundred to four\nhundred pounds. They are entirely submissive to their\nhusbands; and for very trifling causes are treated with\nsuch cruelty as to produce death! These people betroth\ntheir children when quite young; and when they arrive at\npuberty the ceremony of marriage is performed ; that is, the\nbridegroom pays the market price for his bride, and takes\nher to his lodge, not \"for better or for worse,\" but to put\nher away and take another when he pleases. Plurality\nof wives is customary among them. They generally wear\nthe hair long. The braves sometimes clip it in fantastic\nforms. The women always wear it of great length, braided\nin two queues, and dangling down the back. Jealous\nhusbands sometimes despoil them of these tresses. Both\nsexes make from one to four bars of lines upon the forehead or cheeks, by drawing a thread dipped in the proper\ncolour beneath the skin of those parts.\n[166] No people are more attentive to comfort in dress\nthan the Chippeways. It is composed of deer and fawn\nskins, dressed with the hair on, for the winter, and without\nthe hair for the summer wear. The male wardrobe consists of shoes, leggings, frock and cap, &c. The shoes are\nmade in the usual moccassin form, save that they sometimes\nuse the green instead of the tanned hide. The leggings are\nmade like the legs of pantaloons unconnected by a waistband. They reach to the waist; and are supported by a\nbelt. Under the belt a small piece of leather is drawn,\nwhich serves as an apron before and behind. The shoes\nand leggings are sewed together. In the former are put\nquantities of moose and reindeer hair; and additional\npieces of leather as socks. The frock or hunting shirt is\nin the form of a peasant's frock. When girded around the\nm\n-\n!r m\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nwaist it reaches to the middle of the thigh. The mittens\nare sewed to the sleeves, or suspended by strings from the\nshoulders. A kind of tippet surrounds the neck. The skin\nof the deer's head furnishes a curious covering to the head;\nand a robe made of several deer or fawn skins sewed\ntogether, covers the whole. This dress is worn single or\ndouble, as circumstances suggest; but in [167] winter the\nhair side of the undersuit is worn next the person, and that\nof the outer one without. Thus arrayed, the Chippeway\nwill lay himself down on the ice, in the middle of a lake,\nand repose in comfort; and when rested, and disencumbered of the snow-drifts which have covered him while\nasleep, he mounts his snow shoes, and travels on without\nfear of frosts or storm. The dress of the women differs\nfrom that of the men. Their leggings are tied below the\nknee; and their frock or chemise extends down to the ankle.\nMothers make these garments large enough about the\nshoulders to hold an infant; and when travelling carry\ntheir little ones upon their backs next the skin.\nTheir arms and domestic apparatus, in addition to guns,\n&c, obtained from the whites, are bows and arrows, fishing-\nnets, and lines made of green deer-skin thongs, and nets of\nthe same material for catching the beaver, as he escapes\nfrom his lodge into the water; and sledges and snow-shoes.\nThe snow-shoes are of very superior workmanship. The\ninner part of the frame is straight; the outer one curved;\nthe ends are brought to a point, and in front turned up.\nThis frame done, they are neatly placed [168] with light\nthongs of deer-skin. Their sledges are made of red fir-tree\nboards, neatly polished and turned up in front. The means\nof sustaining life in the country claimed by these Indians are\nabundant; and if sufficient forethought were used in laying\nin food for winter, they might live in comparative comfort.\nThe woodless hills are covered with a moss that sustains the\n^a-\nmm i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n59\ndeer and moose and reindeer; and when boiled, forms a\ngelatinous substance very acceptable to the human palate.105\nTheir streams and lakes are stored with the greatest abundance of valuable fish. But although more provident than\nany other Indians on the continent, they often suffer severely\nin the dead of winter, when, to prevent death from cold,\nthey fly from their fishing stations to their scanty woods.\nThey are superstitious in the extreme. Almost every\naction of their lives is influenced by some whimsical notion.\nThey believe in the existence of a good and evil spirit, that\nrule in their several departments over the fortunes of men;\nand in a state of future rewards and punishments. They\nhave an order of priests who administer the rites of their\nreligion \u00E2\u0080\u0094 offer sacrifices at their solemn feasts, &c.108\nThey have conjurors [169] who cure diseases \u00E2\u0080\u0094 as rheumatism, flux and consumption.\n\"The notion which these people entertain of the creation\nis of a very singular nature. They believe that at first the\nearth was one vast and entire ocean, inhabited by no living\ncreature except a mighty Bird, whose eyes were fire, whose\nglances were lightning, and the flapping of whose wings\nwas thunder. On his descent to the ocean, and touching\nit, the earth instantly arose, and remained on the surface\nof the waters. This omnipotent Bird then called forth all\nthe variety of animals from the earth except the Chippeways,\nwho were produced from a dog. And this circumstance\noccasions their aversion to the flesh of that animal, as well\nas the people who eat it. This extraordinary tradition\nproceeds to relate that the great Bird, having finished his\nwork, made an arrow, which was to be preserved with\ngreat care and to remain untouched; but that the Chippe-\nlm Tripe de roche, for which see our volume ii, p. 156, note 70.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n10\u00C2\u00BB Consult W. J. Hoffman, \"The Midewiwin or Grand Medicine Society of\nthe Ojibwa,\" in Bureau of Ethnology Report, 1885-86, pp. 143-300.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. ills\n160 Early Western Travels [Vol.28\nways were so devoid of understanding as to carry it away;\nand the sacrilege so enraged the great Bird that he has\nnever since appeared.\"\n\"They have also a tradition among them that they originally came from another [170] country, inhabited by very\nwicked people, and had traversed a great lake, which was\nnarrow, shallow and full of islands, where they had suffered\n. great misery \u00E2\u0080\u0094 it being always winter, with ice and deep\nsnow. At the Coppermine River, where they had made\nthe first land, the ground was covered with copper, over\nwhich a body of earth had since been collected to the depth\nof a man's height. They believe, also, that in ancient times\ntheir ancestors lived till their feet were worn out with walking, and their throats with eating. They describe a deluge\nwhen the waters spread over the whole earth, except the\nhighest mountains, on the top of which they preserved\nthemselves. They believe that immediately after their\ndeath they pass into another world, where they arrive at a\nlarge river, on which they embark in a stone canoe; and\nthat a gentle current bears them on to an extensive lake,\nin the centre of which is a most beautiful island; and that\nin view of this delightful abode they receive that judgement for their conduct during life, which determines their\nfinal state and unalterable allotment. If their good actions\nare declared to predominate, they are landed upon the\nisland, where there is to be no [171] end to their happiness;\nwhich, however, to their notion, consists in an eternal enjoyment of sensual pleasure and carnal gratification. But\nif there be bad actions to weigh down the balance, the stone\ncanoe sinks at once, and leaves them up to their chins in\nwater, to behold and regret the reward enjoyed by the good,\nand eternally struggling, but with unavailing endeavours,\nto reach the blissful island from which they are excluded for\never.\" i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n161\nIt would be interesting, in closing this notice of the Great\nPrairie wilderness, to give an account of the devoted Missionaries of the various denominations-who are labouring to\ncultivate the Indian in a manner which at once bespeaks\ntheir good sense and honest intentions. But, as it would\nrequire more space and time than can be devoted to it,\nmerely to present a skeleton view of their multifarious\ndoings, I shall only remark, in passing, that they appear to\nhave adopted, in their plan of operations, the principle\nthat to civilize these people, one of the first steps is to create\nand gratify those physical wants peculiar to the civilized\nstate; and also, that the most successful means of civilizing their mental state, is to teach them a language which\nis [172] filled with the learning, sciences, and the religion\nwhich has civilized Europe, that they may enter at once,\nand with the fullest vigour into the immense harvests of\nknowledge and virtue which past ages and superior races\nhave prepared for them.\nCHAPTER IV\nFort William \u00E2\u0080\u0094 its Structure, Owners, People, Animals, Business,\nAdventures, and Hazards \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Division \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A March \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Fort el Pue-\nbla \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Trappers and Whisky \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Genius \u00E2\u0080\u0094 An Adventurous Iroquois \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Kentuckian \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Horses and Servant \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Trade \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Start\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Arkansas and Country \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Wolfano Mountains \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Creeks \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Rio\nWolfano \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Plague of Egypt \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Cordilleras \u00E2\u0080\u0094 James's Peak \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nPike's Peak. \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Bath \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Prison of the Arkansas \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Entrance of\nthe Rocky Mountains \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Vale.\nFort William, or Bent's Fort, on the north side of the\nArkansas, eighty miles north by east from Taos in the Mexican dominions, and about one hundred and sixty miles\nfrom the mountains, was erected by gentlemen owners in\n1832, for purposes of trade with the Spaniards of Santa\nF\u00C3\u00A9 and Taos, and the Eutaw, Cheyenne and Cumanche\nIndians. It is in the form of a parallelogram, the northern\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 I\u00C3\u00942\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nand southern sides of which are about a hundred and fifty\nfeet, and the eastern and western a hundred feet in length.\nThe walls are six or seven feet in thickness at the base, and\nseventeen or eighteen feet in height. The fort is entered\nthrough [174] a large gateway on the eastern side, in which\nswing a pair of immense plank doors. At the north-west\nand south-east corners stand two cylindrical bastions,\nabout ten feet in diameter and thirty feet in height.\nThese are properly perforated for the use of cannon and\nsmall arms; and command the fort and the plains around\nit. The interior area is divided into two parts. The one\nand the larger of them occupies the north-eastern portion.\nIt is nearly a square. A range of two-story houses, the\nwell, and the blacksmith's shop are on the north side; on\nthe west and south are ranges of one-story houses; on the\neast the blacksmith's shop, the gate and the outer wall.\nThis is the place of business. Here the owners and their\nservants have their sleeping and cooking apartments, and\nhere are the storehouses. In this area the Indians in the\nseason of trade gather in large numbers and barter, and\ntrade, and buy, under the guardianship of the carronades\nof the bastions loaded with grape, and looking upon them.\nFrom this area a passage leads between the eastern outer\nwall and the one-story houses, to the caral or cavy-yard,\nwhich occupies the remainder of the space within the walls.\nThis is the [175] place for the horses, mules, &c, to repose\nin safety from Indian depredations at night. Beyond the\ncaral to the west and adjoining the wall, is the waggon-\nhouse. It is strongly built, and large enough to shelter\ntwelve or fifteen of those large vehicles which are used in\nconveying the peltries to St. Louis, and goods thence to\nthe post. The long drought of summer renders it necessary to protect them from the sun.\nThe walls of the fort, its bastions and houses, are con- i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n163\nstructed of adobies or unburnt bricks, cemented together\nwith a mortar of clay. The lower floors of the building\nare made of clay, a little moistened and beaten hard with\nlarge wooden mallets; the upper floors of the two-story\nhouses and the roofs of all are made in the same way and of\nthe same material, and are supported by heavy transverse\ntimbers covered with brush. The tops of the houses being\nflat and gravelled, furnish a fine promenade in the moonlight evenings of that charming climate. The number of\nmen employed in the business of this establishment is supposed to be about sixty. Fifteen or twenty of them in charge\nof one of the owners, are employed in taking to market the\nbuffalo robes, &c, which are gathered at the fort, [176] and\nin bringing back with them new stocks of goods for future\npurchases. . Another party is employed in hunting buffalo\nmeat in the neighbouring plains; and another in guarding\nthe animals while they cut their daily food on the banks of\nthe river. Others, under command of an experienced\ntrader, goes into some distant Indian camp to trade. One\nor more of the owners, and one or another of these parties\nwhich chances to be at the post, defend it and trade, keep\nthe books of the company, &c. Each of these parties\nencounters dangers and hardships, from which persons\nwithin the borders of civilization would shrink.\nThe country in which the fort is situated is in a manner\nthe common field of several tribes, unfriendly alike to one\nanother and the whites. The Eutaws and Cheyennes 107 of\nthe mountains near Santa F\u00C3\u00A9, and the Pawnees of the great\nPlatte, come to the Upper Arkansas to meet the buffalo in\ntheir annual migrations to the north; and on the trail of\nthese animals follow up the Cumanches. And thus in the\nmonths of June, August, and September, there are in the\n107 For the Ute (Eutaws) see De Smet's Letters in our volume xxvii, p. 165,\nnote 35. The Cheyenne are noted in our volume v, p. 140, note 88.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. m\nmfi\nk\n1\n164\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nneighbourhood of these traders from fifteen to twenty\nthousand savages ready and panting for [177] plunder and\nblood. If they engage in battling out old causes of contention among themselves, the Messrs. Bents feel comparatively safe in their solitary fortress. But if they spare each\nother's property and lives, they occasion great anxieties at\nFort William; every hour of day and night is pregnant with\ndanger. These untameable savages may drive beyond\nreach the buffalo on which the garrison subsists; may begirt\nthe fort with their legions, and cut off supplies; may prevent them from feeding their animals upon the plains; may\nbring upon them starvation and the gnawing their own flesh\nat the door of death ! All these are expectations, which as\nyet the ignorance alone of the Indians as to the weakness\nof the post, prevents from becoming realities. But at what\nmoment some chieftain or white desperado may give them\nthe requisite knowledge, is an uncertainty which occasions\nat Fort William many well-grounded fears for life and\nproperty.\nInstances of the daring intrepidity of the Cumanches\nwhich occurred just before and after my arrival here, will\nserve to show the hazards and dangers of which I have\nspoken. About the middle of June, 1839, a band of sixty\nof them, under cover of [178] night, crossed the river, and\nconcealed themselves among the bushes growing thickly\non the bank near the place where the animals of the establishment feed during the day. No sentinel being on duty at\nthe time, their presence was unobserved; and when morning came the Mexican horse-guard mounted his horse, and\nwith the noise and shouting usual with that class of servants\nwhen so employed, drove his charge out of the fort, and riding rapidly from side to side of the rear of the band, urged\nthem on, and soon had them nibbling the short dry grass in\na little vale within grape-shot distance of the guns of the 183 9]\nFarnham's Travels\n165\nbastions. It is customary for a guard of animals about these\ntrading-posts to take his station beyond his charge; and if\nthey stray from each other, or attempt to stroll too far,\nto drive them together, and thus keep them in the best\npossible situation to be hurried hastily to the caral,\nshould the Indians, or other evil persons, swoop down\nupon them. As there is constant danger of this, his horse\nis held by a long rope and grazes around him, that he may\nbe mounted quickly, at the first alarm, for a retreat within\nthe walls. The faithful guard at Bent's, on the morning of\nthe disaster [179] I am relating, had dismounted after driving out his animals, and sat upon the ground, watching with\nthe greatest fidelity for every call of duty, when these fifty\nor sixty Indians sprang from their hiding-places, ran upon\nthe animals, yelling horribly, and attempted to drive them\nacross the river. The guard, however, nothing daunted,\nmounted quickly, and drove his horse at full speed among\nthem. The mules and horses hearing his voice amidst\nthe frightening yells of the savages, immediately started\nat a lively pace for the fort; but the Indians were on all\nsides, and bewildered them. The guard still pressed them\nonward, and called for help; and on they rushed, despite\nthe efforts of the Indians to the contrary. The battlements\nwere covered with men. They shouted encouragement\nto the brave guard \u00E2\u0080\u0094 \"Onward! onward! \" and the injunction was obeyed. He spurred his horse to his greatest speed\nfrom side to side, and whipped the hindermost of the\nband with his leading rope. He had saved every animal;\nhe was within twenty yards of the open gate; he fell; three\narrows from the bows of the Cumanches had cloven his heart.\nRelieved of him, the lords of the quiver gathered [180] their\nprey, and drove them to the borders of Texas, without injury\nto life or limb. I saw this faithful guard's grave. He\nhad been buried a few days. The wolves had been digging i66\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\ninto it. Thus forty or fifty mules and horses, and their\nbest servant's life, were lost to the Messrs. Bents in a single\nday. I have been informed also that those horses and\nmules, which my Company had taken great pleasure in\nrecovering for them in the plains, were also stolen in a similar manner soon after my departure from the post; and\nthat gentlemen owners were in hourly expectation of an\nattack upon the fort itself.\nThe same liability to the loss of life and property attends\nthe trading expeditions to the encampments of the tribes.\nAn anecdote of this service was related to me. An old\ntrapper was sent from this fort to the Eutaw camp, with a\nwell-assorted stock of goods, and a body of men to guard it.\nAfter a tedious march among the snows and swollen streams\nand declivities of the mountain, he came in sight of the\nvillage. It was situated in a sunken valley, among the\nhideously [dark cliffs of the Eutaw mountains; and so\nsmall was it, and so deep, that the overhanging heights\n[181] not only protected it from the blasts \"of approaching\nwinter, but drew to their frozen embrace the falling snows,\nand left this valley its grasses and flowers, while their\nown awful heads were glittering with perpetual frosts.\nThe traders encamped upon a small swell of land that\noverlooked the smoking wigwams, and sent a deputation to\nthe chiefs to parley for the privilege of opening a trade with\nthe tribe. They were received with great haughtiness by\nthose monarchs of the wilderness, and were asked \"why\nthey had dared to enter the Eutaw mountains without their\npermission.\" Being answered that they \" had travelled\nfrom the fort to that place, in order to ask their highnesses'\npermission to trade with the Eutaws,\" the principal chief\nreplied, that no permission had been given to them to come\nthere, nor to remain. The interview ended, and the traders\nreturned to their camp with no very pleasant anticipations i839]\nFarnham' s Travels\n167\nas to the result of their expedition. Their baggage was\nplaced about for breastworks; their animals drawn in nearer,\nand tied firmly to stakes; and a patrol guard stationed, as\nthe evening shut in. Every preparation for the attack,\nwhich appeared determined upon on the part of the\nIndians, being [182] made, they waited for the first ray\nof day \u00E2\u0080\u0094 a signal of dreadful havoc among all the tribes\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 with the determined anxiety which fills the bosom,\nsharpens the sight, nerves the arm, and opens the ear to\nthe slightest rustle of a leaf, so remarkably, among the\ngrave, self-possessed, and brave traders of the Great\nPrairie and Mountain Wilderness.\nDuring the first part of the night the Indians hurrying\nto and fro through the village, their war speeches and war\ndances, and the painting their faces with red and black, in\nalternate stripes, and an occasional scout warily approaching\nthe camp of the whites, indicated an appetite for a conflict that appeared to fix, with prophetic certainty, the fate\nof the traders. Eight hundred Indians to fifty whites,\nmade fearful odds. The morning light streamed faintly\nup the east at last. The traders held their rifles with the\ngrasp of dying men. Another and another beam kindled\non the dark blue vault, and one by one quenched the stars.\nThe silence of the tomb rested on the world. They breathed\nheavily, with teeth set in terrible resolution. The hour \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nthe moment \u00E2\u0080\u0094 had arrived! Behind a projecting ledge,\nthe dusky forms of three or four hundred Eutaws undulated\nnear the ground, like herds [183] of bears intent on their\nprey. They approached the ledge, and for an instant lay\nflat on their faces, and motionless. Two or three of them\ngently raised their heads high enough to look over upon the\ncamp of the whites.\nThe day had broken over half the firmament; the rifles\nof the traders were levelled from behind the baggage, \u00E2\u0080\u0094\u00C2\u00ABSVP\ni 68\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\n\u00E2\u0096\u00BAira i\nand glistened faintly; a crack \u00E2\u0080\u0094 a whoop \u00E2\u0080\u0094 a shout \u00E2\u0080\u0094\na rout! The scalp of one of the peepers over the ledge\nhad been bored by the whistling lead from one of\nthe rifles \u00E2\u0080\u0094 the chief warrior had fallen. The Indians\nretreated to their camp, and the whites retained their\nposition, each watching the others movements. The\nposition of the traders was such as could command the\ncountry within long rifle-shot on all sides; the Indians,\ntherefore, declined an attack. The number of their foes,\nand perhaps some prudential consideration as to having an\nadvantageous location, prevented the traders from making\nan assault. Well would it have been for them had they\ncontinued to be careful. About nine o'clock, the warlike\nappearance gave place to signs of peace. Thirty or forty\nunarmed Indians, denuded of clothing and of paint, came\ntowards the [184] camp of the traders, singing and dancing,\nand bearing the Sacred Calumet, or Great Pipe of Peace.\nA chief bore it who had acted as lieutenant to the warrior\nthat had been shot. Its red marble bowl, its stem broad\nand long, and carved into hieroglyphics of various colours\nand significations, and adorned with feathers of beautiful\nbirds, was soon recognized by the traders, and secured the\nbearer and his attendants a reception into their camp. Both\nparties seated themselves in a great circle; the pipe was\nfilled with tobacco and herbs from the venerated medicine\nbag; the well-kindled coal was reverently placed upon the\nbowl; its sacred stem was then turned towards the heavens,\nto invite the Great Spirit to the solemn assembly, and to\nimplore his aid; it was then turned towards the earth, to\navert the influence of malicious demons; it was then borne\nin a horizontal position, till it completed a circle, to call to\ntheir help in the great smoke, the beneficent invisible agents\nwhich live on the earth, in the waters, and the upper air;\nthe chief took two whiffs, and blew the smoke first towards i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n169\nheaven, and then round upon the ground ; and so did dthers,\nuntil all had inhaled the smoke \u00E2\u0080\u0094 the breath of Indian [185]\nfidelity \u00E2\u0080\u0094 and blown it to the earth and heaven, loaded\nwith the pious vows that are supposed to mingle with it\nwhile it curls among the lungs near the heart. The chief\nthen rose and said, in the Spanish language, which the\nEutaws east of the mountains speak well, \"that he was\nanxious that peace might be restored between the parties;\nthat himself and people were desirous that the traders\nshould remain with them; and that if presents were made\nto him to the small amount of \u00C2\u00A3140, no objection would\nremain to the proposed proceedings of the whites; but on\nno account could they enter the Eutaw country without\npaying tribute in some form. They were in the Eutaw\ncountry, the tribute was due, they had killed a Eutaw chief,\nand the blood of a chief was due; but that the latter could\nbe compromised by a prompt compliance with his proposition in regard to the presents.\"\nThe chief trader was explicit in his reply. \"That he\nhad come into the country to sell goods, not to give them\naway; that no tribute could be paid to him or to any other\nEutaw; and that if fighting were a desideratum with the\nchief and his people, he would do his part to make [186] it\nsufficiently lively to be interesting.\" The council broke up\ntumultuously. The Indians carried back the wampum\nbelts to their camp, held war councils, and whipt and\ndanced around posts painted red, and recounted their\ndeeds of valour, and showed high in air, as they leaped\nin the frenzy of mimic warfare, the store of scalps that\ngarnished the doors of the family lodges; and around\ntheir camp-fires the following night were seen features\ndistorted with the most ghastly wrath. Indeed, the savages\nappeared resolved to destroy the whites. And as they\nwere able, by their superior numbers to do so, it was\nm 170\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nI III\ndeemed advisable to get beyond their reach, with all practicable haste.\nAt midnight, therefore, when the fires had smouldered\nlow, the traders saddled in silent haste, bound their bales\nupon their pack-mules, and departed while the wolves were\nhowling the hour; and succeeded by the dawn of day in\nreaching a gorge where they had expected the Indians (if\nthey had discovered their departure in season to reach it)\nwould oppose their retreat. On reconnoitering, however,\nit was found clear; and with joy they entered the defile,\nand beheld from its eastern opening, the wide cold plains,\nand the sun rising, red and cheerful, [187] on the distant\noutline of the morning sky. A few days after, they reached\nthe post \u00E2\u0080\u0094 not a little glad that their flesh was not rotting\nwith many who had been less successful than themselves,\nin escaping death at the hands of the Eutaws. For the\ninsults, robberies, and murders, committed by this and\nother tribes, the traders Bents have sought opportunities to\ntake well-measured vengeance: and liberally and bravely\nhave they often dealt it out. But the consequence seems to\nhave been the exciting of the bitterest enmity between the\nparties; which results in a little more inconvenience to the\ntraders than to the Indians; for the latter, to gratify their\npropensity to steal, and their hatred to the former, make an\nannualjlevy upon the cavy-yard of the fortress, which, as\nit contains usually from eighty to one hundred horses, mules,\n&c, furnishes to the men of the tomahawk a very comfortable and satisfactory retribution for the inhibition of the\nowners of them upon their immemorial right to rob and\nmurder, in manner and form as prescribed by the customs\nof their race.\nThe business within the walls of the post is done by\nclerks and traders. The former of these are more commonly young gentlemen [188] from the cities of the States;\n\u00C2\u00AB\u00E2\u0080\u00A2\u00E2\u0080\u00A2 i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n171\ntheir duty is to keep the books of the establishment. The\ntraders are generally selected from among those daring\nindividuals who have traversed the Prairie and Mountain\nWilderness with goods or traps, and understand the best\nmode of dealing with the Indians. Their duty is to weigh\nsugar, coffee, powder, &c, in a Connecticut pint-cup; and\nmeasure red baize, beads, &c, and speak the several Indian\nlanguages that have a name for beaver skins, buffalo robes,\nand money. They are as fine fellows as can anywhere be\nfound.\nFort William is owned by three brothers, by the name of\nBent, from St. Louis. Two of them were at the post when\nwe arrived. They seemed to be thoroughly initiated into\nIndian life; dressed like chiefs \u00E2\u0080\u0094 in moccasins thoroughly\ngarnished with beads and porcupine quills; in trousers of\ndeer skin, with long fringes of the same extending along\nthe outer seam from the ankle to the hip; in the splendid\nhuntmg-shirt of the same material, with sleeves fringed on\nthe elbow seam from the wrist to the shoulder, and ornamented with figures of porcupine quills of various colours,\nand leathern fringe around- the lower edge of the body.\nAnd [189] chiefs they were in the authority exercised in\ntheir wild and lonely fortress.\nA trading establishment to be known must be seen. A\nsolitary abode of men, seeking wealth in the teeth of danger\nand hardship, rearing its towers over the uncultivated wastes\nof nature, like an old baronial castle that has withstood the\nwars and desolations of centuries; Indian women tripping\naround its battlements in their glittering moccasins and\nlong deer skin wrappers; their children, with most perfect\nforms, and the carnation of the Saxon cheek struggling\nthrough the shading of the Indian, and chattering now\nIndian, and now Spanish or English; the grave owners and\ntheir clerks and traders, seated in the shade of the piazza, 172\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nsmoking the long native pipe, passing it from one to another,\ndrawing the precious smoke into the lungs by short hysterical\nsucks till filled, and then ejecting it through the nostrils; or\nit may be, seated around their rude table, spread with coffee\nor tea, jerked buffalo meat, and bread made of unbolted\nwheaten meal from Taos; or, after eating, laid comfortably\nupon their pallets of straw and Spanish blankets, and dreaming to the sweet notes of a flute; the old trappers withered\nwith [190] exposure to the rending elements, the half-tamed\nIndian, and half civilized Mexican servants, seated on the\nground around a large tin pan of dry meat, and a tankard\nof water, their only rations, relating adventures about the\nshores of Hudson's Bay, on the rivers Columbia and Mackenzie, in the Great Prairie Wilderness, and among the\nsnowy heights of the mountains; and delivering sage opinions about the destination of certain bands of buffalo; of the\ndistance to the Blackfoot country, and whether my wounded\nman was hurt as badly as Bill the mule was, when the\n\"meal party\" was fired upon by the Cumanches \u00E2\u0080\u0094 present\na tolerable idea of every thing within its walls.\nIf we add, the opening of the gates on a winter's morning \u00E2\u0080\u0094 the cautious sliding in and out of the Indians whose\ntents stand around the fort, till the whole area is filled six\nfeet deep with their long hanging^ black locks, and dark\nwatchful flashing eyes; and traders and clerks busy at their\nwork; and the patrols ^walking the battlements with loaded\nmuskets; and the guards in the bastions standing with\nburning matches by the carronades ; and when the sun\nsets, the Indians retiring again to their camp outside, to\ntalk over their newly purchased blankets [191] and beads,\nand to sing and drink and dance ; and the night sentinel on\nthe fort that treads his weary watch away; we shall present\na tolerable view of this post in the season of business.\nIt was summer time with man and beast when I was ?\ni839]\nFarnham's Travels\nJ73\nthere. The fine days spent in the enjoyment of its hospitalities were of great service to ourselves, and in recruiting\nour jaded animals. The man, too, who had been wounded\non the Santa F\u00C3\u00A9 trade, recovered astonishingly.\nThe mutineers, on the nth of July, started for Bent's\nFort, on the Platte;108 and myself, with three sound and\ngood men, and one wounded and bad one, strode our animals and took trail again for the mountains and Oregon\nTerritory. Five miles above Fort William, we came to\nFort El Puebla. It is constructed of adobies, and consists\nof a series of one-story houses built around a quadrangle,\nin the general style of those at Fort William. It belongs\nto a company of American and Mexican trappers, who,\nwearied with the service, have retired to this spot to spend\nthe remainder of their days in raising grain, vegetables,\nhorses, mules, &c, for the various [192] trading establishments in these regions. And as the Arkansas, some four\nmiles above the post, can be turned from its course over\nlarge tracts of rich land, these individuals might realize the\nhappiest results from their industry; \u00E2\u0080\u0094 for, as it is impossible, from the looseness of the soil and the scarcity of rain,\nto raise any thing thereabout without irrigation; and, as\nthis is the only spot, for a long distance up and down the\n108 Bent's Fort, on the South Platte, is usually spoken of as St. Vrain's, being in\ncharge of one of the brothers by that name, who were partners of the Bents. It\nwas situated on the right bank of the river near the easterly bend of the stream,\nabout opposite the mouth of St. Vrain's Creek, and some seventeen miles east of\nLong s Peak. The site is still a landmark, being near the present Platteville,\nWeld County. Fremont visited this fort on his journeys of T842 and 1843, and\nwas hospitably entertained. Shortess, who went with what Farnham calls the\n\"mutineers,\" says they were detained six weeks at Fort St. Vrain, awaiting a party\nbound for Green River. At this fort Dr. F. Adolph Wislizenus found them September 3, 1839, on his return journey from the mountains; see his Ein Ausflug\nnach den Felsen-Gebirgen (St. Louis, 1840), a somewhat rare but interesting narrative of his journey, written in German. He speaks of the fort as Perm's (Bents)\nand Savory's, and found two other rival posts in the vicinity. This post was also\nknown as Fort George.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\nm *74\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\n11\nArkansas, where any considerable tracts of land can be\nwatered, they could supply the market with these articles\nwithout any fear of competition.109\nBut these, like the results of many honest intentions, are\nwholly crippled by want of capital and a superabundance\nof whisky. The proprietors are poor, and when the keg\nis on tap, dream away their existence under its dangerous\nfascinations. Hence it is that these men, destitute of the\nmeans to carry out their designs in regard to farming, have\nfound themselves not wholly unemployed in drunkenness;\na substitute which many other individuals have before been\nknown to prefer. They have, however, a small stock; consisting of horses and mules, cattle, sheep, and goats; and\nstill maintain their original intention of irrigating and cultivating [193] the land in the vicinity of their establishment.\nWe arrived here about four o'clock in the afternoon ; and,\nbeing desirous of purchasing a horse for one of the men,\nand making some farther arrangements for my journey, I\ndetermined to stop for the night. At this place I found a\nnumber of independent trappers, who after the spring-hunt\nhad come down from the mountains, taken rooms free of rent,\nstored their fur, and opened a trade for whisky. One skin,\nvalued at four dollars, buys in that market one pint of\nwhisky; no more, no less. Unless, indeed, some theorists\nin the vanity of their dogmas, may consider it less, when\nplentifully mollified with water; a process that increases\nin value, as the faucet falters in the energy of its action ;\nfor the seller knows, that if the pure liquid should so\nmollify the whisky, as to delay the hopes of merriment\ntoo long, another beaver-skin will be taken from the jolly\n109 This was a temporary fort, being maintained but a few years. Wislizenus\nspeaks of it as being four miles above St. Vrain's, and occupied by French-Canadian\nand Mexican trappers. Farnham's observation of the irrigable capacity of this\nregion was correct. Storage reservoirs now hold the water, and the valley is\nespecially adapted to fruit raising.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. i \u00C2\u00BB39]\nFarnham's Travels\n^75\ntrapper's pack, and another quantity of the joyful mixture\nobtained. Thus matters will proceed, until the stores of\nfurs, the hardships of the hunt, the toils and exposures of\ntrapping, the icy streams of the wilderness, the bloody fight,\nfoot to foot, with the knife and tomahawk, [194] and the\nlong days and nights of thirst and starvation are satisfactorily cancelled in the dreamy felicity which whisky, rum,\ngin, brandy and ipecacuanha, if properly administered, are\naccustomed to produce.\nOne of these trappers was from New Hampshire; he had\nbeen educated at Dartmouth College, and was altogether\none of the most remarkable men I ever knew. A splendid\ngentleman, a finished scholar, a critic on English and Roman literature, a politician, a trapper, an Indian! His\nstature was something more than six feet; his shoulders\nand chest were broad, and his arms and lower limbs well\nformed, and very muscular. His forehead was high and\nexpansive; Causality, Comparison, Eventuality, and all\nthe perceptive organs, (to use a phrenological description),\nremarkably large. Locality was, however, larger than any\nother organ in the frontal region. Benevolence, Wonder,\nIdeality, Secretiveness, Destructiveness, and Adhesiveness,\nCombativeness, Self-Esteem and Hope were very high.\nThe remaining organs were low. His head was clothed\nwith hair as black as jet, two and a half feet in length,\nsmoothly combed, and hanging down his back. He [195]\nwas dressed in a deer-skin frock, leggings and moccasins;\nnot a shred of cloth about his person. On my first interview with him, he addressed me with the stiff, cold formality\nof one conscious of his own importance; and, in a manner\nthat he thought unobserved, scrutinized the movement of\nevery muscle of my face, and every word which I uttered.\nWhen any thing was said of political events in the States or\nEurope, he gave silent and intense attention.\nm\u00C3\u008ASm 176\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nI left him without any very good impressions of his character; for I had induced him to open his compressed mouth\nbut once, and then to make*the no very agreeable inquiries,\n\"When do you start?\" and \"What route do you take?\"\nAt my second interview,. he was more familiar. Having\nascertained that he was proud of his learning, I approached\nhim through that medium. He seemed pleased at this compliment to his superiority over those around him, and at\nonce became easy and talkative. His \"Alma Mater\" was\ndescribed and redescribed; all the fields, and walks, and\nrivulets, the beautiful Connecticut, the evergreen primitive ridges lying along its banks, which, he said, \"had\nsmiled for a thousand ages on the march of decay; \" were\nsuccessive [196] themes of his vast imagination. His descriptions were minute and exquisite. He saw in every thing all\nthat Science sees, together with all that his capacious intellect, instructed and imbued with the wild fancyings and\nlegends of his race, could see. I inquired the reason of his\nleaving civilized life for a precarious livelihood in the wilderness. \"For reasons found in the nature of my race,\" he\nreplied. \"The Indian's eye cannot be satisfied with a\ndescription of things, how beautiful soever may be the style,\nor the harmonies of verse in which it is conveyed. For\nneither the periods of burning eloquence, nor the mighty\nand beautiful creations of the imagination, can unbosom\nthe treasures and realities as they live in their own native\nmagnificence on the eternal mountains, and in the secret,\nuntrodden vale.\n\"As soon as you thrust the ploughshare under the earth,\nit teems with worms and useless weeds. It increases population to an unnatural extent; creates the necessity of penal\nenactments, builds the jail, erects the gallows, spreads over\nthe human face a mask of deception and selfishness, and\nsubstitutes villany, love of wealth and power, and the w\n1839]\nFarnham' s Travels\n177\nslaughter of millions for the gratification [197] of some\nindividual instead of the single-minded honesty, the hospitality, the honour and the purity of the natural state.\nHence, wherever Agriculture appears, the increase of\nmoral and physical wretchedness induces the thousands\nof necessities, as they are termed, for abridging human\nliberty; for fettering down the mind to the principles of\nright, derived, not from nature, but from a restrained\nand forced condition of existence. And hence my race,\nwith mental and physical habits as free as the waters which\nflow from the hills, become restive under the rules of civilized life ; dwindle to their graves under the control of laws,\ncustoms, and forms, which have grown out of the endless\nvices, and the factitious virtue of another race. Red men\noften acquire and love the Sciences. But with the nature\nwhich the Great Spirit has given them, what are all their\ntruths to them? Would an Indian ever measure the height\nof a mountain that he could climb? No, never. The\nlegends of his tribe tell him nothing about quadrants, and\nbase lines and angles. Their old braves, however, have\nfor ages watched from the cliffs, the green life in the spring,\nand the yellow death in the autumn, of their holy forests.\nWhy should he ever calculate an eclipse? He [198] always\nknew such occurrences to be the doings of the Great Spirit.\n\"Science, it is true, can tell the times and seasons of their\ncoming; but the Indian, when they do occur, looks through\nnature, without the aid of science, up to its cause. Of\nwhat use is a Lunar to him? His swift canoe has the green\nembowered shores, and well-known headlands, to guide its\ncourse. In fine, what are the arts of peace, of war, of agriculture, or any thing civilized, to him ? His nature and its\nelements, like the pine which shadows its wigwam, are too\nmighty, too grand, of too strong a fibre, to form a stock on\nwhich to engraft the rose or the violet of polished life. No. 178 Early Western Travels [Vol. 28\nI must range the hills, I must always be able to out-travel\nmy horses, I must always be able to strip my own wardrobe\nfrom the backs of the deer and buffalo, and to feed upon\ntheir rich loins; I must always be able to punish my enemy\nwith my own hand, or I am no longer an Indian. And if\nI am any thing else, I am a mere imitation of an ape.\"\nThe enthusiasm with which these sentiments were uttered\nimpressed me with an awe I had never previously felt for\nthe unborrowed dignity and independence of the genuine,\noriginal character [199] of the American Indians. Enfeebled, and reduced to a state of dependence by disease\nand the crowding hosts of civilized men, we find among\nthem still, too much of their own, to adopt the character\nof another race, too much bravery to feel like a conquered\npeople, and a preference of annihilation to the abandonment\nof that course of life, consecrated by a thousand generations\nof venerated ancestors.\nThis Indian has been trapping among the Rocky Mountains for seventeen years. During that time, he has been\noften employed as an express to carry news from one trading post to another, and from the mountains to Missouri.\nIn these journeys he has been remarkable for the directness\nof his courses, and the exceedingly short space of time\nrequired to accomplish them. Mountains which neither\nIndian nor white man dared attempt to scale, if opposing\nhis right-line track, he has crossed. Angry streams, heavy\nand cold from the snows, and plunging and roaring among\nthe girding caverns of the hills, he has swum; he has met\nthe tempest as it groaned over the plains, and hung upon the\ntrembling towers of the everlasting hills; and without a\nhorse, or even a dog, traversed often the terrible and boundless wastes of mountains, [200] and plains, and desert valleys, through which I am travelling ; and the ruder the blast,\nthe larger the bolts, and the louder the peals of the dread- \u00C2\u00A3839]\nFarnham's Travels\n179\nfui tempest, when the earth and the sky seem joined by a\nmoving cataract of flood and flame driven by the wind, the\nmore was it like himself, a free, unmarred manifestation of\nthe sublime energies of nature. He says that he never\nintends again to visit the States, or any other part of the\nearth \"which has been torn and spoiled by the slaves of\nagriculture.\" \"I shall live,\" said he, \"and die in the wilderness.\" And assuredly he should thus live and die. The\nmusic of the rushing waters should be his requiem, and the\nGreat Wilderness his tomb.\nAnother of these peculiar men was an Iroquois from\nCanada; a stout, old man, with a flat nose, broad face,\nsmall twinkling black eyes, a swarthy, dirty complexion, a\nmouth that laughed from ear to ear. He was always relating\nsome wonderful tale of a trapper's life, and was particularly\nfond of describing his escapes from the Sioux and Blackfeet, while in the service of the Hudson's Bay Company. On\none occasion he had separated from his fellow-trappers and\ntravelled far up the Missouri [201] into a particularly beautiful valley. It was the very spot he had sought in all his\nwanderings, as a retreat for himself and his squaw to live\nin iill they should die. It appeared to him like the gateway to the Isles of the Blest. The lower mountains were\ncovered with tall pines, and above and around, except in\nthe east, where the morning sun sent in his rays, the bright\nglittering ridges rose high against the sky, decked in the\ngarniture of perpetual frosts. Along the valley lay a clear,\npure lake, in the centre of which played a number of fountains, that threw their waters many feet above its surface,\nand sending tiny waves rippling away to the pebbly shores,\nmade the mountains and groves that were reflected from\nits rich bosom seem to leap and clap their hands for joy,\nat the sacred quiet that reigned among them.\nThe old Indian pitched his skin tent on the shore, in a\ni\n-\u00E2\u0080\u0094 MBI;\n180\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nlittle copse of hemlock, and set his traps. Having done\nthis, he explored carefully every part of the neighbouring\nmountains for ingress and egress, \"signs,\" &c. His object\nin this was to ascertain if the valley were frequented by\nhuman beings; and if there were places of escape, should\nit be entered by hostile persons [202] through the pass that\nled himself to it. He found no other pass, except one for\nthe waters of the lake through a deep chasm of the mountain; and this was such that no one could descend it alive\nto the lower valleys. For as he waded and swam by turns\ndown its still waters, he soon found himself drawn by an\nincreasing current, which sufficiently indicated to him the\ncause of the deep roar that resounded from the caverns\nbeyond. He accordingly made the shore, and climbed,\nalong among the projecting rocks till he overlooked an abyss\nof fallen rocks, into which the stream poured and foamed\nand was lost in the mist. He returned to his camp satisfied.\nHe had found an undiscovered valley, stored with beaver\nand trout, and grass for his horses, where he could trap and\nfish and dream awhile in safety. And every morning, for\nthree delightful weeks, did he draw the beaver from the\ndeep pools into which they had plunged when the quick\ntrap had seized them, and stringing them two and two\ntogether over his pack-horse, bore them to his camp; and\nwith his long side-knife stripped off the skins of fur, pinned\nthem to the ground to dry, and in his camp kettle cooked\nthe much-prized tails for his midday [203] repast. \"Was\nit not a fine hunt tha ? \" asked he; \"beaver as thick as\nmusquitoes, trout as plenty as water. But the ungodly\nBlackfeet ! \" The sun had thrown a few bright rays upon\nthe rim of the eastern firmament, when the Blackfeet war-\nwhoop rang around his tent \u00E2\u0080\u0094 a direful \"whoop-ah-hooh,\"\nending with a yell, piercing harsh and shrill, through the\nclenched teeth. He had but one means of escape \u00E2\u0080\u0094 the i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n181\nlake. Into it he plunged, beneath a shower of poisoned\narrows \u00E2\u0080\u0094 plunged deeply \u00E2\u0080\u0094 and swam under while he could\nendure the absence of air; he rose, he was in the midst\nof his foes swinuning and shouting around him; down again,\nup to breathe, and on he swam with long and powerful\nsweeps. The pursuit was long, but at last our man entered\nthe chasm he had explored, plunged along the cascade as\nnear as he dared, clung to a shrub that grew from the\ncrevice of the rock, and lay under water for the approach\nof his pursuers. On they came, they passed, they shrieked\nand plunged for ever into the abyss of mist.\nAnother individual of these veteran trappers was my\nguide, Kelly, a blacksmith by trade, from Kentucky. He\nleft his native State about twelve years ago, and entered\n[204] the service of the American Fur Company. Since\nthat time, he has been in the States but once, and that for\na few weeks only. In his opinion, every thing was so\ndull and tiresome that he was compelled to fly to the mountains again. The food, too, had well nigh killed him:\n\"The villanous pies and cake, bacon and beef, and the\nnicknacks that one is obliged to eat among cousins, would\ndestroy the constitution of an ostrich.\" And if he could\neat such stuff, he said he had been so long away from\ncivilization that he could never again enjoy it. As long\nas he could get good buffalo cows to eat, the fine water\nof the snowy hills to drink, and good buckskins to wear,\nhe was satisfied. The mountaineers were free; he could go\nand come when he chose, with only his own will for law.\nMy intercourse with him, however, led me afterwards\nto assign another cause for his abandonment of home.\nThere were times when we were encamped at night on the\ncold mountains about a blazing fire, that he related anecdotes of his younger days with an intensity of feeling which\ndiscovered that a deep fountain of emotion was still open 1-18\n182\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nin his bosom, never to be sealed till he slumber under the\nsands of the desert.\n[205] We passed the night of the nth of July at the\nPuebla. One of my companions who had, previously to\nthe division of my company, used horses belonging to an\nindividual who left us for Santa F\u00C3\u00A9, and the excellent Mr.\nBlair, were without riding animals. It became, therefore, an\nobject for them to purchase here; and the more so, as there\nwould be no other opportunity to do so for some hundreds\nof miles. But these individuals had no money nor goods\nthat the owners of the horses would receive in exchange..\nThey wanted clothing or cash, and as I had a surplus quantity of linen, I began to bargain for one of the animals.\nThe first price charged was enormous. A little bantering,\nhowever, brought the owner to his proper senses; and the\narticles of payment were overhauled. In doing this, my\nwhole wardrobe was exposed, and the vendor of horses\nbecame extremely enamoured of my dress-coat, the only one\nremaining, not out at the elbows. This he determined to\nhave. I assured him it was impossible for me to part with\nit; the only one I possessed. But he, with quite as much\ncoolness, assured me that it would then be impossible for\nhim to part with his horse. These two [206] impossibilities\nhaving met, all prospects of a trade were suspended, till one\nor the other of them should yield. After a little, the idea\nof walking cast such evident dissatisfaction over the countenances of my friends, that the coat was yielded, and then\nthe pants and overcoat, and all my shirts save four, and\nvarious other articles to the value of three such animals in\nthe States. The horse was then transferred to our keeping.\nAnd such a horse! The biography of her mischief, would\nfill a volume! and that of the vexations arising therefrom\nto us poor mortals? Would it not fill two volumes of\n\"Pencillings by the Way,\" whose only deficiency would be 1839]\nFarnham's Travels\n183\nthe want of a love incident ? Another horse was still necessary; but in this, as in the other case, a coat was a \"sine\nqu\u00C3\u00A2 non;\" and there being no other article of the kind to\ndispose of among us, no bargain could be made. The\nnight came on amidst these our little preparations. The\nowners of the horses and mules belonging to El Puebla,\ndrove their animals into the court or quadrangle, around\nwhich their houses were built. We gathered our goods and\nchattels into a pile, in a corner of the most comfortable\nroom we could obtain, and so [207] arranged our blankets\nand bodies, that it would be difficult for any one to make\ndepredations upon them during the night, without awaking\nus. After conversing with my Dartmouth friend concerning the mountainous country through which we were to\ntravel, and the incidents of feasting and battle which had\nbefallen him during his trapping excursions, we retired to\nour couches.\nAt eight o'clock on the 12th, we were harnessed and on\nroute again for the mountains. It was a fine mellow morning. The snowy peaks of the Wolfano mountains, one hundred and seventy miles to the south-west, rose high and\nclear in view.110 The atmosphere was bland like that of\nthe Indian summer in New England. Five miles' travel\nbrought us to the encampment of Kelly's servant, who had\nbeen sent abroad the night before to find grass for his horses.\nHere another horse was purchased of a Mexican, who had\nfollowed us from Puebla. But on adjusting our baggage,\nit appeared that three animals were required for transporting it over the broken country which lay before us. Messrs.\nBlair and Wood would, therefore, still have but a single\nsaddle horse for their joint use. [208] This was felt to be\n110 Farnham intends the Huerfano, now known as Wet Mountains, a range that\nleaves the great central system south of Pike's Peak and trends southeastwardly\nto Huerfano River.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. 184 Early Western Travels [Vol. 28\na great misfortune, both on account of the hardships of\nsuch a journey on foot, as well as the delay it would necessarily cause in the prosecution of it. But these men felt\nno such obstacle to be insurmountable, and declared, that\nwhile the plain and the mountains were before them, and\nthey could walk, they would conquer every difficulty that\nlay between them and Oregon. After we had eaten, Kelly's\nhorses were rigged, and we moved on four or five miles up\nthe river, where we halted for the night. Our provisions\nconsisted of a small quantity of wheat meal, a little salt and\npepper, and a few pounds of sugar and coffee. For meat we\ndepended on our rifles. But as no game appeared during\nthe day, we spent the evening in attempting to take cat-fish\nfrom the Arkansas. One weighing a pound, after much\npractical angling, was caught \u00E2\u0080\u0094 a small consolation surely\nto the keen appetites of seven men ! But this, and porridge\nmade of wheat meal and water, constituted our supper\nthat night and breakfast next morning.\nJuly 13th, fifteen miles along the banks of the Arkansas;\nthe soil composed of sand slightly intermixed with clay, too\nloose to [209] retain moisture, and too little impregnated\nwith the nutritive salts to produce any thing save a spare\nand stinted growth of bunch grass and sun-flowers. Occasional bluffs of sand and limestone bordered the valley\nof the stream. In the afternoon, the range of low mountains that lie at the eastern base of the Great Cordilleras and\nLong's ranges became visible; and even these, though\npigmies in the mountain race, were, in midsummer, partially covered with snow. Pike's peak in the south-west,\nand James' peak in the north-west, at sunset showed\ntheir hoary heads above the clouds which hung around\nthem.111\n111 By James's Peak Farnham intends the present Pike's Peak; see ante, p. in,\nnote 50. What he here calls Pike's was one of the Spanish Peaks, which would '1\n1839]\nFarnham's Travels\nm\nOn the 14th, made twenty miles. Kelly relieved his\nservant by surrendering to him his riding horse for short\ndistances; and others relieved Blair and Wood in a similar\nmanner. The face of the plain became more broken as\nwe approached the mountains. The waters descending\nfrom the lower hills, have cut what was once a plain into\nisolated bluffs three or four hundred feet in height, surmounted and surrounded with columnar and pyramidal\nrocks. In the distance they resemble immense fortresses,\nwith towers and bastions as skilfully arranged as they could\nhave been by the best suggestions of [210] art \u00E2\u0080\u0094 embattle-\nments raised by the commotions of warring elements \u00E2\u0080\u0094 by\nthe storms that have gathered and marshalled their armies\non the heights in view, and poured their desolating power\nover these devoted plains !\nThe Arkansas, since we left Fort William, had preserved\na medium width of a quarter of a mile, the waters still turbid; its general course east south-east; soil on either side\nas far as the eye could reach, light sand and clayey loam,\nalmost destitute of vegetation.\nOn the 15th travelled about eighteen miles over a soil so\nlight that our animals sunk over their fetlocks at every\nstep. During the forenoon we kept along the bottom\nlands of the river. An occasional willow or cotton-wood\ntree, ragged and grey with age, or a willow bush trembling, it almost seemed, at the tale of desolation that\nthe winds told in passing, were the only relieving features of the general dearth. The usual colour of the soil\nwas a greyish blue. At twelve o'clock we stopped on a\nplat of low ground which the waters of the river moistened\nby nitration through the sand, and baited our horses. Here\nbe in a southwestern direction from his camping ground. In recent years the\nname James Peak has been transferred to a mountain not far from Central City,\non the borders of Gilpin, Clear Creek, and Grand counties Colorado.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\nm Il\n186\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nwere forty or fifty decrepid old willows, so poor and shrivelled\nthat one felt, after enjoying [211] their shade in the heat of\nthat sultry day, like bestowing alms upon them. At twelve\no'clock we mounted and struck out across the plain to avoid\na southward bend in the river of twenty miles in length.\nNear the centre of this bend in the mouth of the river Fonte-\nquebouir, which the trappers who have traversed it for\nbeaver say, rises in James' Peak eighty miles to the northwest by north.11*\nWe came upon the banks of this stream at sunset. Kelly\nhad informed us that we might expect to find deer in the\ngroves which border its banks. And, like a true hunter, as\nsoon as we halted at the place of encampment, he sought\nthem before they should hear or scent us. He traversed\nthe groves, however, in vain. The beautiful innocents had,\nas it afterwards appeared, been lately hunted by a party of\nDelaware trappers and in consideration of the ill usage\nreceived from these gentlemen in red, had forsaken their old\nretreat for a less desirable but safer one among the distant\nhills in the north. So that our expectations of game and\nmeat subsided in a supper of 'tole'\u00E2\u0080\u0094plain water porridge.\nAs our appetites were keen, we all relished it well, except\nthe Mexican [212] servant, who declared upon his veracity\nthat 'tole was no bueno.' Our guide was, if possible, as\nhappy at our evening fire as some one else was when he\n\"shouldered his crutch and told how fields were won; \" and\nvery much for the same reasons. For, during the afternoon's tramp, much of his old hunting ground had loomed\nin sight. Pike's and James' peaks showed their bald, cold,\nshining heads as the sun set; and the mountains on each\nside of the upper river began to show the irregularities of\n112 For Fountain Creek (Fontaine qui bouit), which enters the Arkansas at the\npresent city of Pueblo, see our volume xvi, p. 25, note 10. It derives its name\nfrom the present Manitou Springs at the eastern base of Pike's Peak.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n187\ntheir surfaces. So that as we rode along gazing at these\nstupendous piles of rocks and earth and ice, he would often\ndirect his attention to the outlines of chasms, faintly traced\non the shadings of the cliffs, through which various streams\non which he had trapped, tumbled into the plains. I was\nparticularly interested by his account of Rio Wolfano, a\nbranch of the Arkansas on the Mexican side, the mouth of\nwhich is twelve miles below that of the Fontequebouir. It\nhas two principal branches. The one originates in Pike's\npeak, seventy or eighty miles in the south; the other rises\nfar in the west among the Eutaw mountains, and has a\ncourse of about two hundred miles, nearly parallel with the\nArkansas.113\n[213] We travelled twenty-eight miles on the 16th over\nbroken barren hills sparsely covered with shrub cedars and\npines. The foliage of these trees is a very dark green.\nThey cover, more or less, all the low hills that lie along the\nroots of the mountains from the Arkansas north to the Missouri. Hence the name \"Black Hills\" is given to that portion of them which lie between the Sweetwater and the\nmouth of the Little Missouri. The soil of our track today was a grey barren loam, gravel knolls and bluffs of sand\nand limestone.\nAbout four o'clock, p. m., we met an unheard of annoyance.\nWe were crossing a small plain of red sand, gazing at the\nmountains as they opened their outlines of rock and snow,\nwhen, in an instant, we were enveloped in a cloud of flying\nants with greyish wings and dark bodies. They fixed upon\nour horses' heads, necks, and shoulders, in such numbers\nas to cover them as bees do the sides of a hive when about\nto swarm. They flew around our own heads too, and cov-\n113 For this stream (Huerfano) see our volume xvi, p. 53, note 35. Its two\nbranches are the Cuchara, which rises near the Spanish Peaks, and the main\nHuerfano.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. 88\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\n%\nered our hats and faces. Our eyes seemed special objects\nof their attention. We tried to wipe them off; but while the\nhand was passing from one side of the face to the other, the\npart that was left bare was [214] instantly covered as thickly\nas before with these creeping, hovering, nauseous insects.\nOur animals were so much annoyed by their pertinacity,\nthat they stopped in their tracks ; and fiading it impossible\nto urge them along, guide them and keep our faces clear\nof the insects at the same time, we dismounted and led\nthem. Having by this means the free use of our hands and\nfeet, we were able in the course of half an hour to pass the\ninfested sands, and once more see and breathe.\nWe dined at the mouth of Kelly's Creek, another stream\nthat has its source in James' peak. Encamped at the mouth\nof Oakley's creek, another branch of the Arkansas.114 It\nrises in the hills which lie thirty-five miles to the north.\nIt is a clear, cool little brook, with a pebbly bottom, and\nbanks clothed with shrub cedars and pines. We had a\npleasant evening here, a cloudless sky, a cold breeze from\nthe snow-clad mountains, a blazing cedar-wood fire, a song\nfrom our merry Joe, a dish of ' tole' and a fine couch of\nsand. Who wants more comforts than we enjoyed? My\ndebilitated system had begun to thrive under the bracing\ninfluence of the mountain air; my companions were well\nand happy; our [215] horses and mules were grazing upon\na plat of rich grass; we were almost within touch of thos?\nstupendous ridges of rock and snow which stay or send\nforth the tempest in its course, and gather in their rugged\nembrace the noblest rivers of the world.\n*\u00E2\u0096\u00A0*\u00E2\u0096\u00A0* The names of these two creeks appear to have been local titles applied by\nFarnham's guide, and named in honor of roving trappers. Kelly's was probably\nTurkey Creek, flowing into the Arkansas from the north, in northwest Pueblo\nCounty; Oakley's would therefore be the present Beaver Creek, in eastern Fremont County\u00E2\u0080\u0094 see our volume xvi, p. 44, note 27, for another appellation of this\nstream.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n189\nJuly 17. We made twenty miles to-day among the deep\ngullies and natural fortresses of this great gateway to the\nmountains. All around gave evidence that the agents of\nnature have struggled here in their mightiest wrath, not the\nvolcano, but the floods of ages. Ravines hundreds of feet\nin depth; vast insular mounds of earth towering in all\ndirections, sometimes surmounted by fragments of mountains, at others, with stratified rocks, the whole range of\nvision was a flowerless, bladeless desolation ! Our encampment for the night was at the mouth of Wood's creek, five\nmiles from the debouchure of the Arkansas from the mountains.115 The ridges on the south of the river, as viewed\nfrom this place, presented an embankment of congregated\nhills, piled one above another to the region of snow, and\nscored into deep and irregular chasms, frowning precipices,\ntottering rocks, and black glistening strata, whose recent\nfractures indicated that they were continually [216] sending upon the humble hills below weighty testimony of their\nown superior height and might. Nothing could be more\nperfectly wild. The summits were capped with ice. The\nravines which radiated from their apices were filled with\nsnow far down their course; and so utterly rough was the\nwhole mass, that there did not appear to be a foot of plain\nsurface upon it. Eternal, sublime confusion !\nThis range runs down the Arkansas, bearing a little\nsouth of a parallel with it, the distance of about fifty miles,\nand then turning southward, bears off to Taos and Santa\nF\u00C3\u00A9. At the back of this ridge to the westward, and connected with it, is said to be a very extensive tract of mountains which embrace the sources of the Rio Bravo del Norte,\nthe Wolfano, and other branches of the Arkansas; and a\n115 From Farnham's location of this stream it would seem to be Field Creek,\ndown which a branch of the Denver, and Rio Grande Railway comes to join the\nmain line at Florence \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed i \u00C3\u00A7o Early Western Travels [Vol. 28\nnumber of streams that fall into Rio Colorado of the West,\nand the Gulf of California.11* Among these heights live\nthe East and West bands of the Eutaws. The valleys in\nwhich they reside are said to be overlooked by mountains\nof shining glaciers, and in every other respect to resemble\nthe valleys of Switzerland. They are a brave, treacherous\nrace, and said to number about eight thousand souls. They\n[217] raise mules, horses, and sheep, and cultivate corn and\nbeans, trap the beaver, manufacture woollen blankets with\na darning-needle, and intermarry with the Mexican Spaniards.\nSixty miles east of these mountains, and fifty south of\nthe Arkansas, stands (isolated on the plain), Pike's Peak,\nand the lesser ones that cluster around it.117 This Peak is\ncovered with perpetual snow and ice down one-third its\nheight. The subordinate peaks rise near to the line of perpetual congelation, and stand out upon the sky like giant\nwatchmen, as if to protect the vestal snows above them\nfrom the polluting tread of man. On the north side of\nthe river a range of mountains, or hills, as they have been\ncalled by those who are in the habit of looking on the Great\nMain Ridges, rise about two thousand feet above the plain.\nThey resemble, in their general characteristics, those on the\nsouth. Like them, they are dark and broken; like them,\nsparsely covered on their sides with shrub pines and cedars.\nThey diverge also from the river as they descend: and\nafter descending it forty miles, turn to the north, and lose\nthemselves in the heights which congregate around James'\nPeak.\n[218] On the morning of the 18th we rose early, made\nuo The first range is the Wet Mountains, for which see ante, p. 183, note no.\nThe extensive tract of western mountains is the Sangre de Cristo range.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n117 For Farnham's \"Pike's Peak\" see ante, p. 184, note in. Pike did not approach these elevations within many miles.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n-^g^ i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n191\nour simple repast of tole, and prepared to enter the mountains. A joyful occasion this. The storms, the mud, the\nswollen streams, the bleakness and barrenness of the Great\nPrairie Wilderness, in an hour's ride, would be behind us;\nand the deep, rich vales, the cool streams and breezes, and\ntransparent atmosphere of the more elevated regions, were\nto be entered.\nWood's Creek, on which we had passed the night, is a\ncold, heavy torrent, from the northern hills. At the ford,\nit was about three feet deep, and seven yards wide. But\nthe current was so strong as to bear away two of our saddle-\nhorses. One of these was my Puebla animal. She entered\nthe stream with all the caution necessary for the result.\nStepping alternately back, forward, and sidewise, and\nexamining the effect of every rolling stone upon the laws\nof her own gravity, she finally gathered her ugly form upon\none of sufficient size and mobility to plunge herself and\nrider into the stream. She floated down a few yards, and,\ncontrary to my most fervent desire, came upon her feet\nagain, and made the land. By dint of wading, and partially\ndrowning, and other like agreeable ablutions, we found\nourselves at [219] last on the right side of the water: and\nhaving bestowed upon it sundry commendatory epithets of\nlong and approved use under like circumstances, we remounted; and shivering in the freezing winds from the\nneighbouring snows, trotted on at a pace so merry and fast,\nthat three-quarters of an hour brought us to the buttress of\nthe cliffs, where the Arkansas leaps foaming from them.\nThis river runs two hundred miles among the mountains.\nThe first half of the distance is among a series of charming\nvalleys, stocked with an endless number of deer and elk,\nwhich, in the summer, live upon the nutritious wild grass of\nthe vales, and in the winter, upon the buds, twigs, and bark\nof trees. The hundred miles of its course next below, is 192 Early Western Travels [Vol. 28\namong perpendicular cliffs rising on both sides hundreds,\nand sometimes thousands, of feet in height. Through this\ndismal channel, with a rapid current down lofty precipices,\nand through compressed passes, it plunges and roars to\nthis point, where it escapes nobly and gleefully, as if glad at\nhaving fled some fearful edict of nature, consigning it to\nperpetual imprisonment in those dismal caverns.118\nHere we entered the Rocky Mountains [220] through a\ndeep gorge at the right, formed by the waters of a little\nbrook which comes down from the north.119 It is a sweet\nstream. It babbles so delightfully upon the ear, like those\nthat flowed by one's home, when youth was dreaming of\nthe hopes of coming years in the shade of the hemlock by\nthe family spring. On its banks grew the dandelion, the\nangelica, the elder, the alder and birch, and the mountain-\nflax. The pebbles, too, seemed old acquaintances, they were\nso like those which I had often gathered, with a lovely sister\nlong since dead, who would teach me to select the prettiest\nand best. The very mountains were dark and mighty, and\noverhanging, and striped with the departing snows, like\nthose that I viewed in the first years of remembrance, as I\nfrolicked with my brothers on the mossy rocks.\nWe soon lost sight of the Arkansas among the small pines\nand cedars of the valley, and this we were sorry to do. The\ngood old stream had given us many a fine cat-fish, and many\na bumper of delicious water while we travelled wearily\nalong its parched banks. It was like parting with an old\ncompanion that had ministered to our wants, and stood\n118 Farnham was at the entrance of the Grand Canon (or Royal Gorge) of the\nArkansas\u00E2\u0080\u0094 a chasm much of which was formerly impassable even to travellers\non foot; but it is now threaded by the Denver and Rio Grande Railway, over a\nroadbed blasted and hewn from the solid rock, at one narrow point the track being\ncarried on steel rafters bridging the chasm.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n118 Probably Oil Creek, by which Pike made his way over to South Park; see\nour volume xvi, p. 34, note 14.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. 1839]\nFarnham's Travels\n!93\nwith us in anxious, dangerous times. It was, therefore,\npleasant to hear its voice come [221] up from the caverns like\na sacred farewell while we wound our way up the valley.\nThis gorge, or valley, runs about ten miles in a northwardly direction from the debouchure of the Arkansas, to\nthe dividing ridge between the waters of that river and those of\nthe southern head-waters of the south fork of the Great Platte.\nAbout midway its length, the trail, or Indian track, divides :\nthe one branch makes a circuit among the. heights to the\nwestward, terminates in the great valley of the south fork of\nthe Platte, within the mountains, commonly called \"Boyou\nSalade;\" and the other and shorter leads northwardly\nup the gorge to the same point.120 Our guide carefully\nexamined both trails at the diverging point, and finding\nthe more western one most travelled, and believing, for\nthis reason, the eastward one the least likely to be occupied\nby the Indians, he led us up to the foot of the mountain\nwhich separates it from the vales beyond. We arrived at\na little open spot at the base of the height about twelve\no'clock. The steepest part of the trail up the declivity was\na loose, moving surface of sand and pebbles, constantly\nfalling under its own weight. Other portions were precipitous, lying along overhanging [222] cliffs and the\nbrinks of deep ravines strewn with fallen rocks. To\nascend it seemed impossible; but our old Kentuckian\nwas of a different opinion.\nIn his hunting expeditions he had often ascended and\ndescended worse steeps with packs of beaver, traps, &c.\nSo, after a description of others of a much more difficult\nnature, which he had made with worse animals and heavier\n120 See Coues's description of the two passes, in Pike's Expeditions, p. 465,\nnote 7 The westernmost goes by way of West Oil or Ten Mile Creek; the eastern, nearly straight north over the divide between the waters of the Arkansas and\nthe Platte, by what is known as Twin Creek Pass.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. il\n194\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\npacks, through storms of hail and heaps of snow; and after\nthe assurance that the Eutaw village of tents, and women,\nand children, had passed this not many moons ago, we\nfelt nettled at our own ignorance of possibilities in these\nregions, and drove off to the task. Our worthy guide led\nthe way with his saddle-horse following him; the pack\nanimals, each under the encouraging guardianship of a\nvigorous goad, and the men and myself leading our riding\nanimals, brought up the rear. Now for a long pull, a\nstrong pull, and a pull not all together, but each leg on its\nown account. Five or six rods of zigzag clambering, and\nslipping, and gathering, and tugging, advanced us one\non the ascent; and then a halt for breath and strength for\na new effort. The puffing and blowing over, a general\nshout, \"go on, go on,\" started the cavalcade [223] again.\nThe pack animals, with each one hundred and fifty pounds\nweight, struggled and floundered, as step after step gave\nway in the sliding sand; but they laboured madly, and\nadvanced at intervals of a few yards, resting and then on\nagain, till they arrived at the rocky surface, about midway\nthe ascent. Here a short pause upon the declivity was\ninterrupted by a call of \"onward\" from our guide; and\nagain we climbed. The track wound around a beetling\ncliff, which crowded the animals upon the edge of a frightful precipice. In the most dangerous part of it, my Puebla mare ran her pack against a projecting rock, and for an\ninstant reeled over an abyss three hundred feet in depth.\nBut her fortune favoured her; she blundered away from\nher grave, and lived to make a deeper plunge farther along\nthe journey.\nThe upper half, though less steep, proved to be the worst\npart of the ascent. It was a bed of rocks, at one place\nsmall and rolling, at another large and fixed, with deep openings between them; so that our animals were constantly 1839]\nFarnham's Travels\nl95\nfalling, and tottering upon the brink of the cliffs, as they\nrose again and made their way among them. An hour and\na half of this most dangerous and tiresome [224] clambering\ndeposited us in a grove of yellow pines, near the summit.\nOur animals were covered with sweat and dirt, and trembled\nas if at that instant from the race track. Nor were their\nmasters free from every ill of weariness. Our knees smote\neach other with fatigue, as Belshazzar's did with fear.\nMany of the pines on this ridge were two feet in diameter,\nand a hundred feet high, with small clusters of limbs around\nthe tops. Others were low, and clothed with strong limbs\nquite near the ground. Under a number of these latter, we\nhad seated ourselves, holding the reins of our riding horses,\nwhen a storm arose with the rapidity of a whirlwind, and\npoured upon us hail, rain, and snow with all imaginable\nliberality. It was a most remarkable tempest. Unlike\nthose whose monotonous groans are heard ainong the Green\nMountains for days before they assemble their fury around\nyou, it came in its strength at once, and rocked the stately\npines to their most distant roots. Unlike those long | blows,\"\nwhich, generated in the frozen zone of the Atlantic seas,\nbring down the frosty blasts of Greenland upon the warmer\nclimes of the States, it was the meeting [225] of different\ncurrents of the aerial seas, lashed and torn by the live thunder, among the sounding mountains. One portion of it\nhad gathered its electricity and mist around James' Peak\nin the east; another among the white heights northwest;\nand a third among the snowy pyramids of the Eutaws in\nthe * south-west ; and, marshalling their hosts, met over\nthis connecting ridge between the eastern and central ranges,\nas if by general battle to settle a vexed question as to the\nbetter right to the Pass; and it was sublimely fought. The\nopposing storms met nearly at the zenith, and fiercely rolled\ntogether their angry masses. As if to carry out the simile I 196\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nhave here attempted, at the moment of their junction, the\nelectricity of each leaped upon its antagonist transversely\nacross the heavens, and in some instances fell in immense\nbolts upon the trembling cliffs; and then instantly came a\nvolley of hail as large as grape-shot, sufficient to whiten all\nthe towers of this horrid war. It lasted an hour. I never\nbefore, not even on the plains, sa?w such a movement of the\nelements. If anything had been wanting to establish the\ntheory, this exhibition sufficed to convince those who saw its\n[226] movements, and felt its power, that these mountains\nare the great laboratory of mist, wind, and electricity, which,\nformed into storms, are sent in such awful fury upon the\ngreat plains or prairies that stretch away from their bases\nto the States, and, that here alone may be witnessed the\nextreme power of the warring elements.\nAfter the violence of the tempest had abated, we travelled\nup the remainder of the ascent, and halted a few minutes on\nthe summit to view the scene around us.121 Behind was the\nvalley up which we had travelled, covered with evergreen\nshrubs. On the east of this, rose a precipitous wall of\nstratified rock, two thousand or three thousand feet high,\nstretching off towards the Arkansas, and dotted here and\nthere with the small shrub pine, struggling from the crevices\nof the rocks. In the south-west the mountains, less precipitous, rose one above another in a distance, till their blue\ntops faded into the semblance of the sky. To the east of\nour position, there was nothing in sight but piles of mountains, whose dark and ragged masses increased in height\nand magnitude, till they towered in naked grandeur around\nJames' Peak. From that frozen height ran off to the north\n[227] that secondary range of mountains that lie between\nthe head-waters of the South Fork of the Platte and the\n121 xhe divide at this point has an altitude above sea level of over nine thousand\nfeet.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\nBBj\u00C3\u008FSE2?l\"\"*1\u00C2\u00A3S\u00C2\u00BB1'J\nH*-^^iMcijlS 1839]\nFarnham's Travels\n197\nplains. This is a range of brown, barren, and broken\nridges, destitute alike of earth and shrub, with an average\nheight of three thousand feet above the plain. On the\nwestern side of it, and north of the place where we were\nviewing them, hills of a constantly decreasing height fall\noff for fifty miles to the north-west, till they sink in the\nbeautiful valley of Boyou Salade, and then rising again,\ntower higher and higher in the west, until lost in the haze\nabout the base of the Anahuac range; a vast waste of\nundusted rocks, without a flower or leaf to adorn it, save\nthose that hide their sweetness from its eternal winters in\nthe glens down which we were to travel.\nThe Anahuac ridge of the snowy range was visible for at\nleast one hundred miles of latitude; and the nearest point\nwas so far distant that the dip of the horizon concealed all\nthat portion of it below the line of perpetual congelation.\nThe whole mass was purely white. The principal\nirregularity perceptible was a slight undulation on the\nupper edge. There was, however, perceptible shading\non the lower edge, produced, perhaps, by great lateral\nswells protruding [228] from the general outline. But the\nmass, at least ninety miles distant, as white as milk, the\nhome of the frosts of all ages, stretching away to the north\nby west full a hundred miles, unsealed by any living thing,\nexcept perhaps by the bold bird of our national arms,\n\"Broad, high, eternal, and sublime,\nThe mock of ages and the twin of time,\"\nis an object of amazing grandeur, unequalled probably on\nthe face of the globe.\nWe left this interesting panorama, and travelled down\nfive miles to the side of a little stream running north, and\nencamped.122 We were wet from head to foot, and shivering\niaa xhe upper waters of Twin Creek, which is an eastern affluent of the South\nPlatte.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. 198 Early Western Travels [Vol. 28\nwith cold. The day had indeed been one of much discomfort; yet we had been well repaid for all this by the absorbing freshness and sublimity that hung around us. The\nlightning bounding on the crags ; the thunder breaking the\nslumber of the mountains; a cooler climate, and the noble\npine again; a view of the Great Main snowy range of the\n\"Rocky,\" \"Stone,\" or \"Shining\" mountains, south of the\nGreat Gap, from a height never before trodden by a civilized tourist, the sight of the endless assemblage of rocky\npeaks, among which [229] our weary feet were yet to tread\nalong unexplored waters, were the delights which lay upon\nthe track of the day, and made us happy at our evening\nfire. Our supper of water porridge being eaten, we tried\nto sleep. But the cold wind from the snow soon drove us\nfrom our blankets to our fire, where we turned ourselves\nlike Christmas turkeys, till morning. The mountain flax\ngrew around our encampment. Every stalk was stiffened\nby the frosts of the night; and the waters of the brooks were\nbarred with ice. This is the birth-place of the Plattes.\nFrom these gorges its floods receive existence, among the\nsturdy, solemn pines and nursing tempests, twelve miles\nnorth of the Arkansas's debouchement from the mountains,\nand forty miles due west from James' Peak.\nOn the 19th we travelled in a northward course down the\nlittle streams bursting from the hills, and babbling among\nthe bushes. We were upon an Indian trail, full of sharp\ngravel, that annoyed our animals exceedingly. The pines\nwere often difficult to pass, so thick were they. But the\nright course was easily discovered among them, even when\nthe soil was so hard as to have received no impression from\nprevious [230] travelling, by small stones which the Eutaws\nhad placed among the branches. About mid-day we saw\nscattering spears of the wild flax again, and a few small\nshrubs of the black birch near the water courses. The end-\n\u00C2\u00ABai i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n199\nless climbing and ascending of hills prevented our making\nmuch progress. At two o'clock we judged ourselves but\nten miles from the last night's encampment. A cloud of\nhail then beginning to pelt and chill us, we took shelter in a\nsmall grove of pines. But as the hail had fallen two inches\nin depth, over the whole adjoining country, every movement of the atmosphere was like a blast of December. Too\ncold to sleep, we therefore built fires and dried our packs,\n&c, till the howl of the wolves gave notice of the approach\nof morning.\nTole for breakfast. It had been our only food for nine\ndays. It seemed strange that we should have travelled one\nhundred and eighty miles, in a country like that we had\npassed through since leaving Fort William, without killing\nan animal. But it ceased to appear so, when our worthy\nguide informed us that no individual had ever come from\nthe Arkansas, in the region of the Fort, to the mountains,\nwith as little suffering as we had. \"It is,\" said he, \"a\nstarving [231] country; never any game found in it. The\nbuffalo come into these valleys from the north through the\nBull Pen, and go out there when the storms of the autumn\nwarn them to fly to the south for warm winter quarters.\nBut that valley off there, (pointing to a low smooth spot\nin the horizon), looks mighty like Boyou Salade, my old\nstamping ground. If it should be, we will have meat\nbefore the sun is behind the snow.\" 12S\n123 Bayou Salade, now known as South Park, received its earlier name from the\nsalt springs and a slough found therein, which attracted buffalo and other game.\nIt is a high valley forty miles long by thirty wide, with undulating, park-like surface, and an area of r,20o,ooo acres, at an elevation of from 8,000 to 10,000 feet.\nIt was well known to early hunters for whom it remained a game paradise as late\nas 1865. Pike explored its southern portion in 1806-07. Fremont crossed it on\nhis return in 1844, and witnessed an Indian battle there. Gold was discovered\non its borders in the early days of the Colorado mining excitement. Today it is\ntraversed by several railways and is much frequented by tourists. See our volume\nxv, p. 292, note r4i.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\nWBSm\n>3M.\u00C2\u00ABW\u00C2\u00BB\u00C2\u00BB-|\naMrijUj^to^^g\naufek.-:-\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094-\u00E2\u0080\u0094*=\u00E2\u0080\u0094I 200 Early Western Travels [Vol. 28\nWe were well pleased with this prospect. Our Mexican\nservant cried, at the top of his voice, \"Esta muy bueno,\nSenor Kelly, si, muy bueno, este Boyou Salade; mucho\ncarne por nosotros.\" And the poor fellow had some reasons for this expression of joy, for the tole regimen had, been\nto him what the water gruel of the Mudfog workhouse was\nto Oliver Twist, except that its excellent flavour had never\ninduced the Mexican \"to ask for more.\" He had, on previous occasions, in company with Kelly, gnawed the ribs of\nmany a fat cow in Boyou Salade; and the instincts of his\nstomach put him in such a frenzy at the recollection, that\nalthough he could only understand the words \"Boyou\nSalade,\" these were sufficient to induce him to cross [232]\nhimself from the forestep to the abdomen, and to swear by\nSanta Gaudaloupe that tole was not food for a Christian\nmouth.\nOn the 20th we were early on our way. The small\nprairie Wolf which had howled us to sleep every evening,\nand howled us awake every morning since we left Independence, was continually greeting us with an ill-natured growl,\nas we rode along among his hiding places. The streams\nthat were mere rivulets twenty miles back, having received\na thousand tributaries, were now heavy and deep torrents.\nThe peaks and mountain swells were clad with hail and\nsnow. Every thing, even ourselves, shivering in our blankets, gave evidence that we were traversing the realms of\nwinter. Still many of the grasses and flowers which usually flourish in high latitudes and elevated places were\ngrowing along the radices of the hills, and aided much in\ngiving the whole scene an unusually singular aspect. We\nwere in fine spirits, and in the enjoyment of a voracious\nappetite. Our expectations of having a shot soon at a\nbuffalo, were perhaps an accessory cause of this last. But\nbe that as it may, we dodged along among the pines and i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n201\nspruce and hemlock and firs [233] about ten miles, and rose\nover a swell of land covered with small trees in full view of\na quiet little band of buffalo. Ye deities who presided of\nold over the trencher and goblet, did not our palates leap\nfor a tender loin ? A halt \u00E2\u0080\u0094 our famous old Kentuckian\ncreeps away around a copse of wood \u00E2\u0080\u0094 we hear the crack\nof his deadly rifle \u00E2\u0080\u0094 witness the writhing of the buffalo !\nHe lays himself gently down. All is now silent, intense\nanxiety to observe whether he will rise again and run, as\nbuffalo often do under the smart of a wound, beyond our\nreach among the hills. No ! he curls his tail as in the last\nagony; he choaks; he is ours! he is ours!\nOur knives are quickly hauled from their sheaths \u00E2\u0080\u0094 he\nis rolled upon his brisket \u00E2\u0080\u0094 his hide is slit along the spine,\nand pealed down midrib; one side of it is cut off and spread\nupon the sand to receive the meat; the flesh on each side\nof the spine is pared off; the mouth is opened, and the\ntongue removed from his jaws; the axe is laid to his rib;\nthe heart \u00E2\u0080\u0094 the fat \u00E2\u0080\u0094 the tender loins \u00E2\u0080\u0094 the blood, are\ntaken out \u00E2\u0080\u0094 his legs are rifled of their generous marrow\nbones; all wrapped in the green hide, and loaded on\nanimals, and off to camp in a charming [234] grove of\nwhite pine by a cold stream of water under a woody hill !\nWho that had seen us stirring our fires that night in the\nstarlight of bright skies among the mountain forests; who\nthat had seen the buffalo ribs propped up before the\ncrackling blaze \u00E2\u0080\u0094 the brisket boiling in our camp-kettles;\nwho that had seen us with open countenances yield to these\nwell cooked invitations to \"drive dull care away,\" will not\nbelieve that we accepted them, and swallowed against time,\nand hunger, and tole? Indeed, we ate that night till there\nwas a reasonable presumption that we had eaten enough;\nand when we had spent a halfhour in this agreeable employment, that presumption was supported by a pile of 1\n202\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nbones, which if put together by Button in his best style,\nwould have supported not only that but another presumption to the like effect. Our hearty old Kentuckian was at\nhome, and we were his guests. He sat at the head of his\nown board, and claimed to dictate the number of courses\nwith which we should be served. \"No, no,\" said he, as we\nstrode away from the bare ribs which lay round us, to our\ncouches of pine leaves, \"no, no, I have eaten with you,\nfared well, and now you [235] must take courage while\nyou eat with me; no, no, not done yet; mighty good eating\nto come. Take a rest upon it, if you like, while I cook\nanother turn; but I'll insure you to eat till day peeps. Our\nmeat here in the mountains never pains one. Nothing\nharms here but pills and lead; many's the time that I have\nstarved six and eight days, and when I have found meat,\nate all night; that's the custom of the country. We never\nborrow trouble from hunger or thirst, and when we have\na plenty, we eat the best pieces first, for fear of being killed\nby some brat of an Indian before we have enjoyed them.\nYou may eat as much as you can; my word for it, this wild\nmeat never hurts one. But your chickens and bacon, &c,\nin the settlements, it came right near shoving me into the\nKenyon when I was down there last.\"\nWhile the excellent man was giving vent to these kind\nfeelings, he was busy making preparations for another\ncourse. The marrow bones were undergoing a severe\nflagellation; the blows of the old hunter's hatchet were\ncracking them in pieces, and laying bare the rolls of \"trapper's butter\" within them. A pound of marrow was [236]\nthus extracted, and put into a gallon of water heated nearly\nto the boiling point. The blood which he had dipped from\nthe cavity of the buffalo was then stirred in till the mass\nbecame of the consistency of rice soup. A little salt and\nblack pepper finished the preparation. It was a fine dish;\nill i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n203\ntoo rich, perhaps, for some of my esteemed acquaintances,\nwhose digestive organs partake of the general laziness of\ntheir habits ; but to us who had so long desired a healthful\nportion of bodily exercise in that quarter, it was the very\nmarrow and life-blood of whatsoever is good and wholesome for famished carniverous animals like ourselves. It\nwas excellent, most excellent. It was better than our\nfather's foaming ale. For while it loosed our tongues and\nwarmed our hearts towards one another, it had the additional effect of Aaron's oil; it made our faces to shine with\ngrease and gladness. But the remembrance of the palate\npleasures of the next course, will not allow me to dwell\nlonger upon this. The crowning gratification was yet in\nstore for us.\nWhile enjoying the soup, which I have just described,\nwe believed the bumper of our pleasures to be sparkling to\nthe brim; [237] and if our excellent old trapper had not\nbeen there, we never should have desired more. But how\ntrue is that philosophy which teaches, that to be capable of\nhappiness, we must be conscious of wants! Our friend\nKelly was in this a practical as well as theoretical Epicurean.\n\"No giving up the beaver so,\" said he; \"another bait and\nwe will sleep.\"\nSaying this, he seized the intestines of the buffalo, which\nhad been properly cleaned for the purpose, turned them\ninside out, and as he proceeded stuffed them with strips of\nwell salted and peppered tender loin. Our \"boudies\"\nthus made, were stuck upon sticks before the fire, and\nroasted till they were thoroughly cooked and brown. The\nsticks were then taken from their roasting position and\nstuck in position for eating; that is to say, each of us with\nas fine an appetite as ever blessed a New England boy at\nhis grandsire's Thanksgiving dinner, seized a stick pit,\nstuck it in the earth near our couches, and sitting upon our\n\u00E2\u0096\u00A0EiM\u00C3\u00A2\u00C3\u008Bi Early Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nhaunches, ate our last course \u00E2\u0080\u0094 the desert of a mountain\nhost's entertainment. These wilderness sausages would\nhave gratified the appetite of [238] those who had been\ndeprived of meat a less time than we had been. The envelopes preserve the juices with which while cooking, the\nadhering fat, turned within, mingles and forms a gravy of\nthe finest flavour. Such is a feast in the mountains.\nSince leaving Fort William we had been occasionally\ncrossing the trails of the Eutaw war parties, and had felt\nsome solicitude for the safety of our little band. An overwhelming number of them might fall upon us at night and\nannihilate us at a blow. But we had thus far selected such\nencampments, and had such confidence in our rifles and in\nour dog, who never failed to give us notice of the least\nmovement of a wolf or panther at night, that we had not\nstationed a guard since leaving that post.\nOur guide too sanctioned this course; always saying\nwhen the subject was introduced that the dawn of day was\nthe time for Indian attacks, and that they would rise early\nto find his eyes shut after the howl of the wolf on the hills\nhad announced the approach of light. We however took\nthe precaution to encamp at night in a deep woody glen,\nwhich concealed the light of our fire, and slept with our\nequipments [239] upon us, and our well primed rifles across\nour breasts.\nOn the morning of the 21st we were awakened at sunrise,\nby our servant who had thus early been in search of our\nanimals. The sun rose over the eastern mountains brilliantly, and gave promise of a fine day. Our route lay\namong vast swelling hills, the sides of which were covered\nwith groves of the large yellow pine and aspen. These\nlatter trees exclude every other from their society. They\nstand so closely that not the half of their number live until\nthey are five inches in diameter. Those also that grow on\na i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n205\nthe borders of the groves are generally destroyed, being\ndeprived of their bark seven or eight feet up, by the elk which\nresort to them yearly to rub off the annual growth of their\nhorns. The snow on the tops of the hills was melting, and\nalong the lower edge of it, where the grass was green and\ntender, herds of buffalo were grazing. So far distant were\nthey from the vales through which we travelled, that they\nappeared a vast collection of dark specks on the line of the\nsky.\nBy the side of the pebbly brooks, grew many beautiful\nplants. A species of convolvulus and honeysuckle, two\nspecies of [240] wild hops and the mountain flax, were\namong them. Fruits were also beginning to appear; as\nwild plums, currants, yellow and black; the latter like those\nof the same colour in the gardens, the former larger than\neither the red or black, but of an unpleasant astringent\nflavour.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 We had not, since entering the mountains, seen\nany indication of volcanic action. The rocky strata and\nthe soil appeared to be of primary formation. We made\nfifteen miles to-day in a general course of north by west.\nOn the 22nd we travelled eight miles through a country\nsimilar to that we had passed the day before. We were\nstill on the waters of the Platte; but seldom in sight of the\nmain stream. Numerous noisy brooks ran among the hills\nover which we rode. During the early part of the morning buffalo bulls were often seen crossing our path: they\nwere however so poor and undesirable, that we shot none\nof them. About ten o'clock we came upon a fresh trail,\ndistinctly marked by hoofs and dragging lodge poles. Kelly\njudged these \"signs\" to be not more than twenty four hours\nold, and to have been made by a party of Eutaws which\nhad passed into [241] Boyou Salade to hunt the buffalo.\nHostile Indians in our immediate neighbourhood was by\nno means an agreeable circumstance to us. We could not 20\u00C3\u0094\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\ncontend with any hope of success against one hundred and\nfifty tomahawks and an equal number of muskets and bows\nand arrows. They would.also frighten the buffalo back to\nthe bull pen, and thus prevent us from laying in a stock of\nmeat farther along to support us across the desert in advance. We therefore determined to kill the next bull that\nwe should meet, cure the best pieces for packing, and thus\nprepare ourselves for a siege or a retreat, as circumstances\nmight dictate; or if the Indians should prevent our obtaining other and better meat, and yet not interrupt us by any\nhostile demonstration in pursuing our journey, we might, by\nan economical use of what we could pack from this point,\nbe able to reach, before we should perish with hunger, the\ngame which we hoped to find on tributaries of Grand River.\nWe, therefore, moved on with great caution; and at about\ntwo o'clock killed a fine young bull. He fell in a glen\nthrough which a little brook murmured along to a copse\njust below. The bulls in considerable [242] number were\nmanifesting their surplus wrath on the other side of the\nlittle wood with as much apparent complacency as certain\nanimals with fewer legs and horns often do, when there\nis not likely to be any thing in particular to oppose them.\nBut fortunately for the reputation of their pretensions, as\nsometimes happens to their biped brethren, a circumstance\nchanced to occur, when their courage seemed waxing to\nthe bursting state, on which it could expend its energies.\nThe blood of their slaughtered companions scented the\nbreeze, and on they came, twenty or more, tail in air, to take\nproper vengeance.\nWe dropped our butcher knives, mounted quickly, and\nwere about to accommodate them with the contents of our\nrifles, when, like many perpendicular bellowers, as certain\ndanger comes, they fled as bravely as they had approached.\nAway they racked, for buffalo never trot, over the brown\n1 \u00E2\u0080\u0094H\nj^^^ 1839]\nFarnham's Travels\n207\nbarren hills in the north-east, looking neither to the right\nnor left, for the long hair around the head does not permit\nsuch aberrations of their optics; but onward gloriously did\nthey roll their massive bulks \u00E2\u0080\u0094 now sinking in the vales\nand now blowing up the ascents; stopping [243] not an\ninstant in their career until they looked like creeping insects\non the brow of the distant mountain. Having thus vanquished, by the most consummate generalship and a stern\npatriotism in the ranks never surpassed by Jew or Gentile,\nthese \"abandoned rebels,\" we butchered our meat, and as\none of the works of returning peace, loaded it upon our\nanimals, and travelled in search of quaking-asp wood wherewithal to dry it. The traders and trappers always prefer\nthis wood for such purposes, because, when dry, it is more\ninodorous than any other; and consequently does not so\nsensibly change the flavour of the meat dried over a fire\nmade of it. Half an hour's ride brought us to a grove of\nthis timber, where we encamped for the night \u00E2\u0080\u0094 dried our\nmeat, and Eutaws near or far, slept soundly. In this remark I should except, perhaps, the largest piece of human\nnature among us, who had, as his custom was, curled down\nhard-by our\u00E2\u0080\u009E brave old guide and slept at intervals, only\nan eye at a time, for fear of Indians.\n23d. Eighteen miles to-day among rough precipices,\noverhanging crags, and roaring torrents. There were,\nhowever, between the declivities and among the copses of\n[244] cotton-wood, quaking-asp and fir, and yellow pine,\nsome open glades and beautiful valleys of green verdure,\nwatered by the rivulets gushing from the stony hills, and\nsparkling with beautiful flowers. Five or six miles from\nour last encampment, we came upon the brow of a woody\nhill that overlooked the valley, where the waters on which\nwe were travelling unite with others that come down from\nthe mountains in the north, and from what is properly 208\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\ncalled the south fork of the Great Platte, within the mountains. Here we found fresh Indian tracks; and on that\naccount deemed it prudent to take to the timbered heights,\nbordering the valley on the west, in order to ascertain the\nposition of the Indians, their numbers, &c, before venturing within their reach. We accordingly, for three hours,\nwound our way in silence among fallen timber and thickset cotton-wood; climbed every neighbouring height, and\nexamined the depressions in the plain, which could not be\nseen from the lower hills.\nHaving searched the valley thoroughly in this manner, and,\nperceiving from the peaceable and careless bearing of the\nsmall bands of buffalo around its borders, [245] that if there\nwere Indians within it they were at some distance from\nour trail, we descended from the heights, and struck through\na deep ravine across it, to the junction of the northern and\nsouthern waters of the stream.\nWe found the river at this place a hundred and fifty yards\nwide, and of an average depth of about six feet, with a\ncurrent of five miles the hour. Its course hence is E. N. E.\nabout one hundred miles, where it rushes through a magnificent kenyon12< or chasm in the eastern range of the Rocky\nMountains to the plains of the Great Prairie Wilderness.\nThis valley is a congeries or collection of valleys. That is,\nalong the banks of the main and tributary streams a vale\nextends a few rods or miles, nearly or quite separated from\na similar one beyond, by a rocky ridge or bute or a rounded\nhill covered with grass or timber, which protrudes from\nthe height towards the stream. This is a bird's-eye view\nof Boyou Salade, so named from the circumstance that\nnative rock salt is found in some parts of it. We were in\nthe central portion of it. To the north, and south, and\nl2i For an engraving of Platte Canon see our volume xv, p. 283. It is now\ntraversed by the Denver, Leadville, and Gunnison Railway.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094\t\n\u00E2\u0096\u00A0 1839]\nFarnham's Travels\n209\nwest, its isolated plains rise one above the other, always\nbeautiful, and covered [246] with verdure during the months\nof spring and summer. But when the storms of autumn\nand winter come, they are the receptacles of vast bodies of\nsnow, which fall or are drifted there from the Anahuac\nRidge, on its western horizon. A sweet spot this, for the\nromance of the future as well as the present and past. The\nbuffalo have for ages resorted here about the last days\nof July, from the arid plains of the Arkansas and the Platte;\nand thither the Eutaws and Cheyennes from the mountains around the Santa F\u00C3\u00A9, and the Shoshonies or Snakes\nand Arrapahoes from the west, and the Blackfeet, Crows\nand Sioux from the north, have for ages met, and hunted,\nand fought, and loved. And when their battles and hunts\nwere interrupted by the chills and snows of November,\nthey have separated for their several winter resorts. How\nwild and beautiful the past as it comes up fledged with the\nplumage of the imagination!\nThese vales, studded with a thousand villages of conical\nskin wigwams, with their thousands of fires blazing on the\nstarry brow of night ! I see the dusky forms crouching\naround the glowing piles of ignited logs, in family groups\nwhispering [247] the dreams of their rude love; or gathered\naround the stalwart form of some noble chief at the hour\nof midnight, listening to the harangue of vengeance or the\nwhoop of war, that is to cast the deadly arrow with the\nfirst gleam of morning light. Or may we not see them\ngathered, a circle of braves around an aged tree, surrounded each by the musty trophies of half a century's\ndaring deeds. The eldest and richest in scalps, rises from\nthe centre of the ring and advances to the tree. Hear him :\n\"Fifty winters ago, when the seventh moon's first horn\nhung over the green forests of the Eutaw hills, myself and\nfive others erected a lodge for the Great Spirit, on the u\n-i\n210 Early Western Travels [Vol. 28\nsnows of the White Bute, and carried there our wampum\nand skins and the hide of a white buffalo. We hung them\nin the Great Spirit's lodge, and seated ourselves in silence\ntill the moon had descended the western mountain, and\nthought of the blood of our fathers that the Cumanches had\nkilled when the moon was round and lay on the eastern\nplain. My own father was scalped, and the fathers of five\nothers were scalped, and their bloody heads were gnawed\nby the wolf. We could not live while our fathers' lodges\nwere empty, [248] and the scalps of their murderers were\nnot in the lodges of our mothers. Our hearts told us to\nmake these offerings to the Great Spirit who had fostered\nthem on the mountains; and when the moon was down,\nand the shadows of the White Bute were as dark as the hair\nof a bear, we said to the Great Spirit, 'No man can war\nwith the arrows from the quiver of thy storms; no man's\nword can be heard when thy voice is among the clouds;\nno man's hand is strong when thy hand lets loose its winds.\nThe wolf gnawed the heads of our fathers, and the scalps of\ntheir murderers hang not in the lodges of our mothers.\nGreat father spirit, send not thine anger out; hold in thy\nhand the winds; let not thy great voice drown the death-\nyell while we hunt the murderers of our fathers.' I and\nthe five others then built in the middle of the lodge a fire,\nand in its bright light the Great Spirit saw the wampum,\nand the skin, and the white buffalo hide. Five days and\nnights, I and the five others danced and smoked the medicine, and beat the board with sticks, and chaunted away\nthe power of the great Medicine, that they might not be\nevil to us, and bring sickness into our bones. Then when\nthe stars were shining [249] in the clear sky, we swore (I\nmust not tell what, for it was in the ear of the Great Spirit)\nand went out of the lodge with our bosoms full of anger\nagainst the murderers of our fathers* whose bones were in\nKJj-W^ i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n21.1\nthe jaws of the wolf, and went for their scalps to hang them\nin the lodges of our mothers. See him strike the aged\ntree with his war club again, again, nine times. So many\nCumanches did I slay, the murderers of my father, before\nthe moon was round again, and lay upon the eastern plain.\"\nThis is not merely an imagined scene in former times in\nBoyou Salade. All the essential incidents related, happened\nyearly in that and other hunting grounds, whenever the old\nbraves assembled to celebrate the valorous deeds of their\nyounger days. When these exciting relations were finished,\nthe young men of the tribe, who had not yet distinguished\nthemselves, were exhorted to seek glory in a similar way.\nWoe to him who passed his manhood without ornamenting\nthe door of his lodge with the scalps of his enemies!\nThis valley is still frequented by some of these tribes as a\nsummer haunt, when the heat of the plains renders them\nuncomfortable. The Eutaws were scouring it when we\n[250] passed. We therefore crossed the river to its northern\nbank, and followed up its northern branch eight miles,125\nwith every eye keenly searching for the appearance of foes;\nand made our encampment for the night in a deep chasm,\noverhung by the long branches of a grove of white pines.\nWe built our fire in the dry bed of a mountain torrent,\nshaded by bushes on the side towards the valley, and above,\nby a dense mass of boughs, so effectually, as not only to\nconceal the blaze from any one in the valley, but also to prevent the reflection from gilding too high the conspicuous\nfoliage of the neighbouring trees. After our horses had fed\nthemselves, we tied them close to our couches, that they\nmight not, in case of an attack, be driven away before we\n\"\u00C2\u00BB Farnham's topographical descriptions lack data for determining the exact\nplaces en route; but this northern branch was probably Crooked Trail Creek, up\nwhich the Denver, Leadville, and Gunnison (South Park) railway Une proceeds\nto Breckenridge or Boreas Pass. The travellers were here not far from the foothills of Mount Lincoln.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\nf. 212 Early Western Travels [Vol. 28\nhad an opportunity of defending them; and when we retired, threw water upon our fire that it might not guide the\nIndians in a search for us; put new caps upon our arms,\nand trusting to our dog and mule, the latter in such cases\nalways the most skilful to scent their approach, tried to\nsleep. But we were too near the snows. Chilling winds\nsucked down the vale, and drove us from our blankets to\na shivering watch during the remainder of the night. Not\na cap, however, was burst. Alas! for [251] our brave\nintentions, they ended in an ague fit.\nOur guide informed us, that the Eutaws reside on both\nsides of the Eutaw or Anahuac mountains; that they are\ncontinually migrating from one side to the other; that\nthey speak the Spanish language; that some few half breeds\nhave embraced the Catholic faith; that the remainder yet\nhold the simple and sublime faith of their forefathers, in\nthe existence of one great creating and sustaining cause,\nmingled with a belief in the ghostly visitations of their\ndeceased Medicine men or diviners; and that they number\na thousand families. He also stated that the Cheyennes\nare a band of renegadoes from the Eutaws and Cumanches ;\nand that they are less brave and more thievish than any other\ntribe living in the plains south of Arkansas.128\nWe started at seven o'clock in the morning of the 24th,\ntravelled eight miles in a north by west direction, killed\nanother buffalo, and went into camp to jerk the meat.\nAgain we were among the frosts and snows and storms of\nanother dividing ridge. Our camp was on the height of land\nbetween the waters of the Platte and those of Grand River, the\nlargest southern [252] branch of the Colorado of the west.127\n126 This information with regard to tribal affinities is incorrect \u00E2\u0080\u0094 the Ute and\nComanche are of Shoshonean stock, while the Cheyenne are an outlying branch\nof the Algonquian family. See our volume v, p. 140, note 88.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n127 This is the divide known as Boreas (or Breckenridge) Pass, which has an i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n213\nFrom this eminence we had a fine view of Boyou\nSalade, and also of the Anahuac range, which we had\nbefore seen from the ridge between the Arkansas and\nthe southern waters of the Platte. To the south-east,\none hundred and sixty miles, towered the bald head of\nJames' Peak; to the east, one hundred miles distant, were\nthe broken and frowning cliffs through which the south\nfork of the Platte, after having gathered all its mountain\ntributaries, forces its roaring cascade course to the plains.\nTo the north, the low, timbered and grassy hills, some tipped\nwith snow, and others crowned with lofty pines, faded into\na smooth, dim, and regular horizon.\nCHAPTER V\nAn Ascent \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Misfortune \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Death \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Mountain of the Holy\nCross \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Leaping Pines \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Killing a Buffalo \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Asses and Tyrants \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nPanther, &c.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Geography \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Something about descending the\nColorado of the West \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Dividing Ridges \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Scene \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Tumbleton's\nPark \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A War Whoop \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Meeting of Old Fellow Trappers \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A\nNotable Tramp \u00E2\u0080\u0094 My Mare \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The etiquette of the Mountains\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Kelly's Old Camp, &c.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Great Heart \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Little Bear River \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nVegetables and Bitterness \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Two White Men, a Squaw and Child \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nA Dead Shot \u00E2\u0080\u0094 What is Tasteful \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Trapping \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Blackfoot and\nSioux \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Bloody Incident \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Cave \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Hot Spring \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Country \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Surprise \u00E2\u0080\u0094 American and Canadian Trappers \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The\nGrand River \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Old Park \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Death before us \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Mule \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Despair.\nThe ascent to this height was not so laborious as the one\nnear the Arkansas. It lay up the face of a mountain which\nformed a larger angle with the plane of the horizon than\ndid the other. But it was clothed with a dense forest of\npines, a species of double-leaved hemlock, and spruce and\nfir trees, which prevented our animals from [254] falling\nover the precipices, and enabled us to make long sweeps in\nover-sea elevation of 11,470 feet at the summit; it is now traversed by the railway\nmentioned in note 125, ante.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. \u00E2\u0080\u0094\u00C2\u00ABSSI\n214\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\na zigzag course, that much relieved the fatigue of the ascent.\nWe however met here a misfortune of a more serious nature\nto us, than the storm that pelted us on the other ridge. One\nof the horses belonging to our guide sickened just before\narriving at the summit, and refusing to bear farther the\nburthen which he had heretofore borne with ease and\napparent pride, sunk under it. We roused him; he rose\nupon his legs, and made a willing attempt to do his duty;\nbut the poor animal failed in his generous effort.\nWe, therefore, took off his pack, put it upon my saddle\nhorse, and drove him before us to the summit, from whence\nwe enjoyed the beautiful prospect we have just described.\nBut we felt little interest in the expanse of sublimity before\nus; our eyes and sympathies, too, were turned to the noble\nanimal which was now suffering great pain. He had\nbeen reared in the mountains; and it seemed to be his\nhighest pleasure to tread along their giddy brinks. Every\nmorning at his post, with the other horse belonging to his\nmaster, he would [255] stand without being fastened, and\nreceive his burthen; and with every demonstration of\nwillingness, bear it over the mountains and through torrents till his task was ended in the night encampment.\nSuch a horse, in the desolate regions we were traversing,\nthe bearer of our wearing apparel and food, the leader of\nour band of animals, the property of our kind old Ken-\ntuckian, the one-third of all his worldly estate, was no mean\nobject of interest. After noticing him awhile, we perceived\nsymptoms of his being poisoned, administered whatever\nmedicine we possessed suited to the case, and left him to\nhis fate for the night. Rain during the day, frost during\nthe night; ice in our camp kettles an inch in thickness.\nWe were out early on the morning of the 25th, and found\nour guide's horse living. We accordingly saddled, packed\nand started down the valley of a small head stream of Grand i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n2l5\nRiver.128 The sick horse was driven slowly along for about\nfive miles when he refused to go farther. It now became\nevident that he had been eating the wild parsnips at our\nlast encampment on the other side of the ridge. That\nhe must die became, therefore, certain, and we unpacked\n[256] to see the breath from his body before he should be\nleft to the merciless wolves. He died near daylight down,\nand as the path before us was rough and bushy, we determined to remain on the spot for the night. Our anxiety\nfor the life of this excellent animal had well nigh led us to\npass unobserved one of the most singular curiosities in\nnature \u00E2\u0080\u0094 a cross of crystallized quartz in the eastern face\nof a conical mountain !\nOn the western side of the stream which we were following down, were a collection of butes or conical peaks clustered around one, the top of which was somewhat in the\nform of the gable end of an ancient church. This cluster\nwas flanked on each side by vast rolls or swells of earth and\nrock, which rose so high as to be capped with snow. In the\ndistance to the West, were seen through the openings between the butes, a number of spiral peaks that imagination\ncould have said formed the western front of a vast holy\nedifice of the eternal hills. On the eastern face of the gable\nbute were two transverse seams of what appeared to be\ncrystallized quartz. The upright was about sixty feet in\nlength, the cross seam about twenty feet, thrown [257]\nathwart the upright near its top and lying parallel to the\nplane of the horizon. I viewed it as the sun rose over the\neastern mountains and fell upon the glittering crystals of\nthis emblem of the Saviour's suffering, built with the founda-\n\u00C2\u00ABs This was the upper stretch of Blue River. Rising in the continental divide,\nit flows in three branches which unite at Dillon, Summit County, thence continuing in a northwesterly course, into Grand River, on the southwestern border of\nMiddle Park.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. 2l6\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\ntions and treasured in the bosom of these granite solitudes.\nA cross in a church, however fallen we may suppose it to be\nfrom the original purity of worship, excites, as it should, in\nthe minds of all reasonable men, a sacred awe arising from\nthe remembrance of the scene in Judea which spread darkness like the night over the earth and the sun. But how\nmuch more impressive was this cross of living rock \u00E2\u0080\u0094 on\nthe temple of nature where priest never trod; the symbol of\nredeeming love, engraven when Eden was unscathed with\nsin, by God's own hand on the brow of his everlasting mountains.\nThe trappers have reverently named this peak, the\n\"Mountain of the Holy Cross.\"129 It is about eight hundred feet in height above the level of the little brook, which\nruns a few rods from its base. The upper end of the cross\nis about one hundred feet below the summit. There are\nmany dark [258] and stately groves of pine and balsam fir\nin the vicinity. About the brooks grow the black alder,\nthe laurel, and honeysuckle, and a great variety of wild\nflowers adorn the crevices of the rocks. The virgin snows\nof ages whiten the lofty summits around; the voice of the\nlow murmuring rivulets trembles in the sacred silence: \"O\nsolitude, thou art here,\" the lip moves to speak. \"Pray,\nkneel, adore,\" one seems to hear softly breathed in every\nbreeze. \"It is holy ground.\"\n26th. On march at six o'clock and travelled down the\nsmall stream which had accompanied us on the 24th and\n25th. As we advanced, the valleys opened, and the trees,\npine, fir, white oak, cotton wood, quaking-asp, &c, became larger and taller. The wild flowers and grass became\nla\u00C2\u00BB The present Holy Cross Mountain is a high peak (r4,i76 feet) northwest of\nLeadville and forming the end of the great Sawatch range. Its cross is formed\nby longitudinal and transverse chasms generally filled with snow. The mountain\ndescribed by Farnham was on the eastern slopes of the Blue range, in Summit\nCounty.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. i\u00C2\u00AB39]\nFarnham's Travels\n217\nmore luxuriant. As we were on an Indian trail, our course\nwas as nearly a right line as the eye of that race could trace\namong the lower hills. Hence we often left the stream and\ncrossed the wood swells, not hills, not mountains; but vast\nswelling tracts of land that rise among these vales like half\nburied spheres, on which, frequently for miles about us,\npine and fir trees of the largest [259] size had been prostrated\nby the winds. To leap our animals over these, and among\nthem, and into them, and out of them, and still among them,\nfloundering, tearing packs and riders \u00E2\u0080\u0094 running against\nknots and tumbling upon splintery stubs and rocks, were\namong the amusements of getting through them. The\ngroves of small quaking-asp too, having been killed by the\nelk, in some places had fallen across our track so thickly\nthat it became necessary to raise the foot over one at almost\nevery step.\nHere my Puebla mare performed many a feat of \" high\nand lofty tumbling.\" She could leap the large pines, one\nat a time, with satisfaction to herself, that was worthy of\nher blood. But to step, merely step, over one small tree\nand then over another, seemed to be too much condescension. Accordingly she took a firm unalterable stand upon\nher reserved rights, from which neither pulling nor whipping seemed likely to move her. At length she yielded, as\ngreat men sometimes do, her own opinion of constitutional\nduty to the will of the people, and leaped among them with\na desperation that ought to have annihilated a square mile\nof such obstacles. But instead [260] thereof, she turned a\nsaumersault into about the same quantity of them, and\nthere lay \"alone in her glory,\" till she was tumbled out and\nset up again.\nThe valley, during the day's journey, had appeared five\nmiles in width.130 On its borders hung dark mountains of\n180 Farnham was travelling thrtiugh one of the richest mineral districts in\n'\n\u00E2\u0096\u00A0a^BHHI 2l8\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nrock, some of which lying westward, were tipped with\nshining ice. Far beyond these appeared the Anahuac\nridge. Snow in the south was yet in sight \u00E2\u0080\u0094 none seen in\nthe east north. The valley itself was much broken, with\nminor rocky declivities, bursting up between the \"swells,\"\nand with fields of large loose stones laid bare by the torrents. The buffalo were seen grazing in small detached\nherds on the slopes of the mountains near the lower line of\nsnow, those green fields of the skies. Many \"elk signs,\"\ntracks, &c, were met; but none of these animals were seen.\nOur guide informed me that their habit is to \"follow the\nsnow.\" In other words, that as the snow in summer melts\naway from the lowlands, they follow its retiring banks into\nthe mountains; and when it begins in autumn to descend\nagain, they descend with it, and pass the winter in the valley.\n[261] He also accounted for the absence of the male deer\nin a similar way; and added that the does, when they bring\nforth their young, forsake their male companions until the\nkids are four or five months old ; and this for the reason that\nthe unnatural male is disposed to destroy his offspring during the period of its helplessness. Some rain fell to-day.\n27th. We commenced our march this morning at six\no'clock, travelled, as our custom usually was, till the hour\nof eleven, and then halted to breakfast, on the bank of the\nstream. The face of the country along the morning's trail\nwas much the same as that passed over the day before; often\nbeautiful, but oftener sublime. Vast spherical swells covered\nwith buffalo, and wild flowering glens echoing the voices\nof a thousand cascades, and countless numbers of lofty\npeaks crowding the sky, will give perhaps a faint idea of it.\nColorado. Gold was discovered on the upper tributaries ofthe Blue\u00E2\u0080\u0094the Snake,\nSwan, and Ten Mile creeks\u00E2\u0080\u0094as early as 1859. Silver and carbonates were\nlater found in the vicinity of Breckenridge. The entire region is rich in minerals,\nand there is also considerable arable land in Blue River valley.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n219\nAs the stream that we had been following bore to the westward of our course, we in the afternoon struck across a\nrange of low hills to another branch of it that came down\nfrom the eastern mountains, and encamped upon its banks.\nThese hills were composed of hard gravel, covered with\ntwo or three inches of [262] black loam. In the deep vales\nthe mountain torrents had swept away the soil, and left the\nstrata bare for miles along their courses. The mountain\nflax and the large thistle flourished everywhere. The timber was the same in kind as we had passed the three last\ndays. The groves were principally confined to the lower\nportions of the ravines which swept down from the snowy\nheights. The Anahuac range in the west appeared to dip\ndeeper in the horizon, and recede farther from us. One\nhalf only of its altitude as seen from the dividing ridges was\nnow visible. We were doubtless lessening our own altitude\nmaterially, but the difference in the apparent height of this\nridge^was in part produced by its increased distance. It\nhad evidently begun to tend rapidly towards the Pacific.\nAn aged knight of the order of horns strode across our\npath near four o'clock, and by his princely bearing invited\nour trapper to a tilt. His Kentucky blood could not be\nchallenged with impunity. He dropped upon one knee \u00E2\u0080\u0094\ndrew a close sight \u00E2\u0080\u0094 clove the bull's heart in twain, and\nsent him groaning upon the sand. He was very poor, but\nas we had reason to fear that we were leaving the buffalo\n[263] \"beat,\" it was deemed prudent to increase the weight\nof our pack with the better portion of his flesh. Accordingly\nthe tongue, heart, leaf fat and the \"fleece\" were taken, and\nwere being lashed to our mule, when an attack of bilious\nbravery seized our giant in the extremities, and he began\nto kick and beat his horse for presuming to stand upon four\nlegs, or some similar act, without his permission, in such\ngallant style, that our mule on which the meat was placed, im\n220\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nleaped affrighted from us and dropped it on the sand. We\nwere all extremely vexed at this, and I believe made some\ndisparaging comparisons between the intellects of asses and\ntyrants. Whether our mule or Smith felt most aggrieved\nthereby we were never informed. But the matter was very\npleasantly disposed of by our benevolent old guide. He\nturned the meat with his foot and kicked it good-naturedly\nfrom him, saying in his blandest manner, \"No dirt in the\nmounting but sand; the teeth can't go that;\" and mounted\nhis horse for the march. We travelled twenty miles and\nencamped.\n28th. Eighteen miles down the small valleys between\nthe sharp and rugged hills; crossed a number of small\nstreams running [264] westward. The mountains along\nour way differed in character from any we had heretofore\npassed. Some of them were composed entirely of earth,\nand semi-elliptical in form; others embraced thousands of\nacres of what seemed to be mere elevations of fine brown\ngravel, rising swell above swell, and sweeping away to the\nheight of two thousand feet, destitute of timber save a few\nslender strips which grew along the rills that trickled at\nlong intervals down their sides.131 We encamped again on\nthe bank of the main stream. It was one hundred yards\nin width; water a foot and a half deep, current six miles\nthe hour.\n29th. To-day we struck Grand River, (the great southern\nbranch of the Colorado of the west), twenty miles from our\nlast night's encampment. It is here three hundred yards\nwide; current, six miles the hour; water, from six to ten\nfeet in depth, transparent, but, like the atmosphere, of much\nhigher temperature than we had met with since leaving the\n131 These were the Williams River Mountains that bound Blue River valley on\nthe northeast, separating it from Williams Fork, a parallel tributary of Grand\nRiver.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. 1839]\nFarnham's Travels\n221\nArkansas. The valleys that lie upon this stream and some\nof its tributaries, are called by the hunters \"The Old Park.\"\nIf the qualifying term were omitted, they would be well\ndescribed by their name.132 Extensive meadows running\n[265] up the valleys of the streams, woodlands skirting the\nmountain bases and dividing the plains, over which the\nantelope, black and white-tailed deer, the English hare,\nthe big horn or mountain sheep, the grisly, grey, red and\nblack bears, and the buffalo and elk range \u00E2\u0080\u0094 a splendid\npark indeed; not old, but new as in the first fresh morning\nof the creation.\nHere also are found the prairie and the large grey wolf,\nthe American panther, beaver, polecat, and land otter. The\ngrisly bear is the largest and most ferocious \u00E2\u0080\u0094 with hair of\na dirty-brown colour, slightly mixed with those of a yellowish\nwhite. The males not unfrequently weigh five or six hundred pounds. The grey bear is less in size, hair nearly\nblack, interspersed along the shoulders and hips with white.\nThe red is still less, according to the trappers, and of the\ncolour indicated by the name. The black bear is the same\nin all respects as those inhabiting the States. The prairie\ndog is also found here, a singular animal, partially described\nin a previous page; but as they may be better known from\nLieutenant Pike's description of them, I shall here introduce\nit:133 \" They live in towns and villages, having an evident\npolice established [266] in their communities. The sites\nof these towns are generally on the brow of a hill, near some\ncreek or pond, in order to be convenient to water and to be\ni\\ni82 \"Old Park\" is that now known as Middle Park\u00E2\u0080\u0094 a broad valley fifty by\nseventy miles, the source of Grand River, and now embraced in Grand County,\nColorado. Its name \"Old Park\" is said to have arisen from the fact that after\nbeing persistently worked by hunters the game was driven into North Park, which\nwas then termed \"New Park,\" whereupon Middle became \"Old Park.\" See\nChittenden, Fur-Trade, ii, p. 750.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n133 See Coues's edition of Pike's Expeditions, pp. 430, 431.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. 222\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nexempt from inundation. Their residence is in burrows,\nwhich descend in spiral form.\" The Lieutenant caused\none hundred and forty kettles of water to be poured into one\nof their holes in order to drive out the occupant, but failed.\n\"They never travel more than half a mile from their homes,\nand readily associate with rattlesnakes. They are of a\ndark brown colour, except their bellies, which are red.\nThey are something larger than a grey squirrel, and very\nfat; supposed to be graminivorous. Their villages sometimes extend over two or three miles square, in which there\nmust be innumerable hosts of them, as there is generally\na burrow every ten steps. As you approach the towns,\nyou are saluted on all sides by the cry of \"'wishtonwish,\"\nuttered in a shrill piercing manner.\"\nThe birds of these regions are the sparrow-hawk, the\njack-daw, a species of grouse of the size of the English\ngrouse; colour brown, a tufted head, and limbs feathered\nto the feet; the raven, very large, turkey, turkey-buzzards,\ngeese, all the varieties of ducks [267] known in such latitudes,\nthe bald and grey eagle, meadow, lark and robin red breast.\nOf reptiles, the small striped lizard, horned frog and garter\nsnake are the most common. Rattlesnakes are said to be\nfound among the cliffs, but I saw none.\nWe forded Grand River, and encamped in the willows on\nthe northern shore. The mountains in the west, on which\nthe snow was lying, were still in sight. The view to the\neast and south was shut in by the neighbouring hills; to\nthe north and northeast it was open, and in the distance\nappeared the Wind River and other mountains, in the\nvicinity of the ' Great Gap.'13^\nDuring the evening, while the men were angling for\n,M For the South Pass, or \"Great Gap,\" see Wyeth's Oregon, in our volume\nxxi, p. 58, note 37. Wind River Mountains are noted in Townsend's Narrative\nin the same volume, p. 184, note 35.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n223\ntrout, Kelly gave me some account of Grand River and the\nColorado of the west. Grand River, he said, is a branch\nof the Colorado.135 It rises far in the east among the precipitous heights of the eastern range of the Rocky Mountains, about midway from the Great Gap and the Kenyon\nof the south Fork of the Platte. It interlocks the distance\nof sixty miles with the waters of the Great Platte; its\ncourse to the point where we crossed, is nearly due west.\nThence it continues in a west by north course one hundred\nand [268] sixty miles, where it breaks through the Anahuac Ridge. The cliffs of this Kenyon are said to be many\nhundred feet high, and overhanging; within them is a\nseries of cascades, which, when the river is swollen by the\nfreshets in June, roar like Niagara.13*\nAfter passing this Kenyon, it is said to move with a dashing, foaming current in a westerly direction fifty miles,\nwhere it unites with Green River, or Sheetskadee, and\nforms the Colorado of the west. From the junction of these\nbranches the Colorado has a general course from the northeast to the south-west, of seven hundred miles to the head\nof the Gulf of California. Four hundred of this seven\nhundred miles is an almost unbroken chasm of Kenyon,\nwith perpendicular sides, hundreds of feet in height, at the\nbottom of which the waters rush over continuous cascades.\nThis Kenyon terminates thirty miles above the Gulf. To\nthis point the river is navigable.137 The country on each\nm Grand River, the eastern tributary of the Colorado, rises in two branches in\nMiddle Park, flows west, and thence on a long, southwestward (not northwest)\ncourse nearly three hundred and fifty miles until it unites with the Green, in southeastern Utah, to form the Colorado.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n\"\u00E2\u0080\u00A2 From the place where it leaves Middle Park, to its union with the Gunnison, Grand River is practically a series of canons. What is locally known as\nGrand River Canon is a stretch about sixteen miles in length, above Glenwood\nSprings, through which runs the Denver and Rio Grande Railway; it is thought\nby many to surpass in majesty the Royal Gorge of the Arkansas.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n\u00C2\u00AB\" This should be three hundred miles, not thirty. For the great Canon of the\nmk 2 24\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nside of its whole course is a rolling desert of brown loose\nearth, on which the rains and dews never fall.\nA few years since, two Catholic Missionaries and their\nservants, on their way from the mountains to California,\nattempted to descend the Colorado. They have never [269]\nbeen seen since the morning they commenced their fatal\nundertaking.138 A party of trappers and others made a\nstrong boat and manned it well, with the determination of\nfloating down the river to take the beaver, which they supposed to live along its banks; but they found themselves in\nsuch danger after entering the kenyon, that with might and\nmain they thrust their trembling boat ashore, and succeeded\nin leaping upon the crags, and lightening it before it was\nswallowed in the dashing torrent. But the death which\nthey had escaped in the stream, still threatened them on\nthe crags. Perpendicular and overhanging rocks frowned\nabove them; these they could not ascend. They could not\ncross the river; they could not ascend the river, and the\nfoaming cascades below forbade the thought of committing\nthemselves again to their boat.\nNight came on, and the difficulty of keeping their boat\nfrom being broken to pieces on the rocks, increased the anxieties of their situation. They must have passed a horrible\nnight; so full of fearful expectations, of the certainty of\nstarvation on the crags, or drowning in the stream. In the\nmorning, however, they examined the rocks again, and\nfound a small projecting crag [270] some twenty feet above\nthem, over which, after many efforts, they threw their small\nboat-rope and drew the noose tight. One of their number\nColorado, see Pattie's Narrative in our volume xviii, p. 137, note 67, and the\nreferences therein cited.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n138 There is apparently no other record of this disaster unless it may be an imperfect reminiscence of the explorations of the friar Francisco Garces, who was\nmurdered (i78r) at his mission, not lost on the river. See Elliott Coues, On the\nTrail oj a Spanish Pioneer (New York, 1900).\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n225\nthen climbed to explore. He found a platform above the\ncrag, of sufficient size to contain his six companions, and a\nnarrow chasm in the overhanging wall through which it\nappeared possible to pass to the upper surface. Having all\nreached the platform, they unloosed their lasso, and, bracing themselves as well as they could, with their rifles in the\n.moving, dry earth beneath their feet, they undertook the\nascent. It was so steep that they were often in danger of\nbeing plunged together in the abyss below. But by digging\nsteps in the rocks, (where they could be dug with their rifle-\nbarrells), and by making use of their lasso where it could be\nused, they reached the upper surface near sunset, and\nmade their way back to the place of departure.1\"\nThis is a mountain legend, interesting, indeed, but \u00E2\u0080\u0094\n\"I cannot tell how the truth may be,\nI tell the tale as 'twas told to me:\"\nAt day-fight, on the 30th, our cavalcade was moving\nacross the woody ridges and verdant valleys between the\ncrossings of [271] Grand River and its great north fork.140\nWe struck that stream about ten o'clock. Its water was\nbeautifully clear, average depth two feet, and current four\nmiles the hour. It is said to take its rise in the mountains,\nnear the south side of the 'Great Gap,' and to flow, in a\nsouth-westerly course, through a country of broken and barren plains, into Grand River, twenty miles below the crossings. We ascended rapidly all the day. There was no\ntrail to guide us; but our worthy guide knew every moun-\n*\u00E2\u0096\u00A0*\u00E2\u0080\u00A2> In 1869, Major J. W. Powell found some wreckage in Lodore Canon, on\nGreen River, which Frederick S. Dellenbaugh, Romance oj the Colorado River\n(New York, r\u00C3\u00A7o2), pp. ri2, 131, thinks may have belonged to the party of trappers\nwhose adventures are cited by Farnham.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n140 It is difficult to know what stream Farnham intends by the \"great north\nfork\" of the Grand, which has almost no northern tributaries of any size.\nProbably the course followed was up Muddy River, a considerable stream rising\nin the divide between North and Middle Parks and for about forty miles flowing\nsouth into the Grand, nearly opposite the mouth of Blue River.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. -\u00E2\u0080\u00A2*V|\n226\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nIn!\ntain-top in sight. Bee lines through immense fields of\nwild sage and wormwood, and over gravelly plains \u00E2\u0080\u0094 a\nshort halt for a short breakfast \u00E2\u0080\u0094 constant spurring, and\ntrotting, and driving, deposited us at sunset, at the foot of\na lofty mountain, clothed with heavy timber. This was\nthe dividing ridge between the waters of Grand and Green\nRivers. It was necessary to cross it. We therefore, turned\nout the animals to feed, ate a scanty morsel of dried meat,\nand went to our couches, for the strength requisite for the\ntask. About the middle of the night the panthers on the\nmountain gave us a specimen of their growling capacities.\nIt was a hideous noise: deep and broken by the most unearthly screams! They were gathering for prey; [272] for\nour horses and ourselves. We drove up the animals, however, tied them near the camp, built a large and bright fire,\nand slept till daylight.\nAt sunrise, on the morning of the 31st, we stood on the\nsummit of the mountain, at the base of which we had slept\nthe previous night.141 It was the very place from which I\nwished to view the outline of the valley of Grand River, and\nthe snowy ridge of the Anahuac; and it was as favourable\nan hour for my purpose as I could have selected from the\nwhole day. The sun had just risen over the eastern heights,\nsufficiently to give the valley of the Grand River to the\nsouth-east of me, those strong contrasts of light and shade\nwhich painters know so well how to use when sketching a\nmountain scene at early morning, or when the sun is half\nhidden at night. The peaks were bright, the deep shadows\nsprang off from the western sides, above faintly, and deepening as they descended to the bases, where the deep brown\nof the rocks and earth gave the vales the semblance of undisturbed night.\n*\u00E2\u0096\u00A0\" This must be some pass in Park range, which here forms the watershed\nbetween the Grand and Green systems.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n227\nThe depression of the valley, as I have termed it, was in\ntruth a depression of a vast tract of mountains; not unto a\nplane [273] or vale; but a great ravine of butes and ridges,\ndecreasing in height from the limit of vision in the northeast, east and south \u00E2\u0080\u0094 and falling one below another toward the stream, into the diminutive bluffs on its banks.\nThe valley below the crossing was less distinctly seen. Its\ngeneral course only could be distinguished among the\nbare hills upon its borders. But the great main chain- or\nAnahuac range, came sweeping up from the Arkansas more\nsublime, if possible, in its aspect than when viewed from\nthe heights farther south. It was about one hundred miles\ndistant, the length of the section in view about one hundred and sixty; not a speck on all its vast outline. It did\nnot show as glaciers do; but like a drift of newly-fallen\nsnow heaped on mountains, by some mighty efforts of the\nelements; piled from age to age; and from day to day\nwidening and heightening its untold dimensions. Its width,\nits height, its cubic miles, its mass of rock, of earth, of snow,\nof ice, of waters ascending in clouds to shower the lowlands\nor renew its own robes of frosts, of waters sent rushing to\nthe seas, are some of the vast items of this sublimity of\nexistence. The light of the rising [274] sun falling upon it\nthrough the remarkable transparent atmosphere of these\nregions, made the view exceedingly distinct. The intervening space was thickly dotted with lesser peaks, which,\nin the lengthened distance, melted into an apparent plain.\nBut the elevation of the great Anahuac ridge, presenting its\nbroad, white side to the morning light in that dry, clear,\nupper air, seemed as distinctly seen as the tree at my side.\nIn the north-west it manifestly tended toward the north end\nof the Great Salt Lake. But I must leave this absorbing\nscene for the journey of the day. The ascent of the dividing ridge, from which I took this extensive survey of all M\n228\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nthis vast, unknown, unexplored portion of the mountains,\nwas comparatively easy. We threaded, indeed, some half\ndozen precipices in going up, within an inch of graves five\nhundred feet deep. Yet, as none of us lost our brains on\nthe rocks below, these narrow and slippery paths can not\nbe remembered in connexion with incidents either remarkable or sad.\nWith this notice of mountain turnpikes, I shall be obliged\nto my readers to step along with me over the bold summit\nand look at the descent, yes, the descent, my friends. [275]\nIt is a bold one: one of the men said \"four miles of perpendicular; \" and so it was. Or if it was not, it ought to have\nbeen, for many very good reasons of mathematical propriety that are as difficult to write as to comprehend. It\nwas partially covered with bushes and trees, and a soft vegetable mould that yielded to our horses' feet, but we, by dint\nof holding, bracing, and sliding, arrived safely at the bottom, and jogged on merrily six or seven miles over barren\nridges, rich plains, and woody hills to the head of Tumble-\nton park. We had turned out our animals to eat, hung our\ncamp-kettle over the fire to boil some bits of grisly meat\nthat we had found among the rubbish of our packs, and\nwere resting our wearied frames in the shade of the willows,\nconversing about the tracts which we had seen five miles\nback; one supposing that they were made by Indians, the\nArrapahoes or the Shoshonies, while our old guide insisted\nthat they were made by white men's horses! and assigned\nas a reason for this opinion, that no Indians could be travelling in that direction, and that one of the horses had shoes\non its fore feet; when the Arrapahoe war-whoop and the\nclattering of hoofs upon the side hill above, brought us to\nour feet, rifle in hand, [276] for a conflict. Kelly seemed\nfor a moment to be in doubt as to his own conclusions\nrelative to the tracks, and as to the colour of those uncere- i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n229\nmonious visiters. But as they dashed up, he leaped the\nbrook, and seized the hands of three old fellow-trappers.\nIt was a joyful meeting. They had often stood side by\nside in battle, and among the solemn mountains dug the\nlonely grave of some slaughtered companion, and together\nsent the avenging lead into the hearts of the Blackfeet.\nThey were more than brothers, and so they met. We\nshared with them our last scraps of meat.\nThey informed us that they had fallen in with our trail,\nand followed us under a belief that we were certain friends\nwhom they were expecting from St. Louis with goods for\nthe post at Brown's Hole; that the Arrapahoes were fattening on buffalo in the Bull Pen, on the north fork of the\nPlatte;142 that the Shoshonies or Snakes were starving on\nroots on Great Bear River; that the Blackfeet and Sioux\nwere in the neighbourhood; that there was no game in the\nmountains except on the head waters of Snake River; and\nthat they themselves were a portion of a party of white men,\nIndians, and squaws, on their way to Bent's Fort on the\n[277] Arkansas, to meet Mr. Thomson with the goods\nbefore named; that we might reasonably anticipate starvation and the arrows of the Sioux, and other kindred comforts along our journey to Brown's Hole. Mr. Craig, the\nchief of the party, and part owner with Mr. Thomson,\nassured us that the grass on the Columbia was already\ndry and scarce; and if there should prove to be enough to\nsustain our horses on the way down, that the snows on the\nBlue Mountains would prevent us from reaching Vancouver\ntill the spring, and kindly invited us to pass the winter at\nhis post. After two hours' tarry with us he and his party\nreturned to their camp.\nla North (or New) Park was frequently called by trappers the Bull Pen. It is\nthe source of the North Platte, which rises therein in many branches, uniting near\nthe north or upper end of the park.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\nil\n7111 23\u00C2\u00B0\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\n\u00E2\u0096\u00BA If\ni\u00C2\u00AB-un\nTumbleton's Park is a beautiful savannah, stretching\nnorth-westerly from our camp in an irregular manner among\ngroves of pine, spruce, fir, and oak.143 Three hundred\nyards from us rose Tumbleton's Rock, one of those singular spires found in the valley of the mountains, called\nButes. It was about eighty feet in height, twenty feet in\ndiameter at the base, and terminated at the top in a point.\nSoon after our new acquaintances had left us, we \"caught\nup\" and struck across the hills in a north-easterly course\ntoward the north fork of Little Bear River. The travelling\nwas very rough, now among [278] fields of loose stones and\nbushes, and now among dense forests; no trail to aid us in\nfinding our way; new ground even to our guide. But he\nwas infallible.\nTwo hours' riding had brought us upon an Indian trail\nthat he had heard of ten years before; and on we rushed\namong the fallen pines, two feet, three feet in diameter,\nraised, as you see, one foot, two feet from the ground. The\nhorses and mules are testing their leaping powers. Over\nthey go, and tip off riders and packs, &c, &c. A merry\ntime this. There goes my Puebla mare, head, heels, and\nneck, into an acre of crazy logs. Ho, halt! Puebla's\ndown, mortally wounded with want of strength ! She's unpacked, and out in a trice; we move on again. Ho! whistle\nthat mule into the track ! he'll be off that ledge there. Move\nthem on ! move ! cut down that sapling by the low part of\nthat fallen tree ! drive over Puebla ! There she goes ! long\nlegs a benefit in bestriding forests. Hold ! hold ! hold ! that\npack-horse yonder has anchored upon a pine! Dismount!\nback her out ! she has hung one side of herself and pack upon\nthat knot! away! ho! But silence! a deer springs up in\nyonder thicket! Kelly creeps forward \u00E2\u0080\u0094 halt! hush! [279]\n143 Probably this is the plateau now known as Egeria Park, at the upper waters\nof Little Bear (or Yampah) River.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. 1839]\nFarnham's Travels\n231\nhu! Ah! the varlet! he is gone; a murrain on his fat\nloins! a poor supper we'll have to-night! no meat left,\nnot a particle; nor coffee, tea, nor salt! custom of society\nhere to starve! suppose you will conform! Stay, here's\ntrouble! but they move! one goes down well! another,\nanother, and another! My Puebla mare, reader, that six\nfoot frame standing there, hesitating to descend that narrow track around the precipice! she goes over it! bravely\ndone ! A ten feet leap ! and pack and all stuck in the mud.\nThat mule, also, is down in the quagmire ! a lift at the pack\nthere, man! the active, tireless creature! he's up and off.\nGuide, this forest is endless! shan't get out to-night. But\nhere we go merrily onward! It is dark enough for the\nfrogs of Egypt ! Halt ! halt ! ho ! Puebla down again \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nlaid out among the logs ! Pull away upon that pack there,\nman ! help the sinner to her feet again for another attempt\nto kill herself. Beautiful pines, firs, and hemlocks, these,\nreader; but a sack of hurricanes has been let loose among\nthem not long since. The prostrate shingle timber, eh?\n'twould cover a roof over the city of London; and make a\nrailroad to run the Thames into Holland. Halt! halt!\nunpack! we camp here to-night.\n[280] A little prairie this, embosomed, nestled, &c, among\nthe sweet evergreen woodlands. Wait a little now, reader,\ntill we turn these animals loose to feed, and we'll strike up\na fire wherewithal to dry our wet garments, and disperse a\nportion of this darkness. It is difficult kindling this wet\nbark. Joseph, sing a song; find a hollow tree; get some\ndry leaves. That horse is making into the forest ! better tie\nhim to a bough ! That's it ; Joseph, that's a youthful blaze !\ngive it strength! feed it oxygen! it grows. Now for our\nguest. Seat yourself, sir, on that log; rather damp comfort \u00E2\u0080\u0094 the best we have \u00E2\u0080\u0094 homespun fare \u00E2\u0080\u0094 the ton of the\ncountry! We're in the primeval state, sir. We regret our 1ft I\n232\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\ninability to furnish you food, sir. But as we have not, for\nthe last few days indulged much in that merely animal\ngratification, we beg you to accommodate yourself with a\ndish of Transcendentalism; and with us await patiently a\nbroiled steak a few days along the track of time to come.\nIt was ten o'clock at night when we arrived at this encampment. It had been raining in torrents ever since night-fall.\nThe rippling of a small stream had guided us after the\ndarkness shut in. Drenched with rain, [281] shivering with\ncold, destitute of food, and with the appetite of wolves, we\navailed ourselves of the only comforts within our reach \u00E2\u0080\u0094\na cheering pine-knot fire, and such sleep as we could get\nunder the open heavens in a pelting storm.\nThe general face of the country through which the afternoon's travel had carried us, was much broken; but the\ninequalities, or hills and valleys, to a very considerable\nextent, were covered with a rich vegetable loam, supporting\na heavy growth of pine, spruce, quaking-asp, &c. The\nglades that intervened were more beautiful than I had seen.\nMany were covered with a heavy growth of timothy or herds\ngrass, and red top in blossom. Large tracts in the skirts of\nthe timber were thickly set with Sweet-sicily. The mountain flax was very abundant. I had previously seen it in\nsmall patches only; but here it covered acres as densely as\nit usually stands in fields, and presented the beautiful sheet\nof blue blossoms so graceful to the lords of the plough.\nI had noticed some days previously, a few blades of the\ngrasses just named, standing in a clump of bushes; but we\nwere riding rapidly, and could not stop to examine [282]\nthem, and I was disposed to think that my sight had deceived me. What ! the tame grasses of Europe, all that are\nvaluable for stock, the best and most sought by every intelligent farmer in Christendom; these indigenous to the vales\nof the Rocky mountains ? It was even so. I\n1839]\nFarnham's Travels\n233\nAugust 1st. As our horses had found little to eat during\nthe past night, and seemed much worn by the exceeding\nfatigues of the previous day, we at early dawn drew them\naround our camp, loaded the strongest of them with our\npacks, and led and drove the poor animals through three\nmiles more of standing and fallen timber, to the opening\non Little Bear River, and turned them loose to feed upon\nthe first good grass that we found.144 It chanced to be in\none of Kelly's old encampments; where he had, some years\nbefore, fortified himself with logs, and remained seven days\nwith a sick fellow trapper. At that time the valley was alive\nwith hostile Indians; but the good man valued the holy\nprinciples of humanity more than his life, and readily put it\nat hazard to save that of his companion. \"A fearful time\nthat,\" said he; \"the redskins saw every turn of our heads\nduring those seven days and nights. But I baited our\nhorses within [283] reach of my rifle during the day, and put\nthem in that pen at night; so that they could not rush off\nwith them, without losing their brains. The buffalo were\nplenty here then. The mountains were then rich. The\nbulls were so bold that they would come close to the fence\nthere at night, and bellow and roar till I eased them of\ntheir blood by a pill of lead in the liver. So you see I did\nnot go far for meat. Now, the mountains are so poor that\none would stand a right good chance of starving, if he were\nobliged to hang up here for seven days. The game is all\ndriven out. No place here for a white man now. Too\npoor, too poor. What little we get, you see, is bull beef.\nFormerly, we ate nothing but cows, fat and young. More\ndanger then, to be sure; but more beaver too; and plenty\n144 Little Bear (more frequently known as Yampah) River rises in the southeastern corner of Routt County, flows in a northerly direction for thirty miles,\nthen bends abruptly westward, and for a hundred miles drains the northwestern\ncorner of Colorado; it enters Green River just below Lodore Canon, on the boundary between Colorado and Utah.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. ;34\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\n\u00E2\u0080\u00A2W<\nof grease about the buffalo ribs. Ah! those were good\ntimes; but a white man has no more business here.\"\nOur general course since entering the mountains at the\nArkansas, had been north-west by west. It now changed\nto north-west by north. Our horses and mules, having\neaten to their satisfaction the rich grass about our guide's\nold encampment, we moved on down Little Bear River.\nThe [284] country, as we descended, became more and\nmore barren.\nThe hills were destitute of timber and grasses; the plains\nbore nothing but prickly pear and wild wormwood. The\nlatter is a shrub growing from two to six feet in height.\nIt branches in all directions from the root. The main stem\nis from two to four inches in diameter at the ground, the\nbark rough, of a light greyish colour and very thin. The\nwood is firm, fine grained, and difficult to break. The\nleaves are larger, but resemble in form and colour those of\nthe common wormwood of the gardens. The flavour is\nthat of a compound of garden wormwood and sage: hence\nit has received the names of \"wild wormwood\" and \"wild\nsage.\" Its stiff and knotty branches are peculiarly unpleasant to the traveller among them. It stands so thickly\nover thousands of acres of the mountain valleys, that it is\nwell nigh impossible to urge a horse through it; and the\nindividual who is rash enough to attempt it, will himself be\nlikely to be deprived of his moccasins, and his horse of his\nnatural covering of his legs. There are two species of the\nprickly pear (cactus) here. The one is the plant of low\ngrowth, thick elliptical leaves armed with thorns, [285] the\nsame as is found in the gardens of certain curious people\nin the States; the other is of higher growth, often reaching\nthree feet; the colour is a deep green. It is a columnar\nplant without a leaf; the surface of the stalk is checked into\ndiamonds of the most perfect proportions, swelling regularly i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n235\nfrom the sides to the centre. At the corners of these figures\ngrow strong thorns, from an inch to an inch and a half in\nlength. Six inches from the ground, branches shoot from\nthe parent stalk in all directions, making a*n angle with it of\nabout forty-five degrees, and growing shorter as the point of\nunion with the central stalk increases in height. The consistency of the whole plant is alternately pulpy and fibrous.\nWe were making our tedious way among these thorny companions, musing upon our empty stomachs, when we were\novertaken by two men, a squaw and child, from Craig's\nparty. They made their camp with us at night. Nothing\nto eat, starving and weak; we followed the example of the\nsquaw, in eating the inner portion of large thistle-stalks.\n2nd. We rose at daybreak, somewhat refreshed by sleep,\nbut weak, weak, having eaten but little for four days. The\nlongings [286] of appetite \u00E2\u0080\u0094 they are horrible ! Our guide\nwas used to long fasts, and was therefore little incommoded.\nHe, however, had been out with his rifle, since the peep of\nday, and as we were lifting the packs upon our mules, it\ncracked in the direction of the trail we were about to travel.\nWe hastened away to him with the eagerness of starving\nmen, and found him resting unconcernedly upon his rifle,\nwaiting for us to enjoy with him the roasted loins of an elk,\nwhich had tumbled from a neighbouring cliff, in obedience\nto his unerring aim.\nLeaving his saddle-horse to pack the meat on, passed\nalong a mile, and encamped among the willows on the bank\nof Little Bear River. The first work, after turning loose\nour animals, was to build a fire to cook meat. Our squaw\ncompanion thought otherwise. She selected a place for her\ncamp beneath the willows, cleared a spot wide enough for\nher bed, formed an arch of the boughs overhead, covered it\nwith a piece of buffalo tent leather, unloosed her infant from\nits prison, and laid it upon skins in the shade she had formed.\n;(< : (1 236\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nm\nAfter this, the horses of herself and husband were unharnessed, and turned loose to feed. She was a good, cleanly,\naffectionate body, [287] equally devoted to the happiness of\nher child, husband, and horses; and seemed disposed to\ninitiate us into every little piece of knowledge that would\nenable us to discover the wild edible roots of the country,\nthe best method of taking fish, hoppling horses, tying knots\nin ropes, repairing saddles, &c, which experience had\ntaught her.\nOur fire had just begun to burn brightly, when our guide\narrived with the elk. It was very much bruised by its fall\nfrom the cliff when shot. Yet it was meat ; it was broiled ;\nit was eaten; it was sweet. No bread, or vegetables, or\nsalt, to the contrary, it was delicious. Four days' fasting\nis confessed to be an excellent panacea for a bad appetite;\nand as all good and wholesome, rules work both ways, it is\nwithout doubt a tasteful addition to bad food. I must, however, bear my humble testimony to the fact, that meat alone,\nunqualified with gravy, unsprinkled with salt or pepper,\nunaided by any vegetable or farinaceous accompaniment,\nis excellent food for men. It neither makes them tigers nor\ncrocodiles. On the contrary, it prevents starvation, when\nnothing else can be had, and cultivates industry, the parent\nof virtue, in all the multiplied departments of the gastric\nsystem.\n[288] 3rd. Remained in camp all day to refresh our\nanimals, to eat, and hear yarns of mountain fife. During\nthese conversations, the great dangers of a residence among\nthe mountains was often reverted to. One class of them was\nsaid to arise from the increasing scarcity of buffalo and\nbeaver among them. This circumstance compelled the\ntrappers to move over a wide range of country, and consequently, multiplied the chances of falling in with the\nSioux and Blackfeet, their deadliest enemies \u00E2\u0080\u0094 enemies on i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n237\nwhom no dependence could be placed other than this, that\nthey always fight well whenever and wherever met. Our\nnew friends related, in this connexion, the death of one\nof their old companions, a brave old trapper of the name\nof Redman. This man, and another called Markhead,\nwere trapping on the head-waters of Green River, when\nthey were discovered by a war party of young Sioux, and\nrobbed of their horses. This was a great annoyance to\nthem. The loss of the value of their animals was inconvenient for the poor men; but the loss of their services in\ntransporting their traps and furs, and \"possibles,\" (clothing,\ncooking utensils, &c.,) was severely felt. It was necessary\nto recover them, or \"cache-\" that is, bury in some secret place\nin the dry sand, [289] their remaining property: forsake\ntheir hunt, and abandon all their prospects of gain for the\nseason. Redman had lived with the Sioux, and relying\non their former friendship for him in their village, determined\nto go with Markhead, and attempt to reason a Sioux war\nparty into a surrender of their plunder. They approached\nthem rifle in hand, and held a parley near the Pilot Bute.145\nThe result was, that the Indians demanded and obtained\ntheir rifles, discharged them at their owners, killed Redman\ninstantly, and severely wounded his companion. This\noccurred in the spring of 1839.\n4th. We were early on route this morning, down the\nbanks of Little Bear River; course north-west. Our track\nlay so low, that the mountains were seldom seen. A portion of the Anahuac ridge in the south-west, was the only\nheight constantly in view. The plains, as they are called,\non either side of the river, were cut into vast ravines and\nbluffs. In their side sometimes appeared a thin stratum\nof slate. Few other rocky strata were seen during a march\n145 The Three Tetons were sometimes spoken of as Pilot Knobs or Buttes. See\nTownsend's Narrative in our volume xxi, p. 209, note 49.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. 238\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nof fifteen miles. About twelve o'clock, we came upon a\ncave formed by the limestone and sulphur deposit of a\nsmall stream that burst from a hill hard by. The water\nhad, [290] by constant depositions, formed an elevated\nchannel some five rods down the face of the hillside, at the\ntermination of which it spread itself over a circular surface\nof one hundred and fifty or two hundred feet in circumference. In the centre of this, was an orifice, down which\nthe water trickled into the cave below. As little of the cave\ncould be seen from the ground above, myself and two others\nattempted to explore it. We found the roof hung with\nbeautifully crystallized sulphur, and the bottom strewn with\nlarge quantities of the same material in a pulverized state.\nThe odour was so offensive, however, that we were glad to\nretreat before we had formed a very perfect estimate of its\nextent and contents. It was about six rods long, eight\nfeet wide, and four feet high. Near it were a number of\nwarm springs. On the bluff, a few rods above it, was a\nsmall tract of fused rocks. In all the circle of vision, however, there were no elevations that indicate any powerful\nvolcanic action in former times; nor any from which these\nrocks could have tumbled or been thrown. The warm\nsprings, however, in the vicinity may, perhaps, indicate\ntheir origin.\nThe face of the country passed to-day [291] was dry and\nbarren. A single quaking-asp tree here and there on the\nsterile bottom lands, and small strips of cotton wood, whose\ntops peered from the deep gorges just above the level of the\nwormwood plains, and a few withered patches of the wild\ngrasses among the patched bluffs, present its whole aspect.\nThe sun had nearly set before we arrived at the desired\nplace of encampment, the junction of the two principal\nforks of Little Bear River.146 When within half a mile of\n\"o The forks of the Little Bear are the junction of Elk Head Creek with the i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n239\nit, one of the trappers who had joined us, suddenly started\nhis horse into a quick gallop in advance of the rest of the\nparty. We were surprised by this sudden movement, and\nhastened after him. As we rose a sharp knoll, our surprise\nwas changed to pleasure on seeing him in friendly converse\nwith a white face, a fellow-trapper, one of the \"white men\"\nof the mountains. He was a French Canadian, fourteen\ndays from Brown's Hole. We were soon across the river,\nand in his camp among the cottonwood. Here we found\nthree others to welcome us, and give us information of the\nmovements of the Indians. They had been attacked by a\nSioux war party, a few days before on Little Snake River,\nbut had escaped [292] with no other loss than that of a hat\nand a favourite dog. Their opinion was that we should\nhave the pleasure of meeting them on their way to Brown's\nHole. This prospect was extremely gratifying to our noble\nold Kentucky guide. \"D\u00E2\u0080\u0094n them,\" said he; \"I'll try\nto pick up one of the rascals. Redman was as fine a fellow as ever came to the mountains, and they shot him\nwith his own rifle. He was a fool to let them have it; he\nought to have shot one of them, d\u00E2\u0080\u0094n 'em, and then died,\nif he must.\"\nOur elk meat was diminishing fast, under the kind\nadministration of our own and our friends' appetites; and\nthe certain prospect that we should obtain no more for eight\ndays was a source of no inconsiderable uneasiness to us.\nAnd yet we gave Ward, Burns, the squaw, and the four\nFrench trappers, being destitute of food, as freely as they\nwould have given to us under similar circumstances, the best\npiece, and as much as they would eat for supper and breakfast. These solitary Frenchmen were apparently very\nformer, not far from the modern town of Craig. The more usual route to Brown's\nHole came over the South Fork of the North Platte, which heads with Elk Head\nCreek.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. 240\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nhappy. Neither hunger nor thirst annoy them, so long as\nthey have strength to travel, and trap, and sing. Their\ncamps are always merry, and they cheer [293] themselves\nalong the weary march in the wilderness with the wild border songs of \"Old Canada.\" The American trappers present a different phase of character. Habitual watchfulness destroys every frivolity of mind and action. They\nseldom smile: the expression of their countenances is watchful, solemn, and determined. They ride and walk like\nmen whose breasts have so long been exposed to the bullet\nand the arrow, that fear finds within them no resting-place.\nIf a horse is descried in the distance, they put spurs to their\nanimals, and are at his side at once, as the result may be,\nfor death or life. No delay, no second thought, no cringing\nin their stirrups; but erect, firm, and with a strong arm,\nthey seize and overcome every danger, or \"perish,\" as they\nsay, \" as white men should,\" fighting promptly and bravely.\n5th. This morning we were to part with Burns and\nWard, and the French trappers. The latter pursued then-\nway to the \"Old Park,\" as they called the valley of Grand\nRiver, in pursuit of beaver; the former went into the heights\nin the south-west, for the same object, and the additional\none of waiting there the departure of the Sioux and Blackfeet. These Americans had interested [294] us in themselves by their frankness and kindness; and before leaving\nthem, it was pleasant to know that we could testify our\nregard for them by increasing their scanty stock of ammunition. But for every little kindness of this description, they\nsought to remunerate us tenfold, by giving us moccasins,\ndressed deer and elk skins, &c. Every thing, even their\nhunting shirts upon their backs, were at our service; \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nalways kindly remarking when they made an offer of such\nthings, that \"the country was filled with skins, and they\ncould get a supply when they should need them.\" i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n241\nAbout ten o'clock, we bade these fearless and generous fellows a farewell as hearty and honest as any that was ever\nuttered ; wishing them a long and happy fife in their mountain home; and they bade us a pleasant and prosperous\njourney. We took up our march again down Little Bear\nRiver for Brown's Hole. It was six or eight \"camps,\" or\ndays' travel, a-head of us; the way infested with hostile\nIndians \u00E2\u0080\u0094 destitute of game and grass ; a horrid journey !\nWe might escape the Sioux; we might kill one of our horses,\nand so escape death by starvation ! But these few chances\nof saving our lives were enough. Dangers of [295] the kind\nwere not so appalling to us then as they would have been\nwhen leaving the frontier. We had been sixty odd days\namong the fresh trails of hostile tribes, in hourly expectation\nof hearing the war-whoop raised around us; and certain\nthat if attacked by a war party of the ordinary number, we\nshould be destroyed. We had, however, crept upon every\nheight which we had crossed with so much caution, and\nexamined the plains below with so much care, and when\ndanger appeared near, wound our way among the timber and\nheights till we had passed it with so much success, that our sense\nof danger was blunted to that degree, and our confidence in\nour ability to avoid it so great, that I verily believe we thought\nas little of Indians as we did of the lizards along our track.\nWe still clung to the stream. It was generally about fifty\nyards wide, a rapid current, six inches deep, rushing over a\nbed of loose rocks and gravel, and falling at the rate of about\ntwo hundred feet to the mile. During the day, a grisly bear\nand three cubs and an elk showed themselves. One of the\nmen gave chase to the bears, with the intention of killing\none of them for food ; but they eluded his pursuit by running\ninto brush, through which a horse [296] could not penetrate\nwith sufficient speed to overtake them. The man in pursuit, however, found a charming prize among the brush; 242\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\na mule \u00E2\u0080\u0094 an excellent pack mule, which would doubtless\nbe worth to him at Brown's Hole \u00C2\u00A320. It was feeding\nquietly, and so tame as to permit him to approach within\nten yards, without even raising its head over the hazel\nbushes that partly concealed it. A double prize it was, and\nso accidental; obtained at so little expense; ten minutes\ntime only \u00E2\u0080\u0094 two pounds a minute ! But alas for the \u00C2\u00A320 !\nHe was preparing to grasp it, and the mule most suddenly\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 most wonderfully \u00E2\u0080\u0094 most cruelly metamorphosed itself\ninto an elk ! fat as marrow itself, and sufficient in weight to\nhave fed our company for twelve days. It fled away, before\nour \"maid and her milk pail companion\" could shake his\nastonished locks, and send a little lead after it, by way of\nentreaty, to supply us starving wretches with a morsel of meat.\nAfter this incident had imparted its comfort to our disappointed appetites, we passed on, over, around, in, and\namong deep' ravines, and parched, sterile, and flinty plains\nfor the remainder of our ten miles' march, and encamped\non the bank of the river. The last of our meat was here\ncooked and [297] eaten. A sad prospect! No game\nahead, no provisions in possession. We caught three or\nfour small trout from the river, for breakfast, and slept.\nI had now become much debilitated by want of food and\nthe fatigues of the journey. I had appropriated my saddle\nhorse to bear the packs that had been borne by Kelly's\nbefore its death; and had, consequently, been on foot ever\nsince that event, save when my guide could relieve me with\nthe use of his saddle beast. But as our Spanish servant,\nthe owner and myself, had only his horse's services to bear\nus along, the portion to each was far from satisfying to our\nexceeding weariness. Blair and Wood also, had had only\none horse from El Puebla. We were, therefore, in an ill\ncondition to endure a journey of seven days, over a thirsty\ncountry, under a burning sun, and without food. i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n243\nCHAPTER VI [I]147\nBear Hunt \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Sulphur Puddle \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The River \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Wolves and their Fare\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Dog Eating \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Little Snake River \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Thirst \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Deserts \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Mountains \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Mountain Hottentots \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Brown's Hole \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Fort David Crockett \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Traders \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Winter and its Hilarities \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Love \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Way to\nget a Wife \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Recommendation to Civilized People \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The\nColorado of the West \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Club Indians \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Shoshonies \u00E2\u0080\u0094 An .\nIndian Temperance Society \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Crows \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Blackfeet \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Un-\nburied Skeletons \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Arrapahoes, and Citizenship among them\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 War Parties \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Lodge of the Great Spirit \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Religious Ceremonies\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Vow and an Incident \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The First Shoshonie who saw a\nWhite Man.\n6th August. Eighteen miles to-day over the barren\nintervales of the river. The wild wormwood and prickly\npear were almost the only evidences of vegetative powers\nwhich the soil presented. A rugged desolation [2] of loam\nand sand bluffs, barren vales of red earth, and an occasional solitary boulder of granite; no mountains even,\nto relieve the dreary monotony of the sickening sight.\nAbout twelve o'clock it was pleasant to see a small band\nof antelopes show themselves on the brink of a bluff.\nWe halted, and attempted to approach them; but they\nhad been hunted a few days before by the French trappers,\nwhom we had met, and by no means relished our companionship. Away they ran like the wind. Our hopes of finding game were at an end; the French trappers had seen,\non all their way out, no other game than this band of antelopes. Our faithful greyhound could be \u00C3\u00A8aten as a last\nresource, and we travelled on. Our excellent guide insisted\nupon walking nearly all the way that I might ride. This\nwas inestimably kind in him. The act flowed from his\nown goodness; for, during our long journey together, he\nhad never failed to take every opportunity to make me\ncomfortable. We arranged our camp to-night with unusual care. The Sioux were among the hills on the right,\n\u00C2\u00BB' This is the first chapter of volume ii of Farnham's Travels.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\nill il!\n244\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nand every preparation was therefore made to receive an\nattack from them. But like many other expectations of\nthe [3] kind, this vanished as the beautiful mountain morn\ndawned upon the silent desert.\n7th. To-day we travelled across a great southward\nbend in the river.148 The face of the country a desert \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nneither tree nor shrub, nor grass, nor water in sight. During the afternoon we fell in with an old grisly bear and\ntwo cubs. It was a dangerous business, but starvation\nknows no fear.\nKelly and Smith, having horses that could run, determined to give chase and shoot one cub, while the greyhound should have the honour of a battle with the other.\nUnder this arrangement the chase commenced. The old\nbear, unfaithful to her young, ran ahead of them in her\nfright, and showed no other affection for them than to stop\noccasionally, raise herself on her hind feet, and utter a\nmost piteous scream. The horses soon ran down one cub,\nand the greyhound the other, so that in half an hour we\nwere on the route again with the certain prospect of a\nsupper when we should encamp. Had we found water and\nwood where we killed our meat, we should have believed\nit impossible to have proceeded further without food; but\nas necessity seldom deals in mercy, she [4] compelled us in\nthis case, to travel till dark, before we found wood enough\nto cook our food, and water enough to quench our parching thirst. At last, turning from our track and following\ndown a deep ravine that ran toward the river, we came\nupon a filthy, oozing sulphurous puddle which our horses,\nthough they had had no water the entire day, refused\nto drink. There was no alternative, however, between\ndrinking this and thirsting still, and we submitted to the\n\"8 Between Fortification and Lay creeks, the Yampah makes a southern bend\nfor about twenty-five miles.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. mp9H\n1839]\nFarnham's Travels\n245\nlesser of two evils. We drank it; and with the aid of dry\nwormwood for fuel, boiled our meat in it. These cubs\nwere each of about twelve pounds weight. The livers,\nhearts, heads, and the fore quarters of one of them, made\nus a filthy supper. It, however, served the purpose of\nbetter food as it prevented starvation. We had travelled\neighteen miles.\n8th. The morning being clear and excessively warm,\nwe thought it prudent to seek the river again, that we might\nobtain water for ourselves and animals. They had had no\ngrass for the last twenty-four hours; and the prospect of\nfinding some for the poor animals upon the intervales, was\nan additional inducement to adopt this course. We accordingly wound down the ravine two [5] or three miles, struck\nthe river at a point where its banks were productive, and\nunpacked to feed them, and treat ourselves to a breakfast\nof cub meat. Boiled or roasted, it was miserable food.\nTo eat it, however, or not to eat at all, was the alternative.\nFurthermore, in a region where lizards grow poor, and\nwolves lean against sand banks to howl, cub soup, without\nsalt, pepper, &c, must be acknowledged to be quite in\nstyle.\nHaving become somewhat comfortable by feasting thus,\nwe travelled on down this river of deserts twenty miles, and\nencamped again on its banks. At this encampment we ate\nthe last of our meat; and broke the bones with our hatchet\nfor the oily marrow in them. The prospect of suffering\nfrom hunger before we could arrive at Brown's Hole,\nbecame every hour more and more certain. The country\nbetween us and that point was known to be so sterile, that\nnot even a grisly bear was to be hoped for in it. It was\na desert of black flint, sand and marl, rendered barren by\nperpetual drought.\n9th. Travelled twenty-three miles along the river \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Hi\nll\n246\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nnothing to eat, not even a thistle stalk. At night we tried\nto take [6] some fish; the stream proved as ungenerous as\nthe soil on its banks.\n10th. Made fifteen miles to-day; country covered with\nwild wormwood; at intervals a little bunch grass \u00E2\u0080\u0094 dry\nand dead ; face of the country formerly a plain, now washed\ninto hills. Our dog was frantic with hunger; and although\nhe had treated us to a cub, and served us with all the\nfidelity of his race, we determined in full council to-night,\nif our hooks took no fish, to breakfast on his faithful\nheart in the morning. A horrid night we passed: forty-\neight hours without a morsel of food! Our camp was\neight miles above the junction of Little Bear and Little\nSnake Rivers.\nnth. This morning we tried our utmost skill at fishing. Patience often cried ' hold ' but the appearance of\nour poor dog would admonish us to continue our efforts\nto obtain a breakfast from the stream. Thus we fished\nand fasted till eight o'clock. A small fish or two were\ncaught \u00E2\u0080\u0094 three or four ounces of food for seven starving\nmen! Our guide declared the noble dog must die! He\nwas accordingly shot, his hair burnt off, and his fore\nquarters boiled and eaten! Some of the men declared\nthat dogs made excellent mutton; but on this point, there\n[7] existed among us what politicians term an honest difference of opinion. To me, it tasted like the flesh 0} a dog,\na singed dog; and appetite keen though it was, and edged\nby a fast of fifty hours, could not but be sensibly afive to\nthe fact that, whether cooked or barking, a dog is still a\ndog, every where. After our repast was finished, we saddled and rode over the plains in a northerly direction for\nBrown's Hole. We had been travelling the last five days,\nin a westerly course; and as the river continued in that\ndirection, we left it to see it no more, I would humbly hope, 1839]\nFarnham's Travels\n247\ntill the dews of Heaven shall cause its deserts to blossom\nand ripen into something more nutritive than wild wormwood and gravel.\nWe crossed Litde Snake River about ten o'clock. This\nstream is similar in size to that we had just left.148 The\nwater was clear and warm; the channel rocky and bordered by barren bluffs. No trees grew upon its banks\nwhere we struck it; though I was informed that higher\nup, it was skirted with pretty groves of cotton wood. But\nas the Sioux war party which had attacked the French\ntrappers in this neighbourhood, was probably not far from\nour trail, perhaps on it, and near us, we spent little time in\nexamining either groves or deserts; for [8] we were vain\nenough to suppose that the mere incident of being scalped\nhere would not be so interesting, to ourselves at least, as\nwould be our speedy arrival at Craig and Thomson's post\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 where we might eat Christian food and rest from the\nfatigues of our journey. For these, and several other palpable reasons, we drove on speedily and silently, with every\neye watchful, every gun well primed, every animal close\nto his fellows, till ten o'clock at night. We then halted\nnear a place where we had been told by the French trappers, we could find a spring of water. The day had been\nexcessively warm, and our thirst was well nigh insufferable. Hence the long search for the cooling spring to\nslake its burnings. It was in vain. Near midnight therefore it was abandoned by all, and we wrapped ourselves\nin our blankets, hungry, thirsty, and weary, and sunk to\nrest upon the sand. Another dreadful night! Thirst,\nburning thirst! The glands cease to moisten the mouth,\nthe throat becomes dry and feverish, the lungs cease\n\"\u00C2\u00BB Little Snake is the largest affluent of the Yampah. Rising in Elk Head\nMountains, it flows west and southwest, debouching at a small plain known as\nLily's Park.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. ^1'\n248\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nto be satisfied with the air they inhale, the heart is\nsick and faint; and the nerves preternaturally active,\ndo violence to every vital organ. It is an incipient throe\nof death.\n12th. We arose at break of day, and [9] pursued our\njourney over the grey, barren wastes. This region is\ndoomed to perpetual sterility. In many portions of it\nthere appears to be a fine soil. But the trappers say that\nvery little rain or snow falls upon it; hence its unproductiveness. And thus it is said to be with the whole country\nlying to the distance of hundreds of miles on each side of\nthe whole course of the Colorado of the West. Vast plateaux of desolation, yielding only the wild wormwood and\nprickly pear ! So barren, so hot, so destitute is it of water\nthat can be obtained and drunk, that the mountain sheep,\nand hare even, animals which drink less than any others\nthat inhabit these regions, do not venture there. Travellers along that stream are said to be compelled to carry it\nlong distances upon animals, and draw it where it is possible so to do, with a rope and skin bucket from the chasm\nof the stream. And yet their animals frequently die of\nthirst and hunger; and men often save their lives by eating the carcasses of the dead, and by drinking the blood\nwhich they from time to time draw from the veins of the\nliving.\nBetween this river and the Great Salt Lake, there is a\nstream called Severe River, which rises in the high plateaux to the S. E. [10] of the lake, and running some considerable distance in a westerly course, terminates in its\nown lakes. On the banks of this river there is said to be some\nvegetation, as grasses, trees, and edible roots. Here live the\n\"Piutes\" and \"Land Pitches,\" the most degraded and least\nintellectual Indians known to the trappers. They wear no\nclothing of any description \u00E2\u0080\u0094 build no shelters. They eat *-%\ni839]\nFarnham's Travels\n249\nroots, lizards, and snails. Their persons are more disgusting\nthan those of the Hottentots.150\nThey provide nothing for future wants. And when\nthe lizard and snail and wild roots are buried in the snows\nof winter, they are said to retire to the vicinity of timber,\ndig holes in the form of ovens in the steep sides of the sand\nhills, and, having heated them to a certain degree, deposit\nthemselves in them, and sleep and fast till the weather permits them to go abroad again for food. Persons who have\nvisited their haunts after a severe winter, have found the\nground around these family ovens strewn with the unburied\nbodies of the dead, and others crawling among them, who\nhad various degrees of strength, from a bare sufficiency\nto gasp in death, to those that crawled upon their hands,\nand feet, [n] eating grass like cattle. It is said that they\nhave no weapons of defence except the club, and that in the\nuse of that they are very unskilful. These poor creatures are hunted in the spring of the year, when weak and\nhelpless, by a certain class of men, and when taken, are\nfattened, carried to Santa F\u00C3\u00A9 and sold as slaves during\ntheir minority. \"A likely girl\" in her teens brings oftentimes \u00C2\u00A360 or ;\u00C2\u00A38o. The males are valued less.\nAt about eleven o'clock we came to a stream of good\nwater and halted to slake our thirst and cook the remainder\nof our dog mutton. Our animals' sufferings had nearly\nequalled our own. And while we ate and rested under\nthe shade of a tree, it added much to our enjoyment to see\nthe famished beasts regale themselves upon a plat of short\nwiry grass beside the stream. Some marks of dragging\nlodge poles along the now well denned trail, indicated to\nus that a portion of the Shoshonie or Snake tribe had lately\n1\u00C2\u00BB For the Paiute see our volume xviii, p. 140, note 70. Concerning the\nSanpitch (not Land Pitch), consult De Smet's Letters in our volume xxvii, p. 166,\nnote 37.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. ~xrtffl\n25O\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nleft Brown's Hole. From this circumstance we began to\nfear what afterwards proved true, that our hopes of finding\nthe Snakes at that post and of getting meat from them\nwould prove fallacious. Our filthy meal being finished,\nwe gathered [12] up our littie caravan and moved forward\nat a round pace for three hours, when the bluffs opened\nbefore us the beautiful plain of Brown's Hole.151 As we\nentered it we crossed two cool streams that tumbled down\nfrom the stratified cliffs near at hand on the right; and a\nfew rods beyond, the whole area became visible. The Fort,\nas it is called, peered up in the centre, upon the winding bank of the Sheetskadee. The dark mountains rose\naround it sublimely, and the green fields swept away into\nthe deep precipitous gorges more beautifully than I can\ndescribe.\nHow glad is man to see his home again after a weary\nabsence! Every step becomes quicker as he approaches\nits sacred portals; and kind smiles greet him; and leaping hearts beat upon his; and warm lips press his own.\nIt is the holy sacrament of friendship. Yet there is another\nclass of these emotions that appears to be not less holy.\nThey arise when, after having been long cut off from every\nhabit and sympathy of civilized life, long wandering among\nthe deep and silent temples of the eternal mountains, long\nand hourly exposed to the scalping knife of savages and the\nagonies of [13] starvation, one beholds the dwellings of\ncivilized men \u00E2\u0080\u0094 kindred of the old Patriot blood, rearing\ntheir hospitable roofs among those heights, inviting the\n181 Brown's Hole, now known as Brown's Park, is in the northwestern corner\nof Colorado, on Green Paver. It is thought to have been named for an early trapper. The valley, which is about thirty miles long by five or six in width, is formed\nby an expansion of the canon walls of the river, so that all about it cliffs rise to a\ngreat height. The only entrance is a rocky chasm at the east, about sixty yards\nwide. The valley is so sheltered that it possesses an unusual climate, with seldom\nsnow enough to cover the pasturage; it was, therefore, a favorite wintering ground\nfor trappers and hunters.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n2S!\nhouseless, wayworn wanderer to rest; to relax the tension of his energies, close his long watching eyes, and\nrepose the heart awhile among generous spirits of his\nown race. Is not the hand that grasps yours then, an\nhonest hand? Does it not distil, by its sacred warmth\nand hearty embrace, some of the dearest emotions of which\nthe soul is capable; friendship unalloyed, warm, holy, and\nheavenly ?\nThus it seemed to me, at all events, as w\u00C3\u00A9 rode into the\nhollow square and received from St. Clair, the person in\ncharge, the hearty welcome of an old hunter to \"Fort David\nCrockett.\"152 A room was appropriated immediately for\nour reception, our horses were given to the care of his horse\nguard, and every other arrangement within his means,\nwas made, to make us feel that within that little nest of\nfertility, amid the barrenness of the great Stony Range \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nfar from the institutions of law and religion \u00E2\u0080\u0094 far from\nthe sweet ties of family relations, and all those nameless\nendearing influences that shed their rich [14] fragrance over\nhuman nature in its cultivated abiding places \u00E2\u0080\u0094 that there\neven could be given us the fruits of the sincerest friendship. Such kindness can be appreciated fully by those\nonly who have enjoyed it in such places; who have seen\nit manifested in its own way; by those only, who have\nstarved and thirsted in these deserts and been welcomed,\nand made thrice welcome, after months of weary wandering, to i Fort David Crockett.\"\nAfter partaking of the hospitality of Mr. St. Clair, I\nstrolled out to examine more minutely this wonderful littie\n162 Fort David Crockett was not long maintained; erected before Farnham's\nvisit, it was a ruin when Fremont passed here in 1844. Wislizenus, who arrived\na few days after Farnham, declares it the poorest building seen on his travels, and\nthat the distance from any well-worn route of travel and the lack of game on the\nneighboring hills had given it the name of Fort Misery. It was owned jointly by\nThomson, Craig, and St. Clair.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n,-jmwMsmM' 252\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\n!\u00E2\u0080\u00A2#\nvalley. It is situated in or about latitude 420 north; one\nhundred miles south of Wind River mountains, on the\nSheetskadee (Prairie Cock) River. Its elevation is something more than eight thousand feet above the level of the\nsea. It appeared to be about six miles in diameter; shut\nin, in all directions, by dark frowning mountains, rising\none thousand five hundred feet above the plain. The\nSheetskadee, or Green River, runs through it, sweeping in\na beautiful curve from the north-west to the south-west\npart of it, where it breaks its way through the encircling\nmountains, between cliffs, one thousand feet in height,\nbroken and hanging as [15] if poised on the air. The area\nof the plain is thickly set with the rich mountain grasses,\nand dotted with little copses of cotton wood and willow\ntrees. The soil is alluvial, and capable of producing\nabundantly all kinds of small grains, vegetables, &c,\nthat are raised in the northern States. Its climate is very\nremarkable. Although *in all the country, within a hundred miles of it, the winter months bring snows, and the\nsevere cold that we should expect in such a latitude, and\nat such an elevation above the level of the sea, yet in this\nlittle nook, the grass grows all the winter; so that, while\nthe storm rages on the mountains in sight, and the\ndrifting snows mingle in the blasts of December, the old\nhunters here heed it not. Their horses are cropping the\ngreen grass on the banks of the Sheetskadee, while they\nthemselves are roasting the fat loins of the mountain\nsheep, and laughing at the merry tale and song.\nThe Fort is a hollow square of one story log cabins, with\nroofs and floors of mud, constructed in the same manner\nas those of Fort William. Around these we found the\nconical skin lodges of the squaws of the white trappers,\nwho were away on their \"fall hunt,\" and also the lodges\nof a few [16] Snake Indians, who had preceded their tribe i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n253\nto this, their winter haunt. Here also were the lodges\nof Mr. Robinson, a trader, who usually stations himself\nhere to traffic with the Indians and white trappers. His\nskin lodge was his warehouse; and buffalo robes were\nspread upon the ground and counter, on which he displayed\nhis butcher knives, hatchets, powder, lead, fish-hooks,\nand whisky. In exchange for these articles he receives\nbeaver skins from trappers, money from travellers,\nand horses from the Indians. Thus, as one would\nbelieve, Mr. Robinson drives a very snug little business.\nAnd indeed, when all the \" independent trappers \" are\ndriven by approaching winter into this delightful retreat,\nand the whole Snake village, two or three thousand strong,\nimpelled by the same necessity, pitch their lodges around\nthe Fort, and the dances and merry makings of a long\nwinter are thoroughly commenced, there is no want of\ncustomers.\nThese winters in Brown's hole are somewhat like winters among the mountains of New England, in the effects\nthey produce on the rise and progress of the art of all\narts \u00E2\u0080\u0094 the art of love. For, as among the good old hills\nof my native clime, quiltings, [17] and singing-schools,\nand evening dances, when the stars are shining brightiy\non the snow crust, do soften the heart of the mountain\nlad and lassie, and cause the sigh and blush to triumph\nover all the counsels of maiden aunts and fortune-tellers;\nso here in this beautiful valley, and in the skin lodge\nvillage of the Snakes, there are bright evenings, beaming\nstars, and mellow moons, and social circles for singing\nthe wild ditties of their tribe, and for sewing with the\nsinews of the deer, their leggings, moccasins and buffalo\nrobes, and for being bewitched with the tender passion.\nThe dance, too, enlivens the village. The musician\nchants the wild song, and marks the time by regular beat- -..*\u00C2\u00AB\n254\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nings with a stick upon a sounding board; and fight heels,\nand sturdy frames, and buxom forms respond to his call.\nTo these, and other gatherings, the young go, to see who\nare the fairest, and best, and most loved of the throng.\nOur friend Cupid goes there too. Yes, Cupid at an Indian\ndance! And there measuring bow and arrow with those\nwho invented them, he often lays at his feet, I am told,\nthe proudest hawk's feather that adorns the brow of Chief\nor Chief ess. For, on the [18] morning after the dance,\nit not unfrequently happens that he of the beard is compelled, by force of certain uneasy sensations about the\nheart, to apply to some beardless one for the balm of sweet\nsmiles for his relief.\nHe does not wait for the calm hour of a Sunday night.\nNor does he delay putting the question by poetical allusions to the violet and firmament. No! Cahn hours and\nthe poetry of nature have no charms for him. He wants\nnone of these. Our friend Cupid has cast an arrow into\nhis heart, bearded with the stings of irresistible emotion;\nand he seeks that mischievous fair one, her alone who\nselected the arrow and the victim; her alone who was a\n\"particeps criminis\" in the loss of that great central organ\nof his life, called in the annals of Christian countries,\n\"the heart.\" No! his course is vastly more philosophical\nand single-minded, (I mean no offence to my countrymen \u00E2\u0080\u0094 none to you, ye Britons over the waters,) than the\nginger-bread, sugar-candy courtships of Christian people. He first pays his addresses to his band of horses;\nselects the most beautiful and valuable of them all, and\nthen goes with his chosen horse to the lodge of his chosen\n[19] girl's father or mother, or if both these be dead, to\nthe lodge of her eldest sister, ties the animal to the tent\npole, and goes away. After his departure, the inmates\nof the lodge issue from it, and in due form examine the i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n2S5\nhorse, and if it appears to be worth as much as the girl\nwhom the owner seeks, an interview is had, the horse taken\nby the parents, or sister, as the case may be, and the lover\ntakes the girl. A fair business transaction, you perceive,\nmy readers \u00E2\u0080\u0094 \"a quid pro quo\" \u00E2\u0080\u0094 a compensation in\nkind. tj\nThe girl, received in exchange for the horse, becomes\nthe absolute personal property of the enamoured jockey,\nsubject to be re-sold whenever the state of the market\nand his own affection will allow. But if those, whose\nright it is to judge in the matter, are of opinion that the\ngirl is worth more than the horse, another is brought; and\nif these are not enough, he of the beard may bring another,\nor get Cupid to shoot his heart in another direction.\nThere are many benefits in this mode of obtaining that\ndescription of legal chatties called a wife, over the mode\nusually adopted among us. As for example: by this mode\nthere is a price given for a valuable article. Now to my\napprehension, this is an improvement upon our plan; for\nit [20] removes entirely from certain old daddies, the\nnecessity of disposing of their daughters by gift, to certain\nworthless, portionless young men, who are merely virtuous,\ntalented, honest and industrious; an evil of no small\nmagnitude, as may be learned by inquiry in the proper\nquarter. But the Indian system of matrimony extirpates\nit. Wealth measures off affection and property by the\npeck, yard or dollar's worth, as circumstances require;'\nand no young lady of real genuine property, respectability and standing, and family, will think of placing\nher affections upon a talented, virtuous and industrious,\npromising and prosperous coxcomb of poverty; nor, vice\nversa, will a young man of these vulgar qualities have\nunfathomable barefacedness to propose himself to a young\nlady of real genuine property respectability, property :*\u00C2\u00AB\n256\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nform, property face, property virtue, property modesty,\nand property intelligence.\nNo, bless the day! such impudence will cease to interfere with the legitimate pretensions of those who are able\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 while they declare their passion mighty, unalterable\nand pure \u00E2\u0080\u0094 to place in the hands from which they receive\nthe dear object of their property love, the last quoted prices\nof the family stock.\n[21] But I pass to the consideration of another view of\nthis matter which I deem, if possible, of still greater importance. As, if in disposing of young ladies in marriage,\na valuation in money should be made of their property\nbeauty, property modesty, property intelligence, &c, and\nrequired to be paid before marriage, the false opinion that\nhonesty, probity, intelligence, integrity, virtue and respectability can exist without a property basis, would gradually\nfade away before the influence of our rich daddies'\ndaughters. Oh the age that would then bless our earth!\nThe piety of the church would fan itself in the property\npew. The forum of jurisprudence would then echo to\nthe lofty strains of property eloquence. The groves\nof Academus would breathe the wisdom of property\nphilosophy. The easel of the artist would cast Upon\nthe canvas the inspirations of property genius. And\nmusic, and sculpture, and poetry, born in garrets, would\ngive place to another race of these arts \u00E2\u0080\u0094 a property race,\nthat could be kept in one's apartments without compelling one to blush for their origin. We should then have\na property fitness of things, that would place our property\nselves in a state of exalted property beatitude. [22] It is\nhoped that the Legislators of the world will bestow upon\nthis matter their most serious attention, and from time\nto time pass such laws as will aid mankind in attaining\nthis splendid and brilliant exaltation of our nature, when 1839]\nFarnham's Travels\n257\nthe precious metals shall be a universal measure of value\nThis is diverging. But after my reader is informed\nthat the only distinct aim I proposed to myself in writing\nmy journal, was to keep the day of the month correctly,\nand in other respects \"keep a blotter,\" the transition\nfrom this strain of true philosophy, to a notice of the\nwhite men and their squaws, will be thought easy and\nnatural.\nIf, then, a white man is disposed to take unto himself\na squaw among the Snakes, he must conform to the laws\nand customs of the tribe, which have been ordained and\nestablished for the regulation of all such matters. And,\nwhether the colour in any individual case be of black or\nwhite, does not seem to be a question ever raised to take\nit out of the rules. The only difference is, that the property, beauty, &c. of the whites frequently give them the\npreference on 'change, and enable them to [23] obtain the\nbest squaws of the nation. These connexions between\nthe white trappers and squaws I am told, are the cause\nof so many of the former remaining during life in these\nvalleys of blood.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 They seem to love them as .ardently\nas they would females of their own colour.\nA trader is living there with a young Eutaw squaw,\nthrough whose charms he has forsaken friends, wealth\nand ease, and civilization, for an Indian lodge among all\nthe dangers and wants of a wilderness. This gentleman\nis said to have a standing offer of \u00C2\u00A3140 for his dear one,\nwhenever, in the course of a limited time, he will sell her\ngraces. But it is believed that his heart has so much to\ndo with his estimation of her value, that no consideration could induce him voluntarily to deprive himself of\nher society.\nThe above anecdotes were related to me during the\nfirst evening I spent at Fort David Crockett. It was a\n\ i I 258\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nJ If\nbright ethereal night. The Fort stood in the shade of the\nwild and dark cliffs, while the light of the moon shone on\nthe western peaks, and cast a deeper darkness into the\ninaccessible gorges on the face of the mountains. The\nSheetskadee flowed silently among the alders [24] \u00E2\u0080\u0094 the\nfires in the Indian lodges were smouldering; sleep had\ngathered every animate thing in its embrace. It was a\nnight of deep solitude. I enjoyed the lovely scene till\nnear midnight in company with Mr. St. Clair; and when\nat last its excitements and the thrilling pleasure of being\nrelieved from the prospect of death by hunger allowed\nme to slumber, that gentleman conducted me to his own\nroom and bed, and bade me occupy both while I should\nremain with him. He expressed regret that he had so\nlittle provisions in the Fort; \u00E2\u0080\u0094 a small quantity of old\njerked meat; a little tea and sugar.\n\"But,\" said he, \"share it with me as long as it lasts.\nI have hunters out; they will be here in ten or twelve days;\nyou have been starving; eat while there is any thing left,\nand when all is gone we'll have a mountain sheep, or a\ndog to keep off [starvation till the hunters come in.\"\nMy companions and guide were less fortunate. We\npurchased all the meat which either money or goods could\ninduce the Indians to sell. It amounted to one day's supply for the company. And as there was supposed to be\nno game within a circuit of one hundred miles, it became\n[25] matter of serious inquiry whether we should seek it\nin the direction of Fort Hall, or on the head waters of\nLittle Snake River, one hundred miles off our proper\nroute to Oregon.\nIn the latter place there were plenty of fine, fat buffalo;\nbut on the way to the other point there was nothing but\nantelope, difficult to kill, and poor. A collateral circumstance turned the scale of our deliberations. That cir- i839]\nFarnham's Travels\ncumstance was dog meat. We could get a supply of these\ndelectable animals from the Indians; they would keep\nlife in us till we could reach Fort Hall; and by aid thereof\nwe could immediately proceed on our journey, cross the\nBlue Mountains before the snow should render them\nimpassable, and reach Vancouver, on the lower Columbia, during the autumn. On the contrary, if we sought\nmeat on the waters of Little Snake River, it would be so\nlate before we should be prepared to resume our journey,\nthat we could not pass those mountains until May or June\nof the following spring.\nThe dogs, therefore, were purchased; and preparations\nwere made for our departure to Fort Hall, as soon as\nourselves and our animals were sufficiently [26] recruited\nfor the undertaking. Meanwhile my companions ate\nupon our stock of barking mutton. And thus we spent\nseven days \u00E2\u0080\u0094 delightful days; for although our fare was\nhumble and scanty, yet the flesh began to creep upon our\nskeletons, our minds to resume their usual vivacity, and\nour hearts to warm again with the ordinary emotions of\nhuman existence.\nThe trials of a journey in the western wilderness can\nnever be detailed in words. To be understood, they must\nbe endured. Their effects upon the physical and mental system are equally prostrating. The desolation of\none kind and another which meets the eye every where;\nthe sense of vastness associated with dearth and barrenness, and of sublimity connected with eternal, killing frost;\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 of loneliness coupled with a thousand natural causes\nof one's destruction; perpetual journeyings over endless\ndeclivities, among tempests, through freezing torrents;\none half the time on foot, with nothing but moccasins to\nprotect the feet from the flinty gravel and the thorns of\nthe prickly pear along the unbeaten way; and the starv- 2\u00C3\u0094o Early Western Travels [Vol. 28\nings and thirstings wilt the muscles, send preternatural\nactivity into the nervous system, and through the whole\n[27] animal and mental economy a feebleness, an irritability altogether indescribable.\nAt Fort David Crockett there were rest, and food, and\nsafety; and old Father Time, as he mowed away the passing moments and gathered them into the great garner of\nthe Past, cast upon the Future a few blossoms of hope,\nand sweetened the hours, now and then, with a bit of information about this portion of his ancient dominion. I\nheard from various persons, more or less acquainted with\nthe Colorado of the West, a confirmation of the account\nof that river given in the journals of previous days; and\nalso that there resides at the lower end of its great kenyon,\na band of the Club Indians \u00E2\u0080\u0094 very many of whom are\nseven feet high, and well proportioned; that these Indians\nraise large quantities of black beans upon the sandy intervales on the stream; that the oval-leaf prickly-pear grows\nthere from fifteen to twenty feet in height; that these\nIndians make molasses from its fruit; that their principal weapon of warfare is the club, which they wield with\namazing dexterity and force; that they inhabit a wide\nextent of country north-west, and south-east of this lower\npart of the river; that they have never been subdued by\nthe [28] Spaniards, and are inimical to all white people.153\nSubsequent inquiry in California satisfied me that this\nriver is navigable only thirty or forty miles from its mouth,\nand that the Indians who live upon its barren banks near\nthe Gulf, are such as I have described.\n163 Farnham refers here to tribes of the Yuman stock; see our volume xviii,\np. 131, note 65. The Yuma proper are large physically, and finely proportioned.\nA recent writer declares that their men are nearly all over six feet in height \u00E2\u0080\u0094 see\nEugene J. Trippel, \"Yuma Indians,\" in Overland Monthly, xiii, xiv. They are\nan agricultural people and depend largely upon the mesquite harvest, which Farnham refers to as black beans. The Yuma were made known to the Spaniards by 1839]\nFarnham's Travels\n261\nThe Snakes, or Shoshonies, are a wandering tribe of\nIndians who inhabit that part of the Rocky Mountains\nwhich lies on the Grand and Green River branches of the\nColorado of the West, the valley of Great Bear River, the\nhabitable shores of the Great Salt Lake, a considerable\nportion of country on Snake River above and below Fort\nHall, and a tract extending two or three hundred miles\nto the west of that post. Those who reside in the place\nlast named, are said to subsist principally on roots; they,\nhowever, kill a few deer, and clothe themselves with their\nskins. The band living on Snake River subsist on the\nfish of the stream, buffalo, deer, and other game. Those\nresiding on the branches of the Colorado, five on roots,\nbuffalo, elk, deer, the mountain-sheep, and antelope. The\nSnakes own many horses. These, with their thousands\nof dogs, constitute all the domestic animals among them.\nThey have [29] conical skin-lodges, a few camp-kettles,\nbutcher-knives and guns. Many of them, however, still\nuse the bow and arrow. In dress, they follow the universal Indian costume \u00E2\u0080\u0094 moccasins, leggings, and the\nhuriting-shirt. Nothing but the hair covers the head; and\nthe reports of the Franciscan padre, Francisco Garces, who in 1771 visited them\nfrom his mission on the Gila. They received him with joy, and begged for his\nreturn; he revisited them in 1774. Shortly after this a Yuman chief called Palma\nwas conveyed to Mexico. Awed by what he saw, he consented to baptism, and\nrequested a mission in his own land. But it was not until 1779 that the foundation of a mission was laid, and in the following year two small colonies were be\ngun \u00E2\u0080\u0094 one on the site of Fort Yuma, and the other eight miles lower down. The\nnatives, however, found their new neighbors troublesome and exacting, and rising\nin revolt July 17, 1781, with clubs massacred almost the entire garrison, including\nfour missionary padres; see Coues, Francisco Garces, i, pp. 10-24. Hence the\nappellation, \"Club Indians.\" In 1857 the Yuma suffered a severe defeat from\ntheir neighbors, the Pima and Maricopa, wherein over a third of their warriors\nperished. They have generally been on friendly terms with the United States\ngovernment, which has recently arranged a system of irrigation for their lands.\nAbout fifty-six Yuma still live on their reservation, and have a reputation for industry beyond that of most tribesmen; see TJ. S. Indian Commissioner's Report, 1904,\npp. 158-161.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\nfill\n1 2\u00C3\u00942\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\n1\nthis, indeed, would seem sufficient, if certain statements\nmade in relation to it be true; as that it frequently grows\nfour and five feet in length, and in one case eleven feet.\nIn these instances, it is braided and wound round the\nhead in the form of a Turkish turban. If only two or\nthree feet in length, it is braided on the female head in\ntwo queues, which hang down the back: on the male, it\nis only combed behind the ears, and lies dishevelled around\nthe shoulders. The female dress differs from that of the\nmale in no other respect than this: the shirt or chemise\nof the former extends down to the feet. Beaver, otter,\nbear and buffalo skins, and horses are exchanged by them\nwith the Arrapahoes, and the Americans, and British\ntraders, for some few articles of wearing apparel; such\nas woollen blankets and hats. But as their stock of skins\nis always very limited, they find it necessary to husband\nit with much care, to obtain therewith a supply of tobacco,\narms and ammunition.\n[30] From the first acquaintance of the whites with them,\nthese people have been remarkable for their aversion to\nwar, and those cruelties generally practised by their race.\nIf permitted to live in peace among their mountains, and\nallowed to hunt the buffalo \u00E2\u0080\u0094 that wandering patrimony\nof all the tribes \u00E2\u0080\u0094 when necessity requires, they make war\nupon none, and turn none hungry away from their humble\nabodes. But these peaceable dispositions in the wilderness,\nwhere men are left to the protection of their impulses and\nphysical energies, have yielded them little protection. The\nBlackfeet, Crows, Sioux and Eutaws have alternately fought\nthem for the better right to the Old Park, and portions of\ntheir Territory, with varied success; and, at the present time,\ndo those tribes yearly send predatory parties into their borders to rob them of their horses. But as the passes through\nwhich they enter the Snake country are becoming more i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n263\nand more destitute of game on which to subsist, their\nvisits are less frequent, and their number less formidable.\nFor several years, they have been in a great measure\nrelieved from these annoyances.\nFrom the time they met Lewis and Clark on the headwaters of the Missouri154 to the [31] present day, the Snakes\nhave opened their lodges to whites, with the most friendly\nfeelings. And many are the citizens of the States, and\nthe subjects of Britain, who have sought their villages,\nand by their hospitality have been saved from death among\nthose awful solitudes. A guest among them is a sacred\ndeposit of the Great Spirit. His property, when once\narrived within their camp, is under the protection of\ntheir honour and religious principle; and should want,\ncupidity, or any other motive, tempt any individual to\ndisregard these laws of hospitality, the property which\nmay have been stolen, or its equivalent, is returned, and\nthe offender punished. The Snakes are a very intelligent race. This appears in the comforts of their homes,\ntheir well-constructed lodges, the elegance and useful form\nof their wardrobes, their horse-gear, &c.\nBut more especially does it exhibit itself in their views\nof sensual excesses and other immoralities. These are\ninhibited by immemorial usages of the tribe. Nor does\ntheir code of customs operate upon those wrong doings\nonly which originate among, a savage people. Whatever indecency is offered them by their intercourse with\nthe [32] whites, they avoid. Civilized vice is quite as\noffensive as that which grows up in their own untrained\nnatures. The non-use of intoxicating liquor is an example of this kind. They abjured it from the commence-\n1M For particulars of this meeting, which had been eagerly desired by the\nexplorers, consult Thwaites, Original Journals oj the Lewis and Clark Expedition,\nii, pp. 329-360.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\nJl mr\nIff m\n264\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nment of its introduction among them. And they give*\nthe best of reasons for this custom: \u00E2\u0080\u0094 \"It unmans us for\nthe hunt, and for defending ourselves against our enemies;\nit causes unnatural dissensions among ourselves; it makes\nthe Chief less than his Indian; and by its use, imbecility\nand ruin would come upon the Shoshonie tribe.\"\nWhatever difference of opinion may exist among civilized men on this matter, these Indians certainly reason\nwell for themselves, and, I am inclined to think, for all\nothers. A voice from the depth of the mountains \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nfrom the lips of a savage \u00E2\u0080\u0094 sends to our ears the startling rebuke \u00E2\u0080\u0094 \"Make not, vend not, give not to us the\nstrong water. It prostrates your superior knowledge, your\nenlarged capacities for happiness, your cultivated understandings. It breaks your strong laws; it rots down your\nstrong houses; it buries you in the filthiest ditch of sin.\nSend it not to us; we would rather die by the arrows of\nthe Blackfeet.\"\nThe Crows155 are a wandering tribe, and [33] usually\nfound in the upper plains around the head-waters of the\nnorth fork of Great Platte, Snake, and Yellowstone rivers.\nTheir number is estimated to be about five thousand.\nThey are represented as the most arrant rascals among\nthe mountains. The traders say of them that \"they have\nnever been known to keep a promise or do an honourable\nact.\" No white man or Indian trusts them. Murder\nand robbery are their principal employments. Much\nof their country is well watered, timbered, and capable of\nyielding an abundant reward to the husbandman.\nThe Blackfeet Indians reside on the Marias and other\nbranches of the Missouri above the Great Falls. In 1828\nthey numbered about two thousand five hundred lodges\n158 For a brief sketch of the Crow Indians, see Bradbury's Travels, in our volume\nv, p. 226, note 121.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. i\u00C2\u00AB39]\nFarnham's Travels\n265\nor families. During that year they stole a blanket from\nthe American Fur Company's steamboat on the Yellowstone, which had belonged to a man who had died of the\nsmall-pox on the passage up the Missouri. . The infected\narticle being carried to their encampment upon the \"left\nhand fork of the Missouri,\" spread the dreadful infection\namong\" the whole tribe. They were amazed at the\nappearance of the disease. The red blotch, the bile, congestion of the lungs, [34] liver, and brain, Were all new to\ntheir medicine-men; and the rotten corpse falling in pieces\nwhile they buried it, struck horror into every heart. In\ntheir phrenzy and ignorance they increased the number\nof their sweat ovens upon the banks of the stream, and\nwhether the burning fever or the want of nervous action\nprevailed; whether frantic with pain, or tottering in death,\nthey were placed in them, sweated profusely and plunged\ninto the snowy waters of the river. The mortality which\nfollowed this treatment was a parallel of the Plague in\nLondon. They endeavoured for a time to bury the dead,\nbut these were soon more numerous than the living. The\nevil-minded medicine-men of all ages had come in a body\nfrom the world of spirits, had entered into them, and were\nworking the annihilation of the Blackfeet race.\nThe Great Spirit had also placed the floods of his\ndispleasure between himself and them. He had cast a\nmist over the eyes of their conjurors, that they might not\nknow the remedial incantation. Their hunts were ended;\ntheir bows were broken; the fire in the Great Pipe was\nextinguished for ever; their graves called for them; and\nthe call was now answered by a thousand dying [35]\ngroans. Mad with superstition and fear, brother forsook\nsister; father his son; and mother her sucking child; and\nfled to the elevated vales among the western heights, where\nthe influences of the climate, operating upon the already\nj\nI\nm m\n&m 266\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\ntrl\nwell-spent energies of the disease, restored the remainder\nof the tribe again to health. Of the two thousand five\nhundred families existing at the time the pestilence commenced, one or more members of eight hundred only survived its ravages; and even to this hour do the bones of\nseven or eight thousand Blackfeet lie unburied among\nthe decaying lodges of their deserted village, on the banks\nof the Yellowstone. But this infliction has in no wise\nhumanized their blood-thirsty nature. As ever before,\nthey wage exterminating war upon the traders and trap\npers, and the Oregon Indians.158\nThe Arrapahoes reside south of the Snakes.157 They\nwander in the winter season over the country about the\nhead of the Great Kenyon of the Colorado of the West,\nand to a considerable distance down that river; and in\nsummer hunt the buffalo in \"the New Park, or \"Bull Pen,\"\nin the \"Old Park\" on Grand River, and in \"Boyou\nSalade,\" on the south fork of the Platte. Their [36]\nnumber is not well ascertained. Some estimate it at three\nthousand, others more, and others still less. They are\nsaid to be a brave, fearless, thrifty, ingenious, and hospitable people. They own large numbers of horses,\nmules, dogs, and sheep. The dogs they fatten and eat.\nHence the name Arrapahoes \u00E2\u0080\u0094 dog eaters. They manufacture the wool of their sheep into blankets of a very\nsuperior quality. I saw many of them; possessed one;\n156 xhe Blackfeet are noted in Bradbury's Travels, our volume v, p. 225, note\n120. A detailed description is to be found in Maximilian's Travels, our volume\nxxiii, pp. 95\u00E2\u0080\u0094122. The year ofthe smallpox scourge was 1837 (not 1828), and it\nwas a Mandan (not a Blackfoot) chief who stole the infected blanket. However,\nthe disease reached the Blackfeet by the same steamer that carried it to the Mandan. See our volume xxii, p. 36, note 13.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Ed.\n167 A brief note on the Arapaho is in our volume v, p. 225, note 120. The significance of the tribal name is uncertain, but is supposed to mean \"he who buys\nor trades.\" The Caddo and Comanche had epithets for this tribe, that signified\n\" dog-eaters.\"\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\nI 1839]\nFarnham's Travels\n267\nand believe them to be made with something in the form\nof a darning-needle. They appeared to be wrought, in\nthe first time, like a fishing-net; and on this, as a foundation, darned so densely that the rain will not penetrate them.\nThey are usually striped or checked with yellow and red.\nThere is in this tribe a very curious law of naturalization; it is based upon property. Any one, whether red\nor white, may avail himself of it. One horse, which can\nrun with sufficient speed to overtake a buffalo cow, and\nanother horse or mule, capable of bearing a pack of two\nhundred pounds, must be possessed by the applicant.\nThese being delivered to the principal chief of the tribe,\nand his intentions being made known, he is declared a\ncitizen of the [37] Arrapahoe tribe, and entitled to a wife\nand other high privileges thereunto appertaining. Thus\nrecognized, he enters upon a life of savage independence.\nHis wife takes care of his horses, manufactures his saddles and bridles, and leash ropes and whips, his moccasins, leggings, and hunting-shirts, from leather and\nother materials prepared by her own hands; beats with a\nwooden adze his buffalo robes, till they are soft and\npleasant for his couch; tans hides for his tent covering,\nand drags from the distant hills the clean white-pine poles\nto support it; cooks his daily food and places it before\nhim. And should sickness overtake him, and death rap\nat the door of his lodge, his squaw watches kindly the last\nyearnings of the departing spirit. His sole duty, as her\nlord in life, and as a citizen of the Arrapahoe tribe, is to\nride the horse which she saddles and brings to his tent,\nkill the game which she dresses and cures; sit and\nslumber on the couch which she spreads; and fight the enemies of the tribe. Their language is said to be essentially\nthe same as that spoken by the Snakes and Cumanches.158\n188 This is incorrect, the Shoshonean differing widely from the Algonquian 268\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nThis, and other tribes in the mountains, and in the upper\nplains, have a custom, the [38] same in its objects as was\nthe ceremony of the \"toga virilis\" among the Romans.\nWhen ripened into manhood, every young man of the\ntribe is expected to do some act of bravery that will give\npromise of his disposition and ability to defend the rights\nof his tribe and family. Nor can this expectation be disregarded. So, in the spring of the year, those of the age\nalluded to, associate themselves forty or fifty in a band,\nand devote themselves to the duties of man's estate in the\nfollowing manner: \u00E2\u0080\u0094 They take leave of their friends,\nand depart to some secret place near the woodlands;\ncollect poles twenty or thirty feet in length, and raise them\nin the form of a cone; and cover the structure so thickly\nwith leaves and boughs as to secure the interior from the\ngaze of persons outside. They then hang a fresh buffalo's\nhead inside, near the top of the lodge where the poles meet;\nand below this, around the sides, suspend camp-kettles,\nscalps, and blankets, and the skin of a white buffalo, as\nofferings to the Great Spirit. After the lodge is thus\narranged, they enter it with much solemnity, and commence the ceremonies which are to consecrate themselves\nto war, and the destruction of their own enemies, and\nthose of the tribe. The [39] first act, is to seat themselves\nin a circle round a fire built in the centre of the lodge, and\n\"make medicine;\" that is,\u00E2\u0080\u0094invoke the presence and\naid of protecting spirits, by smoking the great mystic pipe.\nOne of their number fills it with tobacco and herbs,\nplaces upon the bowl a bright coal from the fire within\nthe lodge, draws the smoke into his lungs, and blows it\nthence through his nostrils. He then seizes the stem with\nboth hands, and leaning forward, touches the ground\nlanguage stock. On the Arapaho language, consult James Mooney, \"Ghost\nDance Religion,\" in U. S. Bureau of Ethnology Report, 1892-93, p. 1012.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n269\nbetween his feet with the lower part of the bowl, and\nsmokes again as before. The feet, and arms, and breast,\nare successively touched in a similar way; and after each\ntouching, the sacred smoke is inhaled as before. The\npipe is then passed to the one on his right, who smokes\nas his fellow has done. And thus the Great Pipe goes\nround, and the smoke rises and mingles with the votive\nofferings to the Great Spirit which are suspended above\ntheir heads. Immediately after this smoking is believed\nto be a favoured time for offering prayer to the Great Spirit.\nThey pray for courage, and victory over their foes in the\ncampaign they are about to undertake; and that they\nmay be protected from the spirits of evil-minded medicine men. They then make a solemn and irrevocable\nvow, that if [40] these medicine men do not make them\nsick \u00E2\u0080\u0094 do not enter into their bosoms and destroy their\nstrength and courage, they will never again see their relatives and tribe, unless they do so in garments stained with\nthe blood of their enemies.\nHaving passed through these ceremonies, they rise and\ndance to the music of a war chant, till they are exhausted\nand swoon. In this state of insensibility, they imagine\nthat the spirits of the brave dead visit them and teach\nthem their duty, and inform them of the events that will\ntranspire during the campaign. Three days and nights\nare passed in performing these ceremonies; during which\ntime, they neither eat nor drink, nor leave the lodge. At\nearly dawn of the fourth day they select a leader from\ntheir number, appoint a distant place of meeting; and\nemerging from the lodge, each walks away from it alone\nto the place of rendezvous. Having arrived there, they\ndetermine whose horses are to be stolen, whose scalps\ntaken, and commence their march. They always go out\non foot, wholly dependent upon their own energies for\n-VI I 270\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nfood and every other necessary. Among other things,\nit is considered a great disgrace to be long without meat\nand the means of riding.\nIt sometimes happens that these parties [41] are unable\nto satisfy the conditions of their consecration during the\nfirst season; and therefore are compelled to resort to some\ningenious and satisfactory evasion of the obligations of\ntheir vow, or to go into winter quarters till another opening spring allows them to prosecute their designs. The\ntrappers relate a case of this kind, which led to a curious\nincident. A war party of Blackfeet had spent the season\nin seeking for their enemies without success. The storms\nof approaching winter had begun to howl around, and\na wish to return to the log fires and buffalo meat, and\nhilarities and friendships of the camp of the tribe in the\nhigh vales of the Upper Missouri, had become ardent,\nwhen a forlorn, solitary trapper who had long resided\namong them, entered their camp. Affectionate and sincere\ngreetings passed at the moment of meeting.\nThe trapper, as is the custom, was invited to eat; and\nall appeared friendly and glad. But soon the Indians\nbecame reserved, and whispered ominously among themselves. At length came to the ear of the trapper high\nwords of debate in regard to his life. They all agreed\nthat his white skin indubitably indicated that he belonged\nto the \"Great Tribe of their natural enemies, and that\n[42] with the blood of a white upon their garments, they\nwould have fulfilled the terms of their vow, and could\nreturn to their friends and tribe. A part of them seriously\nquestioned whether the sacred names of friend and\nbrother, which they had for years applied to him, had not\nso changed his natural relationship to them, that the Great\nSpirit, to whom they had made their vow, had sent him\namong them in the character which they themselves had i\u00C2\u00AB39]\nFarnham's Travels\n271\ngiven him \u00E2\u0080\u0094 as a friend and brother. If so, they reasoned\nthat the sacrifice of his life would only anger Him, and\nby no means relieve them from the obligations of their\nvow.\nAnother party reasoned that the Great Spirit had sent\nthis victim among them to test their fidelity to Him. He\nhad indeed been their friend ; they had called him brother,\nbut he was also their natural enemy; and that the Great\nOne to whom they had made their vow, would not release\nthem at all from its obligations, if they allowed this factitious relation of friendship to interfere with obedience\nto Himself. The other party rejoined, that although\nthe trapper was their natural enemy, he was not one\nwithin the meaning of their vow; that the taking of\nhis life would be an evasion of its sacred [43] obligations, a blot upon their courage, and an outrage upon the\nlaws of friendship; that they could find other victims, but\nthat their friend could not find another life. The other\nparty rebutted, that the trapper was confessedly their natural enemy; that the conditions of their vow required the\nblood of their natural enemy; and that the Great Spirit\nhad sufficientiy shown His views of the relative obligations\nof friendship and obedience to Himself in sending the\ntrapper to their camp.\nThe trapper's friends perceiving that the obstinacy of\ntheir opponents was unlikely to yield to reason, proposed\nas a compromise, that, since, if they should adjudge the\ntrapper their enemy within the requirements of their vow,\nhis blood only would be needed to stain their garments,\nthey would agree to take from him so much as might be\nnecessary for that purpose; and that in consideration of\nbeing a brother, he should retain enough to keep his heart\nalive. As their return to their tribe would be secured by\nthis measure, little objection was raised to it. The flint\nI IB\n11\nr: \u00C3\u00AE m &\n272\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nlancet was applied to the veins of the white man; their\ngarments were dyed with his blood; they departed for\ntheir nation's village, and the poor trapper for the beaver\namong the hills.\n[44] My worthy old guide, Kelly, had often seen these\nmedicine lodges. He informed me that many of the votive\nofferings, before mentioned, are permitted to decay with\nthe lodge in which they are hung; that the penalty to any\nmortal who should dare appropriate them to his use was\ndeath. A certain white man, however, who had been\nrobbed of his blanket at the setting in of winter, came upon\none of these sacred lodges, erected by the young Arrapahoes which contained, among other things, a blanket that\nseemed well calculated to shield him from the cold. He\nspread it over his shivering frame, and very unadvisedly\nwent into the Arrapahoe village. The Indians knew the\nsacred deposit, held a council, called the culprit before\nthem, and demanded why he had stolen from the Great\nSpirit? In exculpation, he stated that he had been\nrobbed; that the |Great Spirit saw him naked in the\nwintry wind; pitied him; showed him the sacred lodge,\nand bade'him take the blanket. \"That seems to be well,\"\nsaid the principal chief to his fellow-counsellors. \"The\nGreat Spirit has an undoubted right to give away his own\nproperty; \" and the trader was released.\nAmong the several personages whom I [45] chanced to\nmeet at Brown's Hole, was an old Snake Indian, who saw\nMessrs. Lewis and Clark on the head waters of the Missouri in 1805. He is the individual of his tribe, who first\nsaw the explorers' cavalcade. He appears to have been\ngalloping from place to place in the office of sentinel to\nthe Shoshonie camp, when he suddenly found himself in\nthe very presence of the whites. Astonishment fixed him\nto the spot. Men with faces pale as ashes, had never been\nIf 1839]\nFarnham' s Travels\n273\nseen by himself or nation. \"The head rose high and\nround, the top flat; it jutted over the eyes in a thin rim;\ntheir skin was loose and flowing, and of various colours.\"\nHis fears at length overcoming his curiosity, he fled in\nthe direction of the Indian encampment; but being seen\nby the whites, they pursued and brought him to their\ncamp; exhibited to him the effects of their fire-arms,\nloaded him with presents, and let him go. Having arrived\namong his own people, he told them he had seen men with\nfaces pale as ashes, who were makers of thunder, lightning, etc. This information astounded the whole tribe.\nThey had lived many years, and their ancestors had lived\nmany more, and there were many legends which spoke of\nmany wonderful [46] things; but a tale like this they\nnever had heard.\n. A council was, therefore, assembled to consider the\nmatter. The man of strange words was summoned\nbefore it, and he rehearsed, in substance, what he had\nbefore told to others, but was not believed. \"All men\nwere red, and therefore he could not have seen men as\npale as ashes.\" \"The Great Spirit made the thunder\nand the lightning; he therefore could not have seen men\nof any colour that could produce these. He had seen\nnothing; he had lied to his chief, and should die.\"\nAt this stage of the proceedings, the culprit produced\nsome of the presents which he had received from the pale\nmen. These being quite as new to them as pale faces\nwere, it was determined \"that he should have the privilege of leading his judges to the place where he declared\nhe had seen these strange people; and if such were found\nthere, he should be exculpated; if not, these presents\nwere to be considered as conclusive evidence against him,\nthat he dealt with evil spirits, and that he was worthy of\ndeath by the arrows of his kinsfolks.\" The pale men,\nj|\nii\nfill\niu Il\n274\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nthe thunder-makers, were found, and were witnesses of\n[47] the poor fellow's story. He was released; and has\never since been much honoured and loved by his tribe,\nand every white man in the mountains.159 He is now\nabout eighty years old, and poor. But as he is always\nabout Fort David Crockett, he is never permitted to want.\nCHAPTER VII [II]\nAn Arrival from Fort Hall \u00E2\u0080\u0094 An Account from Oregon \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Return of\ntwo of my companions to the States \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A startling Condition \u00E2\u0080\u0094 An\nIndian Guide \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Farewell \u00E2\u0080\u0094 How a Horse studies Geology \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A\nCamp \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Dog Mutton superseded \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Scene \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Sheetskadee \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Butes\nI\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Desolation \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Midnight Scene in the Mountains \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Indian Jim\nand the Buffalo \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Hungry Stomachs \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A fat Shot \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Fine Eyesight\u00E2\u0080\u0094 An old Trapper picked up \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Beautiful Desert\u00E2\u0080\u0094\"Hos,\nHos\"\u00E2\u0080\u0094Meek the Bear Killer\u00E2\u0080\u0094A wild Vale\u00E2\u0080\u0094Steamboat Spring\n-\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Natural Soda Fountains \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Neighbouring Landscape \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A hard\nDrive \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Valley of Chasm \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Nature's Vase \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A heavy March \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nPassing the Mountains \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A charming Gorge \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Entrance into Oregon \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The South Branch of the Columbia \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Fort Hall and its\nHospitalities.\n17th. An event of great interest occurred this day. It\nwas the arrival of Paul Richardson and three of his companions from Fort Hall. This old Yankee woodsman\nhad been upon one of his favourite summer trips from St.\nLouis to the borders of Oregon. He had acted as guide\nand hunter to a party of missionaries to the Oregon Indians.\n[49] Several other persons from the western states had\naccompanied them: one with the lofty intention of conquering California; and others with the intention of trading, farming, &c, on the lower Columbia; and others\nto explore the Rocky Mountains, and the wonders of nature\nalong the shores of the Pacific.160 The events of their\n159 With this fanciful tradition, compare that of Lewis in Original Journals,\nii, pp. 329-351.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\ni\u00C2\u00ABo This was the party of which Dr. Wislizenus of St. Louis was a member (see\nante, p. 173, note 108). They left the frontier in a caravan of twenty-seven per- i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n275\ntour were freely discussed. They had storms of hail and\nhuman wrath. The conqueror of California had been\ndisposed to act the general before he had received his\nepaulettes; had proved to be so troublesome that he was\nexpelled from camp a short distance from the frontier,\nand obliged to ride, sleep, and eat, at a comfortable distance from his companions, during the remainder of the\njourney.\nThe missionaries, too, Messrs. Monger and Griffith,181\nand their ladies, had had causes of irritability; so that\nbetween all the conflicting feelings and opinions of the\nparty, their fittie camp, it was said, was frequently full\nsons, of whom nine were employ\u00C3\u00A9s of Chouteau's fur company, and the others\nheterogeneous travellers and immigrants. Wislizenus had intended to go on to\nOregon and then to California; but the divisions in the party, and the lateness\nof the season, determined him to return from Fort Hall. Two of his companions\njoined him, and they engaged Richardson, who had taken the outward journey\nin the capacity of hunter, to guide them back, purposing to take the southerly\nroute on the return. Dr. Wislizenus had undertaken this journey for the sake of\nhis health, as well as in order to see the marvels of the Western mountains. Richardson was chief hynter for Wyeth's party in 1833. Townsend well describes\nhim in his Narrative, in our volume xxi, pp. 152-155; see also pp 171, 211, 255,\n256, 264.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\nla John S. Griffin (not Griffith) was a native (1807) of Castleton, Vermont,\neducated in New England, but taking a theological course at Oberlin, where he\nwas graduated in 1838. He prepared to go out to the Indians as an independent\nmissionary, and was dispatched by the Congregational church in Litchfield, Connecticut. Having engaged Asahel Munger, a skilled mechanic, to accompany\nhim, he stopped in St. Louis long enough to marry, and left the frontier the last\nof April, 1839. At Fort Hall, Griffin, because of some differences, left Munger and\npushed on to Lapwai, where he spent the winter, Munger having meanwhile\njoined Dr. Whitman who gladly employed him at his mission for a year and a\nhalf. In the spring of 1840 Griffin attempted a mission to the Shoshoni; but\nbecoming discouraged, pressed on to Fort Vancouver, where he spent the second\nwinter, establishing in 1841 a settlement at Tualatin Plains, near the present\nHillsboro. He was active in establishing the provisional government, being suggested as candidate for governor, but opposed on account of his profession. Griffin\nwas the editor of the first Oregon magazine, Oregon American and Evangelical\nUnionist, eight numbers of which were published (1848-49). He established a\nCongregational church, the first in Washington County, and lived in Oregon\nuntil his death in February, 1899. Munger became deranged, and as a religious\ntest cast himself into fire, dying from his injuries, near Salem, Oregon.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n! 276\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nII I\nof trouble. Oregon also came under discussion. Mr.\nRichardson had travelled over the territory; knew it well;\nit was not so productive as New England; fifteen bushels\nof wheat to the acre was an extraordinary crop; corn and\n[50] potatoes did not yield the seed planted; rain fell\nincessantly five months of the year; the remainder was\nunblessed even with dew; the Indians and whites residing there had the fever and ague, or bilious fever, the year\nthrough; that what little of human life was left by these\ncauses of destruction, was consumed by musquitoes and\nfleas; that the Columbia river was unfit for navigation \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nfit only for an Indian fish-pond. Such a description of\nOregon (the part of the American domain represented\nby traders, trappers, and travellers, as most delightful,\nbeautiful, and productive) was astonishing, unlooked-for,\nand discouraging. And did I not recollect that Mr. Richardson had reasons for desiring to increase the strength\nof his party through the dangerous plains towards the\nStates, I should, after having seen Oregon, be at a loss to\ndivine the purpose of such a representation of it.\n18th. Mr. Richardson's description of Oregon had the\neffect of drawing off two of my companions. They had no\nevidence to oppose to his account; he had resided two\nyears in the Territory, and on the knowledge acquired by\nthat means, had represented it to be in no sense a desirable place of abode. They therefore forsook the chase\nafter a [51] desert, and joined him for the green glades of\nthe valley States. On the morning of the 18th, they left\nme. It was the most disheartening event which had\nbefallen me on the journey. Oakley and Wood had stood\nby me in the trials and storms of the plains; had evinced\na firmness of purpose equal to every emergency that had\noccurred, were men on whom reliance could be placed;\nhumane men, always ready to do their duty promptly and\nIMSL\u00E2\u0080\u0094 1839]\nFarnham's Travels\n277\ncheerfully. It was painful therefore to part with them\nat a time when their services were most needed. Alone\nin the heart, of the Rocky Mountains, a traveller through\nthe range of the Blackfeet war parties, in bad health, no\nmen save poor old Blair, and the worse than useless vagabond Smith, alias Carroll, to aid me in resisting these\nsavages: I felt alone.\nI was indeed kindly offered quarters for the winter at\nBrown's Hole; but if I accepted them, I should find it\nimpossible to return to the States the next year. I determined therefore to reach the Columbia river that season,\nbe the risk and manner what it might. Accordingly I\nengaged a Snake Indian, whom the whites called \"Jim,\"\nto pilot me to Fort Hall, the march to commence on the\nmorning of the 19th \u00E2\u0080\u0094 distance two [52] hundred miles,\ncompensation fifty loads of ammunition, and three bunches\nof beads.\nThere is in this valley, and in some other parts of the\nmountains, a fruit called bulberry.182 It is the most\ndelightful acid in the vegetable kingdom; of the size of\nthe common red currant, with larger seeds than are found\nin that fruit; colour deep red. It grows upon bushes\neight or ten feet high, which in general appearance resemble a young beech tree. Of these berries I obtained a\nsmall quantity, had a dog butchered, took a pound or two\nof dried buffalo meat which Mr. St. Clair kindly gave me,\npurchased a horse of Mr. Robinson for the use of Blair,\nand on the morning of the 19th of August left the hospitalities of Fort David Crockett for the dreary waste and\nstarving plains between it and Fort Hall. Blair, Smith,\nand my guide Jim, constituted my whole force. Numerous war-parties of Blackfeet and Sioux were hovering\n162 Sometimes spoken of as the bilberry, but more commonly as the service berry,\nthe fruit of the shad-bush (Amelanchier canadensis).\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n! I I' 1\n278\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nover my trail. If discovered by them, death was certain;\nif not, and starvation did not assail us, we might reach\nthe waters of Snake river. At all events the trial was to\nbe made; and at ten o'clock, A. M., we were winding our\nway up the Sheetskadee.\nOf the regrets at leaving this beautiful [53] little valley,\nthere was no one that I remember more vividly than that\nof parting with my old guide. Kelly was a man of many\nexcellent qualities. He was brave without ostentation,\nkind without making you feel an obligation; and preferred on all occasions the happiness of others to his own\nease or safety. The river during the twelve miles' travel\nof the day, appeared to be about one hundred yards wide,\na rapid current two feet deep, water limpid. The mountains on either side rose half a mile from the river in dark\nstratified masses, one thousand feet above the level of the\nstream. On their sides were a few shrub cedars. The\nlower hills were covered with the hated wild wormwood\nand prickly pear. The banks were of white clay, alternated with the loose light coloured sandy soil of the mountain districts. The rocks were quartz, red sand-stone,\nand lime-stone. Our camp was pitched at night on the\nhigh bank of the stream among the bushes; and a supper\nof stewed dog-meat prepared us for sleep.\n20th. At seven o'clock in the morning we had breakfasted and were on our way. We travelled three miles\nup the east bank of the river, and came to a jnountain,\nthrough which it broke its way with a noise which indicated the fall to be great, and the [54] channel to be a deep\nrugged chasm.163 Near the place where it leaves the\nchasm, we turned to the right, and followed up a rough,\ndeep gorge, the distance of five miles, and emerged into\nies What is now known as the Red Canon, from the color of its sandstone walls.\nSee Dellenbaugh, Romance oj the Colorado River, p. 64.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n279\na plain. This gorge had been formed by the action of a\ntributary of Green River, upon the soft red sand stone\nthat formed the precipices around. It winds in the distance of five miles to every point of the compass. Along\nmuch of its course also the cliffs hang over the stream in\nsuch a manner as to render it impossible to travel the waterside. Hence the necessity, in ascending the gorge, of\nclambering over immense precipices, along brinks of\nyawning caverns, on paths twelve or fourteen inches in\nwidth, with not a bush to cling to in the event of a false\nstep. And yet our Indian horses were so well used to\npasses of the kind, that they travelled them without fear\nor accident till the worst were behind us.\nHow delusive the past as a test of the future! I was\nfelicitating myself upon our good fortune, as the caravan\nwound its way slowly over a sharp cliff before me, when\nthe shout from the men in advance, \"Well done, Puebla,\"\nmade me hasten to the top of the ridge. My Puebla mare\nhad left the track. Instead of following a wide, [55]\nwell-beaten way down the mountain, she in her wisdom\nhad chosen to tread the shelf of a cliff, which, wide at the\nplace where it sprang from the pathway, gradually became\nnarrower, till it was lost in the perpendicular face of the\nmountain. She was under a high bulky back at the time,\nand before she had quite explored the nethermost inch\nof the interesting stratum which she was disposed to trace\nto its lowest dip, the centre of gravity was suddenly thrown\nwithout the base, and over she reeled, and fell ten or\ntwelve feet among broken rocks, then rolled and tumbled\nsix hundred feet more of short perpendicular descents\nand inclined plains, into the stream below. On descending and examining her, I found her horribly mangled,\nthe blood running from the nostrils, ears, and other parts\nof the body. As it was apparent she would soon die, I\nm\n.ill\n\u00C3\u008EW 28o\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\ni\nstripped her of her packs and gear, drove her to a plat\nof grass where she could find food, should she need it,\nand left her to her fate.\nThis accident being disposed of, we emerged from this\ngorge, travelled over barren gravelly plains, dotted with\npyramidal hills of the same material, whose [56] sides\nwere belted with strata of coarse grey sand-stone. About\nfour o'clock p. m., Jim halted beside a little brook, and\npointing ahead, said, \"Wat, ugh, u\u00E2\u0080\u0094gh;\" by which I\nunderstood that the next water on our way was too far\ndistant to be reached that night; and we encamped.\nThe scenery to the west was very beautiful. A hundred\nrods from our camp, in that direction, rose an apparently\nperfect pyramid of regular stratified black rocks, about\nsix hundred feet in height, with a basilar diameter of\nabout eight hundred feet, and partially covered with\nbushes. Beyond it, some five hundred yards, crept away\na circling ridge of the same kind of rocks, leaving a beautiful lawn between. And still beyond, sixty miles to the\nsouth-west, through a break in the hills that lay in clusters over the intervening country, a portion of the Anahuac range was seen, sweeping away in the direction of\nthe Great Salt Lake.\nJim had turned his horse loose as soon as he saw we were\ndisposed to encamp according to his wishes, and was away\nwith his rifle to the hills. In an instant he was on their\nheights, creeping stealthily among the bushes and rocks;\nand the crack of [57] his rifle, and the tumbling of some\nkind of game over the cliffs, immediately succeeded.\nMore nimble and sure of step than the mountain goat,\nhe sprang down again from cliff to cliff, reached the plain,\nand the next moment was in camp, crying \"hos, ugh, yes.\"\nI sent my horse and brought in his game; a noble buck\nantelope, of about forty pounds weight. In consequence i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n281\nof this windfall, our dog meat was thrown among the willows for the behoof of the wolves. My guide, poor fellow,\nhad eaten nothing since we left the Fort. His tribe have\na superstition of some kind which forbids them the use\nof such meat. A dog-eater is a term of reproach among\nthem. If one of their number incurs the displeasure of\nanother, he is called \"Arrapahoe,\" the name of the tribe\npreviously described, who fatten these animals for some\ngreat annual feast. Jim's creed, however, raised no\nobjections to the flesh of the antelope. He ate enormously,\nwashed himself neatly, combed his long dark hair,\npulled out his beard with his right thumb and left forefinger nails, and \"turned in.\"\n21st. Twenty miles to-day. The ride of the forenoon was over plains and hills of coarse gravel, destitute\nof grass, timber, [58] or brush, the everywhere present\nwild wormwood excepted; that of the afternoon was\namong broken hills, alternately of gravel and brown sand,\nhere and there dotted with a tuft of bunch grass. From\nsome few of the hills protruded strata of beautiful slate.\nThe bottom lands of the river, even, were as barren as\nSahara. The only living things seen, were the small prairie\nwolf, and flocks of magpie. This bird inhabits the most\ndreary portions of the mountains, and seems to delight in\nmaking the parched and silent deserts more lonely by its\nominous croak of welcome to its desolate habitation.\nThe raven indeed was about us, throwing his funeral\nwing upon the fight of the setting sun. In fine, to-day,\nas often before, I found nothing in nature from which to\nderive a single pulse of pleasure, save the vastness of desolate wastes, the tombs of the washing of the flood I\nTowards night, however, we were gratified by finding a\nfew decrepid old cotton-wood trees, on the bank of the\nSheetskadee, among which to encamp. Our horses hav- 282\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\ning had little food for the last forty-eight hours, devoured\nwith eager appetite the dry grass along the banks. Since\n[59] leaving Brown's Hole, our course had been nearly\ndue north.\n22nd. Travelled up Green River about three miles,\ncrossed it three times, and took to the hills on its western\nside. The course of the river, as far as seen in this valley, is nearly south; the bottom and banks generally of\ngravel; the face of the country a dry, barren, undulating plain.164 Our course, after leaving the river, was\nnorth-west by north. About two o'clock, we struck\nHam's Fork, a tributary of Green River, and encamped\nnear the water-side.165 This stream probably pours down\nimmense bodies of water when the snow melts upon the\nneighbouring highlands; for its channel, at the place\nwhere we struck it, was half a mile in width, and two\nhundred feet deep. Very little water is said to run in it\nduring July, August and September. The current was\nthree or four inches in depth, a rod wide, and sluggish.\nThree butes appeared in the north-east, about twelve\no'clock, fifteen miles distant. One of them resembled a\nvast church, surmounted by a perpendicular shaft of\nrock, probably three hundred feet in height. The swelling\nbase resembled in colour the sands of this region. The\nrock shaft was dark, probably basalt.\n[60] By the side of this, springing immediately from\nthe plain, rose another shaft of rock, about one hundred\nio* Farnham had now entered what is known as the Green River valley, that\nportion of the river above the gorges (or canons) where the banks are comparatively level. He here joined the Oregon Trail from the east, which came by way\nof the Sweetwater River and South Pass; see Townsend's Narrative, in our volume\nxxi, pp. 183-195. This valley was, in 1833-34 and later, the site of several\nfamous rendezvous of fur-traders. See Irving, Rocky Mountains, chapter xx.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n166 For Ham's Fork, which is an affluent of Black Fork of Green, see Townsend's Narrative in our volume xxi, p. 197, note 43.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n283\nand fifty feet high, of regular outline, and about fifteen\nfeet in diameter. Seven or eight miles to the north, rose\nanother bute, a perpendicular shaft, fifty or sixty feet in\nheight, resting upon a base of bills which rise about three\nhundred feet above the plain. Beyond these butes, to\nthe east, the country seemed to be an open plain. To the\nsouth of them extends a range of dark mountains, reaching far into the dimly-discerned neighbourhood of Long's\nPeak.186 The whole circle of vision presented no other\nmeans of life for man or beast than a few small patches\nof dry grass, and the water of the stream. Many of the\nsandy bluffs were covered with the prickly pear and wild\nwormwood. Generally, however, nothing green, nothing\nbut the burnt, unproductive waste appeared, which no\nart of man can reclaim. Yet far in the north, the snowy\npeaks of Wind River Mountains, and to the south-west,\na portion of the Anahuac ridge indicated that it might\nbe possible to find along the borders of this great grave of\nvegetation, green vales and purling brooks to alleviate the\ndesolation of the scene.\nWe travelled fifteen miles to-day, and [61] encamped\nupon the bank of the stream; cooked supper, and wrapping ourselves in our blankets, with saddles for pillows,\nand curtained by the starry firmament, slept sweetiy among\nthe overhanging willows. Near midnight, the fight of\nthe moon aroused me. It was a lovely night. The stars\nseemed smaller than they do in less elevated situations,\nbut not less beautiful. For, although they are not so brilliant, they burn steadily, brightly on the hours of night\nin these magnificent, wastes. It was midnight. The wolves\nare correct time-keepers.\nio\u00C2\u00BB For Long's Peak see our volume xv, p. 271, note 126. It must have been\nsome nearer peak, however, which Farnham mistook for Long's; the latter was\nover a hundred and fifty miles distant.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\nW 284\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nI had scarcely viewed the delightful scene around me,\nwhen these sleepless sentinels of the deserts raised their\nmidnight howl. It rung along the chambers of the mountains, was, at intervals, taken up by kennel after kennel,\ntill, in the deep and distant vales, it yielded again to the\nall-pervading silence of night. This is one of the habits\nthat instinct has taught their race. As soon as the first\nlight of morning appears in the east, they raise a reveille\nhowl in the prairies of the Western States which, keeping\ncompany with the hours, swells along the vast plains from\nTexas to the sources of the Mississippi, and from Missouri to the depths of the Rocky Mountains. All day\n[62] they lurk in silence. At midnight, another howl\nawakens the sleeping wilderness \u00E2\u0080\u0094 more horrible and\nprolonged; and it is remarkable with what exactness they\nhit the hour.\n23d. We were up this morning before the fight; and\nwhile the sun rose in the Great Gap, mounted our jaded\nhorses for the day's ride. As we moved onward upon\nthe elevated bluffs which border the river, the fight of the\nmorning showed the butes clearly on the eastern horizon.\nJim paid little regard to the course of the stream to-day;\nbut struck a bee line for some object, unseen by us, across\nthe hills \u00E2\u0080\u0094 at times among wild wormwood, at others\namong sharp, flinty stones, so thickly laid over the ground\nthat none but an Indian horse would travel over them.\nWe occasionally approached the stream, and were gratified with the appearance of a few solitary old cotton-wood\ntrees on its banks. A poor, stinted shrub willow, too,\nmade great effort here and there to prolong existence, but\nwith little success. Even in one little nook, the wild rose,\ncurrant, and bulberry bushes had the effrontery to bear\nleaves.\nAbout four o'clock, p. m., small patches of dry grass were\n^-\u00E2\u0080\u00A2mh i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n285\nseen in the ravines. On one [63] of these were five buffalo;\nbut they proved to us more delightful to the sight than to\nany other sense, since I was unable to induce my guide\nto halt and hunt them. This apparently unpardonable\nstubbornness was afterward explained. He had the only\nanimal which could run fast enough to approach them \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nhe alone could ride him \u00E2\u0080\u0094 and having lost his right\nthumb, protested that he could not discharge his piece from\na running horse. But having no interpreter with us to\nrender his furious protestations intelligible, I attributed his\nunwillingness to lay in a supply of good meat here to mere\nmalicious indifference. At five o'clock, we came upon\na plat of excellent grass, around a clump of yellow pines.\nNear this, weary and hungry, we made our camp for the\nnight; ate the half of the meat in our possession \u00E2\u0080\u0094a mere\nmite \u00E2\u0080\u0094 and gorged ourselves with wild currants, which\ngrew plentifully among the pines, until the darkness bade\nus cease. Course as yesterday: the butes out of sight\nduring the afternoon. We supposed we had travelled\ntwenty miles; weather exceedingly warm.\n24th. Rode on a fast trot till about three o'clock, p. M.,\nmade about twenty-five miles. Our route lay over sandy\nand gravelly [64] swells, and the bottom lands of Ham's\nFork; the latter, like the former, were well nigh destitute\nof vegetation.167 When about to encamp, we had the\nexcellent fortune to espy an antelope on a bluff hard by.\nHe fell before the well levelled rifle of our one-thumbed\nguide. A fat one he was too; just such an one as the\nimaginations of our hungry stomachs had all the day been\nfiguring to themselves would afford a pleasant variety in\nthe matter of starvation. The circle of vision, the last day\nor two, had been very much circumscribed by the increasing size of the undulating bluffs, among which our way\n187 The Oregon Short Line follows this route, up Ham's Fork.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n(J 286\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nusually ran. And from their tops, whenever we chanced\nto go over them, neither the Wind River Mountains nor\nthe Anahuac range were visible. In all directions, to the\nlimit of sight, rolled away the dead, leafless, thirsty swells.\nWolves and ravens live among them; but whence they\nderive subsistence is a difficult problem even for themselves to solve. Their howlings and croakings evidently\ncame from famished mouths.\n25th. Fifteen miles to-day along the river; course as\non the 24th, N. W. by W., among the bluffs that border\nthe stream; or if that were tortuous, we travelled from\nbend [65] to bend, over the table lands on either side. In\nthe valley of the stream, small groves of young and thrifty\ncotton-wood trees, currant bushes, and the black alder,\ngave us hopes of soon seeing the grasses and flowers, and\nthe cool springs of the highlands, between us and the Great\nBeaver [Bear] River. The day, however, was sultry;\nscarcely a breath of wind moved; the dust that rose from\nour track lay on the air as the smoke of a village does on\na still May morning. So that these occasional appearances of vegetable life imparted less pleasure than they\nwould have done if we had been able to see them through\nanother medium than the dripping mud, manufactured\nfrom dust and perspiration.\nNear mid-day, we crossed the river from its northern\nto its southern side, and were emerging from the bushes\nwhich entangled our egress, when Jim, uttering a shrill\nwhoop, pointing to a solitary horse-man urging his horse\nup the bluff a half mile below us. Beckoning him to us,\nwe dismounted to allow our jaded animals to feed until\nhe should arrive. In the style of a true mountaineer, he\ndashed up to us on a rapid gallop, greeting us with as\nhearty a shake of the hand as he could have bestowed [66]\nupon a brother, and asked our names and destination; \u00C3\u00AF\u00C2\u00AB39l\nFarnham's Travels\n287\nsaid his name was \" Midison Gordon, an independent\ntrapper, that he was bound to Brown's Hole for his squaw\nand \ possibles,' and was glad to see us,\" in less time than\nis usually employed in saying half as much; and accepting\nan invitation to encamp with us, he continued to express\nhis pleasure at seeing us, till our attention was diverted\nfrom him by a halt for the night.\nThese remnants of the great trapping parties of the\nAmerican Fur Company,168 commonly make Brown's Hole\ntheir winter quarters. Indeed, I believe the owners of\nthat post to be old trappers of the Company, who, having\nlost all their relish for former habits of life, by a long residence in the mountains, have established themselves there\nin order to bring around them, not only the means of subsistence according to their taste, but their merry old companions with their tales, jests, and songs, and honest and\nbrave hearts. Gordon, like all other trappers whom I saw\nin the mountains, was convinced that there were so few\nbeaver, so little meat, and so many dangers among them,\nthat \"a white man had no business there.\" He, therefore, was going for his [67] squaw and \"possibles,\" preparatory to descending the Columbia to open a farm in\nthe valley of the Willamette. He said that was also the\nintention of nearly all his fellow-trappers. They proposed\nto take with them their Indian wives and children, settle\nin one neighbourhood, and cultivate the earth, or hunt,\nas inclination or necessity might suggest, and thus pass\nthe evening of their days among the wild pleasures of that\ndelightful wilderness.\n26th. Course north-west; distance twenty miles; sometimes on the banks of the river, and again over the swells,\nto avoid its windings. The country through which we\n\u00C2\u00BB\u00E2\u0096\u00A0\u00C2\u00BB For the American Fur Company see Maximilian's Travels in our volume\nxxii, p. 232, note 159.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n1 288\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\npassed to-day, was in some respects more interesting than\nany we had seen since leaving Brown's Hole. Instead\nof plateaux, baked and flinty, or hills of loose unproductive loam and sand, shorn by perpetual drought of\nflower, shrub, and tree, a journey of twenty miles over\nwhich would hardly cross grass enough to feed a dozen\nhorses a single day, the slopes of a thousand spherical\nhills, as green as the fields of the States in May, sent forth\nthe sweet fragrance of teeming vegetation; little streams\nran away among the black, white, and orange pebbles;\nand the dandelion, [68] anemone, and other flowers rejoiced in the spring-day breezes which crept over them.\nIt was May indeed here. The snow had lately disappeared, and the rains had still later been falling, as they\ndo in April in other places. The insects were piping the\nnote of an opening year.\nIt was the dividing ridge between the tributaries of the\nSheetskadee and Great Bear River; and yet not a ridge.160\nWhen viewed from its highest points, it appeared an elevated plateau of slightly conical swells, so raised above the\nvast deserts on the east of it, as to attract the moisture of\nthe clouds. The soil of this region is, however, poor,\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nnot sufficient to bear timber. The grasses grow rankly\nover most of its surface; and those parts which are barren\nare covered with red or white sand, that contrasts beautifully with the matted green of other portions. In a word,\nit was one of those places among the mountains where\nall is pure. There the air is dense \u00E2\u0080\u0094 the water cold \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nthe vegetation fresh; there the snow lies nine months of\nthe year, and when it eventually melts before the warm\nsuns of June and July, the earth is clothed with vegetation almost in a day. About sunset, we descended a sharp\ndeclivity of broken [69] rocks, and encamped on a small\n\"\u00E2\u0080\u00A2 Known as Bear River Divide, in Unita County, southwest Wyoming.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. 1839]\nFarnham's Travels\n289\nstream running north. My indefatigable Jim Shoshonie\nkilled an antelope for our suppers. An unexpected favour\nthis; for, from the representations given me of this part of\nmy route, I expected to commence here a long-consuming\nfast, which would not be broken till I reached Fort Hall,\nor my grave.\n27th. Our last night's encampment proved to have\nbeen on a branch of the Great Bear River \u00E2\u0080\u0094 the principal, if not the only feeder of the Great Salt Lake.170 We\nstarted down along its verdant little valley about seven\no'clock in the morning, and reached the main river about\ntwelve at noon. It was twenty yards wide \u00E2\u0080\u0094 water two\nfeet deep, and transparent, current four miles per hour,\nbottom of brown sand and gravel. After feeding our animals, we descended the river till four o'clock, and halted\non its banks for the night. We had travelled Ihirty miles.\nThe mountains which hemmed in the valley were generally of a conical form, primitive, and often verdant. Their\nheight varied from five hundred to two thousand five\nhundred feet above the level of the stream. The bottom\nlands were from one to three miles wide, of a [70] loose, dry,\ngravelly soil, covered with withered bunch grass. By\nthe water side grew various kinds of trees, as quaking-\nasp, black birch, and willows; also shrubs of various\nkinds, as the black alder, small willow, wild wormwood,\nblack currant, and service berry. In the ravines of the\nmountains, groves of trees sometimes appeared peering\nup luxuriantly among the black projecting cliffs.\n28th. An early rising, a hurried meal, and a rapid saddling and packing of horses, started us from camp at six\no'clock. While girding our saddle animals, the last act\ndone in breaking up camp in mountain life, Jim's eagle\neye discerned in the distance down the river, \"hos, hos.\"\n\u00C2\u00BB\u00E2\u0084\u00A2> For a description seejour volume xxi, p. 199, note 44.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. 2\u00C3\u0087O\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nSI\nIndian like, for we had become such in our habits, we\nput new caps on our rifles, mounted quickly, and circled\nout behind a barricade of brushwood, in order to ascertain the number, colour, and purpose of such unceremonious intruders upon the territories of our solitude. Jim\npeered through the leaves with the utmost intensity of an\nIndian's vision. It was the place for war-parties of the\nCrows, Sioux, and Blackfeet; and this early appearance\nof individuals approaching our camp was a circumstance\nthat scented strongly of bows [71] and arrows. But suspense became certainty, a pleasant certainty, as Jim reined\nhis horse from concealment, and galloped away to the\nstranger, now within rifle-shot of us.\nA strong and warm shake of the hand, and various contortions of the face, and uncouth gestures of recognition\nbetween them, completed their interview, and the swarthy\nold trapper approached myself and men. He was no\n171 Col. Joseph L. Meek (1810-75) was one OI tne most picturesque of the \"mountain men \" who settled in Oregon. An extended account of his adventures was\npublished by Frances Fuller Victor, under the title River oj the West (Hartford,\n1870). Born in Washington County, Virginia, he left home while still a boy, and\nin 1829 joined Sublette's caravan for the mountain trade. During eleven years\nhe experienced adventures similar to those of jather hunters and trappers, in one\nof which he killed a grizzly bear. The Englishman Stuart (see our volume xxi,\np. 197, note 42), coming up with his artist Miller, had a sketch made of the beast\nwhich was afterwards elaborated into a picture, and later a wax model for the St.\nLouis Museum (River oj the West, pp. 220-223). Meek went out to Oregon in\n1840, settling on Tualatin Plains, where he was active in establishing the provisional government, of which he was first sheriff. After the Whitman massacre of\n1847 he was the accredited messenger to Washington, D. C, to obtain consideration for the condition of Oregon. His visit to the East was replete with amusing\nadventures. Returning as United States marshal, he acted as guide to the party\nsent to escort to his post the first American governor of Oregon, General Joseph\nLane. Meek was prominent in Oregon throughout his later life, being generally\nknown as \"Uncle Joe,\" and he aided in founding the Pioneer Association. See\nOregon Pioneer Association Transactions, 1875. His meeting with Farnham is\nmentioned by Frances Fuller Victor in River oj the West, p. 256. For a portrait\nof Meek, see the frontispiece to that volume, also Lyman, History oj Oregon, iii,\np. 66.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n291\nless a personage than the bear-killer, Meek, who figures\nin the St. Louis Museum, with the paws of an immense\ngrisly bear upon his shoulders in front, the fingers and\nthumb of his left hand bitten off, while with his right hand\nhe holds the hunter's knife, plunged deeply in the animal's\njugular vein.171 He accosted me with, \"Good morning,\nhow are ye? \u00E2\u0080\u0094 stranger in the mountains, eh?\" And\nbefore I could make a monosyllabic reply, he continued,\n\"Have you any meat? Come, I've got the shoulder of\na goat, (antelope); let us go back to your camp, and cook,\nand eat, and talk awhile.\" We were harnessed for the\nday's ride, and felt unwilling to lose the cool hours of the\nmorning, and much more so to consume the generous\nman's last pound of meat. Thanking him, [72] therefore, for his honest kindness, we satisfied him with our\nrefusal, by the assurance that we had meat, and had\nalready breakfasted. On hearing that we were travelling to the Columbia river, he informed us that we might\nprobably go down with the Nez Perc\u00C3\u00A9s Indians, who, he\nstated, were encamped at the time on Salmon river, one\nday's journey from Fort Hall. He was on his way to\nBrown's Hole for his squaw and \"possibles,\" with the\ndesign of joining their camp. These Indians would leave\ntheir hunting grounds for their homes about ten days from\nthat date.\nThis was another remnant of the American Fur Company's trapping parties. He came to the mountains many\nyears ago, and has so long associated with Indians that\nhis manners much resemble theirs. The same wild, unsettled, watchful expression of the eye, the same unnatural gesticulation in conversation, the same unwillingness\nto use words when a sign, a contortion of the face or body,\nor movement of the hand will manifest thought; in standing, walking, riding, in all but complexion, he was an 292\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nIndian. Bidding us good morning, and wheeling away\nto the day's ride, he said, \"Keep your eye shining for the\nBlackfeet. [73] They are about the \ Beer Springs ' ; and\nstay, my white horse tired, one camp down the river; was\nobliged to ' cache ' my pack and leave him ; use him if\nyou can, and take him on to the Fort; and look here, I\nhave told you I am Meek, the bear-killer, and so I am.\nBut I think the boys at the museum in St. Louis might\nhave done me up as it really was. The beast only jumped\non my back, and stripped off my blanket; scratched some,\nbut didn't pull my shoulder blade off. Well, after he had\nrobbed me of my blanket, I shoved my rifle against him,\nand blew out his heart. That's all \u00E2\u0080\u0094 no fingers bitten\noff, no knifing; I merely drove a little lead into his pal-\npitator.\"\nSo saying, he spurred his weary animal to a trot, and\nwas soon hidden among the underbrush of the intervales.\nMeek was evidently very poor. He had scarcely clothing enough to cover his body; and while talking with us,\nthe frosty winds which sucked up the valley, made him\nshiver like an aspen leaf. He reverted to his destitute\nsituation, and complained of the injustice of his former\nemployers, the little remuneration he had received for the\ntoils and dangers he had endured on their account, &c,\na complaint which I had [74] heard from every trapper\nwhom I had met on my journey. The valley opened wider\nas we pursued our way along its northern side; the soil,\nthe water, and vegetation much the same in quantity and\nquality as those which we had passed on the 27th. The\nmountains on either hand spread into rocky precipitous\nridges, piled confusedly one above another in dark threatening masses. Among them hung, in beautiful wildness\nfrom the crevices of the cliffs, numerous shrub cedars.\nThe mountain flax was very abundant and ripe. The t\u00C2\u00AB39]\nFarnham's Travels\n293\nroot resembled that of perennial plants, the fibres that of\nthe annual bluebowl of the States, the flower the same, the\nseed vessel the same; but the seeds themselves were much\nsmaller, and of a very dark brown colour. This valley is\nthe grain-field and root-garden of the Shoshonie Indians;\nfor there grow in it a number of kinds of edible roots, which\nthey dig in August, and dry for winter use. There is also\nhere a kind of grass, bearing a seed of half the size of the\ncommon rye, and similar in form. This they also gather,\nand parch and store away in leather sacks, for the season\nof want. These Indians had been gathering in their roots,\n&c, a few [75] days previous to our arrival. I was\ninformed, however, that the crop was barely sufficient\nto subsist them while harvesting it. But, in order to\nprevent their enemies from finding whatever might have\nescaped their own search, they had burned over large\nsections of the most productive part. This day's ride\nwas estimated at thirty miles. Our camp at night was\nin a dense copse of black alders by the water-side. Ate\nour last meat for supper \u00E2\u0080\u0094 no prospect of getting more\nuntil we should arrive at Fort Hall, four days'.ride.\n29th. Up with the sun and on march. After an hour's\nride, we came upon Meek's white horse. He came to us\non as fast a gallop, and with as noisy a neighing as if Zimmerman had never dipt his quill in solitude, and wrote\nthe laws for destroying nature, for nature's good. Jim\nnow put spur to his noble animal, with the regularity of\nthe march of the tread-mill. And, by way of apology for\nhis haste, pointed to the ground, and laying his head on\none shoulder, and snoring, said, \"u\u00E2\u0080\u0094gh, ugh,\" which\nbeing interpreted, meant that our next snoring place was\na very, very long day's journey away. And one acquainted\nwith Indian firmness, would have read in [76] his countenance, while making this communication, a determination\nU\ 294\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nto reach it before night-fall, whatever might be the consequences. And so we did. At sunset our camp kettle\nwas bubbling over the bones of a pelican at the \"Steamboat spring.\" The part of the valley seen to-day was generally covered with a stout coat of bunch grass. This,\nand other indications, led me to suppose it fertile. Yet\nit appeared questionable if it would yield the ordinary\nfruits of agriculture without being irrigated.m\nI noticed, however, during the day's ride, a number of\npoints at which the waters of the river might be conducted\nover very large tracts of excellent soil. The scarcity of\nfencing timber appeared an obstacle, certainly; but other\nthan this, there seemed to me no considerable cause of\ndoubt that the valley of the Great Bear River will, in the\ncourse of time, become one of the most prosperous abodes\nof cultivated life. Its situation, so remote from either\nocean, only increases our expectation of such an event,\nwhen it is recollected that the most practicable waggon\nroute between the States and Oregon Territory and the\nCalifornias, runs through it.\nThe north end of the Great Salt Lake is [77] thirty miles\nfrom our present encampment, and the mountains on the\nborders of the valley are more abrupt and craggy, the\nwater of the stream more abundant, and the soil more\nproductive, than in the part already described. A number\nof creeks also entering the main stream from the East,\nopen up among the black heights a number of lesser and\ncharming vales; and around the union of the river with\nthe Lake are excellent water, soil and timber, under skies\nof perpetual spring. Of the Lake itself I heard much from\ndifferent individuals who had visited different portions\nof its coast.\n172 Irrigation has made considerable progress in Bear River valley, chiefly\nunder the auspices of the settlers of that region.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n295\nThe substance of their statements, in which they all\nagree, is that it is about two hundred miles long, eighty\nor one hundred wide; the water exceedingly heavy; and\nso salt, say they in their simple way, that pieces of wood\ndipped in it and dried in the sun are thickly frosted with\npure white salt; that its coasts are generally composed\nof swells of sand and barren brown loam, on which sufficient moisture does not fall to sustain any other vegetation than the wild wormwood and prick y pear; that all\nattempts to go round it in canoes have, after a day or two\nof trial, been abandoned [78] for want of fresh water; that\nthe Great Bear River is the only considerable stream putting into it; that high land is seen near the centre of it; \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nbut whether this be an island or a long peninsula there\nwas a difference of opinion among my informants. The\nvalleys of the Great Bear River and its tributaries, as well\nas the northern portion of the Lake, are supposed to be\nwithin the territory of the States.173\nThe immediate neighbourhood of our encampment is\none of the most remarkable in the Rocky Mountains. The\nfacts that the trail to Oregon and California will for ever\nof necessity, pass within three hundred yards of the place\nwhere our camp fire is burning; that near this spot must\nbe erected a resting-place for the long lines of caravans\nbetween the harbours of the Pacific and the waters of the\nMissouri, would of themselves interest all who are witnessing the irresistible movements of civilization upon\nthe American continent. But this spot has other objects\nof interest: its Geology and its Mineralogy, and I might\nwell say the Chemistry of it, (for there are laboratories\n\"* Great Salt Lake has one long promontory and several islands. By his use of\nthe term \"territory of the States,\" Farnham assumes that Bear valley and a portion of Great Salt Lake lie north of the 42nd parallel of latitude, then the boundary with Mexico; see our volume xix, p. 217, note 52. Actually, only a portion\nof Bear River and none of Great Salt Lake are north of that latitude.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n%\na 296\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nand gases here in the greatest profusion), will hereafter\noccupy the attention of the lovers of these sciences. The\nSoda Springs, called [79] by the fur traders Beer Springs,\nare the most remarkable objects of the kind within my\nknowledge. They are situated on the north-west side of\nthe river, a few rods below a grove of shrub cedars, and\nabout two hundred yards from the shore. There are six\ngroups of them; or in other words, there are six small\nhollows sunken about two feet below the ground around,\nof circular form, seven or eight feet in diameter, in which\nare a number of fountains sending up large quantities\nof gas and water, and emitting a noise resembling the boiling of immense cauldrons. These pools are usually clear,\nwith a gravelly bottom. In some of them, however, grow\nbogs or hassocks of coarse grass, among which are many\nlittle wells, where the water bubbled so merrily that I was\ntempted to drink at one of them. But as I proceeded to\ndo so, the suffocating properties of the gas instantly drove\nme from my purpose. After this rebuff, however, I made\nanother attempt at a more open fountain, and drank with\nlittle difficulty.\nThe waters appeared to be more highly impregnated\nwith soda and acid than those of Saratoga; were extremely\npleasant to the taste, and fumed from the [80] stomach\nlike the soda water of the shops. Some of them threw\noff at least four gallons of gas a second. And although\nthey cast up large masses of water continually, for which\nthere appeared no outlet, yet at different times of observation I could perceive no increase or diminution of the\nquantity visible. There are five or six other springs in\nthe bank of the river just below, the waters of which re-\nresemble those I have described. One of them discharges\nabout forty gallons a minute.\nOne fourth of a mile down stream from the Soda i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n297\nSpring, is what is called \"The Steamboat Spring.\" The\norifice from which it casts its water is in the face of a perpendicular rock on the brink of the stream, which seems\nto have been formed by the depositions of the fountain.\nIt is eight inches in diameter. Six feet from this, and\non the horizontal plane of the rock, is another orifice in\nthe cavern below. On approaching the spring, a deep\ngurgling, hissing sound is heard underground. It appears\nto be produced by the generating of gas in a cavernous\nreceiver. This, when the chamber is filled, bursts through\nanother cavern filled with water, which it thrusts frothing and foaming into the stream. In [81] passing the\nsmaller orifice, the pent gas escapes with very much the\nsame sound as steam makes in the escape-pipe of a steamboat. Hence the name. The periods of discharge are\nvery irregular. At times, they occur once in two, at\nothers, once in three, four or five minutes. The force of\nits action also is subject to great variation. Those who\nhave been there, often say that its noise has been heard\nto echo far among the hills. When I visited it I could not\nhear it at the distance of two hundred yards. There is\nalso said to be a difference at different times in the temperature of the water. When I examined it, it was a little\nabove blood heat. Others have seen it much higher.\nThe most remarkable phenomenon connected with these\nsprings, remains yet to be noticed. The whole river,\nfrom the Steamboat spring to the Soda Springs, (a distance of more than a fourth of a mile), is a sheet of springs,\nthousands in number, which bursting through two feet\nof superincumbent running water, throw their foaming\njets, some six inches, and some less, above the surface.\nThe water is much the same in its constituent qualities,\nas that of the Soda springs.174\n\"* See a previous description of this region in Townsend's Narrative, our 298\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\n[82] There are in the immediate vicinity of the Steamboat Spring, and on the opposite side of the river numerous rocks with orifices in their centres, and other evidences\nof having been formed by intermittent springs that have\nlong ago ceased to act.\nThe scenery around these wonderful fountains, is very\nwild. To the east north-east, opens up the upper valley of\nGreat Bear River, walled in on either side by dark primitive mountains, beetling over the vale, and towering on\nthesky. To the south south-west sweeps away the\nlower valley.\u00E2\u0080\u0094rOn either side of it rise lofty mountain\nof naked rocks, the wild sublimity of which contrasts\nstrikingly with the sweet beauty of the stream and vale\nbelow.\nAlthough statements in regard to what shall transpire\nin the future, are always a work more befitting a seer than\na journalist, yet I cannot forbear expressing the belief hat\nthe healthiness and beauty of their locality \u00E2\u0080\u0094 the magnificence of the scenery on the best routes to them from\nthe States and from the Pacific, the manifest superiority\nof these waters over any others, will cause \"The Soda\nSprings\" to be thronged with the gay and fashionable of\nboth sides of the continent.\n[83] 30th. Our sleep had been interrupted at midnight by the blazing fires of an Indian encampment on a\nneighbouring hill. And once awakened by such a cause,\nthe tracks of a war party, probably of Blackfeet, which\nwe had crossed during the day, were sufficient to put us\non duty the remainder of the night. At early dawn, we\nsaddled and moved in silence a few hundred yards down\nthe river, turned to the right around the Bute in the rear\nof the Steamboat spring, entered the \"Valley of chasms,\"\nvolume xxi, p. 200. See also Fremont's description, Senate Docs., 28 Cong., 2\nsess., 174, pp. 135-138.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\nW\ !.\n\"^^ i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n299\nand soon brought the mountains on its northern border,\nbetween us and our suspicious neighbours.\nThis valley derives its name from the numerous cracks\nor chasms in the volcanic rocks on which it rests. They\nare so wide and deep that the natives, for many miles at\nthe lower part of it, have been obliged to run their trail\nover the lower swells of the hills on its north-western side.\nUp this trail Jim rode on a brisk trot, beckoning us, in an\nominous manner to follow, and keep in a body near him.\nThe \"cut rock\" and scoriae lay every where, and crippled\nthe poor animals at almost every step. Onward he led\nus, with all the speed which the severest inflictions of spur\nand whip could [84] produce, till the shutting in of night\ndeposited us among the willows on the stream of the valley, forty miles from our last night's encampment. The\nrapidity of our travelling to-day, allowed me little time\nto examine this singular valley. I noticed merely that\nit was, like the intervales of Bear River, covered with\nbunch-grass, which the thirsty suns of summer had dried\nto hay. A curious gas spring also attracted my attention\nabout nine o'clock in the morning. Its bubbling and its\nbeautiful reservoir appeared to arouse the admiration even\nof my dogged guide Jim: he halted to look at it. Jim,\nfor the first time since I had had the honour of his acquaintance, absolutely stopped to look at, and admire a portion\nof the earth. It was a fine specimen of Nature's masonry.\nThe basin was about six feet in diameter; the bottom a\ncircular horizontal plane; around the edge rose a rim or\nflanche, eight inches in height; all one solid rock. In\nthe centre of the bottom arose the gas and water: the latter\nwas six inches deep, limpid, and slightly acid. This fountain was situated a few rods to the right of the trail.\n31st. We took to our saddles, and in three hours\nreached the foot of the mountains [85] which divide the 3\u00C2\u00B0\u00C2\u00B0\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\n\"Valley of chasms\" from Snake River. There is a wide\ndepression through the heights here of so gentle a declination, that loaded waggons can pass from one valley to the\nother without difficulty. Up this we turned. It was covered with green grass and shrubs and trees, among which\na little brook was whispering to the solitude.175\nThe small birds, too, were chirping among the bright\nflowers and bending boughs; and on either hand, as if\nto guard so much loveliness from the winds of surrounding desolation, the black crags rose and frowned one thousand five hundred feet in air. But hunger! ! Every\nbud was fed; every bird had its [nourishment; the lizards\neven were not starving. We were. When about half\nway up the gorge, one of Smith's horses tired and refused\nto go farther. The fellow's wound, received in the plains,\nhad healed; and with strength from time to time, his petty\ntyranny towards his animals increased till being entirely\nrecovered, he seemed to have resumed a degree of malignity towards them whenever they did not chance to comprehend his wishes, or were unable to comply with them,\nthat would be incredible if described. In this case, he [86]\ncut a strong goad; and following the slow steps of the\nworn-out animal, struck her lengthwise over the almost\ndenuded ribs as frequently and as long as he had strength\nto do it; and then would rest and strike again with renewed\nvengeance, until his beast dropped her head and received\nhis blows without a movement. Remonstrance, and the\nastonished gazing of my savage guide, only increased his\nseverity. And thus he continued to beat the poor animal,\ntill, being convinced against his will, that he even could\nnot made a dying horse heed his command, he bestowed\nupon her a farewell kick and curse and left her.\nAbout four o'clock we stood on the high ground which\n176 See De Smet's description of this defile in our volume xxvii, p. 248.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. 1839]\nFarnham's Travels\n301\ndivides the waters of the little brook which we had followed up, from a small head stream of Portneuf. The\nvalley of the great southern branch of the Columbia, was\nspread out before us. Slaking our thirst at a cool spring,\nwe travelled five miles down the mountain, and encamped\nin sight of the Trois Butes.176 When we halted, I was\ntoo much exhausted with hunger and fatigue to unsaddle\nmy horse. We had been on short allowance most of the\ntime since leaving Fort David Crockett. The day on\nwhich we arrived at the Soda Springs, I ate [87] the\neighth part of a pelican; the two last past days, nothing.\nBut I suffered less from the gnawings of hunger than I\nhad on the previous night. A deadly stupor pervaded\nthe gastric and nervous systems; a sluggish action of the\nheart, a dimness of vision and painful prostration of every\nenergy of life were creeping upon me. After a little rest,\nhowever, I crept to the bushes, and after a long search,\nfound two red rosebuds! These I gladly ate, and went\nto my couch to dream of feasts.\nThe 1st of September was a fine day. The sun was\nbright and unclouded, as he came in his strength over the\neastern mountains, and awakened us from our slumbers\namong the alders on the bank of Portneuf. Hunger,\nindeed, was still gnawing at our vitals. But sleep had\nbanished weariness, and added something to the small\nstock of our remaining strength; and the recollection of\npast perils \u00E2\u0080\u0094 perils of floods, of tempests, of Indian foes\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 death threatened at every step during a journey of three\nmonths in the plains and mountains \u00E2\u0080\u0094 the inspiring view\nof the vale of the great southern branch of the Columbia,\nso long promised us in hope along our weary way \u00E2\u0080\u0094 the\nfact that we were in Oregon, unmoored the mind from [88]\n176 See Townsend's Narrative in our volume xxi, p. 209, note 49; also p. 249,\nnote 124, of De Smet's Letters in our volume xxvii.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\nm 302\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nits anxieties, and shed over us a gladness which can only\nbe comprehended by those who, having suffered as we\nhad, have viewed as we did, from some bright height, their\nsufferings ended, in the rich, ripe possession of the objects\nso ardently sought. We were in Oregon. Fort Hall lay\nin the plain before us. Its hospitalities would be enjoyed\nere sunset. Our wardrobes were overhauled, our razors\nput on duty, our sun-burnt frames bathed in the Portneuf;\nand equipped in our best, our hearts beat joyfully back\nthe rapid clattering of our horses' hoofs on the pavements\nof the mountains, as we rushed to the plains. An hour\namong the Sands and wild wormwood, an hour among the\noozing springs, and green grass around them, an hour along\nthe banks of Saptin River, and we passed a line of timber springing at right angles into the plain; and before us\nrose the white battlements of Fort Hall !177\nAs we emerged from this wood, Jim mtimated that\nwe should discharge our rifles; and as we did so, a\nsingle armed horseman issued from the gate of the Fort\napproached us warily, and skulking among the copses,\nscanned us in the most inquisitive manner. Having satisfied himself at [89] last that our skins were originally\nintended to be white, he came alongside; and learning\nthat we were from the States; that we had no hostile\nintentions; that we knew Mr. Walker to be in the Fort,\nand would be glad to have our compliments conveyed\nto him, he returned; and Mr. Walker immediately appeared.178 A friendly salutation was followed by an\n177 See account of founding of Fort Hall in Townsend's Narrative, our volume\nxxi, pp. 210, 211, with accompanying note.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n178 This may have been Courtney M. Walker, who came out with the Lees in\n1834. He had charge of much of Wyeth's business, and may have been employed\nby the Hudson's Bay Company. Wislizenus and Robert Shortess, both of whom\nwere at Fort Hall in the same year, before and after Farnham, speaks of Francis\nErmatinger as factor in charge, although Wislizenus also mentions Walker.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n3\u00C2\u00B03\ninvitation to enter the Fort; and a \"welcome to Fort Hall,\"\nwas given in a manner so kind and obliging, that nothing\nseemed wanting to make us feel that we were at home.\nA generous flagon of Old Jamaica, wheaten bread, and\nbutter newly churned, and buffalo tongues fresh from the\nneighbouring mountains, made their appearance as soon\nas we had rid ourselves of the equipage and dust of journeying, and allayed the dreadful sense of starvation.\nCHAPTER VIII [IH]\nThe Rocky Mountains and their Spurs \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Geography of the Mountain\nRegion \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Wyeth \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Outset \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Beaver Catcher's Bride \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nTrois Butes \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Addition from a Monastery \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Orisons \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Merry\nMountain Trapper \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Root Diggers \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Enormous Springs \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Volcanic Hearths and Chasms \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Carbo \u00E2\u0080\u0094 An old Chief \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Bluff \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nBoisais River \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Incident of Trade \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Bonaks \u00E2\u0080\u0094The Dead Wail\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Fort Boisais, its Salmon, Butter and Hearty Cheer \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Mons. Payette \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Curiosity \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Departure \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Passing the Blue Mountains \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nThe Grandeur of them \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Their Forests, Flowers, and Torrents \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nDescent of the Mountains \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Plain, a Christian Crane \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Arrival at\nDr. Whitman's Mission \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Wallawalla \u00E2\u0080\u0094 People \u00E2\u0080\u00A2\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Farm \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Mill \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nLearning \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Religion \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Mr. Ermitinger \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Blair \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Nez Perc\u00C3\u00A9s \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nRacing \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Indian Horse Training \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Sabbath and its joys in the\nWilderness.\nIt will not be uninteresting while pausing here, and\nmaking preparations to descend Snake, Lewis, or Saptih\nriver,17* to lead my readers back over that portion of my\njourney which lay among the mountains. I do not design\nto retrace my steps here, however, in order again to attempt\na description of sufferings which can never be described.\nThey are past; and let their remembrance [91] die. But\na succinct account of the region lying west of the Anahuac\n179 The river was named by Captain William Clark in honor of his fellow explorer, Captain Meriwether Lewis, the latter being the first white man to visit\nits banks. Later, the term Snake was more frequently applied, because that\ntribe of Indians ranged within the basin of this river. The word Saptin (Shahap-\ntin) is derived from a stock of Indians, of whonrthe Nez Perc\u00C3\u00A9s are the most prominent branch.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. 3\u00C2\u00B04\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nridge, and between latitudes 390 and 420 north \u00E2\u0080\u0094 its mountains, its plains, its rivers, &c, will, I persuade myself, be\nnew, and not without interest to the reader.\nJames' Peak, Pike's Peak, and Long's Peak, may be\ncalled the outposts of a lofty range of rocky mountains,\nwhich, for convenience in description, I have called Long's\nRange, extending nearly due north from the Arkansas,\nin latitude 390, to the Great Gap in latitude 420 north.180\nThe range is unconnected with any other. It is separated from the Wind River Mountains by the Great Gap\nor Great Southern Pass, and from the Great Anahuac\nRange by the upper valleys of the Arkansas, those of the\nSouth Fork of the Platte, and those of the Green and\nGrand rivers. Two spurs spring off from it to the west:\nthe one from James' Peak, the other from Long's Peak.\nThese spurs, as they proceed westward, dip lower and\nlower till they terminate \u00E2\u0080\u0094 the first in the rough cliffs\naround the upper waters of the Arkansas, and the latter\nin spherical sand-hills around the lower waters of Grand\nriver.181 The Anahuac Mountains were seen from about\nlatitude 390 to [92] 420 north. This range lies about two\nhundred miles west of Long's Range, and between latitude 39 and 400, has a general course of north north-west.\nIt appeared an unbroken ridge of ice and snow, rising in\nsome points, I think, more than fifteen thousand feet\nabove the level of the sea. From latitude 410 it tends to\nthe north-west by west, past the north-eastern shore of\nthe Great Salt Lake to the northern end of it; and thence\n180 By Long's range, Farnham intends what is now known as Front range,\nwith Long's Peak, James's (now Pike's) Peak, and Pike's (now the Spanish Peaks)\nas its outposts. For his use of these terms see ante, pp. in, 184, 283, notes 50,\nin, 166. The Great Gap is South Pass, for which see our volume xxi, p. 58,\nnote 37.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n181 These spurs are the boundaries of South and Middle Parks, for which see\nante, pp. 199, 221, notes 123, 132.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 1839]\nFarnham's Travels\n3\u00C2\u00B05\nwestwardly to a point south of Portneuf, where it unites\nwith the range of the Snowy Mountains.\nThe Snowy Mountains are a transverse range or spur\nof the Rocky Mountains, which run from the Wind River\nMountains, latitude 420 north, in nearly a right line to\nCape Mendocino, latitude 40\u00C2\u00B0 in Upper California.\nMany portions of this range, east as well as west of Fort\nHall, are very lofty, and covered with perpetual snow.\nAbout one hundred miles from the coast of the Pacific it\nintersects that range of snowy peaks called the President's\nRange, which comes down from Puget's sound, and terminates in the arid plains about the mouth of the Colorado\nof the West.182\n[93] The Wind River Mountains are a spur which shoots\nfrom the great northern chain, commonly called the Rocky\nMountains, in latitude 420 and odd minutes north; and\nrunning in a south-easterly direction into the Great Prairie\nWilderness, forms the northern wall of the Great Gap or\nGreat Southern Pass.183\nOn the northern side of the Wind River Peaks, are the\nsources of Jefferson, Madison, and Gallatin rivers;184 on\nthe south-eastern side rises the Sweetwater, the northwestern-most branch of the North Fork of the Great\nPlatte; on the southern side the Sheetskadee or Green\nriver, the northern branch of the Colorado of the West;\non the north-western side and north of the Snowy Moun-\nisa The range described by Farnham as the Snowy Mountains, refers to the\nSierra Nevada; but is an incorrect description. The mountains he saw northeast and northwest of Fort Hall, covered with perpetual snow, were part of the\nmain Rocky Mountains trending westward from Yellowstone Park. The President's range is that now known as Cascade Mountains, in which Mounts Jefferson and Adams perpetuate the memory of those early executives.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\ni*\u00C2\u00BB For a brief description of this range see Townsend's Narrative in our volume\nxxi, p. 184, note 35.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n184 For these three streams, which rise farther west than here indicated, see\nDe Smet's Letters in our volume xxvii, p. 224, note 92.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. 3o6\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nRift\n111\ntains, spring down the Saptin, Snake, or Lewis river, the\ngreat southern branch of the Columbia.\nOn the western side of Long's Range, rises the Grand\nriver, the principal branch of the Colorado of the West.185\nIt furnishes four times the quantity of water that Green\nriver does. Further south, in the vicinity of James' Peak,\nand on the west side of this range, rises the South Fork\nof the Great Platte.186\nClose under the eastern base of the Anahuac [94] or\nGreat Main Ridge, and nearly in latitude 39J0 north, are\nthe sources of the Arkansas.\nThe immense parallelogram lying within these ranges\nof mountains, may be described by saying that it is a desert of arid plains and minor mountains. And if this\ngeneral appellation be qualified by the accounts given\non previous pages of Boyou Salade, Old Park, &c. very\nsmall portions of the whole area, the description will be\ncomplete.\nFort Hall was built by Captain Wyeth, of Boston in 1832,\nfor the purposes of trade with the Indians in its vicinity.\nHe had taken goods into the lower part of the Territory,\nto exchange for salmon. But competition soon drove\nhim from his fisheries to this remote spot, where he hoped\nto be permitted to purchase furs of the Indians without\nbeing molested by the Hudson's Bay Company, whose\nnearest post was seven hundred miles away.187\nIn this he was disappointed. In pursuance of the\n186 For Grand River see ante, p. 223, note 135.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\nis\u00C2\u00BB The South Platte rises in South Park (Bayou Salade), flows east and then\nnortheast, and breaking through Front Range at Platte Canon, above Denver,\ncontinues in a nearly northward course to old Fort St. Vrain; it then turns abruptly east across the great plains, and unites with the North Platte in western\nNebraska.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n187 For Wyeth and the founding of Fort Hall see our volume xxi, especially\npp. 210, 211. The fort was built in 1833 (not 1832). The nearest Hudson's\nBay post was Fort Walla Walla, for which see volume xxi, p. 278, note 73.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 i\u00C2\u00BB39l\nFarnham's Travels\n3\u00C2\u00B07\navowed doctrine of that company, that no others have a\nright to trade in furs west of the Rocky Mountains, whilst\nthe use of capital and their incomparable skill and perseverance can prevent it, they established a fort near him,\npreceded him, [95] followed him, surrounded him every\nwhere, and cut the throat of his prosperity with such\nkindness, and politeness, that Wyeth was induced to sell\nhis whole interest, existent and prospective, in Oregon, to\nhis generous but too indefatigable, skilful, and powerful\nantagonists.\nFrom what I saw and heard of Wyeth's management\nin Oregon, I was impressed with the belief that he was,\nbeyond comparison, the most talented business-man from\nthe States that ever established himself in the Territory.\nThe business of this post consists in exchanging blankets,\nammunition, guns, tobacco, &c, with the neighbouring\nIndians, for the skins of the beaver and land otter; and\nin furnishing white men with traps, horses, saddles, bridles,\nprovisions, &c, to enable them to hunt these animals for\nthe benefit and sole use of the owners, the Hudson's Bay\nCompany. In such cases the horses are borrowed without\nprice; the other articles of the \"outfit \" sold on credit till\nthe termination of the hunt; and the only security which\nthe Company requires for the return of their animals, is\nthe pledge of honour to that effect, and that the furs taken\nshall be appropriated at a stipulated price to the payment\nof arrears.\n[96] Goods are sold at this establishment fifty per cent\nlower than at the American posts. White trappers are\npaid a higher price for their furs than is paid the Indians;\nare charged less for the goods which they receive in\nexchange; and are treated in every respect by this shrewd\nCompany with such uniform justice, that the American\ntrappers even are fast leaving the service of their country- 3o8\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nmen, for the larger profits and better treatment of British\nemployment. There is also a company of men connected\nwith this Fort, under the command of an American mountaineer, who, following various tribes in their migratory\nexpeditions in the adjacent American and Mexican domain,\ncollect whatever furs may chance to be among them.\nBy these means, and various others subsidiary to them,\nthe gentlemen in charge of this trading establishment,\ncollected, in the summer of 1839, more than thirty packs\nof the best beaver of the mountains.\nWe spent the 2d and 3d most agreeably with Mr. Walker,\nin his hospitable adobie castle; exchanged with him our\nwearied horses for fresh ones; and obtained dried buffalo\nmeat, sugar, cocoa, tea, and corn meal, a guide, and\nevery other necessary witifin that gentleman's [97] power\nto furnish for our journey to Wallawalla. And at ten\no'clock, A. M., of the 4th of September, we bade adieu to\nour very obliging countryman, and took to our saddles\non the trail down the desert banks of the Saptin. As we\nleft the Fort, we passed over the ground of an affray, which\noriginated in love and terminated in death. Yes, ove\non the western declivity of the Rocky Mountains! and\nlove of a white man for an Indian dame !\nIt appeared that a certain white trapper had taken to\nhimself a certain bronze damsel of the wilderness to be\nhis slave-wife, with all the solemn ceremonies of purchase\nand payment for the same in sundry horses, dogs, and\nloads of ammunition, as required by the custom in such\naffairs governing; and that by his business of trapping\nfor beaver, &c, he was, soon after the banns were proclaimed, separated from his beloved one, for the term of\nthree months and upwards, much against his tender\ninclination and interest, as the following showeth: for\nduring the terms of his said absence, another white man, 183 9]\nFarnham's Travels\n3\u00C2\u00B09\nwith intent to injure, &c, spoke certain tender words\nunto the said trapper's slave-wife, which had the [98] effect\nto alienate from him the purchased and rightfully possessed affections of his slave-spouse, in favour of her\nseducer. In this said condition did the beaver-catcher\nfind his bride when he came in from the hunt. He loaded\nhis rifle, and killed the robber of his heart. The grave\nof the victim is there \u00E2\u0080\u0094 a warning to all who would trifle\nwith the vested rights of an American trapper in the love\nof an Indian beauty.\nWe made about ten miles, and halted for the night.\nOur guide displayed himself a five feet nine inch stout\nWallawalla.188 He had been in the service of the Hudson Bay Company many years, and was consequently\nassiduous and dutiful. Yes, consequently so; for neither\nIndian nor white man is long in their service without learning his place, and becoming active and faithful in doing\nhis duty. As soon as we entered camp, our pack-horses\nwere stripped of their burdens, and turned loose to feed;\nwood was gathered, and a fire blazing under the kettles,\nand \"all out door \" immediately rendered as comfortable\nto us, as skies spangled with stars, and earth strewn with\nsnowy sand could be made. Wallawalla was a jolly oddi y\nof a mortal. The frontal region of his head had been\npressed in infancy [99] most aristocratically into he form\nof the German idiots ; his eyes were forced out upon the\ncorners of the head ; his nose hugged the face closely like\na bunch of affectionate leeches; hair black as a raven,\nand flowing over a pair of herculean shoulders; and feet\n but who can describe that which has not its like under\nthe skies. Such was Carbo, our Palinurus over the burnt\nplains of Snake River.\nus for the Wallawalla Indians see Ross's Oregon Settlers, in our volume vii,\np. 137, note 37.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. 3io\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nm\nThe short ride of the day had shown us the western limit\nof the partial fertility about Fort Hall. The earth had\nbegun to be red, burnt, and barren; grass, sparse and\ndry; the shrubs and cotton-woods stinted and shrivelled.\nThe plain of the Trois Butes is situated between the\nSnowy mountain range on the south, and another ridge\nwhich, diverging from it above the sources of the Saptin\nRiver, follows that stream down to the Blue Mountains\nnear Wallawalla. This plain by experiment is found to\nbe eight thousand feet above the level of the sea. In the\nvicinity of the post, there is an abundance of grass for the\nsubsistence of many thousands of animals. The soil, in\nvarious parts of it, also appears well adapted to the cultivation of the small grains and esculent roots. But [100] the\nfact that frosts occur almost every month of the year, shows\nthe extent to which the arable sections can be rendered\navailable for such purposes.\nThe Trois Butes rise on the plain fifteen or twenty\nmiles east of the Fort.18* They are pyramidal peaks,\nprobably of volcanic origin, of two thousand feet in height\nabove the plain, and twelve thousand feet above the level\nof the sea. Around their dark bases grow evergreen trees;\nfrom their sides burst small brooks, rendering verdant strips\nof the plain which radiate beautifully in all directions from\nthem; and over all, during most of the year, hang their\ncrests of glittering snows! East of the Butes, vegetation\ncontinually decreases till it ceases in the black crags which\nembosom the head streams of the river.\nOn the 5th, travelled thirty miles down the western\nbank of the river; 19\u00C2\u00B0 soil sandy and volcanic, bearing\nis\u00C2\u00BB For the Three Buttes see our volume xxi, p. 209, note 49.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\nloo By western, Farnham intends the southern bank of the Lewis, where passed\nthe usual trail from Fort Hall. Rough as it was, the southern bank was less cut\nwith gulleys and rapid torrent beds than the northern.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\nCaJr- i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n311\nwild wormwood \u00E2\u0080\u0094 in fact a desert; crossed a number\nof small streams putting into the Saptin; on these a little\nbunch of grass, and a feW alders and willows, tried to grow.\nWhilst baiting at noon, we were agreeably surprised with\nan addition to our company, of a young Swiss trapper,\neight years in the mountains; he [101] learned the silversmith business when in youth; afterwards entered a monastery and studied Latin, &c, for the order of Priests;\nran away from the monastery, entered the French army,\ndeserted, and came to America; sickened, was visited by\na Roman priest who had been a classmate with him at\nthe monastery; and having had a more numerous family\nthan was required by the canons of his order, had fled to\nAmerica, where his orisons would not be disturbed by\nthe cries of infants. On entering our trapper's chamber\nthey mutually recognized each other; and horror immediately seized the pious priest at the recollection of the trapper's sinfulness; and particularly the sin of forsaking the\nholy places of the mother church; of taking carnal\nweapons in hands that had been employed in making\ncrosses in the sacred precincts of the cloister. The trapper had contracted the dangerous habit of thinking for\nhimself, and replied to tfie godly man in a sharp and\nretaliatory manner; and among other things drew a very\nungracious comparison between escaping from prayers\nand chants, and flying from an unlawful family.\nThis reference to former delinquencies in [102] a country to which he had fled to escape the remembrance of\nthem, aroused the holy indignation of the priest to such\nan extent, that he immediately consigned the witness of\nhis fault to worms, and his soul to an apprenticeship at\nfire eating in purgatory. Our trapper had become a\nheretic. In the blindness of his heart he had forgotten\nthat the power to save and destroy the soul of man, had\n:'iM\n111 312 Early Western Travels [Vol. 28\nbeen committed to an order of men chosen, and set apart\nas the repositories of that portion of Omnipotence; and\nthat whatever errors of conduct may occur in the life of\nthese men, the efficiency of the anathematizing and saving commission is not thereby annulled; and he rose from\nhis bed and hurled at the priest sundry counter anathemas in the form of chairs, and shovel and tongs. I could\nperceive* in him no returning belief in the Omnipotent key\nof the \"Roman Catholic apostolical mother Church.\"\nInstead of saying his prayers, and counting the beads of\nhis rosary, he talked of the stirring scenes of a trapper's\nlife, and recounted the wild adventures of the mountains;\ninstead of the sublime Te Deum, he sang the thrilling\nmartial airs of his native land; instead of [103] the crosier,\nhe bore the faithful rifle; instead of the robes of sacred\noffice, he wore the fringed deer skin frock of the children\nof the wilderness. He was a trapper \u00E2\u0080\u0094 a merry mountain\ntrapper.\n6th. Twenty-five miles to-day; face of the country,\nblack, hard and barren swells; encamped on a small tributary of the Saptin; very little grass for the animals;\nfound here a family of the Root Digger Indians; the man\nhalf clad, children naked, all filthy. She was clad in a\nwrapper of mountain sheep skin.191\n7th. Twenty miles. About mid-day heard a loud\nroaring of waters; descended the chasm of the river and\ndiscovered two enormous springs bursting from the basaltic cliffs of the opposite shore. Their roaring was heard\n191 The term Digger Indians has no ethnological significance, but was applied\nto degraded bands of the Shoshonean stock who ranged chiefly west and south\nof Great Salt Lake; without horses or much clothing, they lived in a furtive way\nupon roots and insects. The name is sometimes equivalent to Paiute, who have\nproved to be of a more vigorous character than was formerly supposed. The\nFrench appellation was Digne de piti\u00C3\u00A9 (worthy of pity); see De Smet's Letters in\nour volume xxvii, p. 167, note 38.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. 1839]\nFarnham's Travels\n3*3\nthree miles. The lower one discharged water enough to\nturn the machinery of twenty ordinary manufactories. The\nwater foamed and rushed down inclined planes of rocks\nthe distance of two hundred feet.192 The country, an\nundulating, barren, volcanic plain; near the river cut\ninto bluffs; lava every where; wild wormwood and\nanother shrub two feet in height, bearing a yellow blosom,\nthe only wood seen; encamped on a small stream about\nthree miles [104] from the river. Found here the only\ngrass which I had observed during the day.\n8th. Still on the western bank of the Saptin; river\none-fourth of a mile wide; water extremely clear; current five miles the hour; depth of water about four feet.\nOn the eastern side, the soil appeared a dark mass of\nimbedded fused rock, stretching in broken undulations\nto the distant highlands. In that direction twenty miles\nlay a range of mountains like an irregular line of darkness on the horizon. Every thing touched by our horses'\nfeet claimed a volcano for its birth-place. Thirty miles\nto-day.\n9th. Face of the country the same as that passed over\non the 8th \u00E2\u0080\u0094 scarcely grass enough to feed our animals,\nand that dried to hay. The mountains on the west side\nof the river gradually nearing it. No timber since we left\nthe immediate vicinity of Fort Hall. We cooked our food\nwith the willow bushes which the Indians had killed and\nrendered dry for such purposes. All the rocks more or\nless fused; many large tracts of lava; a number of clear\nlittle brooks bubbling over the cinders of this great hearth\nof Nature's fire. Made forty miles.\n182 Farnham must have been in the neighborhood of the great Shoshone Falls\nof Lewis River. His description would better apply to Twin Falls, two and a\nhalf miles higher up. which are about two hundred feet in height; but they are\ncaused by the flow of the river, not by springs.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. 314 Early Western Travels [Vol. 28\n10th. Fifteen miles over \"cut rock\" and wormwood\ndeserts; and at mid-day descended [105] about six hundred feet in the chasm of the Saptin, and travelled along\nthe brink of the river a short distance; crossed at a place\ncalled \"The Islands,\" to the eastern shore.193\nThe river has been clipping deeper in the plain the last\nthree days. A bird's eye view of it for sixty miles above\nthe Islands would present a tortuous chasm, walled by\nbasalt, trap, &c, and sunk along the centre of the valley,\nfrom one hundred to eight hundred feet deep, a black\nchasm, destitute of timber and other evidences of fertility,\nfrom a quarter to half a mile in width. In the centre of\nthe bottom rushes the Saptin; over rocks and gravel a\nclear, pure, strong stream, with a current of five miles to\nthe hour; water three and four feet in depth. Travelled\nseven or eight miles from the ford and fell in with eight\nor ten springs of limpid water, bubbling through the flinty\ncrust of the plain. The sun was pouring upon us his\nfiercest rays, and our thirst was excessive. A halting,\ndismounting and rushing to the water, the application of\nour giant's lips to the liquid \u00E2\u0080\u0094 a paralysis of his thirst\nproduced by the boiling hot sensation which it imparted\nto his swearing apparatus, prepared us to resume our ride.\nHot springs, [106] boiling hot \u00E2\u0080\u0094 no apparent mineral\nproperties.194\nnth. Travelled to-day titirty-five miles over an irregular, rough, unseemly desert; volcanic stones strewn every\nwhere on a black, impenetrable, baked surface; soil too\npoor to bear the wormwood \u00E2\u0080\u0094 trail too far east to see\n\u00C2\u00BB\u00C2\u00BB3 This ford is about thirty-five miles below the falls, not far from Glenn's\nFerry. It consists of two islands, with the water between sufficiently shallow to\nbe fordable.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\nim The entire region is volcanic, and hot springs are frequent. Hot Spring\nCreek is an affluent of the Lewis, some distance below the Malade. See Fremont's analysis of these springs in Senate Docs., 28 Cong., 2 sess., 174, p. 171.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ill\nFarnham's Travels\n3*5\nthe river. At ten o'clock, met a petty chief of the Snake\nRoot Diggers and his son on horseback, from Boisais river.\nHe was dressed in a blanket coat, deer skin pants, and\nmoccasins garnished with cut glass beads and strips of\nred flannel; the boy entirely naked. Carbo learned from\nhim the situation of his tribe, and a few bits of Indian\nscandal, ascertained that we could reach Boisais river the\nnext day, and that we could probably obtain fresh horses\nthere. His copper-coloured highness than left us to pursue his way to Fort Hall, to get his guns repaired, and we\ncontinued ours to the lower Columbia, to get out of this\ngrave of desolation. I had not seen an acre of land since\nleaving Fort Hall, capable of producing the grains or\nvegetables. Encamped on a small brook running west-\nwardly towards the Saptin.\n12th. On route at six o'clock in the morning; horses\nweary, and getting crippled [107] pitifully on the \"cut\nrock;\" face of the country absolute sterility; our trail\nnear the mountains, about two hundred miles east of -the\nSaptin.195 At nine o'clock, came to the bluff overlooking\nBoisais river. Here the valley is sunken six or seven hundred feet; the whole of it below, to the limit of sight,\nappears to have subsided nearly to a level with the waters\nof the Saptin. Lines of timber ran along the Boisais,\nand plats of green grass and shrubs dotted its banks. The\nmountains, whence the river came, rose in dark stratified\nridges. Where the stream escaped from them, there was\nan immense chasm, with perpendicular sides, which seemed\nto open into their most distant bases. Horrid crags\nbeetled over its dismal depths. Lofty, rocky ridges\n195 This must be a misprint for twenty miles \"east of the Saptin\" or Lewis The\nguide evidently bore off from the main river in order to strike the Boise, which\nafforded wood for fuel and pasture for horses as well as furnished a short cut to\nthe fort at its mouth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. 3i6\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\ni\nextended far into the north. In the west and northwest\ntowered the Blue Mountains.\nWe descended the bluff, followed down the Boisais\nthree or four miles, and crossed the river into an encampment of Snake fishermen.198 They were employed in laying in their winter store of salmon. Many horses were\nfeeding on the plain. We turned ours loose also for a bite\nof the fresh [108] grass, while we bought fish, &c, and\nmade other arrangements to improve digestion and our\nspeed in travelling. Our business was transacted as follows:\u00E2\u0080\u0094 For one large fish-hook we bought one salmon;\nfor one paper of vermilfion, six bunches of spawn; for\none butcher-knife, one leathern fish rope. Carbo exchanged horses; disposed of one worth five shillings for\none worth three, and gave a blanket and ten loads of\nammunition to boot. He was vastly pleased with his\nbargain, and endeavoured to show himself so, by trying\nto grin like a white man; but he was not skilled in the\nscience of manufacturing laughter, and made a deplorable\nfailure of it. One of my own horses, whose feet were worn\nand tender, was exchanged with like profit to the shrewd\njockeys.\nThese Indians are more filthy than the Hottentots.\nBoth sexes were nearly naked. Their shelters were made\nwith rush mats wrapped around cones of poles.\nHaving finished our trading, we travelled about ten miles\ndown the stream, and encamped upon its bank. The\nplains were well covered with grass; many portions\nseemed susceptible of cultivation. The bed of [109] the\nriver presented the usual characteristics of a mountain\ntorrent; broad, shallow, with extensive bars of coarse\ngravel crossing the channel in all directions. The water\n196 5*or t^ Boise River, see Townsend's Narrative in our volume xxi, p. 249,\nnote 63. The Snake Indians are noted in volume v, p. 227, note 123.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n3*7\nlimpid, and its quantity might be expressed by saying that\nthe average depth was six inches, width ten yards, rate\nof current three miles an hour. In the month of June,\nhowever, it is said to bring from its maternal mountains\nimmense floods.\n13th. A breakfast of boiled spawn, and on trail at sunrise; travelled rapidly down the grassy intervales of\nBoisais; passed many small groves of timber. Many\nIndians employed in drying salmon, nearly naked, and\ndirty and miserable, ran after us for tobacco, and to drive\na bargain for horses. All Indians have a mania for barter.\nThey will trade for good or evil to themselves, at every\nopportunity. Here they beset us on every side. And if\nat any moment we began to felicitate ourselves on having\nat last escaped from their annoying petitions for \"shmoke\"\nand \"hos,\" the next moment the air would resound with\nwhips and hoofs, and \"shmoke, shmoke,\" \"hos,\" from\nhalf a dozen new applicants, more troublesome than their\npredecessors. No Jew, with old clothes and a pinch-beck\nwatch to sell, ever [no] pressed customers with more assiduity than did these savages. But when we had travelled\nabout thirty miles from our night camp, they all suddenly\ndisappeared; and neither hut nor Shoshonie was seen\nmore. They dare not pass the boundary between themselves and the Bonaks.\nSoon after being relieved from these pests, our guide,\nCarbo, intimated that it would be according to the rules\nof etiquette in that country for liim to leave us, unacquainted though we were with the right trail among the\nten thousand that cros'sed the country in every direction,\nand proceed to Fort Boisais, to make the important announcement that four white faces were approaching the\npost. I remonstrated; but remonstrance was mere air\nin comparison with the importance of doing his duty in 3*8\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nthe most approved style; and away he shot, like an arrow\nfrom the bows of his tribe, over hillock and through the\nstreams and copses, till lost from view. It was about four\no'clock. The trails were so numerous, that we found it\nuseless to continue on any of them. For if we selected\nany single one, that one branched into many every half\nmile. Thus we deemed it best to ' take our course,' as\nthe [in] mariner would say, and disregard them altogether.\nIn following this determination, we crossed the Boisais\nagain and again; floundered in quagmires, and dodged\nalong among whipping boughs and underbrush; and,\nwhen unimpeded by such obstacles, pelted the dusty plain\nwith as sturdy a trot as ever echoed there, till the sun\nwent down, and his twilight had left the sky. No Fort\nyet! nor had we yet seen the Saptin. We halted, held a\ncouncil, and determined to \"hold our course\" westward;\nlistened \u00E2\u0080\u0094 heard nothing but the muttering Boisais, and\ntravelled on. In half an hour, came to us a frightful,\nmournful yell, which brought us to an instantaneous halt.\nWe were within fifty yards of the Bonak Indians, and were\ndiscovered !\nThis tribe is fierce, warlike, and athletic, inhabiting the\nbanks of that part of Saptin, or Snake River, which lies\nbetween the mouth of Boisais, or Reed's River, and the\nBlue Mountains.197 They make war upon the Blackfeet\nand Crows; and for that purpose often cross the mountains, through a gap between the track of Lewis and\nClarke and the ' Great Gap.'198 By these wars, their\n187 For the Bannock Indians see our volume xxi, p. 192, note 41. The Boise\nwas frequently called Reed's River, because of the murder thereupon (1814) of a\ntrapping party under the leadership of a bourgeois of that name. See Ross's\nOregon Settlers in our volume vii, pp. 265-270.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n188 Lewis and Clark passed the main ridge of the Rockies at the source of the\nwest fork of Jefferson's River, coming out upon the Lemhi. By the \"Great Gap,\"\nFarnham undoubtedly intends South Pass. The Bannock crossed at the head- i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n3IQ\nnumber has been much reduced. They are said to speak\na language peculiar to themselves; [112] and are regarded\nby the whites as a treacherous and dangerous race. We\nhad approached so near their camp, that whatever might\nbe their disposition toward us, it was impossible to retreat.\nDarkness concealed the surrounding country, and hid\nthe river and the trails. We could not escape without\ntheir permission and aid.\nOur young Swiss trapper was the very man to grapple\nthe dilemma. He bribed their good will and their safe\nconduct to the Fort. Five or six of them quickly seized\nhorses, and, mounting without saddle or bridle, led the\nway. While these things were being done, horrid wails\ncame from their huts among the bushes; and those\nwho were with us responded to them. The only word\nuttered was one, which sounded like \ yap.' This they\nspoke at first in a low, plaintive key, and slowly; and then,\non a higher note and rapidly, as if under stronger emotions\nof grief; and then fell away again to the low plaint of\ndesponding sorrow. I noticed, as we rode along, that\nthe tails of many of their horses were shorn of the hair in\nthe most uncouth manner. The manes also were miserably haggled. The men who rode them wept, and at\nintervals wailed.\nI was afterwards informed that their tribe [113] was\nmourning the death of some of their number who had lately\ndied ; and that it is a custom with them and other western\ntribes, on the death of friends, in war or by disease, for all\nthe surviving relatives to shear the manes and tails M their\nhorses to the skin \u00E2\u0080\u0094 kill all the animals of the deceased\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 pile all his personal property around his burial-place,\nsprings of Henry's Fork of the Snake (see De Smet's Letters, our volume xxvii,\np. 252), coining down into Madison Valley, whence they made their way by\nBozeman's Pass to the Yellowstone, or country of the Crows; or possibly to the\ncountry of the Blackfeet, on Maria's River, by continuing down the Missouri.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. it\n3**\u00C2\u00B0\nEarh Western Travels\n[VoL 28\nand mourn, in the manner I have described, for several\ndays. Their camp was eight miles south of Fort Boisais.\nWe rode the distance in three quarters of an hour.\nOther Bonak horsemen joined us along the way. Each\none, as he overtook us, uttered the wail; and then one and\nid bore\ndong the scattered line\nvas nient.\nanother took it up\nof the cavalcade. It was not very dark\nand all its air was filled with these expressions of savage\ngrief. Tears flowed, and sobs arrested oftentimes the\nwail half spoken. The sympathy of the poor creatures\nfor each other appeared very sincere, and afforded strong\ninducement to doubt the correctness of the usually received\nopinion that the American Indians possess little of the\nsocial affections. They certainly manifested enough on\nthis occasion to render the hour I passed with them more\noppressively painful than I hope ever again to experience.\n[114] Mr. Payette, the person in charge at Boisais,\nreceived us with every mark of kindness; gave our horses\nto the care of his servants, and introduced us immediately\nto the chairs, table and edibles of his apartments. He\nis a French Canadian; has been in the service of the Hudson's Bay Company more than twenty years, and holds\nthe rank of clerk; is a merry, fat old gentleman of fifty,\nwho, although in the wilderness all the best years of his\nlife, has retained that manner of benevolence in trifles, in\nhis mode of address, of seating you and serving you at\ntable, of directing your attention continually to some little\nmatter of interest, of making you speak the French language 'parfaitement' whether you are able to do so or not,\nso strikingly agreeable in that mercurial people. The\n14th and 15th were spent very pleasantly with this gentleman. During that time he feasted us with excellent bread,\nand butter made from an American cow, obtained from\nsome of the rnissionaries; with baked, boiled, fried and\nr\u00E2\u0080\u0094i i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n321\nbroiled salmon \u00E2\u0080\u0094 and, at my request, with some of his\nadventures in the wilderness.\nFort Boisais was established in 1832, as the post whence\nto oppose Wyeth's operations at Fort Hall.199 From it,\nthe Hudson's Bay Company sent their trading parties over\n[115] the country south, in advance and rear and around\nevery movement of Wyeth. And by using liberally the\nfund laid by annually for that purpose, they undersold\nthe American till he was forced from the country.\nOn the part of the Hudson's Bay Company, I see nothing strange or unmanly in this conduct, if looked at as a\nbusiness transaction. People having equal rights in trade,\nassume necessarily the relative positions which their skill\nand capital can command. This is the position of Americans and Britons in Oregon. By a pusillanimous policy\non the part of the American Government, we have given\nBritish subjects an equal right with our own citizens to\ntrade in all that part of the Public Domain lying west of\nthe Rocky Mountains. In the exercise of the rights thus\ngranted, the Hudson's Bay Company employ their incomparable ingenuity and immense Wealth in driving every\nAmerican trader from the coasts of the North Pacific.\nAnd who is to be blamed for this? The Government of\nthe United States, that has, through want of wisdom or\nlm Fort Boise was built in the spring of 1834 (not 1832) by Thomas McKay,\nstepson of Dr McLoughlin, the Hudson's Bay factor at Fort Vancouver. It was\nat first but a miserable pen of crooked saplings, a few miles up Boise River; but\nlater was, as Farnham mentions, removed below the mouth of the river, and\nconstructed of adobe. It was an important station on the Oregon Trail \u00E2\u0080\u0094 the\nresting place after the difficult travel of the Snake River plains, and before\nattempting the rough route to the Columbia. With the decline of the fur-trade,\nthe importance of Fort Boise was much diminished, and when it was destroyed\n(1853) by a remarkable rise of Snake River, it was but partially repaired. A\nneighboring Indian massacre (1854) caused the post to be entirely abandoned the\nsucceeding year. In 1863 the government built a military post known as Fort\nBoise, or Boise Barracks, fifty miles above the old Hudson's Bay post, at the site\nof the modern city of Boise.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. 322\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nfirmness or justice, permitted these important rights of its\ncitizens to be monopolized by foreign capitalists for the\nlast thirty years.\nThis fort stands on the eastern bank of [116] the Saptin,\neight miles north of the mouth of Boisais or Reed's river.\nIt consists of a parallelogram about one hundred feet\nsquare, surrounded by a stockade of poles about fifteen\nfeet in height. It was entered on the west side. Across\nthe area north and south runs the principal building. It\nis constructed of logs, and contains a large dining room,\na sleeping apartment and kitchen. On the north side of\nthe area, in front of this, is the store; on the south side\nthe dwellings of the servants; back of the main building,\nan out-door oven; and in the north-east corner of the\nstockade is the bastion. This was Fort Boisais in 1839.\nMons. Payette was erecting a neat adobie wall around it.\nHe expected soon to be able to tear away the old stockade, and before this has doubtless done so.200\nAmong the curiosities of this establishment were the\nfore wheels, axletree and thills of a one-horse waggon, said\nto have been run by the American missionaries from the\nState of Connecticut through the mountains thus far\ntoward the mouth of the Columbia. It was left here under\nthe belief that it could not be taken through the Blue\nMountains. But fortunately for the next that shalTattempt\nto cross the continent, [117] a safe and easy \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 assage has\nlately been discovered by which vehicles of the kind may\nbe drawn through to Wallawalla.201\n800 Payette commanded this post for a number of years. Whitman found him\nthere in 1836, and he was still in charge as late as 1843.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n201 The history of this wagon is interesting. It was brought out by Dr. Whitman\nin 1836, and the following passages in Mrs. Whitman's letters (Oregon Pioneer\nAssociation Transactions, 1891, pp. 40-68) relate thereto: \"July 25. Husband had\na tedious time with- the wagon to-day. It got stuck in the creek this morning\nwhen crossing and he was obliged to wade considerably in getting it out. After i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n323\nAt ten o'clock on the 16th we found ourselves sufficiently\nrested to recommence our journey. Our packs and ourselves were sent across the Saptin in a canoe ; and our\nhorses having swam it, and having been packed and saddled firmly for a rapid march, and a 'bon jour ' having\nbeen returned by Mons. Payette, with the additional kind\nwish of a ' bon voyage ' to us, over the mountains, we left\nthe old gentleman to his solitary dominion.\nHe usually collects, during the twelvemonth, twelve\nor fifteen packs of beaver, and employs himself in the salmon season in curing large quantities of that fish for the\nsupply of other posts. Our course was down the west\nbank of the river. The soil was sand and clay mixed in\nnearly equal proportions. Its composition is such as to\nrender it fruitful; but the absence of dews and rains forbids the expectation that it will ever be so. Vegetation,\nbunch-grass and wild wormwood. Travelled fifteen miles\nand encamped near a small bute, at the foot of which\nran a little tributary of the Saptim From the south bank\nof this [118] stream near our camp burst a great number\nof hot springs. Water impregnated with sulphur: temperature at the boiling point.202\n17th. Soil as on the track of the 16th, save that the\nhills became higher and more gravelly. In the after-\nthat, in going between the mountains, on the side of one, so steep that it was\ndifficult for horses to pass, the wagon was upset twice. . . . 28th. One of the\naxle-trees of the wagon broke to-day; was a little rejoiced, for we were in hopes\nthey would leave it, and have no more trouble with it. Our rejoicing was in vain\nfor they are making a cart of the back wheels, this afternoon, and lashing the fore\nwheels to it\u00E2\u0080\u0094intending to take it through in some shape or other.\" On Snake\nRiver the box was abandoned, and finally what remained of the vehicle was left\nat Fort Boise. When Joseph L. Meek came through in 1840, he secured the remains of this historic wagon and transported his family therein to Dr. Whitman's\nstation at Waiilatpu.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n202 These springs are just below the entrance of Malheur River, for which see\nour volume xxi p. 264, note 64. Fremont tested them, and found the temperature 1930 Fahrenheit; he mentions the incrustation of salt.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. \u00E2\u0080\u00A2\n324 Early Western Travels [Vol. 28\nnoon, crossed a brook putting into the Saptin. At midday, touched the Saptin, and left it again for the hills.\nMid-afternoon, struck another small stream, and followed\nup its valley till night.20* Estimated our day's journey\nat thirty miles.\n18th. The hills higher and more rocky; those in the\ndistance to the west and north-west partially covered\nwith pines and cedars. Immediately around our track,\nthe hills were clothed with dry bunch grass. Some of them\nhad been burnt by the Indians. Many beautiful little\nvalleys were seen among the highlands. Black birch,\nrose, and willow shrubs, and quaking-asp trees on the\nbanks of the little brooks. Encamped under the cliffs\nof a bute. The moon was in the first quarter. Its cold\nbeams harmonized well with the chilling winds of the\nmountains. The atmosphere all the day smoky, as in\nIndian summertime in the highlands of New England.\nEstimated distance travelled, twenty-five miles.\n[119] 19th. Forenoon, over gently rising conical hills,\nclothed with bunch grass; soil in the valleys sand and\nclay. Cooked dinner at L'Arbor Seul, a lonely pine in an\nextensive plain.204 Encamped at night on a stream coming\nfrom the Blue Mountains, in the north-west. Distance\nto-day, thirty miles.\n20th. Track up the valley in which we encamped the\npreceding night, over gently undulating hills; high broken\nmountains on either side. About twelve o'clock, came\nto a very steep descent, a mile in length. The upper part\n201 Probably Burnt (or Brule) River, for which see our volume xxi, p. 267, note\n67.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\nut L'Arbre Seul was a well-known landmark in Powder River valley, just at\nthe ford of the river. When Fremont passed in 1843 he found that some inconsiderate emigrant had felled the big tree with his axe. The place was thereafter\nknown as Lone Pine Stump. For Powder River see our volume xxi, p. 268, note\n68 \u00E2\u0080\u0094Ed.\nM i839]\nFarnham's Travels\nof it was so precipitous that the animals with packs were\nobliged to make a zigzag track of a mile, to descend the\nhalf that distance; the lower part was less precipitous,\nbut covered with loose volcanic rocks. Among these the\nhorses plunged and bruised themselves badly; but fortunately none were seriously injured. Some rich soil in the\nvalleys; heavy groves of yellow pine, spruce, and hemlock; quaking-asp on the streams, and in the ravines.\nFrom high swells, over which ran the trail, we saw an extensive valley, deeply sunken among the lofty mountains in\nthe north-east. It appeared to be thickly coated with\ngrass, some portions dry, others green. The [120] meadow\nlark made its appearance to-day. Towards night, we\ncame again into the valley which we had entered at midday, and encamped under a majestic yellow pine.205 Freezing breezes swept down from the woody mountain around\nus, and made our fire, blazing high under the dark groaning boughs, extremely agreeable. Travelled twenty-five\nmiles.\n21st. A day of severe travelling. In the forenoon,\nthe trail ran over a series of mountains swelling one above\nanother in long and gentle ascents, covered with noble\nforests of yellow pine, fir, and hemlock. Among these\nwere frequent glades of rich pasture land; grass green,\nand numerous brooks of pure water leaping from the cliffs,\nor murmuring among the shrubbery. The snow-ball,\nthe wax plant, the yellow and black currant \u00E2\u0080\u0094 a species\nof whortleberry \u00E2\u0080\u0094 the service berry \u00E2\u0080\u0094 choke cherry \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nthe elder \u00E2\u0080\u0094 the shrub maple \u00E2\u0080\u0094 and all the beautiful flowers\nthat gem a mountain landscape during its short summer,\nclothed the ground. At twelve o'clock, we entered a deep\nravine, at the bottom of which-ran a brook of sweet clear\nwater; we dined on its bank. A dish of rich cocoa, mush,\n300 Grande Ronde valley, for which see our volume xxi, p. 271, note 69.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. 326\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nand sugar, and dried buffalo tongue, on the [121] fresh\ngrass, by a cool rivulet on the wild mountains of Oregon!\nNature stretched her bare and mighty arms around us!\nThe mountains hid the lower sky, and walled out the lower\nworld ! We looked upon the beautiful heights of the Blue\nMountains, and ate among its spring blossoms, its singing\npines, and holy battlements, ten thousand feet above the\nseas.\nIn the afternoon, we continued to ascend; vast rolls\nlifted themselves over one another, in a northerly direction,\nhigher and higher, till in the distance their tops mingled\nwith the blue of the sky. We followed this grassy ridge\ntill near four o'clock, when we commenced descending.\nA mile over slowly declining hills, and then the descent\nbecame frightful. It appeared to stand 450 to the plane\nof the horizon. The horses, when they turned at the\nangles of the zigzag trail, often found the greatest difficulty\nto keep on their feet. Two miles of such descent, of\nbracing with might and main, deposited us in a ravine\nof great depth, hung far and near with cliffs and abrupt\nearthy borders, partially covered with pines. At the bottom a brook running in a northerly direction, struggled\nand roared among the fallen rocks. We [122] made our\nway with much difficulty down its banks a short distance,\ncrossed it, and proceeding in a north-westerly direction\nto another stream flowing eastward, encamped among the\npines. These valleys were filled with cold winds, which\nrushed through them in irregular gusts, chilling every thing\nthey touched. We set fire to large piles of dry pine logs\nin camp, spread our couches, and wayworn as men ever\nwere, ensconced ourselves in them for repose. Carbo\ndid not retire; but went whistling about among the horses;\nuntied his wallet of provisions, and ate a second time,\npunched the fire, and looked at the eastern sky with evi-\ni C:\nr-^\u00E2\u0080\u0094\u00E2\u0080\u0094- 1839]\nFarnham's Travels\nZ27\ndent interest. The vales below had been set on fire by\nIndians; and I more than half supposed that he expected\nto see some of his tribe at our quarters. But my supposition was groundless.\nAs soon as the moon peeped over the eastern heights,\nhe roused me to hear in broken French that our horses\nhad nothing to eat in the place where they were; and that\nwe, being rested, must climb the mountain to find food for\nthem. No proposition, and the facts brought to urge its\nadoption, could have been more unfortunately reasonable\nand true \u00E2\u0080\u0094 at that particular [123] time. My first impulse\nwas to order him to his couch; but a hungry whinney\nfrom my roan pony, browsing near me, awakened me fully\nto the propriety of the measure proposed. I, therefore,\nsummoned my weary limbs and bruised and ulcered feet,\nto their best efforts, and at twelve o'clock at night we were\non march.\nFor some time we led our animals through the tangled\nwood, and then along a steep gravelly side of the chasm,\nwhere the foothold slipped at every step; awhile among\nrolling stones so thickly strewn upon the ground, that the\nhorses touched it only when their weight drove their feet\ndown between them; and then, awhile we seemed to hang\non the cliffs, and pause between advancing and following\nthe laws of gravitation to the bed of the torrent that battled its way in the caverns far below; and in the desperation of a last effort, climbed the bank to a place of safety.\nAt length we arrived at a large indentation in the face of\nthe mountain, up the encircling rim of which, the trail for\nhalf a mile was of comparatively easy ascent. At the end\nof this distance, another difficulty was superadded to all\nwe had yet experienced.\nThe steeps were covered to the depth of [124] several feet\nwith \"cut rock\" \u00E2\u0080\u0094 dark shining cubes from one to three\nfi 328\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\ninches in diameter, with sharp corners and edges. It was\nwell nigh impossible to force our horses on them. The\nmost obedient one, however, was at length led and scourged\nupon them; and by repeating the same inflictions, the\nremainder were finally induced to follow. All walked\nexcept Smith. His horse was \"a d\u00E2\u0080\u0094d brute, and was\nmade to carry him or die.\"\nThe poor animals would slip, and gather, and cripple;\nand when unable longer to endure the cutting stone under\ntheir feet, would suddenly drop on their knee; but the\npain caused by that position would soon force them to rise\nagain, and struggle up the ascent. An half hour of such\ntravelling conducted us over this stony surface to the\nsmooth grassy swells, the surface of which was pleasant\nto the lacerated feet of our horses. The green grass grew\nthickly all around. The moon poured her bright beams\nthrough the frosty air on the slumbering heights; in the\ndeep pine-clad vales dimly burned the Indian fires; from\nmountain to mountain sounded the deep bass of a thousand\ncascades.20*\nWe*encamped in a grove of pines which [125] crowned\nthe mountain, at three o'clock in the morning.\n22nd. We saddled early, and ascending for two hours\na line of gentle grassy elevations, came to the beginning\nof the north-western declivities of the Blue Mountains.\nThe trail ran down the ravines of small brooks flowing\nnorthwest, and occasionally over high swells which stretched\ndown the plain that lies about the south-western branches\nof the Wallawalla River: we halted to dine.207 In the\nafternoon we struck off north-westerly over the rolling\n200 The passage of the Blue Mountains was one of the difficult portions of the\nOregon Trail. Compare our volume xxi, pp. 272-276; also Mrs. Whitman's\n\"Journal,\" in Oregon Pioneer Association Transactions, 1891, pp. 55-57.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed\n207 For the Walla Walla River see our volume vi, p. 338, note 142.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. 1839]\nFarnham's Travels\n329\nplain. The soil in the depressions was a light and loose\ncompound of sand and clay, and thinly covered with\nbunch grass. The swells were of gravel, and generally\nbarren; trees on the brooks only, and these few, small and\nof little value.\nAbout three o'clock we came into the camp of a middle-aged Skyuse Indian,208 who was on his onward march\nfrom the buffalo hunt in the mountain valleys east and\nnorth-east of Fort Hall. He was a spare man of five feet\neight inches, dressed in a green camlet frock-coat, a black\nvest, striped cotton shirt, leather pants, moccasins, and a\nwhite felt hat. There were two children, boys, neatly clad\nin deerskin. His [126] camp equipage was very comfortable \u00E2\u0080\u0094 four or five camp-kettles with tin covers, a\nnumber of pails with covers, a leathern tent, and an assortment of fine buffalo robes. He had had a very successful\nhunt. Of the seventeen horses in his caravan, six were\nloaded with the best flesh of the buffalo cow, cured in the\nbest manner; two others bore his tent, utensils, clothing,\nrobes, &c; four others were ridden by himself and\nfamily; the five remaining were used to relieve those\nthat, from time to time, might tire. These were splendid\nanimals, as large as the best horses of the States, well\nknit, deep and wide at the shoulders; a broad loin, and\nvery small lower limbs and feet; of extreme activity and\ncapacity for endurance.\nLearning that this Indian was proceeding to Dr. Whitman's mission establishment, where a considerable number\nof his tribe had pitched their tents for the approaching\nwinter, I determined to leave the cavalcade and accompany\nhim there. My guide Carbo, therefore, having explained\nmy intentions to my new acquaintance, departed with the\n\"o\u00C2\u00BB For the Cayuse (Skyuse) Indians see Ross's Oregon Settlers in our volume\nvii, p. 137, note 37.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. 33\u00C2\u00B0\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nremainder of his charge for Fort Wallawalla.209 Crickie,\n(in English \"poor crane,\") was a very kind man.\n[127] Immediately after the departure of Carbo and\ncompany, he turned my worn-out animals loose, and loaded\nmy packs upon his own, gave me a splendid saddle-horse\nto ride, and intimated by significant gestures that we\nwould go a short distance that afternoon, in order to arrive\nat the mission early the next day. I gave my assent,\nand we were soon on the way. Our course was northeasterly over sharp swells, among which ran many clear\nand beautiful brooks; soil gravel, loam, sand and clay, and\nwell covered with dry bunch grass, incapable of producing\nthe grains without irrigation. The swells and streams run\nnorthwesterly from the Blue Mountains. Our course was\ndiagonally across them.\nHaving made about ten miles at sunset, we encamped\nfor the night. I noticed, during the drive, a degree of\nforbearance towards each other, in this family of savages\nwhich I had never before observed in that race. When\nwe halted for the night the two boys were behind. They\nhad been frolicking with their horses, and as the darkness\ncame on, lost the trail. It was a half-hour before they\nmade their appearance, and during this time, the worthy\nparents exhibited the most affectionate solicitude [128] for\nthem. One of them was but three years old, and was\nlashed to the horse he rode; the other only seven years of\nage. Young pilots in the wilderness at night! But the\nelder, true to the sagacity of his race, had taken his\ncourse, and struck the brook on which we had encamped,\nwithin three hundred yards of us. The pride of the parents at this feat, and their ardent attachment to their\nchildren, were perceptible in the pleasure with which they\n*\"* For a brief description of Fort Walla Walla see our volume xxi, p. 278, note\n73.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. i839l\nFarnham's Travels\n331\nreceived them at their evening fire, and heard the relation\nof their childish adventure.\nThe weather was so pleasant that no tent was pitched.\nThe willows were beat, and buffalo robes spread over\nthem. Underneath were laid other robes, on which my\nIndian host seated himself with his wife and children on\none side, and myself on the other. A fire burned brightly\nin front. Water was brought, and the evening ablutions\nhaving been performed, the wife presented a dish of meat\nto her husband, and one to myself. There was a pause.\nThe woman seated herself between her children. The\nIndian then bowed his head and prayed to God ! A wandering savage in Oregon calling upon Jehovah in the name\nof Jesus [129] Christ! After the prayer, he gave meat\nto his children, and passed the dish to his wife.\nWhile eating, the frequent repetition of the words Jehovah and Jesus Christ, in the most reverential manner, led\nme to suppose they were conversing on religious topics;\nand thus they passed an hour. Meanwhile, the exceeding weariness of a long day's travel admonished me to\nseek rest.\nI had slumbered, I know not how long, when a strain\nof music awoke me. I was about rising to ascertain\nwhether the sweet notes of Talfis's Chant came to these\nsolitudes from earth or sky, when a full recollection of\nmy situation, and of the religious habits of my host, easily\nsolved the rising inquiry, and induced me to observe\ninstead of disturbing. The Indian family was engaged\nin its evening devotions. They were singing a hymn in\nthe Nez Perc\u00C3\u00A9s language. Having finished it, they all\nknelt and bowed their faces upon the buffalo robes, and\nCrickie prayed long and fervently. Afterwards they sang\nanother hymn and retired. This was the first breathing\nof religious feelings that I had seen since leaving the\nt'MJ 332\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nStates. A pleasant evidence that the Oregon wilderness\nwas beginning to bear the rose of Sharon [130] on its\nthousand hills, and that on the barren soil of the Skyuse\nheart was beginning to bud and blossom and ripen the\ngolden fruits of faith in Jehovah, and hope in an after-\nstate.\n23rd. We were on our way before the sun rose. The\ndawn on an Oregon sky, the rich blue embankment of\nmountains over which the great day-star raised his glowing rim, the blandness of the air, the lively ambling of\nthe caravan towards the neighbouring abode of my countrymen, imparted to my mind and body a most agreeable\nexhilaration. Crickie, and his wife and children also,\nappeared to enjoy the atmosphere and scenery of their\nnative valley; and we went on together merrily over the\nswelling plains and murmuring streams till about eight\no'clock, when Crickie spurred his horse in advance of the\ncavalcade, and motioned me to follow him.\nWe rode very rapidly for about three hours over a\ncountry gently undulating, well set with bunch grass, and\nintersected with small streams flowing north-west. The\ndust had risen in dark clouds during our ride, and rendered it necessary to bathe before presenting ourselves at\nthe mission. We therefore halted on the bank of a little\nbrook [131] overhung with willows, and proceeded to\nmake our toilet. Crickie's paraphernalia was ample for\nthe purpose, and showed that among his other excellencies, cleanliness held a prominent place. A small mirror,\npocket-comb, soap and a towel, were immediately\nproduced; and the dust was taken from his person\nand wardrobe with a nicety that would have satisfied a\ntown exquisite.\nA ride of five miles afterward brought us in sight of the\ngroves around the mission. The plains far and near were i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n333\ndry and brown. Every form of vegetation was dead save\nthe forest trees, whose roots drank deeply of the waters\nof the stream. We crossed the river, passed the Indian\nencampment hard by, and were at the gate of the mission\nfields in presence of Dr. Whitman. He was speaking\nSkyuse at the top of his voice to some lazy Indians who\nwere driving their cattle from his garden, and giving orders\nto others to yoke their oxen, get the axes, and go into the\nforest for the lower sleepers of the new mission house.210\nMr. Hall, printer at the Sandwich Islands, soon appeared\nin working dress, with an axe on his shoulder; next came\nMr. Monger, pulling the pine shavings from his fore-\nplane.211 All seemed desirous to [132] ask me how long a\nballoon line had been running between the States and the\nPacific, by which single individuals crossed the continent.\nThe oxen, however, were yoked, and axes glistening in\nthe sun, and there was no time to spend, if they would\nM0 The Whitman mission station was on the north bank ofthe Walla Walla, six\nmiles west of the present city of that name. The place was called by its Indian\nname Waiilatpu. See Mrs. Whitman's description of the site in Oregon Pioneer\nAssociation Transactions, 1891, pp. 88-90; she gives a plan of the new house on\npp. 136, 137. For a brief sketch of Dr. Marcus Whitman, see our volume xxi\np. 352, note 125.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n2,1 The mission of the American Board at the Sandwich Islands decided (1839)\nto present to the Oregon mission their printing press and its appurtenances, they\nhaving recently received a new outfit from the United States. This press, which\nhad then seen twenty years' service in Hawaii, was placed on board of the annual\nvessel to the Columbia, and in process of time reached Dr. Whitman's station;\nthence it was transferred to Lapwai, where it continued in use, printing native\ntexts, etc., during the existence of the mission. The press was advertised for sale\nin i860, but there being no customer, Mrs. Spaulding presented it to the state as\nan historical relic. It has found a home in the state house at Salem. See Oregon\nPioneer Association Transactions, 1889, p. 94. With the press came Edwin O.\nHall, an American printer, who had been employed some time in the Sandwich\nIslands, and desired to leave because of the impaired condition of his wife's health.\nHe remained at the Oregon mission until the next year, when he returned to the\nIslands, subsequently returning to the Eastern states where he died about 1887.\n(See Mrs. Whitman's \"Journal,\" in Oregon Pioneer Association Transactions,\n1891, p. 137.)\nFor Asahel Munger see ante, p. 275, note 161.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. 334\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nreturn from their labour before nightfall. So that the\nwhence and wherefore of my sudden appearance among\nthem, were left for an after explanation. The doctor\nintroduced me to his excellent lady, and departed to his\nlabour.212\nThe afternoon was spent in listless rest from the toils\nof my journey. At sunset, however, I strolled out and\ntook a bird's-eye view of the plantation and plain of the\nWallawalla. The old mission-house stands on the northeast bank of the river, about four rods from the waterside, at the north-east corner of an enclosure containing\nabout two hundred and fifty acres; two hundred of which\nare under good cultivation. The soil is a thin stratum\nof clay, mixed with sand and a small proportion of vegetable mould, resting on a base of coarse gravel. Through\nthis gravel, water from the Wallawalla filtrates, and by\ncapillary attraction is raised to the roots of vegetation in\nthe incumbent earth. The products are wheat, [133] Indian\ncorn, onions, turnips, ruta baga, water, musk and nutmeg melons, squashes, asparagus, tomatoes, cucumbers,\npeas, &c, in the garden \u00E2\u0080\u0094 all of good quality, and\nabundant crops.\nThe Wallawalla is a pretty stream. Its channel is paved\nwith gravel and sand, and about three rods in width; water\ntwo feet deep, running five or six miles the hour, and limpid\nand cool through the year. A hundred yards below the\nhouse, it makes a beautiful bend to the south west for a\nshort distance, and then resumes its general direction of\nnorth-west by north, along the border of the plantation.\nOn the opposite bank is a line of timber and underwood,\ninterlaced with flowering brambles. Other small groves\noccur above and below along the banks.\n2a For Narcissa Prentice Whitman see our volume xxi, p. 355, note 128.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\nKm\u00E2\u0080\u0094\u00E2\u0096\u00A0 1839]\nFarnham' s Travels\n335\nThe plain about the waters of this river is about thirty\nmiles square. A great part of this surface is more or less\ncovered with bunch grass. The branches of the river are\ndistributed over it in such manner that most of it can be\ngrazed. But, from what came under my own observation, and the information received from respectable American citizens, who had examined it more minutely than I\nhad time to do, I suppose [134] there to be scarcely two\nthousand acres of this vast extent of surface, which can\never be made available for the purposes of cultivation.\nThe absence of rains and dews in the season of crops, and\nthe impossibility of irrigating much of it on account of the\nheight of the general surface above the streams, will afford\nsufficient reasons for entertaining this opinion.\nThe doctor returned near night with his timber, one elm\nand a number of quaking-asp sticks; and appeared gratified that he had been able to find the requisite number\nof sufficient size to support his floor. Tea came on, and\npassed away in earnest conversation about native land\nand friends left there \u00E2\u0080\u0094 of the pleasure they derived from\ntheir present occupation \u00E2\u0080\u0094 and the trials that befel them\nwhile commencing the mission and afterwards.\nAmong the latter, was mentioned the drowning of their\nchild in the Wallawalla the year before, a little girl two\nyears old. She fell into the river at the place where they\ntook water for family use. The mother was in the house,\nthe father a short distance away on the premises. The\nalarm was conveyed to them almost instantly, and they\nand others rushed to the stream, and sought [135] for\ntheir child with frantic eagerness. But the strong heavy\ncurrent had carried it down and lodged it in a clump of\nbushes under the bank on which they stood. They passed\nthe spot where it lay, but found it too late. Thus these 336\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\ndevoted people were bereft, in the most afflicting manner,\nof their only child \u00E2\u0080\u0094 left alone in the wilderness.218\nThe morning of the 24th opened in the loveliest hues\nof the sky. Still none of the beauty of the harvest field \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nnone of the fragrance of the ripened fruits of autumn were\nthere. The wild horses were frolicking on the plains;\nbut the plains smoked with dust and dearth. The green\nwoods and the streams sent up their harmonies with\nthe breeze; but it was like a dirge over the remains of the\ndeparted glories of the year. And yet when the smoking\nvegetables, the hissing steak, bread white as snow, and\nthe newly-churned golden butter graced the breakfast\ntable, and the happy countenances of countrymen and\ncountrywomen shone around, I could with difficulty believe myself in a country so far distant from, and so unlike\nmy native land, in all its features. But during breakfast,\nthis pleasant illusion was dispelled by one of the causes\nwhich induced it.\n[136] Our steak was of horse-flesh! On such meat this\npoor family subsist most of the time. They do not complain. It enables them to exist to do the Indian good,\nand thus satisfies them.214 But can it satisfy those who\ngive money for the support of missionaries, that the allowance made by their agents for the support of those who\nabandon parents and freedom and home, and surrender\nnot only themselves to the mercy of the savages, but their\noffspring also, should be so meagre, as to compel them to\neat horse-flesh! This necessity existed in 1839, at the\nn* See Mrs. Whitman's own account of the loss of this daughter, Alice Clarissa,\nin Oregon Pioneer Association Transactions, 1891, pp. 120-126.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n214 Mrs. Whitman writes in 1838: \"The Indians have furnished us a little venison\u00E2\u0080\u0094 barely enough for our own eating \u00E2\u0080\u0094 but to supply our men and visitors we\nhave killed and eaten ten wild horses bought of the Indians. This will make you\npity us, but you had better save your pity for more worthy subjects. I do not prefer it to other meat, but can eat it very well when we have nothing else.\" (See\n\"Journal,\" as in preceding note, p. 96.)\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. c839]\nFarnham's Travels\nmission on the Wallawalla, and I doubt not exists in 1843.\nThe breakfast being over, the doctor invited me to a\nstroll over his premises. The garden was first examined ; its\nlocation, on the curving bank of the Wallawalla; the apple\ntrees, growing thriftily on its western border; the beautiful tomato and other vegetables, burdening the grounds.\nNext to the fields. The doctor's views of the soil, and\nits mode of receiving moisture from the river, were such\nas I have previously expressed. \"For,\" said he, \"in those\nplaces where you perceive the stratum of gravel to be\nraised so as to interrupt the capillary attraction of the\nsuperincumbent earth, the [137] crop failed.\" Then to\nthe new house. The adobie walls had been erected a year.\nThese were about forty feet by twenty, and one and a\nhalf stories high. The interior area consisted of two parlours of the ordinary size, separated by an adobie portion. The outer door opened into one of them; and\nfrom this a door in the partition led to the other. Above\nwere to be sleeping apartments. To the main building\nwas attached another of equal height designed for a kitchen,\nwith chambers above for servants. Mr. Monger and a\nSandwich Islander were laying the floors, making the\ndoors, &c.\nThe lumber used was a very superior quality of yellow\npine plank, which Dr. Whitman had cut with a whip saw\namong the blue mountains, fifteen miles distant. Next\nto the \"caral.\" A fine yoke of oxen, two cows, an American bull, and the beginning of a stock of hogs were thereabout. And last to the grist-mill on the other side of the\nriver. It consisted of a spherical wrought iron burr four\nor five inches in diameter, surrounded by a counterburred\nsurface of the same material. The spherical burr was\npermanently attached to the shaft of a horizontal water-\nwheel. The surrounding burred surface was firmly fas- 338\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\ntened to [138] timbers, in such a position that when the\nwater-wheel was put in motion, the operation of the mill\nwas similar to that of a coffee-mill. It was a crazy thing,\nbut for it the doctor was grateful.\nIt would, with the help of himself and an Indian, grind\nenough in a day to feed his family a week, and that was\nbetter than to beat it with a pestle and mortar. It\nappeared to me quite remarkable that the doctor could\nhave made so many improvements since the year 1834.\nBut the industry which crowded every hour of the day,\nhis untiring energy of character, and the very efficient aid\nof his wife in relieving him in a great degree from the\nlabours of the school, are, perhaps, circumstances which\nwill render possibility probable, that in five years one man\nwithout funds for such purposes, without other aid in that\nbusiness than that of a fellow missionary at short intervals, should fence, plough, build, plant an orchard, and\ndo all the other laborious acts of opening a plantation on\nthe face of that distant wilderness; learn an Indian\nlanguage and do the duties, meanwhile, of a physician to\nthe associate stations on the Clear Water and Spokan.215\nIn the afternoon, Dr. Whitman and his [139] lady\nassembled the Indians for instruction in reading. Forty or\nfifty children between the ages of seven and eighteen, and\nseveral other people gathered on the shady side of the new\nmission-house at the ringing of a hand-bell, and seated\nthemselves in an orderly manner on wooden benches. The\ndoctor then wrote monosyllables, words, and instructive\nm\\n2W For the location of the Spokan mission see De Smet's Letters in our volume\nxxvii, p. 367, note 187.\nThe Clearwater station was called Lapwai, being situated at the mouth of a\ncreek of that name in Nez Perc\u00C3\u00A9 County, western Idaho. It was founded in 1836\nby Henry H. Spaulding, for whom see our volume xxi, p. 352, note 125. Abandoned after the Whitman massacre (1847), a military post succeeded, being maintained until 1886. A portion of Spaulding's house was recently standing.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Ed. 1839]\nFarnham's Travels\n339\nsentences in the Nez Perc\u00C3\u00A9s language, on a large blackboard suspended on the wall, and proceeded first to teach\nthe nature and power of the letters in representing the\nsimple sounds of the language, and then the construction\nof words and their uses in forming sentences expressive\nof thought. The sentences written during these operations were at last read, syllable by syllable, and word\nafter word, and explained until the sentiments contained\nin them were comprehended; and it was delightful to\nnotice the undisguised avidity with which these people\nwould devour a new idea. It seemed to produce a thrill\nof delight that kindled up the countenance and animated\nthe whole frame. A hymn in the Nez Perc\u00C3\u00A9s language,\nlearned by rote from their teachers, was then sung, and\nthe exercises closed with prayer by Dr. Whitman in the\nsame tongue.\n[140] 25th. I was awakened at early dawn by the merry\nsounds of clapping boards, the hammer, the axe and the\nplane; the sweet melodies of the parent of virtue, at this\ncradle of civilization. When I rose everything was in\nmotion. Dr. Whitman's little herd was lowing in the\nriver; the wild horses were neighing at the morning\nbreeze; the birds were caroling in the groves. I said,\nevery thing was alive. Nay, not so. The Skyuse village\nwas in the deepest slumber, save a few solitary individuals\nwho were stalking with slow and stately tread up a neighbouring bute, to descry the retreat of their animals. Their\nconical skin lodges dotted the valley above the mission,\nand imparted to the morning landscape a peculiar wild-\nness. As the sun rose, the inmates began to emerge from\nthem.\nIt was a chilly hour; and their buffalo robes were\ndrawn over their shoulders, with the hair next the body.\nThe snow-white flesh side was fringed with the dark fur 34o Early Western Travels [Vol. 28\nthat crept in sight around the edges, and their own long\nblack glistening tresses fell over it far down the back. The\nchildren were out in all the buoyancy of young life, shouting to the prancing steed, or betting gravel stones that\nthe arrows upon their little [141] bows would be the first\nto clip the sturdy thistle head upon which they were waging\nmimic war. The women were busy at their fires, weaving mats from the flag; or sewing moccasins, leggings, or\nhunting shirts. Crickie was giving meat to his friends,\nwho the past winter had fed him, and taken care of him,\nwhile lying sick.\nThis is the imperial tribe of Oregon. They formerly\nclaimed a prescriptive right to exercise jurisdiction over\nthe country down the Columbia to its mouth; and up\nthe North and South Forks to their sources. In the\nreign of the late high Chief, the brother of him who now\nholds that station, this claim was acceded to by all the\ntribes within those districts. But that talented and brave\nman left at his death but one son, who, after receiving\na thorough education at the Selkirk settlement on Red\nRiver of Lake Winnepeg, also died \u00E2\u0080\u0094 and with him the\nimperial dignity of the Skyuse tribe.216\nThe person in charge at Fort Wallawalla, indeed dressed\nthe present incumbent in better style than his fellows;\nproclaimed him high chief, and by treating him with the\nformality usually tendered to his deceased brother, has\nobtained for him the [142] name, but not the respect and\ninfluence belonging to the office. He is a man of considerable mental power, but has none of the fire and energy\nattributed to his predecessor. The Wallawallas and Upper\nM\u00C2\u00AB In Ross's time, Quahat was the great Cayuse war-chief. He also speaks of\nthe importance of the Cayuse, and their ruling propensities\u00E2\u0080\u0094see Chittenden,\nFur-Trade, i, p. 181.\nFor the Red River settlement, see Franch\u00C3\u00A8re's Narrative in our volume vi,\nPP- 379> 38l> notes i95> 199-\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n341\nChinooks are the only tribes that continue to recognise the\nSkyuse supremacy.\nThe Skyuse are also a tribe of merchants. Before the\nestablishment of Forts Hall and Boisais, they were in the\nhabit of rendezvousing at \"La Grande Rounde,\" an extensive valley in the Blue Mountains, with the Shoshonies\nand other Indians from the Saptin, and exchanging with\nthem their horses for furs, buffalo robes, skin tents, &c.\nBut since the building of these posts, that portion of their\ntrade is nearly destroyed. In the winter season, a band\nof them usually descends to the Dalles, barters with the\nChinooks for salmon, and holds councils over that mean\nand miserable band to ascertain their misdemeanors, and\npunish them therefore by whipping. The Wallawallas,\nhowever, are their most numerous and profitable customers. They may well be termed the fishermen of the\nSkyuse camp. They live on both banks of the Columbia,\nfrom the Blue Mountains to the Dalles, and employ themselves principally [143] in taking salmon. For these, their\nbetters, who consider fishing a menial business, give them\nhorses. They own large numbers of these animals. A\nSkyuse is thought to be poor who has but fifteen or twenty\nof them. They generally have many more. One fat,\nhearty old fellow, owns something more than two thousand ;\nall wild, except many as he needs for use or sale.\nTo these reports of the Indians, Dr. Whitman gave little\ncredence; so at variance were some of the facts related,\nwith what he presumed the Hudson's Bay Company\nwould permit to be done by any one in their employment, or under their patronage \u00E2\u0080\u0094 the abuse of American\ncitizens, and the ungentlemanly interference with their\ncharacters and calling.\nOn the morning of the 27th, the arrival of Mr. Ermet-\ninger, the senior clerk at Fort Hall from Fort Wallawalla, 342\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nm\ncreated quite a sensation. His uniform kindness to the\nMissionaries has endeared him to them.217 My companion, Blair, accompanied him. The poor old man had\nbecome lonely and discouraged, and as I had encouraged\nhim to expect any assistance from me which his circumstances might demand, it afforded me the greatest pleasure\nto make his merits [144] known to the Missionaries,\nwho needed an artisan to construct a mill at the station\non the Clear Water. Dr. Whitman contracted with him\nfor his services and Blair was happy. I sincerely hope\nhe may for ever be so.\nI attended the Indian school to-day. Mrs. Whitman\nis an indefatigable instructress. The children read in\nmonosyllables from a primer lately published at the Clear\nWater station. After reading, they repeated a number\nof hymns in the Nez Perc\u00C3\u00A9s, composed by Mr. Smith, of\nthe Spokan station.218 These were aferwards sung. They\nlearn music readily. At nightfall, I visited the Indian\nlodges in company with Dr. Whitman. In one of them\nwe saw a young woman who imagined that the spirit of a\nMedicine man, or conjuror, had entered into her system,\nand was wasting her life. She was resorting to the native\nremedy for such evils \u00E2\u0080\u0094 singing wild incantations, and\nweeping loudly. This tribe, like all others west of the\nmountains, believe in witchcraft under various forms \u00E2\u0080\u0094\npractice sleight-of-hand, fire-eating, &c. They insert rough\nsticks into their throats, and draw them up and down\ntill the blood flows freely, to make them long-winded\n217 For Francis Ermatinger see De Smet's Letters, in our volume xxvii, p. 235,\nnote 108.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n218 Asa B. Smith came out in 1838 with Elkanah Walker and Cushing Eells to\nre-inforce themission to the Nez Perc\u00C3\u00A9s. Smith had considerable linguistic ability, and with the aid of the noted Indian chief Lawyer compiled a grammar and\nvocabulary of the Nez Perc\u00C3\u00A9 language. Becoming discouraged, however, he left\nthe mission at Kamai in 1841, and resigning the following year retired to the\nSandwich Islands.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. i\u00C2\u00BB39l\nFarnham's Travels\n343\non march. They [145] flatten the head, and perforate\nthe septum, or partition of the nose. In this orifice they\nwear various ornaments. The more common one that I\nnoticed was a wolfs tooth.\nThe Skyuse have two distinct languages: the one used\nin ordinary intercourse, the other on extraordinary occasions; as in war-councils, &c. Both are said to be copious\nand expressive. They also speak the Nez Perc\u00C3\u00A9s and\nWallawalla.\nOn the 28th, Mr. Ermetinger started for Fort Hall,\nand Blair for the Clear Water. Early in the day, the\nIndians brought in large numbers of their horses to try\ntheir speed. These are a fine race of animals; as large,\nand of better form, and more activity than most of the\nhorses in the States. Every variety of colour is found\namong them, from the shining coal-black to the milk-\nwhite. Some of them are pied very singularly; for\ninstance, a roan body with bay ears, and white mane and\ntail. Some are spotted with white on a roan, or bay, or\nsorrel ground, with tail and ears tipped with black. They\nare better trained to the saddle than those of civilized\ncountries.\nWhen an Indian wishes an increase of his serving animals, he mounts a fleet horse, [146] and, lasso in hand,\nrushes into his band of wild animals, throws it upon the\nneck of the chosen one, and chokes him down; and while\nin a state of insensibility, ties the hind and fore feet firmly\ntogether. When consciousness returns, the animal struggles violently, but in vain, to get loose. His fear is then\nattacked by throwing bear-skins, wolf-skins, and blankets\nat his head till he becomes quiet. He is then loosened\nfrom the cord, and rears and plunges furiously at the end\nof a long rope, and receives another introduction to bearskins, &c. After this, he is approached and handled; 344\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nor, if still too timid, he is again beset with blankets and\nbear-skins, as before, until he is docile. Then come the\nsaddling and riding. During this training, they uniformly\ntreat him tenderly when near, and rudely when he pulls\nat the end of the halter. Thus they make their wild steed\nthe most fearless and pleasant riding animals I ever\nmounted.\nThe course pursued by Mr. Whitman, and other Presbyterian Missionaries, to improve the Indians, is to teach\nthem the Nez Perc\u00C3\u00A9s language, according to fixed grammatical rules, for the purpose of opening to them the arts\nand religion of civilized [147] nations through the medium\nof books. They also teach them practical agriculture and\nthe useful arts, for the purpose of civilizing their physical\ncondition. By these means, they hope to make them\na better and a happier people. Perhaps it would be an\neasier way to the same result, if they would teach them\nthe English language, and thus open to them at once the\ntreasures which centuries of toil, by a superior race, have\ndug from the mines of intelligence and truth.\nThis was the evening before the sabbath, and Dr. Whitman, as his custom was, invited one of the most intelligent\nIndians to his study, translated to him the text of scripture from which he intended to teach the tribe on the\nmorrow, explained to him its doctrines, and required of\nhim to explain in turn. This was repeated again and\nagain, until the Indian obtained a clear understanding of\nits doctrines.\nThe 29th was the sabbath, and I had an opportunity\nof noticing its observance by the Skyuse. I rose before\nthe sun. The stars were waxing dim on the morning sky,\nthe most charming dawn I ever witnessed. Every possible\ncircumstance of sublimity conspired to make it so. There\nwas the [148] pure atmosphere; not a wisp of cloud on 1839]\nFarnham's Travels\n345\nall its transparent depths. The light poured over the Blue\nMountains like a cataract of gold; first on the upper\nsky, then deepening its course through the lower air, it\ngilded the plain with a flood of brightness, mellow, beautiful\nbrightness; the charms of morning light, on the brown,\nboundless solitudes of Oregon. The breeze scarcely\nrustled the leaves of the dying flowers; the drumming of\nthe woodpecker on the distant tree, sounded a painful\ndiscord; so grand, so awful, and yet so sweet, were the\nunuttered symphonies of the sublime quiet of the wilderness.\nAt ten o'clock the Skyuse assembled for worship in the\nopen air. The exercises were according to the Presbyterian form; the invocation, the hymn, the prayer, the\nhymn, the sermon, a prayer, a hymn, and the blessing;\nall in the Nez Perc\u00C3\u00A9s tongue. The principal peculiarity\nabout the services was the mode of delivering the discourse.\nWhen Dr. Whitman arose and announced the text, the\nIndian who had been instructed on the previous night,\nrose and repeated it; and as the address proceeded,\nrepeated it also by sentence or paragraph, till it was finished. This is the custom of [149] the Skyuse in all their\npublic speaking. The benefit resulting from it in this\ncase, apparently, was the giving the doctrines which the\nDoctor desired to inculcate, a clearer expression in the\nproper idiom of the language.\nDuring the recess, the children were assembled in sabbath school. In the afternoon, the service was similar\nto that of the morning. Every thing was conducted with\nmuch solemnity. After worship, the Indians gathered\nin their lodges, and conversed together concerning what\nthey had heard. If doubt arose as to any point, it was\nsolved by the instructed Indian. Thus passed the sabbath among the Skyuse.\nOn the 29th, I hired Crickie to take me to the Dalles;\n% 346\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nII\n1\nm\nm\nand, Mrs. Whitman having filled my sacks with bread,\ncorn-meal, and other edibles, I lashed my packs once more\nfor the lower Columbia.\nCHAPTER K [IV]\nParting with Friends \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Wallawalla Valley \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Fort Wallawalla \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Mr.\nPambrun \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Columbia \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Country down its banks \u00E2\u0080\u0094 What\nwas seen of Rock Earth \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Wood, Fire and Water \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Danger, &c.\nfrom the Heights \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Falling Mountain \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Morning Hymn to God \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nGiant's Causeway \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A View of the Frozen Sublime \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Turn Turn\nOrter' and other appurtenances \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Dalles \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Methodist Episcopal\nMission \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Mr. and Mrs. Perkins \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Mr. Lee \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Mission Premises\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Egyptian Pyramids \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Indians' \u00E2\u0080\u0094 How Fifty Indians can fight One\nBoston \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Result of a War \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Descent of the Columbia in a\nCanoe \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Night on the River \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Poetry of the Wilderness \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nThe Cascades \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Postage \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Dr. McLaughlin \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Indian Tombs \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nDeath \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A Race \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The River and its Banks \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Night again\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Mounts Washington and Jefferson \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Arrival \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Fort Vancouver\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 British Hospitality.\n30th. Left the kind people of the mission at ten o'clock\nfor Fort Wallawalla. Travelled fifteen miles; face of the\ncountry dry, barren, swelling plains; not an acre capable of\ncultivation; some bunch grass, and a generous supply\nof wild wormwood. Encamped on the northern branch of\nthe Wallawalla River.\n[151] October 1. At ten o'clock to-day, I was kindly\nreceived by Mr. Pambrun at Fort Wallawalla.218 This\ngentleman is a half-pay officer in the British army. His\nrank in the Hudson Bay Company, is that of \"clerk in\ncharge\" of this post. He is of French extraction, a native\nof Canada. I breakfasted with him and his family.\nHis wife, a half breed of the country, has a numerous and\nbeautiful family. The breakfast being over, Mr. Pambrun invited me to view the premises. The fort is a plank\n2t* For a brief sketch of Pambrun see our volume xxi, p. 280, note 74. In\nher letters Mrs. Whitman speaks repeatedly of kindness received from this Hudson's Bay Company factor, whose death she deplores. See Oregon Pioneer\nAssociation Transactions, 1891, pp. 88, 103, 139, 140.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. 1839]\nFarnham's Travels\n347\nstockade, with a number of buildings within, appropriated\nto the several uses of a store, blacksmith-shop, dwellings,\nSec. It has a bastion in the north-east corner, mounted\nwith cannon. The country around has sometimes been\nrepresented as fruitful and beautiful. I am obliged to\ndeny so foul an imputation upon the fair fame of dame\nNature. It is an ugly desert; designed to be such, made\nsuch, and is such.\nAbout seven miles up the Wallawalla River, are two\nor three acres of ground fenced with brush, capable of\nbearing an inferior species of Yankee pumpkin; and\nanother spot somewhere, of the fourth of an acre, capable\nof producing anything that grows in the richest kind of\nunmoistened [152] sand. But aside from these distinguished exceptions, the vicinity of Fort Wallawalla is a\ndesert. There is, indeed, some beauty and sublimity in\nsight, but no fertility. The wild Columbia sweeps along\nunder its northern wall. In the east, roll up to heaven\ndark lofty ridges of mountains; in the north-west, are\nthe ruins of extinct and terrible volcanic action; in the\nwest, a half mile, is the entrance of the river into the vast\nchasm of its lower course, abutted on either side by splendidly castellated rocks, a magnificent gateway for its floods.\nBut this is all. Desert describes it as well as it does\nthe wastes of Arabia. I tarried only two hours with the\nhospitable Mr. Pambrun. But as if determined that\nI should remember that I would have been a welcome\nguest a much longer time, he put some tea and sugar and\nbread into my packs, and kindly expressed regrets that\nour mutual admiration of Napoleon should be thus crowded\ninto the chit-chat of hours instead of weeks. A fine companionable fellow; I hope he will command Fort Wallawalla\nas long as Britons occupy it, and live a hundred years\nafterwards. 348\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nB\u00C2\u00BB\nit i\nTravelled down the south bank of the Columbia along\nthe water-side; the river half [153] a mile in width, with\na deep strong current; water very clear. A short distance\nfrom this brink, on both sides, rose the embankments of\nthe chasm it has worn for itself, in the lapse of ages \u00E2\u0080\u0094\na noble gorge, worthy of its mighty waters. The northern\none might properly be termed a mountain running continuously along the water's edge, seven hundred or eight\nhundred feet in height, black, shining, and shrubless.\nThe southern one consisted of earthy bluffs, alternating\nwith cliffs from one hundred to four hundred feet above\nthe stream, turreted with basaltic shafts, some twenty,\nothers one hundred feet above the subjacent hills.\nPassed a few horses travelling industriously from one\nwisp of dry bunch grass to another. Every thing unnatural,\ndry, brown, and desolate. Climbed the heights near sunset, and had an extensive view of the country south of the\nriver. It was a treeless, brown expanse of dearth, vast\nrolling swells of sand and clay, too dry to bear wormwood.\nNo mountains seen in that direction. On the north they\nrose precipitously from the river, and hid from view the\ncountry beyond. The Wallawalla Indians brought us\ndrift-wood and fresh salmon, for which they desired\n\"shmoke,\" tobacco.\n[154] 2nd. Continued to descend the river. Early\nin the day, basalt disappeared from the bluffs; and the\ncountry north and south opened to view five or six miles\nfrom the stream. It was partially covered with dry bunch\ngrass; groups of Indian horses occasionally appeared.\nBut I was impressed with the belief that the journeyings\nfrom one quid of grass to another, and from these to\nwater, were sufficient to enfeeble the constitution of the\nbest horse in Christendom. The wild wormwood, of 1839]\nFarnham's Travels\n349\n\"blessed memory,\" greeted my eyes and nose, wherever\nits scrags could find sand to nourish them.\nDuring the day I was gratified with the sight of five or\nsix trees, and these a large species of willow, themselves\nsmall and bowed with age; stones and rocks more or less\nfused. A strong westerly wind buffeted me; and much of\nthe time filled the air with drifting sand. We encamped\nat the water side about three o'clock. I had thus a fine\nopportunity of ascending the heights to view the southern\nplain. The slopes were well covered with grass, and\nseemed easy of ascent; but on trial proved extremely laborious. I however climbed slowly and patiently the long\nsweeps for two hours, and gained nothing. Nay, I could\nsee the noble [155] river, like a long line of liquid fire\nblazing with the fight of the western sun; and the rush\nwigwams of the WallawaUas, dotting the sands of the\nopposite shore; and the barren bluffs and rocks beyond\nthem piled away into space. But to the south my vision\nwas hemmed in by the constantly rising swells. No\nextensive view could be obtained from any of the heights.\nThe sun was fast sinking, and the hills rose as I advanced.\nI was so weary that I could go little further. But taking\na careful view of the peaks which would guide me back to\nmy camp, I determined to travel on till it should become too\ndark to see what might open before me. I climbed slowly\nand tediously the seemingly endless swells, lifting themselves\nover and beyond each other in beautiful, but to my wearied\nlimbs, and longing eyes in most vexatious continuity, till\nthe sun dipped his lower rim beneath the horizon.\nA volcano burst the hills, thought I; and on I trudged\nwith \u00C2\u00ABthe little strength that a large quantity of vexation\ngave me. Fires blister your beautiful brows, I half uttered,\nas I dragged myself up the crowning eminence, and saw H\n\u00E2\u0096\u00A0\n35<\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nthe plateau declining in irregular undulations far into\nthe southwest \u00E2\u0080\u0094 [156] a sterile waste, clothed in the\nglories of the last rays of a splendid sunset. The crests\nof the distant swells were fringed with bunch grass; not\na shrub or a tree on all the field of vision; and evidently\nno water nearer than the Columbia. Those cattle which\nare, in the opinions of certain travellers, to depasture these\nplains in future time, must be of sound wind and limb to\ngather food and water the same day. I found myself so\nwearied on attaining this goal of my wishes, that, notwithstanding the lateness of the hour, I was literally compelled\nto seek some rest before attempting to descend.\nI therefore seated myself, and in the luxury of repose\npermitted darkness to commence creeping over the landscape, before I could rouse myself to the effort of moving.\nWhen I did start, my style of locomotion was extremely\nvaried, and withal sometimes not the most pleasant to every\nportion of the mortal coil. My feet were not unfrequently\ntwice or thrice the length of that measure in advance of\nmy body. But the reader must not suppose that this circumstance diminished my speed. I continued to slide\ndown the hills, using as vehicles the small sharp stones\nbeneath me, until an opportunity offered to put my [157]\nnether extremities under me again. Once I had nearly\nplunged headlong from a precipice some fifty feet high,\nand saved myself by catching a wormwood bush standing\nwkhin three feet of the brink. Finally, without any serious\nmishap, I arrived in camp, so completely exhausted, that,\nwithout tasting food, I threw myself on my couch for the\nnight.\n3rd. The earthy bluffs continued to bind the chasm\nof the river till mid-day, when buttresses of basalt took\ntheir place. A little bunch grass grew among the wild\nwormwood. Turkeys, grouse, and a species of large 1839]\nFarnham's Travels\n351\nhare frequently appeared ; many ducks in the stream. For\nthree hours before sunset the trail was rugged and precipitous, often overhanging the river, and so narrow that\na mis-step of four inches would have plunged horse and\nrider hundreds of feet into the boiling flood. But as Skyuse\nhorses never make such disagreeable mistakes, we rode\nthe steeps in safety. Encamped in a small grove of willows.\nThe river along the day's march was hemmed in by lofty\nand rugged mountains. The rocks showed indubitable\nevidences of a volcanic origin. As the sun went down,\nthe Wallawalla village on the opposite shore [158] sang\na hymn in their own language, to a tune which I have\noften heard sung in Catholic Churches, before the image\nof the Virgin. The country in the south, as seen from\nthe heights, was broken and barren; view limited in all\ndirections by the unevenness of the surface.\n4th. Awakened this morning by the fall of a hundred\ntons of rock from the face of the mountain near us. The\nearth trembled as if the slumbering volcanoes were wrestling in its bowels. We were brought to our feet, and\nopened and rubbed our eyes with every mark of despatch.\nMy \"poor crane\" and his hopeful son condescended to\nappear shocked; an event in an Indian's life that occurs\nas seldom as his birth. I had stationed myself near the\nfallen rocks as the sun's first rays awoke the morning hymn\nof the Indian village.\nIt was a sweet wild tune that they sung to God among\nthe dark mountains of the Columbia. And sweeter,\nperhaps, in such a place, where every motion of the heart\nis a monition that one is alone, and every thought brings\nwith it the remembrance that the social affections are\nseparated from the objects of their fondness, and where\nevery moral sensibility is chilled by a sense of [159] desolation and danger, calling into exercise the resisting and Ii\nES\n11\nIl F\n352\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nexterminating propensities, and where the holy memories\nof home find no response but in some loved star in the\nunchanging heavens. In such a place how far sweeter\nthan anything beside is the evidence of the religious principle\u00E2\u0080\u0094 the first teaching of a mother's love, rising over\nthe wastes of nature from the altar of a pure heart \u00E2\u0080\u0094 the\nincense of love going up to the heavenly presence.\nAt eight o'clock we were en route; at nine o'clock approached the bend in the river, where it changes from\na south-west to a north-west course.220 At this place\nthe cliffs which overhang the southern bank presented a\nfine collection of basaltic columns. Along the margin of\nthe river lay hillocks of scoriae, piled together in every\nimaginable form of confusion. Among them grew considerable quantities of bunch grass, on which a band of\nWallawalla horses were feeding. Sand-hills on the\nopposite shore rose one thousand feet in the air. Basalt\noccurred at intervals, in a more or less perfect state of\nformation, till the hour of noon, when the trail led, to the\nbase of a series of columns extending three-fourths of a\nmile down the bank. These were more perfectly formed\nthan any previously seen.\n[160] They swelled from a large curve of the mountain\nside, like the bastions of ancient castles; and one series\nof lofty columns towered above another, till the last was\nsurmounted by a crowning tower, a little above the level\nof the plain beyond. And their pentagonal form, longitudinal sections, dark shining fracture, and immense masses\nstrewn along my way, betokened me if not in the very presence of the Giant's Causeway, yet on a spot where the\nsame mighty energies had exerted themselves which built\n220 -pjje generai trend of the river is west; just above John Day's River, in\nGilliam County, there is a bend to the northwest, which is the point Farnham\nhad reached.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n353\nthat rare, beautiful wonder of the Emerald Isle. The\nriver was very tortuous, and shut in by high dykes of\nbasalt and sand hills the remainder of the day; saw three\nsmall rapids in the Columbia; encamped at sunset; too\nweary to climb the heights.\n5th. Arose at break of day, and ordering my guide\nto make arrangements for starting as soon as I should\nreturn, I ascended the neighbouring heights. Grassy\nundulating plains in all directions south of the river.\nFar in the north-east towered the frozen peak of Mount\nWashington, a perfect pyramid, clothed with eternal\nsnows.221 The view in the north was hemmed in by\nmountains which rose higher than the place of observation. On descending, my guide Crickie complained of\nill-health; and assigned that [161] circumstance as a\nreason why he should not proceed with me to the Dalles.\nI was much vexed with him at the time, for his unseasonable desertion, and believed that the real inducement to\nhis course was the danger to be apprehended from the\nIndians at the Shutes. But I was sorry to learn from\nDr. Whitman afterwards that the poor fellow was actually\nsick, and that he suffered much at the sand bank encampment, where I left him. After paying Crickie for his\nfaithful services thus far along, and giving him four days'\nprovision for himself and boy, a Wallawalla Indian who\nhad encamped with us the previous night, took charge\nof Crickie's horses, bearing myself and packs, and led\nthe way down the river.\nThe \"poor crane\" was an honest, honourable man;\n221 Farnham evidently thought that he saw Mount St. Helens (see our volume\nvi, p. 246, note 50), which he here calls Mount Washington, although later giving it the title of Mount Adams (see our volume xxix, note 32 \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Farnham).\nLewis and Clark made a similar mistake\u00E2\u0080\u0094see Original Journals, iii, p. 135.\nWhat our traveller saw was the present Mount Adams, for which see note 225,\nbelow.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. Il\n11\nil'!\n354\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nand I can never think of all his kind acts to me, from\nthe time I met him in the plains beyond the Wallawalla\nmission, till I left him sick on the bank of the Columbia,\nwithout wishing an opportunity to testify my sense of\nhis moral worth and goodness of heart in some way which\nshall yield him a substantial reward for all he suffered\nin my service. Two hours' ride brought to my ears the\nmusic of the \"turn turn orter;\" [162] the Indian-English\nfor the \"thundering waters\" of the Shutes.222 These\nare the only perpendicular falls of the Columbia, in its\ncourse from the junction of its great northern and southern\nbranches, to the ocean. And they do indeed thunder.\nA stratum of black rock forming the bed of the river above,\nby preserving its horizontal position, rises at this place\nabove the natural surface of the stream, and forms an\nabrupt precipice, hanging sixty feet in height over the\nbed below.\nThe river, when I passed was unfortunately at its lower\nstage \u00E2\u0080\u0094 still the Shutes were terribly grand. The main\nbody of the water swept around near its southern bank,\nand being there compressed into a narrow rough channel,\nchafed its angry way to the brink, where, bending a massive\ncurve, as if hesitating to risk the leap, it plunged into a\nnarrow cavern sixty feet deep, with a force and volume\nwhich made the earth tremble. The noise was prodigious,\ndeafening, and echoed in awful tumult among the barren\nmountains. Further towards the other shore, smaller\njets were rushing from the imprisoned rocks which clustered\nnear the brow of the cliff, into other caverns; [163] and\nclose under the north bank, and farther down the stream,\n222 All early travellers speak of the attempts of the Indians, in their designation of the neighborhood, to express the sound of the falling waters. Lewis and\nClark speak of it as \"tiimm;'* according to Ross (our volume vii, p. 133), it was\n\"Lowhum.\" The Shutes (Des Chutes) is another name for the Great Falls of\nthe Columbia.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n355\nthundered another, nearly equal in grandeur to the one\nfirst described.\nOn the portions of the rocky stratum left by the chafing\nwaters, in wearing out numerous channels below the\npresent situation of the Shutes, were the flag huts of\none hundred Wallawalla fishermen. They were taking\nsalmon with scoop nets and bone pointed spears. These\npeople are filthy and naked. Some sat by fires swallowing roasted salmon; others greasing themselves with the\noil of that fish; others were dressing and drying them;\nothers stood down on the projections in the chasms;\nsweeping their nets in the foaming waters; untaught,\nunelevated, least intelligent, least improvable human\nnature! It was not deemed safe to remain long among\nthese savages, who had begun to examine my packs with\nmore interest than strictly honest intentions towards\nthem seemed to require, and I took to the trail again on\na fast trot.\nSome of them endeavoured to follow on foot, demanding a tribute of \"smoke\" for the privilege of passing their\ndominions. But having none at hand I pushed on, without regarding their suit, over sand hills, [164] beds of\nvolcanic stones, and hanging declivities, till rounding\na basaltic buttress, I came in view of the little plain on\nthe south western shore of the Dalles. The \"Dalles,\"\na French term for \"flat stones,\" is applied to a portion\nof the river here, where, by a process similar to that going\non at Niagara, the waters have cut channels through an\nimmense stratum of black rock, over which they used to\nfall as at the Shutes.228\n\ m\n223 The ordinary meaning of the word \"dalles\" is paving stones; but by the\nCanadian French it was also used to indicate a channel which carried off the\nwaters dammed above \u00E2\u0080\u0094 hence any form of confined, swiftly-flowing waters.\nLewis and Clark spoke of these chasms through which the Columbia rushes \u00E2\u0080\u00A2\u00E2\u0080\u00A2\u00E2\u0080\u00A2>-*\u00E2\u0096\u00A0\n356 Early Western Travels [Vol. 28\nAt low stages these are of sufficient capacity to pass\nall the waters. But the annual floods overflow the \"flat\nstones,\" and produce a lashing and leaping, and whirling\nof waters, too grand for the imagination to conceive.\nThese \"Dalles\" are covered with the huts of the Chinooks,\na small band of a tribe of the same name, which inhabits\nthe banks of Columbia from this place to its mouth.224\nThey flatten their heads and perforate the septum of the\nnose, as do the Wallawallas, Skyuse and Nez Perc\u00C3\u00A9s.\nThe depression of the southern embankment of the\nchasm of the river at the Dalles, extends eight miles along\nthe stream, and from a half mile to a mile in width. It\nis broken by ledges bursting through the [165] surface,\nand in parts loaded with immense boulders of detached\nrocks. Along the north-western border are groves of\nsmall white oaks; and on the highlands in that direction\nare forests of pine, spruce and other evergreens, clothing\nthe whole country westward to the snowy peaks of the\nPresident's Range.\nIn the south-west, specked with clusters of bunch grass,\nis an open rolling plain, which stretches beyond the reach\nof vision. In the north rise sharp mountains, thinly clad\nwith evergreen trees; through an opening among the\npeaks of which, appeared the shining apex of Mount\nAdams.225 In the north-east sweep away in brown barrenness, naked cliffs and sandy wastes. I had taken a bird's-\neye view of the Dalles and the region round about, when\nmy Indian cried out \"Lee house.\" And there it was,\nas the Long and Short Narrows; by Farnham's time the term \"Dalles\" had\nbecome the ordinary appellation.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n224 For the Chinook see Franch\u00C3\u00A8re's Narrative in our volume vi, p. 240, note\n40.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n226 Mount Adams (9570 feet) is one of the volcanic peaks of the Cascade\nRange in Klickitat County, Washington, about thirty miles east of Mount St.\nHelens Both these volcanoes were in a state of eruption in 1842-43.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. 1839]\nFarnham's Travels\n357\na mission house of the American P. E. Methodist Church,\nin charge of Messrs. Lee and Perkins.22*\nI spent a week at the Dalles' mission, eating salmon\nand growing fat; an event that had not lately occurred\nin the republic of the members of my mortal confederacy.\nThe buildings of the mission, are a dwelling-house,\n[166] a house for worship and for school purposes, and\na workshop, &c. The first is a log structure thirty by\ntwenty feet, one and a half floor high, shingle roofs, and\nfloors made of plank cut with a whip-saw from the pines\nof the hills. The lower story is divided into two rooms\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 the one a dining-room, the other the family apartment\nof Mr. Perkins and lady. These are lined overhead\nand at the sides with beautiful rush mats manufactured\nby the Indians. The upper story is partitioned into six\ndormitories, and a school-room for Indian children; all\nneatly lined with mats. Underneath is an excellent cellar.\nThe building designed for a house of worship, was being\nbuilt when I arrived. Its architecture is a curiosity.\nThe frame is made in the usual form, save that instead\nof four main posts at the corners, and others at considerable distances, for the support of lateral girders, there\nwere eleven on each side, and six on each end, beside\nthe corner posts \u00E2\u0080\u0094 all equal in size and length. Between\nthese billets of wood were driven transversely, on which\nas lathing, mortar made of clay, sand and straw, were\n22' For Daniel Lee see Townsend's Narrative in our volume xxi, p. 138, note\n13. H. K.. W. Perkins came out to re-inforce the Methodist mission in September, 1837, and not long afterwards married Elvira Johnson, who had preceded\nThim a few months. They joined with Daniel Lee in establing the Dalles mission\nin 1838, where they labored with varying success until about 1845, then returning to the \"states.\" Mrs. Whitman spent the winter of 1842-43 at this mission,\nduring her husband's absence. The mission house was located on the south\nbank of the river, just below the Long Narrows, near an Indian village called\nKaclasco; the station was named Wascopum. See p. 388, note 208, in De Smet's\nLetters, our volume xxvii.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. 358 Early Western Travels [Vol. 28\nlaid to a level with their exterior and interior faces. There\nis so little falling [167] weather here, that this mode of\nbuilding was considered sufficiently substantial.\nMessrs. Lee and Perkins were formerly connected\nwith the mission on the Willamette. Eighteen months\nbefore I had the happiness of enjoying their hospitality,\nthey came to this spot with axes on their shoulders, felled\ntrees, ploughed, fenced, and planted twenty acres of land\nwith their own hands, and erected these habitations of\ncivilization and Christianity on the bosom of the howling\nwilderness. Their premises are situated on elevated\nground, about a mile south-west from the river. Immediately back is a grove of small white oaks and yellow pines;\na little north, is a sweet spring bursting from a ledge of\nrocks which supplies water for house use, and moistens\nabout an acre of rich soil. About a mile to the south,\nare two or three hundred acres of fine land, with groves\nof oaks around, and an abundant supply of excellent\nwater. Here it was the intention of the mission to open\na farm under the care of a layman from the States.\nA mile and a half to the north, is a tract of about two\nhundred acres, susceptible of being plentifully irrigated\nby a number of large streams that pour down upon it\nfrom [168] the western mountains. Here, too, they\nintended to locate laymen to open farms, and extract\nfrom the idle earth the means of feeding themselves, the\nIndians, and the way-worn white man from the burnt\nsolitudes of the mountains. No location, not even the\nsacred precincts of St. Bernard, on the snows of the Alps,\ncould be better chosen for the operations of a holy benevolence.\nThe Indians from many quarters flock to the Dalles\nand the Shutes in the spring, and autumn, and winter\nto purchase salmon; the commercial movements between\nm i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n359\nthe States and the Pacific will pass their door; and there\nin after-days, the sturdy emigrants from the States will\nstop, (as did the pilgrims on Plymouth rock,) to give\ngrateful praise to Him who stood forth in their aid, not\nindeed while struggling on the foamy billow, but on the\nburning plain and the icy cliff, and in the deadly turmoil\nof Indian battles on the way, and will seek food and rest\nfor their emaciated frames, before entering the woody\nglen and flowing everglades of Lower Oregon.\nA saw-mill, a grist-mill, and other machinery necessary\nto carry out a liberal plan of operations, are in contemplation. The [169] fruit of the oak, it is supposed,\nwill support 1,000 hogs from the middle of August to\nthe middle of April; the products of the arable soil will\nsuffice to make that number into marketable pork; and\nas the grass and other vegetation grow there during the\nwinter months, twenty-five or thirty square miles of\npasturage round about, will enable them to raise, at a\ntrifling expense, immense numbers of sheep, horses and\ncattle. Five acres of ground cultivated in 1839, produced\ntwenty-five bushels of the small grains, seventy-five bushels\nof potatoes, and considerable quantities of other vegetables.\nThis was an experiment only on soil not irrigated. Gentle-\nmen suppose it capable of producing double that amount,\nif irrigated. The season, too, was unusually dry.\nAround about the mission are clusters of friable sandstone rocks of remarkable form. Their height varies\nfrom ten to thirty feet; their basilar diameters from three\nto ten feet: their shape generally resembles that of the\nobelisk. These (fifteen or twenty in number) standing\namong the oaks and pines, often in clusters, and sometimes solitary, give a strange interest of antiquity to the\nspot. And this illusion is increased by a [170] rock of\nanother form, an immense boulder resting upon a short,\ni\nU 360 Early Western Travels [Vol. 28\nslender pedestal, and strikingly resembling the Egyptian\nsphynx. The Indian tradition in regard to them is, that\nthey were formerly men, who, for some sin against the\nGreat Spirit, were changed to stone.\nAt the Dalles is the upper village of the Chinooks. At\nthe Shutes, five miles above, is the lower village of the\nWallawallas. One of the missionaries, Mr. Lee, learns\nthe Chinook language, and the other, Mr. Perkins, the\nWallawalla; and their custom is to repair on Sabbath\ndays each to his own people, and teach them the Christian\nreligion. The Chinooks flatten their heads more, and\nare more stupid than any other tribe on the Columbia.\nThere was one among the Dalles' band, who, it was said,\nresisted so obstinately the kind efforts of his parents to\ncrush his skull into the aristocratic shape, that they abandoned him to the care of nature in this regard; and much\nto the scandal of his family, his head grew in the natural\nform. I saw him every day while I staid there. He\nwas evidently the most intelligent one of the band. His\nname is Boston; so called, because the form of his head\nresembles that of Americans, [171] whom the Indians\ncaD \"Boston,\" in order to distinguish them from \"long\nGeorge's men,\"\u00E2\u0080\u0094 the Hudson Bay Company gentlemen.\nBoston, although of mean origin, has, on account of his\nsuperior energy and intelligence, become the war chief\nof the Dalles.\nOn the morning of the 14th, I overhauled my baggage,\npreparatory to descending the river. In doing so, I was\nmuch vexed to find that the Indians had, in some manner,\ndrawn my saddle to the window of the workshop in which\nit was deposited, and stripped it of stirrups, stirrup-straps,\nsurcingle, girths, and crupper. They had also stolen my\nbridle.\nThe loss of these articles, in a region where they could 1839]\nFarnham's Travels\n361\nnot be purchased \u00E2\u0080\u0094 articles so necessary to me in carrying out my designs of travelling over the lower country,\nroused in- me the bitterest determination to regain them\nat all hazards. Without reflecting for a moment upon\nthe disparity of numbers between my single self and forty\nor fifty able-bodied Indians, I armed myself completely,\nand marched my solitary battalion to the camp of the\nprincipal chief, and entered it. He was away. I explained\nto some persons there by signs [172] and a few words,\nthe object of my search, and marched my army to an\nelevated position and halted.\nI had been stationed but a short time, when the Indians\nbegan to collect in their chief's lodge, and whisper\nearnestly. Ten minutes passed thus, and Indians were\nconstantly arriving and entering. I was supported in the\nrear by a lusty oak, and so far as I remember, was ready\nto exclaim with the renowned antagonist of Roderick Dhu,\n\" Come one, come all; \" &c.\nbut never having been a hero before or since, I am not\nquite certain that I thought any such thing. My wrath,\nhowever, was extreme. To be robbed for the first time by\nIndians, and that by such cowardly wretches as these\nChinooks were; and robbed too of my means of exploring Oregon, when on the very threshold of the most\ncharming part of it, was an inconvenience and an\nignominy worth a battle to remove.\nJust at the moment of this lofty conclusion, thirty-\neight or forty Indians rushed around me; eight or ten\nloaded muskets were levelled at my chest, within ten\nfeet of me, and the old chief stood within five feet, with\n[173] a duelling pistol loaded, cocked, and pointed at\nmy heart. While this movement was being made, I\nbrought my rifle to bear upon the old chief's vital organs.\nThus both armies stood for the space of five minutes, 362\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nwithout the movement of tongue or muscle. Then one\nof the braves intimated that it was \"not good\" for me\nto be out with arms; and that I must immediately accommodate myself within doors. But to this proposition\nthe bravery of my army would not submit. I accordingly\ninformed him to that effect; whereupon the opposing\narmy went into a furious rage.\nAt this juncture of affairs, Mr. Lee came up, and acted\nas interpreter. He inquired into the difficulty, and was\ntold that the \"whole Chinook tribe was threatened with\ninvasion, and all the horrors of a general war, on what\naccount they knew not.\" The commander of my army\nreported that they had robbed him, and deserved such\ntreatment; and that he had taken arms to annihilate the\ntribe, unless they had restored to him what they had stolen.\nI was then told that \"it was not good for me to appear\nin arms \u00E2\u0080\u0094 that it was good for me to go into the house.\"\nTo this, my army with one voice replied, \"Nay, never,\n[174] never leave the ground, or the Chinooks alive, tribe\nor chief, if the stolen property be not restored; \" and wheeling my battalion, drove first one flank and then the other\nof the opposing hosts, fifty yards into the depths of the forests.\nDuring this movement, worthy of the best days of\nSpartan valour, the old chief stood amazed to see his\nfollowers, with guns loaded and cocked, fly before such\ninferior numbers. After effecting the complete rout of\nthe opposing infantry, the army under my command\ntook up the old position without the loss of a single man.\nBut the old chief was still there, as dogged and sullen\nas Indian ever was. On approaching him, he presented\nhis pistol again near my chest, whereupon my rifle was\ninstantly in a position to reach his; and thus the renowned\nleaders of these mighty hosts stood for the space of an\nhour without bloodshed. i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n363\nI\nPerhaps such another chief was never seen; such\nunblenching coolness \u00E2\u0080\u0094 excepting always the heat which\nwas thrown off in a healthful and profuse perspiration\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 and such perfect undauntedness, except an unpleasant\nknocking of the knees together, produced probably by\nthe anticipated blasts of December. But while these\nexhibitions [175] of valour were being enacted, one stirrup was thrown at my feet, and then the other, and then\nthe straps, the crupper, &c, until all the most valuable\narticles lost, were piled before me. The conquest was\ncomplete, and will doubtless shed immortal lustre upon\nthe gallant band, who, in the heart of the wilderness,\ndared to assert and maintain, against the encroachments\nof a numerous and well-disciplined foe, the \"\u00C3\u00A9lite\" of\nthe Chinook army, the rights and high prerogative of\nbrave freemen and soldiers. The number of killed and\nwounded of the enemy had not been ascertained, when\nthe troops under my command departed for the lower\ncountry.\nIn the evening which succeeded this day of carnage, the\nold chief assembled his surviving followers, and made war\nspeeches until midnight. His wrath was immeasurable.\nOn the following morning, the Indians in the employ of\nthe mission left their work.\nAbout ten o'clock, one of the tribe appeared with a\npack-horse, to convey Mr. Lee's and my own packs to the\nwater-side. The old chief also appeared, and bade him\ndesist. He stood armed before the house an hour, making many threats against the [176] Bostons, individually\nand collectively; but finally retired. As soon as he had\nentered his lodge, the horse of his disobedient subject\nwas loaded, and rushed to the river. An effort was made\nto get oarsmen for our canoe, but the old hero of a legion\nof devils told them, \"the high Bostons would kill them\nI 364\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nml\niu\nall, and that they must not go with him.\" Mr. Lee,\nhowever, did not despair.\nWe followed the baggage towards the river. When\nwithin a quarter of a mile of it, two Americans, members\nof Richardson's party, Mr. Lee and an Indian or two,\nwhom the old chief had not succeeded in frightening\ntook the canoe from the bushes, and bore it to the river\non their shoulders.\nThe natives were stationed beyond rifle-shot upon\nthe rocks on either side of the way, bows and arrows,\nand guns in hand. Indian Boston was in command.\nHe stood on the loftiest rock, grinding his teeth, and growling like a bloodhound, \"Bostons ugh;\" and springing\nupon his bow, drove bis arrows into the ground with\ndemoniac madness. I stopped, and drew my rifle to\nmy face, whereupon there was a grand retreat behind\nthe rocks. My army marched slowly and majestically\non, as became the dignity [177] of veteran victors. The\nwomen and children fled from the wigwams by the way;\nand the fear of the annihilation of the whole tribe only\nabated when my wrath was, to their understanding,\nappeased by the interference of Mr. Lee. Thus the tribe\nwas saved from my vengeance \u00E2\u0080\u0094 the whole number,\nfifty or sixty stout savages, were saved ! an instance of\nclemency, a parallel to which will scarcely be found in\nthe history of past ages.\nBeing convinced, at last, that my intentions towards\nthem had become more pacific, six oarsmen, a bowsman,\nand steersman, were readily engaged by Mr. Lee, and\nhe shoved off from that memorable battle-ground on a\nvoyage to the Willamette. These Indians have been\nnotorious thieves ever since they have been known to\nthe whites. Their meanness has been equally well known.\nDestitute of every manly and moral virtue, they and their i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n365\nfathers have hung around the Dalles, eaten salmon, and\nrotted in idleness and vice; active only in mischief, and\nhonest only in their crouching cowardice towards those\nthey suppose able to punish their villany.227\nThere is some very curious philosophy among them:\nas for example, they believe [178] human existence to\nbe indestructible by the laws of nature; and never diseased,\nunless made so by the Medicine men or conjurers, who\nare believed to enter into the system in an unseen manner,\nand pull at the vitals. They also hold that one Medicine\nman can cast out another. Accordingly, when one of\nthem is called to a patient and does not succeed in restoring him to health, he is believed to he accessory to his\ndeath, and is punished as such by the relatives of the\ndeceased.\nTheir mode of treating patients is to thrust them into\na sweat oven, and thence, reeking with perspiration, into\nthe cold streams. After this, they are stretched out at\nlength on the ground, wrapped very warmly, and kneaded,\n.and rolled, and rubbed, with great severity. The abdomen\nis violendy pressed down to the spine, and the forehead\npressed with the might of the operator; the arms and\nlimbs, pinched and rubbed, rolled and bruised. -Meanwhile, the conjuror is uttering most beastly noises. As\nmight be supposed, patients labouring under the febrile\ndiseases, are soon destroyed.\nIn order, however, to keep up their influence among\nthe people, the conjurors of [179] a tribe, male and female,\nhave cabalistic dances. After the darkness of night sets\n227 Farnham has not exaggerated the bad reputation of the Indians at the\nDalles. Lewis and Clark felt that they owed their lives at this point to the strength\nof their party, and came nearer to having a skirmish with the natives of that\nlocality than elsewhere on the Columbia waters. See also Ross's Oregon Settlers\nin our volume vii, pp. 126-131, and Franch\u00C3\u00A8re's Narrative, in our volume vi, pp.\n274-276.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\nI 366\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nin, they gather together in a wigwam, build a large fire\nin the centre, spread the floor with elk skins, set up on end\na wide cedar board, and suspend near it a stick of wood\nin a horizontal position. An individual seizes the end\nof the stick, swings the other end against the cedar board,\nand thus beats noisy time to a still more noisy chant.\nThe dance is commenced sometimes by a man alone, and\noften by a man and woman. And various and strange\nare the bodily contortions of the performers. They jump\nup and down, and swing their arms with more and more\nviolence, as the noise of the singing and thumping accompaniment increases, and yelp, and froth at the mouth,\ntill the musician winds up with the word \"ugh\"\u00E2\u0080\u0094a long,\nstrong, gutteral grunt; or until some one of the dancers\nfalls apparently dead.\nWhen the latter is the case, one of the number walks\naround the prostrate individual, and calls his or her name\nloudly at each ear, at the nose, fingers, and toes. After\nthis ceremony, the supposed dead shudders greatly, and\ncomes to life. And thus they continue to sing, and thump,\nand [180] dance, and die, and come to life through the\nnight. They are said to be very expert at sleight of hand.\nThe Chinooks, like all other Indians, believe in existence\nafter death; but their views of the conditions of that existence, I could not learn. The conjurors teach them, that\nthey themselves shall be able to visit their tribe after the\nbody shall have decayed; and when approaching the end\nof their days, inform the people in what shape they will\nmanifest themselves. Some choose a horse, others a\ndeer, others an elk, &c, and when they die, the image\nof their transmigrated state is erected over their remains.228\n228 Daniel G. Brinton, Myths oj the New World (Philadelphia, 1896), p. 298,\nconsiders that belief in transmigration is but little known among North American\nIndians. What traces may be found are due to totemic influence, and probably\nW- i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n367\nThe reader is desired to consider Mr. Lee and myself\ngliding, arrow-like, down the deep clear Columbia, at two\no'clock in the afternoon of the 15th, and to interest himself\nin the bold mountain embankments clothed with the\ndeep, living green of lofty pine and fir forests, while I revert\nto the kind hospitalities of the Dalles' mission. Yet how\nentirely impossible is it to relate all that one enjoys in\nevery muscle of the body, every nerve and sense, and every\naffection of the spirit when he flies from the hardships\nand loneliness of deserts to the [i8r] comforts of a bed,\na chair, and a table, and the holy sympathy of hearts\nmoulded and controlled by the higher sentiments. I had\ntaken leave of Mr. and Mrs. Perkins with the feelings\nthat one experiences in civilized lands, when leaving long-\ntried and congenial friends.\nThe good man urged me to return and explore with\nhim, during the rainy season in the lower country, some\nextensive and beautiful prairies, which the Indians say\nlie sixty or seventy miles in the north, on the east side\nof the President's range; and Mrs. Perkins kindly proposed\nto welcome my return for that object with a splendid suit\nof buckskin, to be used in my journeyings.\nBut I must leave my friends to introduce the reader\nto the \"Island of the Tombs.\"229 Mr. Lee pointed to it,\nas the tops of the cedar board houses of the dead peered\nover the hillocks of sand and rock among which they\nrelate to reversion to the primitive spirit represented by the clan animal, rather\nthan to transmigration into living animals. This statement of Farnham's would\nappear to have been suggested by totem poles near the graves.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n221 The well-known Sepulchre Island, known in the native tongue as \"Mema-\nloose\" (the abode of the dead). Many of the islands in the Columbia were used\nfor burial; this in particular, about three miles below the mouth of Klickitat\nRiver, was noted by Lewis and Clark, who found erected thereupon thirteen\nlarge box-tombs\u00E2\u0080\u0094see Original Journals, iii, p. 170; iv, p. 283. In 1884 this\nisland became the place of sepulchre for an Oregon pioneer, Vic Trevitt, whose\nmonument has become a prominent landmark.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. tfl\n368 Early Western Travels [Vol. 28\nstood. We moored our canoe on the western side, and\nclimbed up a precipice of black shining rocks two hundred\nfeet; and winding among drifts of sand the distance of\none hundred yards came to the tombs. They consisted\nof boxes ten or twelve feet square on the ground, eight or\nten high, made of cedar [182] boards fastened to a rough\nframe, in an upright position at the sides, and horizontally\nover the top. On them, and about them, were the cooking utensils, and other personal property of the deceased.\nWithin were the dead bodies, wrapped in many thicknesses of deer and elk skins, tightly lashed with leather\nthongs, and laid in a pile with their heads to the east.\nUnderneath the undecayed bodies were many bones from\nwhich the flesh and wrappings had fallen: in some instances\na number of waggon loads. Three or four of the tombs\nhad gone to ruins, and the skulls and other bones lay\nstrewn on the ground. The skulls were all flattened.\nI picked up one with the intention of bringing it to the\nStates. But as Mr. Lee assured me that the high veneration of the living for the dead would make the attempt\nvery dangerous, I reluctantly returned it to its resting\nplace.280\nWe glided merrily down the river till sunset, and landed\non the northern shore to sup. The river had varied from\none to one and a half miles in width, with rather a sluggish current; water clear, cool, and very deep. Various\nkinds of duck, divers, &c, were upon its beautiful surface.\nThe [183] hair seal was abundant.281 The mountains rose\n230 The Indians held in great reverence the tombs and the bones therein\ncon- tained, and were quick to take vengeance for any spoliation. The flattened\nskulls always were an object of curiosity to whites, and many were surreptitiously\ncarried away by the latter. See Townsend's experience in our volume xxi, pp.\n338> 339-\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed-\n281 Either one of the Phocidce, or the Zalophus calijornianus, well known on\nthe Pacific coast; both of these are hair seals.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n369\nabruptly on either side from five hundred to two thousand feet, in sweeping heights, clad with evergreen trees.\nSome few small oaks grew in the nooks by the water\nside. Among these were Indian wigwams, constructed\nof boards split from the red cedar on the mountains.\nI entered some of them. They were filthy in the extreme.\nIn one of them was a sick man. A withered old female\nwas kneeding and pinching the devil out of him. He\nwas labouring under a bilious fever. But as a \"Medicine\nman\" was pulling at his gall, it was necessary to expel him;\nand the old hag pressed his head, bruised his abdomen,\n&c, with the fury and groaning of a bedlamite.\nNot an acre of arable land appeared along the shores.\nThe Indians subsist on fish and acorns of the white oak.\nThe former they eat fresh during the summer; but their\nwinter stores they dry and preserve in the following manner :\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 The spine of the fish being taken out, and the flesh being\nslashed into checks with a knife, so as to expose as much\nsurface as possible, is laid on the rocks to dry. After\nbecoming thoroughly [184] hard, it is bruised to powder,\nmixed with the oil of the leaf fat of the fish, and packed\naway in flag sacks. Although no salt is used in this preparation, it remains good till May of the following year.\nThe acorns, as soon as they fall from the trees, are buried\nin sand constantly satured with water, where they remain\ntill spring. By this soaking their bitter flavour is said to be\ndestroyed.\nAfter supper, Mr. Lee ordered a launch, and the Indian\npaddles were again dipping in the bright waters. The\nstars were out on the clear night, twinkling as of old,\nwhen the lofty peaks around were heaved from the depths\nof the volcano. They now looked down on a less grand,\nindeed, but more lovely scene. The fires of the natives\nblazed among the woody glens, the light canoe skimmed\n1\n. J'S\n370 Early Western Travels [Vol. 28\nthe water near the shore, the winds groaned over the\nmountain tops, the cascades sang from cliff to cliff, the\nloon shouted and dove beneath the shining wave; it was\na wild, almost unearthly scene, in the deep gorge of the\nColumbia. The rising of the moon changed its features.\nThe profoundest silence reigned, save the dash of paddles\nthat echoed faintly from the shores; our canoe sprang\nlightly over [185] the rippling waters, the Indian fires\nsmouldered among the waving pines; the stars became\ndim, and the depths of the blue sky glowed one vast nebula\nof mellow light. But the eastern mountains hid awhile\nthe orb from sight.\nThe south-western heights shone with its pale beams,\nand cast into the deeply sunken river a bewitching dancing\nof light and shade, unequalled by the pencil of the wildest\nimagination. The grandeur, too, of grove, and cliff,\nand mountain, and the mighty Columbia wrapped in the\ndrapery of a golden midnight ! It was the new and rapidly\nopening panorama of the sublime wilderness. The scene\nchanged again when the moon was high in heaven.\nThe cocks crew in the Indian villages ; the birds twittered\non the boughs; the wild fowl screamed, as her light gilded\nthe chasm of the river, and revealed the high rock Islands\nwith their rugged crags and mouldering tombs. The\nwinds from Mount Adams were loaded with frosts, and\nthe poetry of the night was fast waning into an ague, when\nMr. Lee ordered the steersman to moor. A crackling\npine fire was soon blazing, and having warmed our shivering [186] frames, we spread our blankets, and slept\nsweetly till the dawn.\nEarly on the morning of the 16th, our Indians were\npulling at the paddles. The sky was overcast, and a\ndash of rain occasionally fell, the first I had witnessed 1W\n1839]\nFarnham's Travels\n371\nsince leaving Boyou Salade.232 And although the air\nwas chilly, and the heavens gloomy, yet when the large\nclear drops pattered on my hat, and fell in glad confusion\naround our little bark, a thrill of pleasure shot through\nmy heart. Dangers, wastes, thirst, starvation, eternal\ndearth on the earth, and dewless heavens, were matters\nonly of painful recollection. The present was the reality\nof the past engrafted on the hopes of the future; the showery\nskies, the lofty green mountains, the tumbling cataracts,\nthe mighty forests, the sweet savour of teeming groves,\namong the like of which I had breathed in infancy, hung\nover the threshold of the lower Columbia, the goal of my\nwayfaring.\nHearken to that roar of waters! see the hastening of\nthe flood! hear the sharp rippling by yonder rock; the\nwhole river sinks from view in advance of us. The bows-\nman dips his paddle deeply and quickly; the frail canoe\nshoots to the [187] northern shore between a string of\nislands and the main land; glides quickly down a narrow\nchannel; passes a village of cedar board wigwams on a\nbeautiful little plain to the right j it rounds the lower island;\nbehold the Cascades! \u00E2\u0080\u0094 an immense trough of boulders\nof rocks, down which rushes the \"Great River of the\nWest.\" The baggage is ashore; the Indians are conveying the canoe over the portage, and while this is being\ndone, the reader will have time to explore the lower falls\nof the Columbia, and their vicinage.288\nThe trail of the Portage runs near the torrent, along\nthe rocky slope on its northern bank, and terminates\n232 For tliis region, now known as South Park, see ante, p. 199, note 123.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n233 The Cascades, with their portage path, were to all early travellers the best-\nknown features of the lower Columbia. See Lewis and Clark, Original Journals,\niii, pp. 179-185; Ross's Oregon Settlers in our volume vii, pp. 121-125^ and Townsend's Narrative in our volume xxi, pp. 291-293.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n n\u00C2\u00BB \u00E2\u0096\u00A0\u00E2\u0096\u00A0 372\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\namong large loose rocks, blanched by the floods of ages,\nat the foot of the trough of the main rapid. It is about\na mile and a half long. At its lower end voyagers re-\nembark when the river is at a low stage, and run the lower\nrapids. But when it is swollen by the annual freshets,\nthey bear their boats a mile and a half farther down, where\nthe water is deep and less tumultuous. In walking down\nthis path, I had a near view of the whole length of the main\nrapids. As I have intimated, the bed of the river here\nis a vast inclined trough of white rocks, sixty [188] or\neighty feet deep, about four hundred yards wide at the\ntop, and diminishing to about half that width at the\nbottom. The length of this trough is about a mile. In\nthat distance the water falls about one hundred and thirty\nfeet; in the rapids, above and below it, about twenty feet,\nmaking the whole descent about one hundred and fifty\nfeet. The quantity of water which passes here is incalculable. But an approximate idea of it may be obtained\nfrom the fact that while the velocity is so great, that the\neye with difficulty follows objects floating on the surface,\nyet such is its volume at the lowest stage of the river, that\nit rises and bends like a sea of molten glass over a channel\nof immense rocks, without breaking its surface, except\nnear the shores, so deep and vast is the mighty flood !\nIn the June freshets, when the melted snows from the\nwestern declivities of seven hundred miles of the Rocky\nMountains, and those on the eastern sides of the President's Range, come down, the Cascades must present a\nspectacle of sublimity equalled only by Niagara. This\nis the passage of the river through the President's Range,\nand the mountains near it on either [189] side are worthy\nof their distinguished name. At a short distance from\nthe southern shore they rise in long ridgy slopes, covered\nwith pines, and other terebinthine trees of extraordinary 1839]\nFarnham's Travels\n373\nsize,234 over the tops of which rise bold black cjags, which,\nelevating themselves in great grandeur one beyond another,\ntwenty or thirty miles to the southward, cluster around\nthe icy base of Mount Washington. On the other side\nof the Cascades is a similar scene. Immense and gloomy\nforests, tangled with fallen timber and impenetrable underbrush, cover mountains, which in the States, would excite\nthe profoundest admiration for their majesty and beauty,\nbut which dwindle into insignificance as they are viewed\nin presence of the shining glaciers, and massive grandeur\nof Mount Adams, hanging over them.\nThe river above the Cascades runs north-westwardly;\nbut approaching the descent, it turns westward, and,\nafter entering the trough, south westwardly, and having\npassed this, it resumes its course to the north west. By\nthis bend, it leaves between its shore and the northern\nmountains, a somewhat broken plain, a mile in width,\nand about four miles in length. At the upper end of the\nrapids, this plain is [190] nearly on a level with the river,\nso that an inconsiderable freshet sets the water up a natural\nchannel half way across the bend. This circumstance,\nand the absence of any serious obstruction in the form\nof hills, &c, led me to suppose that a canal might be\ncut around the Cascades at a trifling expence, which would\nnot only open steamboat navigation to the Dalles, but\nfurnish at this interesting spot, an incalculable amount\nof water power.235\n234 For the varieties of pine and other terebinthine (turpentine producing)\ntrees of the Northwest Coast, see Original Journals oj the Lewis and Clark Expedition, iv, pp. 41-57, 84, 85, with identifications by Charles V. Piper, a naturalist\nfamiliar with the region.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n256 This project of a canal was undertaken by the United States government\nin 1878, when it was found that the difficulties were so great that the work had\nno counterpart. However, after numerous modifications, a canal was built on\nthe south (Oregon) side of the river, with a great steel lock at the upper Cascades.\nThe work was opened for navigation in November, 1896, but was not wholly 374\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nThe canoe had been deposited among the rocks at the\nlower end of the trough, our cocoa and boiled salmon,\nbread, butter, potatoes, &c, had been located in their\nproper depositories, and we were taking a parting gaze\nat the rushing flood, when the sound of footsteps, and\nan order given in French to deposit a bale of goods at\nthe water side, drew our attention to a hearty old gentleman of fifty or fifty-five, whom Mr. Lee immediately\nrecognized as Dr. McLaughlin.238 He was about five\nfeet eleven inches in height, and stoutly built, weighing\nabout two hundred pounds, with large green blueish eyes,\na ruddy complexion, and hair of snowy whiteness. He\nwas on his return from London with dispatches from\nthe Hudson's Bay Company's Board in [191] England,\nand with letters from friends at home to the hundreds\nof Britons in its employ in the north-western wilderness.\nHe was in high spirits. Every crag in sight was familiar\nto him, had witnessed the energy and zeal of thirty years'\nsuccessful enterprise; had seen him in the strength of\nripened manhood, and now beheld his undiminished\nenergies crowned with the frosted locks of age. We spent\nten minutes with the doctor, and received a kind invitation to the hospitalities of his post; gave our canoe,\nfreighted with our baggage, in charge of the Indians, to\ntake down the lower rapids, and ascended the bluff to the\ntrail which leads to the tide-water below them. We\nclimbed two hundred feet among small spruce, pine, fir,\nand hemlock trees, to the table land.\nThe track was strewn with fragments of petrified trees,\nfrom three inches to two feet in diameter, and rocks,\ncompleted until 1900. Over four million dollars has been spent on this important\nimprovement. See the chief engineer's Report in House Docs., 56 Cong., 1 sess.,\nviii, pp. 584-586.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n238 For Dr. John McLoughlin, see our volume xxi, p. 296, note 81.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n\u00C3\u008E\u00C3\u008F i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n375\n(quartz and granite, ex loco), mingled with others more\nor less fused. Soon after striking the path on the plain,\nwe came to a beautiful little lake, lying near the brink\nof the hill. It was clear and deep; and around its western,\nnorthern, and eastern shores, drooped the boughs of a\nthick hedge of small evergreen [192] trees, which dipped\nand rose charmingly in its waters. All around stood\nthe lofty pines, sighing and groaning in the wind. Nothing\ncould be seen, but the little lake and the girding forest;\na gem of perfect beauty, reflecting the deep shades of the\nunbroken wilderness. A little stream creeping away from\nit down the bluff, babbled back the roar of the Cascades.237\nThe trail led us among deep ravines, clad with heavy\nfrosts, the soil of which was a coarse gravel, thinly covered\nwith a vegetable mould. A mile from the lake, we came\nupon a plain level again. In this place was a collection\nof Indian tombs, similar to those upon the \"Island of\ntombs.\" These were six or eight in number, and contained a great quantity of bones. On the boards around\nthe sides were painted the figures of death, horses, dogs,\n&c. The great destroyer bears the same grim aspect to\nthe savage mind that he does to ours.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 A skull and the\nfleshless bones of a skeleton piled around, were his symbol\nupon these rude resting places of the departed.238 One\nof them, which our Indian said, contained the remains\nof a celebrated \"Medicine man,\" bore the figure of a\nhorse rudely carved [193] from the red cedar tree. This\nwas the form in which his posthumous visits were to be\nmade to his tribe. Small brass kettles, wooden pails,\nand baskets of curious workmanship, were piled on the roof.\n237 Probably the one now known as Trout Lake. Lewis and Clark speak of\nthe \"ponds\" encountered in passing over the portage path.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n238 The description of this place tallies well with that given by Lewis and Clark;.\nsee Original Journals, iii, pp. 178, 179.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. 376 Early Western Travels [Vol. 28\nThence onward half a mile over a stony soil, sometimes\nopen, and again covered with forests, we reached our\ncanoe by the rocky shore at the foot of the rapids. Mr.\nLee here pointed out to me a strong eddying current on\nthe southern shore, in which Mr. Cyrus Shepard and\nMrs. Doctor White and child, of the Methodist Mission\non the Willamette, were capsized the year before, in an\nattempt to run the lower rapids.239 Mr. Shepard could\nnot swim \u00E2\u0080\u0094 had sunk the second time, and rose by the\nside of the upturned canoe, when he seized the hand of\nMrs. White, who was on the opposite side, and thus sustained himself and her, until some Indians came to their\nrelief. On reaching the shore, and turning up the canoe,\nthe child was found entangled among the cross-bars, dead !\nThe current was strong where we re-entered our canoe,\nand bore us along at a brisk rate.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 The weather, too,\nwas very agreeable; the sky transparent, and glowing\nwith a mild October sun. The scenery [194] about us\nwas truly grand. A few detached wisps of mist clung to\nthe dark crags of the mountains on the southern shore,\nand numerous cascades shot out from the peaks, and\ntumbling from one shelf to another, at length plunged\nhundreds of feet among confused heaps of rocks in the\nvale. The crags themselves were extremely picturesque;\nthey beetled out so boldly, a thousand feet above the forests\non the sides of the mountain, and appeared to hang so\neasily and gracefully on the air. Some of them were\nbasaltic. One appeared very remarkable. The moun-\n2M Cyrus Shepard, who came out (1834) with the first missionary party (see\nour volume xxi, p. 138, note 13), was a valuable member of the Methodist mission,\nwhere he had chief charge of the Indian manual training school. In 1837 his\nfianc\u00C3\u00A9e, Susan Downing, came from the states, and they were married in July\nof that year. His death occurred at the mission in 1840.\nMrs. Elijah White came to Oregon with her husband, a missionary physician,\nin May, 1837.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n377\ntain on which it stood was about one thousand two hundred feet high. On its side there was a deep rocky ravine.\nIn this, about three hundred feet from the plain, arose a\ncolumn of thirty or forty feet in diameter, and, I judged\nmore than two hundred feet high, surmounted by a cap\nresembling the pediment of an ancient church.\nFar up its sides grew a number of shrub cedars, which\nhad taken root in the crevices, and, as they grew, sunk\ndown horizontally, forming an irregular fringe of green\naround it. A short distance further down was seen a\nbeautiful cascade. The stream appeared to rise near\nthe very apex of the [195] mountain, and having run a\nnumber of rods in a dark gorge between two peaks, it\nsuddenly shot from the brink of a cliff into the copse of\nevergreen trees at the base of the mountain. The height\nof the perpendicular fall appeared to be about six hundred\nfeet. Some of the water was dispersed in spray before\nreaching the ground; but a large quantity of it fell on the\nplain, and sent among the heights a noisy and thrilling\necho.240 On the north side of the river, the mountains\nwere less precipitous, and covered with a dense forest\nof pines, cedars, firs, &c.\nThe bottom lands of the river were alternately prairies\nand woodlands; the former clad with a heavy growth\nof the wild grasses, dry and brown \u00E2\u0080\u0094 the latter, with\npine, fir, cotton-wood, black ash, and various kinds of\nshrubs. The river varied in width from one to two miles,\ngenerally deep and still, but occasionally crossed by sandbars. Ten or twelve miles below the cascades we came\nupon one, that, stretching two or three miles down the\nriver, turned the current to the southern shore. The\n7,0 Of the many beautiful falls on this part of the river the Horsetail, Multnomah, Bridal Veil, and Latourell are notable; probably the Bridal Veil is the most\nbeautiful, but the Multnomah may be the cascade here noted.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. I ii St*\n378\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nwind blew freshly, and the waves ran high in that quarter;\nso it was deemed expedient to lighten the canoe. To this\n[196] end Mr. Lee, the two Americans and myself, landed\non the northern shore for a walk, while the Indians should\npaddle around to the lower point of the bar. We travelled\nalong the beach. It was generally hard and gravelly.\nAmong the pebbles, I noticed several splendid specimens\nof the agate. The soil of the flats was a vegetable mould,\neighteen inches or two feet in depth, resting on a stratum\nof sand and gravel, and evidently overflown by the annual\nfloods of June. The flats varied from a few rods to a\nmile in width. While enjoying this walk, the two Americans started up a deer, followed it into the woods, and,\nloth to return unsuccessful, pursued it till long after our\ncanoe was moored below the bar. So that Mr. Lee and\nmyself had abundant time to amuse ourselves with all\nmanner of homely wishes towards our persevering companions till near sunset, when the three barges of Dr.\nMcLaughlin, under their Indian blanket sails and sapling\nmasts, swept gallantly by us, and added the last dreg to\nour vexation. Mr. Lee was calm, I was furious. What,\nfor a paltry deer, lose a view of the Columbia hence to the\nFort! But I remember with satisfaction that no one\nwas- materially [197] injured by my wrath, and that my\ntruant countrymen were sufficiently gratified with their\nsuccess to enable them to bear with much resignation,\nthree emphatic scowls, as they made their appearance\nat the canoe.\nThe dusk of night was now creeping into the valleys,\nand we had twenty miles to make. The tide from the\nPacific was setting up, and the wind had left us; but our\nIndians suggested that the force of their paddles, stimulated by a small present of \"shmoke\" (tobacco,) would\nstill carry us in by eleven o'clock. We therefore gave i839]\nFarnham's Travels\n379\nour promises to pay the required quantum of the herb,\nensconced ourselves in blankets, and dozed to the wild\nmusic of the paddles, till a shower of hail aroused us. It\nwas about ten o'clock. An angry cloud hung over us,\nand the rain and hail fell fast; the wind from Mounts\nWashington and Jefferson chilled every fibre of our systems; the wooded hills, on both sides of the river were\nwrapped in cold brown clouds; the owl and wolf were\nanswering each other on the heights; enough of light lay\non the stream to show dimly the islands that divided its\nwaters, and the fires of the wigwams disclosed the naked\ngroups of savages around them.\n[198] It was a scene that the imagination loves. The\ncanoe, thirty feet in length, (such another had cut those\nwaters centuries before) ; the Indians, kneeling two and two,\nand rising on their paddles; their devoted missionary surveying them and the villages on the shores, and rejoicing\nin the anticipation, that soon the songs of the redeemed\nsavage would break from the dark vales of Oregon; that\nthose wastes of mind would soon teem with a harvest of\nhappiness and truth, cast a breathing unutterable charm\nover the deep hues of that green wilderness, dimly seen\non that stormy night, which will give me pleasure to dwell\nupon while I live. \"On the bar!\" cried Mr. Lee; and\nwhile our Indians leaped into the water, and dragged\nthe canoe to the channel, he pointed to the dim light of\nthe Hudson Bay Company's saw and grist mill two miles\nabove on the northern shore.\nWe were three miles from Vancouver. The Indians\nknew the bar, and were delighted to find themselves so\nnear the termination of their toil. They soon found the\nchannel, and leaping aboard plied their paddles with\n.renewed energy. And if any one faltered, the steersman\nrebuked him with his own hopes of \"shmoke\" and \"sche- .**T\n380\nEarly Western Travels\n[Vol. 28\nm\notecut,\" (the Fort) which never failed [199] to bring\nthe delinquent to duty. Twenty minutes of vigorous\nrowing moored us at the landing. A few hundred yards\nbelow, floated a ship and a sloop, scarcely seen through\nthe fog. On the shore rose a levee or breastwork, along\nwhich the dusky savages were gliding with stealthy and\nsilent tread; in the distance were heard voices in English\nspeaking of home. We landed, ascended the levee,\nentered a lane between cultivated fields, walked a quarter\nof a mile, where, under a long line of pickets, we entered\nFort Vancouver \u00E2\u0080\u0094 the goal of my wanderings, the destination of my weary footsteps!241\nMr. James Douglass, the gentleman who had been in\ncharge of the post during the absence of Dr. McLaughlin,\nconducted us to a room warmed by a well-fed stove;\ninsisted that I should change my wet garments for dry\nones, and proffered every other act that the kindest hospitality could suggest to relieve me of the discomforts\nresulting from four months' journeying in the wilderness.\n242\n241 For a brief sketch of Fort Vancouver see our volume xxi, p. 297, note 82.\nFarnham gives a detailed description in our volume xxix.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed.\n242 Sir James Douglas was born (1803) in British Guiana. Taken to Scotland\nwhen a child, he left in order to enter the Canadian fur-trade, and met Dr. John\nMcLoughlin at Fort William, on Lake Superior. McLoughlin persuaded the\nyouth to accompany him to the Pacific, where (1824) he was in service at Fort\nSt. James under Factor Connelly, whose daughter Douglas married. For some\nyears he was in charge of Fort St. James, being summoned (1828) to Vancouver,\nwhere he became second in command. Promoted to be chief trader (1830) and\nchief factor two years later, he was much employed in visits of inspection and in\nbuilding new posts. In 1841-42 he went on a diplomatic and trading embassy\nto California. In 1843 Fort Victoria was built under his direction. Upon Dr.\nMcLoughlin's resignation (1845), Douglas became his successor as head of the\nHudson's Bay Company's interests on the Pacific, removing from Fort Vancouver to Victoria in 1849. There he continued to rule until his resignation from\nthe Company (1859), when the British government appointed him governor of\nthe newly-erected province of British Columbia, an office which he held until\n1864, being in the preceding year knighted for his services. After release from\nofficial duties, Sir James visited Europe, returning to his home in Victoria, where\nh e died August 2, 1877.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Ed. Important\nHistorical Publications\nOF\nThe Arthur H. Clark Company\nFull descriptive circulars will be mailed\non application If\nAUDUBON'S WESTERN\nJOURNAL: 1849-1850\n9\nBeing the MS. record of a trip from New York to\nTexas, and an overland journey through Mexico\nand Arizona to the gold-fields of California\nBv\nJOHN W. AUDUBON\nWith biographical memoir by his daughter\nMARIA R. AUDUBON\nEdited by\nFRANK HEYWOOD HODDER\nProfessor of American History, University of Kansas\nWith folded map, portrait, and original drawings\ntOHN W. AUDUBON, son of the famous\nornithologist, was a member of Colonel\nWebb's California Expedition which\nstarted from New York City for the gold-\nfields in February, 1849. The Journal\nconsists of careful notes which Audubon\nmade en route. It was written with a view\nto publication, accompanied by a series of sketches made\nat intervals during the journey ; but owing to Audubon's\npre-occupation with other affairs, the plan of publication\nwas never realized.\nThe Journal is, therefore, here published for the first\ntime, and is illustrated by the author's original sketches,\ncarefully reproduced. It gives a vivid first-hand picture\nofthe difficulties of an overland journey to California, and\nof the excitements, dangers, and privations of life in the\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 vtlTDUSO&\u00C3\u0087S WESTERN JOURNAL\ngold-fields. An additional interest attaches to this account\nfrom the fact that Colonel Webb deserted his party, which\nconsisted of nearly a hundred men, when the expedition\nreached Roma, and the command then by unanimous\nchoice of the party devolved upon Audubon. This situation, as modesdy related by the author, displays his\nsympathetic nature, as well as his keenness and ability as\na leader.\nBesides being a fascinating story of adventure, the Journal throws much light on the interesting years immediately\nfollowing the discovery of gold in California. John W.\nAudubon was (with his brother Victor G. Audubon) the\nassistant of his father, and executed much of the artistic\nwork on the famous \" Quadrupeds of North America.\"\nHis pictures ofthe spreading ofthe gold craze in the East,\nthe journey through Mexico, and the social conditions\nafter reaching California, show him to be a keen and\nfaithful observer.\nThe Editor, Professor F. H. Hodder, of the University\nof Kansas, has supplied complete annotation explaining\nmatters of topography, natural science, and historical and\npersona] allusions. Professor Hodder in his editorial work\nhas drawn liberally upon his special knowledge of the history and geography of the West and Southwest. A biographical memoir has been written by Miss Maria R.\nAudubon. Being the daughter of the author, she has\navailed herself ofa large amount of auxiliary material not\naccessible to any other biographer.\nPrinted direct from type on Dickinson's deckle-edged\npaper, and illustrated with folded map, portrait, and plates,\nin one volume, 8vo, about 225 pages, cloth, uncut.\nPrice #3.00 net.\nThe Arthur H. Clark Company\nTU'BLISHE'RS CLEVELAND, OHIO PERSONAL NARRATIVE\nOF\nTravels in Virginia, Maryland,\n'Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana,\nKentucky, and ofa Residence in\nthe Illinois Territory: 1817-1818\nBY\nELIAS PYM FORDHAM\nWith facsimiles of the author's sketches and plans\nEdited with Notes, Introduction, Index, etc., by\nFREDERIC AUSTIN OGG, A.M.\nauthor of\" The Opening of the ^Mississippi\"\nUSHEDMs\" This hitherto unpublished MS., which is a\nreal literary and historical find, was written\nin 1817-18 by a young Englishman of excellent education\nwho assisted Morris Birkbeck in establishing his Illinois\nsettlement. The author writes anonymously, but by a\ncareful study of various allusions in the Narrative and\nfrom information furnished by the family in possession\nof the MS., has been identified as Elias Pym Fordham.\nLanding at Baltimore, he reached the West by way of\nPhiladelphia, Pittsburg, and the Ohio River to Cincinnati,\ndescribing the people and the country as he went along.\nTHE MIDDLE Fordham was an especially well-qualified\nWEST IN 1817 observer of the Middle West because of\nthe numerous journeys he undertook, on land-hunting\ntrips for new emigrants, in the service of Mr. Birkbeck.\nThese journeys led him into Indiana, Ohio,and Kentucky; FO'RTWAM'S \"PERSONAL NARRATIVE\nand he never omits the opportunity to make frank and\npointed comment on society, manners, and morals, as well\nas careful observations of the face of the country and of\nindustrial conditions. The style is quite unaffected and\nhas much natural charm and sprightiiness ; and the fact\nthat he wrote anonymously made him much more free in\nhis comments on contemporary society than would otherwise have been possible.\nLOCAL AND These journeys also gave him unexampled\nPIONEER. opportunities for contact with the pioneers\nHISTORY Q\u00C2\u00A3 tne Middle West, and his journal is con\nsequently rich in personalia of early setders, remarks on\ncontemporary history and politics, state of trade, agriculture, prices, and information on local history not obtainable elsewhere. He also visited the larger cities and gives\nvery interesting accounts of Pittsburg and Cincinnati, accompanied by original sketches and plans. In Kentucky\nhe had the opportunity to study slavery; and although at\nfirst prejudiced against this institution he finally reached\nthe conclusion that the slave states offered better chances\nof successful settlement than the free states.\nVALUE FOR The publication of Fordham's Narrative\nREADERS AND with introduction, extensive annotations,\nSTUDENTS an(j index by Professor Frederic A. Ogg, one\nof the best authorities on the history of the Mississippi\nValley, will make accessible to historical students much\nnew and important material, besides giving the general\nreader a book of vital and absorbing interest.\nPrinted direct from type on Dickinson's deckle-edged\npaper, and illustrated with original sketches and plans, in\none volume, 8vo, about 180 pages, cloth, uncut.\nPrice #3.00 net.\nThe Arthur H. Clark Company\nTWBLISHETiS CLEVELAND, OHIO 1\n\"AN AUTHORITY OF THE HIGHEST IMPORTANCE\"\u00E2\u0080\u0094-Winsor\nTHE\nPRESENT STATE\nOFTHE\nEUROPEAN SETTLEMENTS\nON T H E\nMISSISIPPI}\nWITH\nA GiooKkniica t Description of that River.\nIM.USTRATCD BY\nPLANS amd DRAUGHTS.\nBr Captain PHILIP PITTMAN.\nLONDON,\nPrinted fac J. Notm, BookfeUtt to Hn MAJESTY.\nMDCCLXX.\nEdited with Introduction, Notes, and Index, by\nFRANK HEYWOOD HODDER\nProfessor of American History, University of Kansas\nTHIS exceedingly rare work was issued in London, in 1770, and\nhas been so much in demand by historical students and collectors\nof Americana that even imperfect copies ofthe original are now almost\nimpossible to obtain at any price. Our text is from a perfect copy of\nthe original with all the folding maps and plans carefully reproduced.\n*Only two copies have been offered for sale during the past five years ; one copy sold\nat $95.00, and the other is now offered by a reliable firm of booksellers at $105.00. PITTMAN'S MISSISSIPPI SETTLEMENTS\nPittman's Mississippi Settlements contains much valuable original ma-\n* j it terial for the study of the French and Spanish\n-/* Valuable Settlements of old Louisiana, West Florida, and\nSOUrCe WOrk the IHhuns country. The author, Captain Philip\nPittman, was a British military engineer, and\ngives an accurate general view of the Mississippi Settlements just after\nthe English came into possession of the eastern half of the valley by\nthe Peace of 1763. His account, written from personal observation,\nis rich in allusions to the political, social, and military readjustments\nresulting from this change of possession. \"A comprehensive account\nof the Illinois country and its inhabitants, with sketches in detail of\nthe several French posts and villages situated therein, as personally\nviewed by him in 1766-67. . . . It contains, in a compact form, much\nuseful and reliable information (nowhere else to be found) concerning the Mississippi Valley and its people at that transition period.\"\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094Wallace: Illinois and Louisiana under French Rule.\nDr. William F. Poole in Winsor's Narrative and Critical History of\ncr'l /\u00E2\u0080\u00A2 . America says: \"It is the earliest English.\n1 fie earliest account of those settlements, and, as an\nEnglish account l^oritXin carl? wes\u00C2\u00A3m It10*?' Iof 1\no highest importance, tie |_ritunanj was a\nmilitary engineer, and for five years was employed in surveying the\nMississippi River and exploring the western country. The excellent\nplans which accompany the work, artistically engraved on copper,\nadd greatly to its value.\"\nAn introduction, notes, and index have been supplied by Professor\n* . \u00C2\u00BB Frank Heywood Hodder, who has made a\n^Annotation Oy special study of American historical geo-\nProfessor Hodder &^y- ^he value .of the sprint is thus\nJ enhanced by annotation embodying the re\nsults of the latest researches in this field of American history.\nThe edition is limited to 500 copies, each numbered. It is handsomely printed in large Caslon type on Dickinson's deckle-edged\npaper. With folding maps and plans. Large 8vo, cloth, uncut, gilt top.\nPrice #3.00 net.\nTHE ARTHUR H CLARK COMPANY\nTVBLISHE'RS CLEVELAND, OHIO \u00E2\u0096\u00A0\u00C3\u008F\u00C3\u00A9#7\n** We cannot thoroughly understand our own history, local or National, without some knowledge\nof these routes of trade and war.**\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Outlook.\nThe Historic Highways of America\nby Archer Butler Hulbert\nA series of monographs on the History of America as portrayed in the evolution of its highways of War, Commerce, and Social Expansion.\nComprising the following volumes :\nI\u00E2\u0080\u0094Paths of the Mound-Building Indians and Great Game Animals.\nII\u00E2\u0080\u0094Indian Thoroughfares.\nIll\u00E2\u0080\u0094Washington's Road: The First Chapter of the Old French War.\nIV\u00E2\u0080\u0094Braddock's Road.\nV\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Old Glade (Forbes's) Road.\nVI\u00E2\u0080\u0094Boone's Wilderness Road.\nVII\u00E2\u0080\u0094Portage Paths : The Keys of the Continent.\nVIII\u00E2\u0080\u0094Military Roads of the Mississippi Basin.\nIX\u00E2\u0080\u0094Waterways of Westward Expansion.\nX\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Cumberland Road.\nXI, XII\u00E2\u0080\u0094Pioneer Roads of America, two volumes.\nXIII, XIV\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Great American Canals, two volumes.\nXV\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Future of Road-Making in America.\nXVI\u00E2\u0080\u0094Index.\nSixteen volumes, crown 8vo, cloth, uncut, gilt top\u00C2\u00BB. A limited edition\nonly printed direct from type, and the type distributed. Each volume handsomely printed in large type on Dickinson's hand-made paper, and illustrated with maps, plates, and facsimiles.\nPublished a volume each two months, beginning September, 1902.\nPrice, volumes 1 and 2, $2.00 net each; volumes 3 to 16, $2.50 net\neach.\nFifty sets printed on large paper, each numbered and signed by the\nauthor. Bound in cloth, with paper label, uncut, gilt tops. Price, $5.00\nnet per volume.\n\"The fruit not only ofthe study of original historical sources in documents found here and la\nEngland, but of patient and enthusiastic topographical studies, in the course of which every foot of\nthese old historic highways has been traced and traversed.**\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Living Age.\n\"The volumes already issued show Mr. Hulbert to be an earnest and enthusiastic student, and a\nreliable guide.\"\u00E2\u0080\u0094Out West.\n\" A look through these volumes shows most conclusively that a new source of history is being\ndeveloped\u00E2\u0080\u0094a source which deals with the operation of the most effective causes influencing human\naffairs.**\u00E2\u0080\u0094Iowa Journal of Histoiy and Politics.\n\" The successive volumes in the series may certainly be awaited with great interest, for they\npromise to deal with the most romantic phases of the awakening of America at the dawn of occidental civilization.**\u00E2\u0080\u0094Boston Transcript.\n\" The publishers have done their part toward putting forth with proper dignity this important\nwork. It is issued on handsome paper and is illustrated with many maps, diagrams, and old\nprints.**\u00E2\u0080\u0094Chicago Evening Post.\nI i\nDATE DUE \u00C2\u00A7\n/f?SiS2\n^\\n\u00C2\u00ABr* r-p. *%\u00E2\u0096\u00A0\n^^*^k ^.\n ^..oX-\n/\nf ytKLUU\nlTES\\\nBY\nV |\n ^..\u00C3\u0082....\nJ\n I\ni\nj r^r^t'\nWm\n?.w\n\t\n\u00E2\u0096\u00A0 "@en . "Other copies: http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/768826826"@en . "Books"@en . "Travel literature"@en . "F592 .T54 V. 28-29:1"@en . "II-0541-V28"@en . "10.14288/1.0339973"@en . "English"@en . "Vancouver : University of British Columbia Library"@en . "Cleveland : Arthur H. Clark Company"@en . "Images provided for research and reference use only. For permission to publish, copy, or otherwise distribute these images please contact\u00A0digital.initiatives@ubc.ca."@en . "Original Format: University of British Columbia. Library. Rare Books and Special Collections. F592 .T54 V. 28-29:1"@en . "United States--Description and travel"@en . "Overland journeys to the Pacific"@en . "Indians of North America--West (U.S.)"@en . "West (U.S.)--Description and travel"@en . "Oregon--Description and travel"@en . "Rocky Mountains--Description and travel"@en . "Early western travels 1748-1846 : a series of annotated reprints of some of the best and rarest contemporary volumes of travel, descriptive of the Aborigines and social and economic conditions in the Middle and Far West, during the period of early American settlement. Volume XXVIII: Part I of Farnham's travels in the great Western prairies etc., May 21-October 16, 1839"@en . "Text"@en .