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GLANCE AT SOA'E OF THE TROPICAL ISLANDS, INL'I.IIUINa TlIK WEST INDIES AND THE SANDWICH ISLES. BY THE HON. HENRY J. COKE. Al.TIIUlt UK "VIKNNA IN 184S." LONDON: liiCHARD BENTLEY, NEW BURLINGTON STREET. Publmf)rt in ®r) dition of the African, or on his subsequent one as a slave, and now hears Inm raise his voice — loudly and heartily too — in the praises of his Maker, lio will rejoice, if he be an Englishman, that his country has had the glorious privilege of making the black man free. •% ^ m PROFIT AND LOSS. 29 2,C)th. — For the last three or four clays we have been visiting the neighbouring estates of Holland, Amity Hall, Bachelor's Pen, &c., initiating ourselves into the mysteries of sugar-making and rum-distilUng. Notwithstanding that free trade has reduced the price of sugar some 6/. or 8/. a hogshead, we still think that a good suga'' estate is a profitable concern, wliatevcr people may say to the contrary. Think of land that returns 15/., the present price of a hogs- head of sugar, per acre, with no more outlay (upon the land) than the expense of spreading the trash or leaves, and crushed parts of the cane, and the cutting and carrying it when grown ; for there is here no sowing of seed, the plants are ratoons of twenty years' standing. Most of the mills, too, are worked by water-power, and where steam is used the crushed cane serves as the only fuel. The agents, of course, crv out against free trade, and woidd like to see what they call an equaUsing duty of fourteen or fifteen shillings on slave-grown sugar ; for not till then, say they, will they bo able to compete with their neighbours. 27th. — To-day I rode down, with ray rifle, to Holland Bay, hoping to get a shot at an aUigator. Near the sea-side is an enormous tract of land, which 30 HOLLAND BAY. was formerly a densely-wooded morass, but owing to an incursion of the sea every vestige of vegetation is now completely destroyed. Enormous trees, withered '%v(\ blanched, stand like an army of skeletons, or r.t like white-faced invalids with their feet in the dirty salt water. Immediately at the edge of high water-mark everything is green, so that the dead forest, surrounded by the hve, looks like wintv-i in the midst of summer. It is a fit resort for all the reptiles of the country. Having heard that alligators are very partial to sucking pigs, I had provided myself with one of these articles, and sat patiently in the branches of a mangrove tree at the brink of the pool, keeping a sharp look-out, with my rifle on my knees ; while a young nigger, whom I had hired expressly for the occasion, amused himself and " summoned the spirits from the vasty deep," by provoking continuous squeaks from the young pig. Grunt followed grunt, and squeak succeeded to squeak, till the porker grew hoarse with his exertions — still no visible effect was produced on the alligators. At length, when I was nearly in a fever from the stinging of all the mosquitoes in the swamp, the nigger, who had hitherto done nothing but laugh at the pig, suddenly stopped, and pointing to something ALLIGATORS. 31 in tlio water, said — " Eigh ! alligator — shoot, massa." For my part I could see nothing, but what I supposed to be a dead log, and would not be persuaded that the object on the surface of the pool, although within fifteen yards of me. was anything but a dead log. " Eigh ! Garamighty shoot, massa," the young nigger whispered ; but I had no intention of the kind. Soon, however, I observed that the log had slightly altered its position, and it was clearly moving, though almost imperceptibly. Half doubting that I was wasting a charge of powder, I took a steady aim and fired. At the instant of the flash, the monster sprang half out of the water, showed the white of his belly, and v/ith a tremendous splash disappeared from our sight. The nigger assured me that he was dead, and ran off to some houses close at hand to fetch a canoe. When the canoe came we paddled about over the place where the shot was fired ; but though we could see to the bottom, we saw no alligator. The boy was as much disappointed as I, and could only exclaim, " Eigh ! What dam big alligator — top two, tree day — him come up when him gall broke." It was provoking not to have bagged my game, but I had no idea of stopping two or three days in the swamps till "him gall broke;" so I rode back to 32 COONAH COONAH MOUNTAINS. Golden Grove, determined, if possible, to bag one of these big reptiles another day. 30^/*. — The day being fine, we determined to make an expedition over the Coonah Coonah mountains, to visit Port Antonio, and the district called Portland. Getting on our horses, and taking three or four maroons with us to clear the path over the hills, we set out at half-past eight (it should have been half- past six), and reached Bath in less than an hour. Here we met Mr. S , who invited us to halt, and ,'^ave us a refreshing drink of sparkling hock and sj'ving T»'ater. After this invigorator we proceeded a mile or so, and then commenced the ascent. We found the path very rough ; here and there a large tree had fallen across it, so that it was with great difficulty we managed to lead our horses round the roots, or by taking ofi" the saddles enabled them to pass underneath the trunk. Some deep holes made by the rain obhged us to keep a look out where the horses put their feet, for in many places a false step would have given beast and rider a roll of several hundred feet. As we ascended, we observed a considerable change in the vegetation. Parasitical and orchidaceous plants grew^ in great luxuriance ; their rope-like roots dropped from the high branches to . SCENERY OP THE BLUE MOUNTAINS. 33 the ground, and were entwined with endless varieties of creepers, which again clomb upwards, gracefully concealing the unsightliness of their naturally formed ladders. These festoons, woven together in rank exuberance, fashioned themselves above into a verdant canopy, which effectually excluded the scorching rays of the sun. Among the most re- markable objects of this vegetable kingdom is the tree fern. Its stem is sometimes between forty and fifty feet high ; from the top it throws out delicate leafy branches, drooping downwards, and giving it all the appearance of a small and beautiful palm. But delightful as are these " shadowy deserts," there is a terrible absence of animal life. Hardly a bird or beast is to be seen. A few days since we rode into the woods above Bachelor's Pen, and saAv great numbers of parrots and humming-birds, but to-day we have seen nothing of the kind ; the only traces of any living thing being a patch of ground, where some wild pigs had been rooting with their noses, and a black snake, which one of our horses trod on in the path. When we got to the top of the pass just at the foot of the Blue Mountains, and about 3000 feet above the level of the sea, we dismounted, and walked nearly to the bottom of the hill, until Pi u PlC-NlC. we came to a lovely spot, where two or three tributary streams empty themselves into the Rio Grande. At this point, a discussion arose as to where it would be advisable to lunch. A and I declared for picnicking by the river side ; G and Mr. Forbes, A 's agent, on the other hand, demonstrated the impossibility of our horses feeding anywhere but in a stable. At last we decided that, as the sum2")tci' mule was not in sight, wo had better wait till the lunch caught us up, so we chose a shady mango by the water's edge, and fa?ite de mieiuv, busied ourselves, in rather a sulky humour, with making a fire, and looking on at some maroons, who came to catch fish for us. Unfortu- nately it was rather late in the day to have nmcli sport, but it was amusing to see them dive and search, Hke otters, under all the large stones, for their prey. When they find a fish, they pin it down with an iron-headed lance-wood spear, and bring it up in their hands. For nearly two hoiu's we wore out our patience in this way, when the mule came up, and with a keen appetite we hastened to display the contents of the panniers. A silent and serious attack was for some minutes kept up on cold tongues and chickens, and MAROON CUTLASS PLAYING, 35 toppiii>^' up with a waddin<^ of hard-boiled eggs and cherry-brandy, we hghtcd our pipes, and consigned the fragments of the repast to the tender mercies of the maroons. Without much ceremony they went the best way to work to save themselves the trouble of repacking the hampers. One old man got posses- sion of the brandy bottle, and soon after, exhibited, upon the strength of its contents, some fantastical feats with a cutlass ; he ended by putting the point to his stomach, and falling down as if he intended to kill himself. It was, however, only done in joke, but he showed great dexterity in the use of his weapon and offered, if I would give him four dollars (about twice the price of a cutlass), to break it on his naked body at a single blow. I took him at his word, that is, I did not pay for my incredulity. He told us that all maroons were made to practise while young the use of the cutlass, and that none of them ever accept employment where any other implement is used. Leaving Altamont, the name of our luncheon ground, we rode past what had once been a tolerably largo settlement, but was now reduced by the miserable effects of famine and poverty to a few huts, the property of a Scotchwoman and some five D 2 3(5 A NIGHT-RIDE. or six half-grown cliiklren. All tlic other families had died from the effects of climate, proving, as has been done in many other instances, that the European cannot stand the labour necessary to his maintenance under a tropical sun. At dark we found ourselves in a flat swampy place, called Seaman's Valley, having ten miles to ride before we reached Antonio. Mr. Forbes, to make matters better, did not know the road, and it was some tim.e before we were able to procure a guide. Following' our leader, who was on foot, we jogged on at a slow pace, keeping one behind another in Indian file ; and, save the stars Pid myriads of fire-flies, all w\is as black as pitch. When, every now and then, we came to a thick wood wdiere it was impossible to see your own hand if you held it up, the man in front would call out, " take care, a very nasty place ; keep to the right," or, " to the left." At last, the slowness of the pace and the heat of the night made me feel very sleepy, and, notwith- standing the constant caution received to *' look out," I found myself bowing every minute most politely to my horse's head. The loud croak of an old bull-frog, or the stumbling of my animal, reminded me with a start that I had actually fallen fast asleep, and I was truly delighted to have my attention called to the SCENEUY AND CURIOSITIES. .'57 iiiglitcapi)cd heads, that poked out with a liglited candle from ahnost every window, to observe the unusual sight of so large a cavalcade entering Port Antonio. The inn was full, but Thomas, A 'a servant, had secured board and lodging in another house. G , who was knocked up with the journey, took nothing but tea, and went to bed directly. Slst. — After breakfast we went to look at a cave close to the town, but, as the hero in " Used Up " might truly have remarked, there was " nothing in it," except thousands of bats and many ship-loads of guano. Besides this one, there are several large caves in the island, both on the coast and in the interior. Some of them have never been explored, and are, consequently, supposed to penetrate more than three miles underground. On a fine day Cuba is visible from the hills near Antonio ; to-day it w^as not so. As G ■ was still unwell, he and A preferred travelling in a carriage, and Mr. Forbes .ook me in a gig. The view of the town from the further side of the bay is pretty, and makes a picturesque foreground to the fine range of Blue Mountains in the distance. Our journey was tame work after yesterday, the road winds along the coast near the sea, occa- sionally making a great bend to avoid the frequent ;p .'JS HAUDAItlAN HOSl'ITAI.ITY. little coves and landlocked harbours which indcjit this end of the island. Most of the estates wo passed thronj^h were out of cultivation, and overgrown with brushwood. The few that still bear cane are not more than sufficient to afford sugar for the con- sumption of the district. At river we stopped to bait ourselves and , the proprietor, was very civil ; in, horses. Mr. S— Mrs. S , his wife, a bland, timid little ^ was I'ather put out, I fear, by our visit ; she was very anxious that things should " go off" well, and I suspect the luncheon must have been a severe trial to her. The servant, an antediluvian-looking nigger, would do everything wrong, and would not hear any of Mrs. S 's whispers to put him right. Conceive how provoking, that an old woolly-headed rascal should set a dish of potatoes at the head of the table, under a big cover, and a quarter of lamb in the middle of the table, crowned as it were with the cover of a vegetable dish ; and actually put the dessert on, when there was a whole pastry-cook's shop to be admired. Upon my word ! after a week's rehearsal, too, no doubt! Well, well, old servants will be old servants, though Mrs. S thinks — at least I should not wonder if she did — that it is very AN ODD MAN. '^^ iiiiiiioral to j^row old aiitl tlo such wicked things, m tu wait at dinner in tliat sort of way. There luii)pencd to bo a very odd man " droi>|)ed in," to call while Ave were there. Ho secnK^d quite taken aback at meeting us ; he was such a very mild man ; his voice, when he did si)eak, was so low that I could not help thinking it must have come out of the back uf his neck. For the life' 'of him ho could not remember the names of i)laces or p( u})le ; he called Forbes, Mc Cornock ; and Golden Grove, Hector Uiver, though the names are not the least similar or synonymous. Had we sat there long, A , who is the funniest little fellow in the Avorkl, would have made mc laugh at this man I am sure ; but poor G was beginning to show symptoms of fever, and we were obliged to be moving homewards. Fcbrunrj/ Id. — G is no better ; Thomas is taken ill ; Crabb, the other servant, and A , arc both complaining, and neither of them looking pretty. The Doctor arrives from Bath. 5t/i. — This is dull work for me. The whole party are in their beds with fever. G and Thomas seriously ill. Dr. Ferguson is sent for from Kingston. I generally amuse myself alligator hunting ; to-day I nearly lode over a very large one lying on the bank. 40 ALLIGATOR HUNTING. but he was in the river before I saw him. I hit him the first shot, and hardly had time to load before he rose again and swam straight at me ; I had two bullets in ray rifle and put them both into his head ; this, I think, must have done for him, he did not appear again. Another one I found asleep, and secured for a stuffed specimen. ^tJi. — As the invalids were all better, and the worst of them pronounced to be quite out of danger, I took leave of Golden Grove, wishing to make the best use of my time till the steamer sailed on the 16th. My heavy baggage (two portmanteaus) preceded me in a wain, drawn by eight oxen ! and Mr. Forbes drove me to Morant Bay. Here I borrowed a drogger, a boat of twenty tons, and set sail for Kingston. My crew consisted of a black captain, a white first -lieu- ter^nt, and two able-bodied nigger seamen. We had a good breeze out of the harbour, which lasted to Yallahs Point. Till twelve o'clock I took the helm, then piped to dinner, or, rather, to salt-fish and bis- cuit, soaked in the melted fat of sah pork. The sun was awfully hot, and I was sadly burnt. Towards evening the wind died away, and it was just sunset as we passed Port Royal. I began to think what I would have for supper at the Bate Tree, and il KINGSTON. how much I should enjoy my bed, when the captain, to my astonishment, offered me more salt pork, and observed, we should get in by good time in the morning. " What ! you surely don't mean to anchor to-night^" 1 asked. "Yes, Massa, can't see 'em 'tales must 'top to-night." This was a h.ce, but thc:^e was nothing left but to " prick for a soft plank," and with a bag of peas for a pillow consign myself to slumber and the cock-roaches. After a moderate night I was awoke by the day-hght gun from the flag-ship ; weighed anchor, and with a light breeze landed at Kingston at 10 a.m. The "Teviot" was lying alongside the wharf when I arrived, and, meet- ing the mail-agent, I went to the office to see my old frland the captain. There was a party of Kingston gossips in the room. " Well," said one, " shocking thing isn't it, poor Mr. G dying so soon." 'I don't wonder," said another, before I hp.'^ time to speak, " How could he be so foolish as t(' expose himself as he has done, sitting whole days in a swamp watching for alligators." " Oh, dear," said a third, " that's not altogether the cause of his illness. The fict is, he is a bad subject ; such a stout gentleman as Mr. G., is a very bad subject." " Stop, stop, you are mistaken," said I ; "you are caluniuiating my friends by whole- 42 sale SPANISH TOWN. Mr. G is as thin as a \vhipj)iiig-post, and never sat a day in a swamp in his whole life. Mr. A is stout enough if you like, and none the worse subject for that — but I advise you not to let him hear you say that his stoutness is likely to prove fatal ; he would not like it, I assure you." ' Nor any one else," quoth the captain. The gossips looked at me as much as to say, who the deuce are you ? Leaving them to solve the pi-oblem, I joined the captain, and dined with him on board the steaniei". By an early train on the 11 th I left Kingston for Spanish Town, where I hired a gig from Mr. Grant, the hor"„-dealer. At breakfast, in the cofiee-roora, before starting, my attention was attracted by a cleanish-looking white gentleman swinging in a Yankee rocking-chair in the middle of the room, chewing his cud, and digesting his morning meal. "Good morning, sir, good morning," he began, eyeing me from head to foot with a calculating glance; "from Ilamerica, I presume ?" " No, sir, no." " Lately harived in the country, sir '( " " Yes, sir, quite lately." " Ah, from Ilinglaud, no doubt : native of London, sir ? " " From England, sir, but not a native of London." " Ilin the harmy, I pre- sume V " No, sir, not in tbe army." " Business, IHR. BACON. 13 perhaps V "No, sir, travelling merely for pleasure." " Ah ! very pleasant, very pleasant. Not seen much of the liisland, yet, I presume 1 " " No, not much." " Been in the Ileast, yet, sir V "Yes, sir, I have been in India." " Hindetd, sir, but I mean the bother bend of the hisland." " Oh ! I see — yes, I have just returned from St. Thomas." " From what part might I bask?" "Golden Grove." "Staying with Mr. A , the proprietor?" "Yes." "Then, sir, I presume you are ^Ir. G ." " No, sir, my name is Coke." " Ah ! boh ! hindeed 1 Ah. I thought so." "Why didn't you say so then ^" I thought, but did not speak it. We talked till uiy breakfast was over. He was going to the east end, and . (ffered to take any letter or message for me to the '• notber gents." I accepted his offer, and in return he gave me a letter to be delivered on my way to Falmoutl It was a choice composition, and very likely he was rather proud of it, for be gave it to me to read. It was addressed to one " Dear O'Shornosy," stating that " the bearer Mr. Cook being anxious to inspect all the curorsities of the ajasent country, he had men- tioned that delightful sight, the cave, to him, and in consequence of which he Mr. C was anxious to see the same, and if dear O'Shornosy could spare I 44 EWARTON. time, he, O'S., would oblige him, J. B., to accompany the gent." The letter concluded with " a kiss for Miss Paddy O'Shornosy," and was subscribed J. Bacon. — Mr. Bacon, as I have already stated, was proud of the letter, and I am quite certain if he ever sees it in print, he will be proud of that too. At least, he cannot be offended, for I herewith beg publicly to thank him for his kindness, and express my regret that the torrents of rain which descended on my head for several hours after we parted, washed aAvay all possibility of seeing either of the " curorsities " — " O'Shornosy," or " the cave." Passing through the Bog Walk I put up my horses for a couple of hours at Ewarton. Without doors everything was wet and dull, and the only source of amusement was to smoke a cigar out of a window, opening into the farm-yard. Quick or dead, all its con- tents looked equally woc-bcgone. The dog shivered in his kennel. The turkeys' tails were too heavy, or the birds had not pluck to keep them from draggling in the mud. The cocks and hens too were wretched, and after thuir wont on like occas'ons, stood comfort- lessly under shelter of an idle j^ig or cart, now and then balancing themselves on the tips of their toes, making spasmodic efforts to shake their feathers dry. CROSSING MONT DIAVOLO. 45 Even the monkey, usually a cheerful and sociable being, was lamenting with shrugged shoulders the gloom of the morning — not venturing to look abroad unless some restless-minded pigeon happened to flop heavily on the roof of his house, when, his instinct getting the better of his reason, he always wetted his jacket in an attempt to catch hold of the pigeon's legs. In course of time the heavy rain settled into a heavy mist, and, on the principle of ' anything for a change,' I made John, my nigger-coachman, put the horses to, and left for the Moneague. Happily the sun gra- dually dispersed the mist, giving me some noble views as I crossed Mont Diavolo, the only pass in the range of mountains that divide St. Anne's from St. Thomas in the vale. Hereabouts the whole country is a sea of hills and dales, which recalled to my mind the scenery in Borneo and the islands of the Eastern. Archipelago, though far tamer, and with much less of variety in vegetation. The inn at the Moneague was much better than could be expected in so outlandish a spot. Things were dear, but one was glad to pay any sum for accommodation where it was so acceptable. The next morning I left the main road to St. Anne's, and took what is called the ' grand interior,' for Falmouth. Why 'grand interior' I cannot 46 JAMAICA — GRAND INTEIUOU. understand : — at hardly any point in it is there room for two vehicles to pass one another, and most part of the road is covered with grass — not an indication of much traffic. Twenty-five miles from the Mon- eague we came to Brown's Town. My reminiscences of this place, if they depend on my breakfast, are not likely to be agreeable. One egg and a stale piece of dry bre:id was all that could be got for a famished man. From Brown's Town, which is at the foot of the mountains, the road is strikingly uninteresting, when compared witli»that of my yesterday's journey. The only object that prevented my faUing asleep was a poor little laml) I passed by the road-side, with six or eight infernal John-crows or Turkey-buzzards strutting round it, impatiently waiting till their victim had lost the little strengtli it yet was able to exert in its own defence. Sometimes these harpies would make a threatening hop to within a few inches of the lamb's head, and weak as it was it seemed to be aware that the moment it ceased to move they would cease to wait, and turned upon them the most piteous looks, imploring them at least not to begin before their time. In the afternoon I reached Hyde Hall, a property HYDE HALL. 47 belonging to an old college acquaintance. We were delighted at meeting again, and had a most pleasant tete-a-tete after Yas an undcniahlc proof of it, that his mines produced ten times more metal than the Spanish. At Cobrd there is a celebrated church whither people from all parts of the country flock, at stated periods, to perform a pilgrimage to the shrine of its patron saint — the Virgin. Amongst other decorations and effigies in this church, is a rude figure of the Virgin, ornamented with valuable jewels and richly attired. Iler under garments arc changed once a week, and the office of w^ashing them is consigned to the Padre's sister. Numbers of pictures of the Holy Mother as she appeared to the favoured inhabitants of Cobre, and models of distorted hmbs, to remind her of those cases most worthy her atten- tion, are also suspended from all parts of the walls. A sj)ecial train was provided for my return. There were eight miles of tramway from the mines down to the coast, and as the decline was very rapid, our speed was equal to that of a " Great Northern express," with no other power to propel ns than a loaded car to give impetus to our descent. On turning an angle in the road, a herd of goats happened to cross the line ; I thought we should aOATS ON IIMLWAY. 53 certainly bo upset, but our speed saved us; wo ran over the goats, leaving thcni sprawling on the road, some of them cut fairly in half by the wheels. That afternoon, I left San Jago in the "Guadalquiver" steamer, for Trinidad do Cuba. Passengers from almost every nation were on board ; of my own countrymen, three beside myself. Some time ago I had made up my mind to perform this voyage in a coasting vessel ; finding a nice little steamer starting at the right moment, and getting a whole cabin to myself, was a piece of good luck I did not look for. At present the only objection- able part of it is the food ; the dinnei', especially, is execrable ; everything stinking abominably of garlic, and cooked, I would swear, in the same oil that is used to grease the engine with. The sea is beginning to be rough, and none but the " old stagers" are proof against these smells :.ad the motion of the vessel. 19^//. — Coasting the whole day with land very close at times. Found " Pendennis" and Mr. Van- dervoort, an American, very agreeable company. Mr. B was a bore, because he thought every- body else a bore. B is evidently travelling to cure a nervous complaint. He might as well take 54 THE QUEEN 9 GARDEN. water for tlic dropsy. Ho has conccivocl a dislike to anotlicr passenger, and whenever this man appears B disappears, cither behind the funnel or headlong down the hatchway. His bugbear is a Yankee. He trembles lest he should bo put out, extinguished, with tobacco juice, and the Yankee takes shots between the bars of his chair. B takes notes of everything, lie is a walking statistic. He carries in his i)ockct a folio of memoranda fis b'g as a volume of the British Encyclopa}dia. Ho goes every five minutes to dis- cover how many rotations the wheel is making in one ; talks mysteriously of the signs of the times, and oxpresses infinite reverence for the public press. He execrates the whole herd of novel writers and novel readers — thinks there is no fun in Punch — feels seasick, and takes — a note. 20//'. — We are amongst " the Thousand Islands," or the " Queen's Garden." The water is like quick- silver, and there is not ;. cloud in tne sky. On every side little green spots seem floating peacefully in an atmosphere of blue. The vessel distiu'bs a shoal of flying fish, and a flock of black ducks sail round us, . astonished at the intrusion of the smoking monster. At sunset wo dropped anchor not many miles from Santa Cruz. TRINIDAD — AMERICAN CONSUL. 55 2\st. — At noon, wc arc in tlic harbour of Trinidad. It is Washington's birth-day, and the American ships are decked from their trucks to the water witli stars and stripes, and with the flags of all nations. Vandervoort introduces mo to the American Consul and I get a cast in his volante from Casilda, where we landed, to the house of a Spanish friend of mine, one Juan Andre. My friend was staying at his country-seat, two leagues from Trhiidad. While waiting for a volante at the town-house, my patience and small talk had to undergo a severe ordeal in listening to the d'^11 remarks of a person, who I believe was some connexion of my friend's. A la West Indian, we sat and smoked, and smoked and sat. As a matter of course, nothing further was proposed. Amusement in the daytime is a thing unknown. Only now and then I was cnUvencd by the glimpse of some young seilorita in her morning deshabille, as she rushed past the door, or peeped from beliind the pannel at the " Inglese" stranger. The room itself was, perhaps, the most interesting subject for contemplation. Like the women's dresses, it was built for comfort and coolness, but with this diflbrence between them — the Spanish women only wear furni- ture in the evening ; the rooui all the 'l;iy. The 56 DINNER PARTY. floor was marble, tlie walls frescoed, the big folding- doors handsomely carved ; large mirrors were not wanting, nor chandeliers, nor pianofortes, nor China jars, nor Parisian clocks, nor alabaster statuettes, nor a variety of pretty nicknacks which would complete an inventory fit for the use and ornament of the house of any man of wealth and taste. My new acquaintance and I were both beginning to yawn when the volante was announced. I jumped in and was driven to Juan Andre's chateau. The party assembled consisting of his brother, two cousins, the foreman of his sugar-works, and his gamekeeper, (the two latter in their shirt sleeves ;) were on the point of sitting down to dinrer when I arrived. Preparatory to feeding, each persoii went througli the ceremon\ of washing his hands. In truth, there was not much beyond ceremony in the matter, for these ablutions were pei'formed consecutively in the same basin and in tlic same water. The table-cloth, evidently quite used to it, served as the towel, and the maxim of " every one for himself" was soon put into practice. The whole business was novel to me, and therefore amusing. A mure particular person, troul)led with a (lolicato stomach, might not have appreciated the jirranacmont with tlie same dejrrec of trusto. The CLEANLINESS. 57 dishes were necessarily all Spanish, and, excepting the indispensable ingredients, oil and garlic, it would have puzzled a chemist to determine what did or did not enter into the composition of these infernal messes. Every one helped himself or his friend with his own knife and fork ; and, as often as not, dispensed with even this formality, using fingers for all purposes. Betv.een every dish — I might almost say between each mouthful, a "golpe" of tobacco smoke was inhaled. Upon the top of all a layer of cheese and syrup, or cheese mixed with coffee, was deposited ; no doubt, aS a species of police against disturbances or disagreement in the regions destined for the reception of this heterogeneous imUe. When all had eaten enough, or too much, as the case might be, the horses were ordered, and a good shaking ride on pacing ponies was inflicted to the neighbouring plantations. CHAPTER II. Guha. — Don Jueto C. — Cock-fighting. — Political jealousy of iho Cubans and llo Causes. — Present Miserable Condition of the Country and its Prospects. — Causes wliicli menace the Dominion of Spain. — Sunday in Cuba. — Dinner at tbo American Consul's. — Ride to Arimao. — A Night in ihe Ilen-roost. — Ratabano. — Ethnological Discussion between two American Gentlemen. — "All Britisliers have an Accent, a Peculiar way of Speaking." — Ilavannah by Railroad. — Public Execution. — Garrotting. — A Hardened Sinner. — Carnival at the Ilavannah. — Passage from Hava^nah to Charlestown. — The Gonvis Snob as found in America. Fehnmri) 22nd, — Early in the morning Juan Andi-c took mc to a high point, whence I had a view of his property. It extended as far as the eye couhl reach, and was covered with cane. This, however, was not a tenth part of the property belonging to the family, or rather to their step-father, Don Justo C , one of the richest men in Cuba. Don Justo is the owner of six large estates, upon each of which is a complete establishment, including a residence house, and sugar works fitted with the latest improvements in ma- chinery. The aggregate number of slaves cmj)loycd on these estates exceeds two thousand. CUBAN JEALOUSY. 59 Before breakfast wc were entertained by Juan Andre with a cock-fight, and some cock-training; afler breakfast wc took horse to visit some of his stej)- fathcr's plantations. In this country it is esteemed a particular mark of favour to bo permitted, as a foreigner, to penetrate a single mile into the interior of the island : so jealous are the Spaniards of the influence of extraneous principles, more especially of those likely to be entertained by English or Americans, as subjects of governments so widely differing from their own. Indeed it is not a matter of astonishment that a dishiclination to criticism should exist, where any comparison with other countries must so painfully expose the prominent defects in their own. The pitiable state in which the Cubans now are, is only equalled by their prospects for the future. There is hardly a country which the Spanish powers do not regard with distrust and suspicion. Many of the wealthiest proprietors in the island are secretly aiclmed to invite their neighbours of the North, but doubt and fear restrain them. AH, however, seem aware that the Siianish banner will not wave many years longer over the Queen of the Antilles ; and few Cubans arc there who will lament, or desire to avert 60 CUBAN POLITICS. the change. Compelled to raise resources for the mother-country, and to maintain those agents who exact the payment of them, they caress the rod that scourges them. Considered as a treasure presently to be lost, and of which the most must be made in the meantime, they have no feeling but hatred for the Spaniards of old Spain ; and in the event of a struggle, though Cuba may not gain, Spain must undoubtedly be a loser. On the four or five plantations I have seen here, the slaves are exceedingly well treated. They have good houses and good food, fresh meat every day, and, judging from appearances, are in a happier condition than are, at present, the free men in our colonies. 2^rd, Su?ida?/. — Took volante and drove to town, and, by way of spending the day profitably, sat five hours in a cockpit. Alas ! it is the fate of travellers sometimes to " do at Rome as Romans do," and as Trinidadians when in Trinidad : besiJcs (for a lame excuse or two), there was no Protestant church in the place, and cock-fighting can't be seen to perfection every day in the week ; and so — my friend being a man who fights his three or four cocks ever} day, and loses his twenty ounces as often as any body — I could not well do less than sit out the performances COCK FIGHTING. 61 from beginning to end, and tire myself, and be disgusted with a disgusting and cruel exhibition as it was. But to describe 4t : — The circus holds about two hundred people ; the instant the birds are brought in, every one of these two hundred commence backing their opinion as to the result of the combat, not alone with money, but with screams, yells, gesticulations, and every sort of means which the excitement of the moment can suggest, short of knocking each other down. Silence is restored by the first few " cuts and guards " of the wary belligerents, till one, generally the elder, makes a feint and succeeds in planting his spur in the eye of his adversary. Whereupon the whole two hundred again perform the scene of the commencement, M'ith some slight variations in the odds and their feelings. A good chicken Avill finish his work in three minutes, but, if himself badly wounded, may peck and peck till the other, suddenly roused, makes one tremendous effort and drives his two spurs through the neck of the assailant. Again tlie multitude get up to scream and the odds come down. There is more noise, more smoke than ever. While the betting is going on, the " bottle-holders " pick up the now equally enfeebled combatants ; suck and hck their bleedinjg heads, as if they were putting I 654 SLAVES WORK NIQIIT AND DAY. barley-sugar into their mouths ; spirt water in their foccs, shako them up, and once more set them in battle array. But they arc* both quite exhausted, and unless one is lucky enough to be killed soon, they go round and round till one dies by degrees, almost without the trouble of being killed by a blow. Such is cock-fighting ; and such is the only pastime, the only object, the study and recreation of the fjentlcman of this part of the world. Three days of every week are spent in the cockpit, they talk of nothing else, and think of nothing else the remaining four. 25^A. — Drove out to call on Don Justo C before breakfast. He showed me over one of his sugar manufactories ; it was on a larger scale, and more perfect than any I have yet seen. They make no rum here, but the molasses undergoes an additional course of I'cfinemcnt. The sugar is purged with wet clay, and drains through small porous jars. It is of a much finer quality than that made in our islands, and is nearly white. On all these plantations the slaves work night and day during crop-time. They are divided into two bands. At evening, when " the curfew tolls the knell, &c.," the night band take their spell, and are relieved at the end of twelve hours by those who work in ihe day. Don Justo CUBAN BEAUTIES. 03 pressed me to stop for dinner ; I willingly did so, tlio more willingly because I recognised, among other meinbers of the family, two of the peeping apparitions of the town house. One a tall young lady with an oval face and largo black eyes ; the other a middle sized young lady, with what Haji Baba would have called a " moon face," and large blue eyes. The tall one was rather sentimental ; the short one particularly merry. You may call me " spooney " if you \vill, but I solemnly protest I never saw two such pretty faces before. Of course I mean two such pretty Spanish faces. No one who ever heard with what pathos I sometimes, in these remote corners of the earth, whistle the tune of " the girls we left behind us," or knew with what genuine sentiment we wanderers mix our first glass of grog on Saturday nights, to the never-forgotten toast of " sweethearts and w4ves," would ever think of accusing irio of — well never mind. There are some people who need not bo jealous of even Spanish beauties, and without any " odious comparisons " in the matter, I still persist in thinking, that, for a pair of scfioritas, these two have not their match all the way from Cadiz to Corunna, and back again. The only thhig I could think of all dinner time was, " How happy could I be with either. 64 THE LOVELY SISTElfS. were t'other dear charmer away." I would defy a man to fall in love with one if the other was there too. Both were so })retty yet so unlike : if the shoi't one had the sweetest little mouth and the prettiest little dimples at the side of it, ever seen, the t
i<^cment is carried out with every steamer that comes here ; and, though all abuse, none attempt to amend it. Certainly, Batabano sta)^.ds in much need of custom and improvement; for a more wretched place to stop a day in cannot be imagined. At a billiard-table, or rather the billiard-table, I fell in with two Americans, whom 1 soon became acquainted with, — as they saved me the trouble of introducing myself, by a discussion that arose amongst them as to what country I belonged to. One thought I might be an Englishman — the other was sui-e I was a Yankee ; so it ended by the ques- tion being put to me, " Whether I was a ]3ritisher or nof?" When I gave them the information they requii-ed, both said " it was very strange, for now they heard me talk they did not observe I liad any English accent." I said I thought it would be very much more strange if I had ; upon which tiioy assured me " all Britishers had an accent — a peculiar way of speaking English : they always cut their words so short." Like all Americans I have met, they were agreeable enough if humoured a little, and FIRST VIEW OF THE HAVANNAH, 71 perfectly civil if civilly treated. In the evening wo congregated on board the steamer which was to take them to Cicn Fuegos, and played four or five rubbers of whist until they sailed. A:th. — Went by train to the Ilavannah. Carriages pretty fair, but slow ; three hours going thirty-seven miles. Road uninteresting ; country flat. Few cocoa-nut trees, thousands of palms — the same as in Jamaica are called Mountain Cabbages. The first view of Ilavannah, from the south side, is not unlike an Eastern city. The yellow walls and flat-roofed houses, the low and dusty-looking country, the sea, the hoi sky, the strings of sumpter mules, the dark- complexioned natives — all aid the illusion. May a closer intimacy not destroy it ! Who can delight in the West after travelling in the East '( I have now been five weeks in the Havannah. What I have seen or done in that time convinces me that one or two is quite enough for all ordinary purposes of interest. In five weeks a person may learn to put up with much discomfort, to smoke much tobacco, to waste much time, and to sj)eak a little and miderstand less of the worst-spoken Spani^b. Besides the Opera, a l)and which plays every evening, and the Dominica Cafe, there are no 72 • THE HABANEKOS. means of amusing oneself. For foreigners, at least, there is no society, and I believe hardly any amongst the Habaneros themselves. This, perhaps, is the less to be regretted, as no one who has seen a little of them can wish to see mure. As a general rule, they are ignorant, profligate, and nnprincipled ; full of arrogant pride, without any sense of honour; if in office, ever ready to defraud the Government, and, from the highest to the lowest, open to the most unblushing venaHty. They gamble till they lose their last coat, and then would sell their skin to keep a volante. Isolated from the rest of the world, HaA^annah is all and everything to them ; and you might as well talk metaphysics to a cow as attempt to persuade them that any capital in Europe may be named in the same day with their own. What, after all, have they to boast ofl Their buildings, say they, are the finest, their Opera the largest, their Passeo the longest, their equipages the best-appointed, their men the bravest, and their women the prettiest that ever were seen. In the first place let me tell them, if there be any truth in the above statements, it is wonderfully economised ; and next, if they have anything to be proud of a bad time, so it appears, is in store for them, when they will have TIUi; CAMPO DEL MAllTE. 73 to leave off bo.asting, and take to getting their living in more creditable ways than tbey do at present. A day or two since I got ])crmission to visit a criminal in the capilla of the town prison. He was to be garrotted the following day, for having robbed and mnrdcrcd a boy. lie looked a terrible ruffian, and made signs to me, as he was not billowed to speak, of stabbing and being strangled, shrugging his shoulders at the same time, and smiling with the most cold-blooded indifference. That '• conscience makes cowards of us all " was for once not true : the man had no conscience to make a coward of him. A priest was in the capilla, and two sentries guarded the door. The morning of the execution I was at the Campo del J^Iarte before daylight. The crowd had already assembled, and the tops of the houses were thronged with people. The women, with their fans in their hands, occupied the front rows of chairs, in order to see better the horrors which were about to take place. By squeezin^T; and pushing I managed to get within eight or nine y.ards of the machine, where I liad not long been before the procession was seen moving up the Passeo. A few cavalry were in front to clear the road ; behind them came the host, 74 A PUBLIC EXECUTION. with a number of priests and the prisoner on foot, dressed in white ; a large guard brouglit up the rear. The sokliers formed an open square. Tlie execu- tioner, the culprit, and one priest ascended the steps of the platform ; the prisoner quietly seated himself, but got up again to adjust the chair and make himself more comfortable I The executioner then arranged the band round his nock, tied his legs and arms, and retired behind the post. At a word from the priest the wrench Avas turned. For a single instant the limbs of the culprit were convulsed. The head was kept perfectly erect by a sort of iron prong beneath the ears. The face, which remaiaed uncovered, was horribly distorted ; the eyes were closed, but the lower jaw was pulled wide open, and the blood, which immediately blackened all the features, oozed from tlu^ iriouth and fell in large drops upon the white sk.irt. No exclamation, no whisper of horror, escaped from the lookers-on. Such a scene was too familiar to their eves to excite anv feeling but curiosity; and had the execution taken place at the usual spot instead of in the town, few would have given themselves the trouble to witness it. The body remained in the machine till four in the afternoon, exposed in the greatest thoroughfare PASSION WEEK AT HAVANxNAH. 75 of tlie town — a disgusting Trionmnent of this civilising process of tlie nincteontli century. The end of Passion Week is rather an interesting time to be in the Ilavannah. The throe last days are kept with great ceremony. From Thursday till Saturday no quadru})eds are allowed within the walls of the city; and long processions, headed by the Captain-General and all the officials in full uniform, parade the streets, from church to church, several times each d;iy. On Friday an effigy of the Saviour is carried about, accompanied by a regiment of troops with their arms reversed, a band playing a solemn march, and a train of priests bearing emblems of tlie Crucifixion. On Sunday a mock resurrection is acted. The figures are most grotesque; and, indeed, the whole ceremony is more to be reo-arded as a painful l.irci', than as an affecting remembrance of what it is meant to represent. Last night a masqued ball was given at the town. Everybody was there, disp(jrting themselves in id I'ubbiiiir off the whitewash of tl mo tley, 110 ly \\ eek The theatre was handsomelv "<>ot up. though not to be compared to Drury Lane in the In the centre of the floor was hands of JuUien a raisei .stage, upon which small companies of 76 MASKED RALLS. Catalonians, \vlio manage tlio whole affair, perform in turns various divertissements, aecording to their taste. These companies are called Conipa.sos. Each assumes some particular costume, and, with their own bands to play for them, dance, attitudinise, do the acrobat business, or play the fool, till the next party is ready to take their places. They then leave the stage with the applause or di3a})probation of the spec- tators, and mix in the dances which are going on at the same time in other parts of the house. The opposition bands which play the contre-danscs are of the worst possible description. They seem per- fectly indifferent to either time or tune, and for the most part the loudest instruments are played without music, and apparently after the caprice of the artist. The masks were one and all poor and shabby. Some of the more eccentric might be seen with smudged faces and unclean shirts. An original idea ! — sub- stituting dirt for a fancy dress. As to the women, there literally was not a pretty face in the room, i. e., there were none to be seen, and T take it for granted if there had been a beauty she would not have kept her mask on all the time. Two more of these balls arc to bo given : any moderate man would, I think, be satisfied with one. PROM HAVANNAU TO CIIARLESTOWN. 77 In taking leave of tlic Ilavaniiali I sliould remark for tlic benefit of tliose who come after me, tliat of the hotels Woolcot's is the best and Fulton's perhaps the worst. Everything is enormously dear and the only luxury to be liad without paying for is the sea baths at the Punta. On the eighth we took our places in the " Isabel " steamer for Charlestown. D. is now neai'ly recovered after a long and severe attack of fever. A. has joined us from Jamaica, and a great friend of mine who came here after travelling through the States is also of the party. — The last of these goes with us to New York. He and I talk of crossing the Rocky Mountains, and making our way to Cali- fornia. At present this is only a scheme, but it is one I have long wished to faifil. How it will turn out I do not yet know. Two other Englishmen had taken their passage in the •' Isabel," but vre have started without, them. The third morning from the day of our departure we arrived at Charlc&town, having per- formed a voyage of 7G0 miles in sixty-two hours. This is perhaps one of the quickest sea voyages that can be made. The l)oat happened to be very fast, and the gulf stream along the coast of Florida runs northward, at a rate of three or four knots an hour. From Charlestown we went by steamer to New York, 78 G- STinCTURER ON THR YANKRKS. not bcinji: stroiii2: cnouuli to mulertakc the journey hy land. We all find tiie change of climate disagreeable ; eight days ago we were in the tropics, and now we have ice in the streets. 25///. — It is settled that my friend Fred, as I shall hi future call him, goes with me to the Prairies. So that since oiu- arrival here, our time has hocn chiefly occupied in making preparations for the trip. Any observations I might be tcmjited to make on New York, or even I am inclined to think, on any of the civilised parts of the States, would probably be neither novel nor interesting. I am not ambitious of circulating more 'American notes,' nor do I care to follow in the footsteps of Mrs. Trollope. Enough has been written to illustrate the singularities of second-rate American society. Good society' is the same all over the world. General remarks I hold to 1)0 fair play. But to indulge in personalities is a poor return for hospitality ; and those Americans who are most willing to be civil to foreigners, receive little enough encouragement to extend that civility, when, as is too often the case, those very foreigners after- vAards attempt to amuse their friends on one side the Atlantic, at the expense of a breach of good faith to their friends on the other. Every one has his NEW YOIJK SNOBi^. 79 prejudices : 1 freely confess I have mine. I like Loudon better than New York, but it does not therefore follow that 1 dislike New York, or Americans either. I have a great respect for almost everything American — I do not mean to say that I have any affection for a thorough-bred Yankee, in our accepta- tion of the term ; far from it, I think him the most offensive of all bipeds in the known world. Yankee snobs too I hate — such as infest Broadway, for instance, genuine specimens of the genus, according to the highest authorities. The worst of New York is its superabundance of snobbism. The snob here is a snob " sui (jencris," quite beyond the capacities of the old world. There is no mistaking him. lie is cut out after the most approved pattern. If he differs from the original, who or whatever that might have been, it must be in a surpassing excellence of snobbism which does credit to the progressive order of things. Tuft-hunting is a sport he pursues with delight to hims "If, ba •, without remorse or pity for his victim. It is iccessar}' for the object of his persecutions to be constantly en the alert, lie is frequently seen prowUng about in white kid gloves, patent leather boots, and Parisian hat. Whenever this is the case he must be considered dangerous and bloody-minded, IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) /. ^ I I.I 11.25 l:i|2£ |2.S ■ 50 IW^^R 12.0 I4£ 2.2 1.8 U IIIIII.6 V] <^ ^a 7 ^ # ^ JV ^^^ Photogiaphic Sciences Corporation 23 WEST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, N.Y. 14580 (716) 872-4503 '"^i^

f tlic Missouri. — Fort Leaven- worth. — Prairie. — Anticiption and Fruition. — Moral Character of Mules. — Village of Sav.innah. — The Prairie at Last I — Ginger Beer and Chocolate on the Plains.—Mormons going to tlic Salt Lake. — Reach Council Bluffs. — Trader's Point. — Major Barrow. — Ilorsc- Racing on the Plains. — Leave the Major. May 28 ; m ! or it. CHAPTER IV. Reach the Elk-Horn Ferry. — Pleasures of Raft-building. — Mosquitos. — Sickness in »V.e Wilderness. — Doubtful bow far we shall get. — Mouldy Biscuit-dust and Rancid Hani. — Nest of Skunks. — Antelope Venison washed down with muddy pond-water. — Battle with the Buffalos. — Dreams of Home. — Buffalo Beef and Sparkling Foiintain-water. — Mode of Breaking-in young Mules, practised by the Mexican Indians. — Desperate Quarrel. — Awful Storm, and a Night in the Wilderness. — Speculations as to " where we are." — Rattle- snake capital eating. — Drooping Party, vicious Mules, grumbling Servants.— Cheered by the Sight of Ch'mney Rock. — Arrive at Ash-Point by swimming the Platte River. — Indian Lodges. — Mode of Preparing a Day-feast by Mother and Child. — Breakfast with party of Traders. — Arrival at Fort Tjaiiniie. June '^\st. — The Camanche mule got loose and ran back ; we all joined in pursuit, but were unable to catch her. Jim, the half-breed, followed her to Council Bluffs, to which point he prophesies she will run whenever she gets away from us. Weather very hot, and all the little streams completely dry. Reach the Elk Horn, and find the ferry broken up by the Indians. Jim returns with the Camanche, and says there is a report that the Pawnees have sent to the Sioux, giving intimation of our movements. Camp It '■ I ' IJl PLEASURES OF IllVER SWIMMING. on the banks of the river, cand arc nearly devoured in tlie night by the clouds of musquitoes. Distance, twenty miles. 22)id. — The first thing in the morning begin to construct a raft. There was jjlenty of green timber, but not many logs dry enough to float. When wo had collected a sufficient number, we lashed them together with lariats, and embarking about 300 lb. weight at a time, ferried over the baggage. The animals were not so easy to get across. Some of us were obliged to swim the river (which was sixty or seventy yards wide) eight or nine times, taking one horse at a time, or driving two or three by flogging and shouting behind thom. By the time they had all crossed, it was too late to continue our march ; so we lighted our fire at a short distance from the river, to avoid the musquitoes. These tormentors were, however, almost as bad this night as the pre- ceding one. All night we were uttering against them the most vehement execrations, which nearly worked us into a fever without succeeding in keeping them away. 23rd. — Up at half-past three, but not able to start before seven. As the mules went a little better, Fred and I turned into a wood to the left of the FINDING GAME. 115 road. The only thing we saw was a turkey, which we chased for some distance, but could not get a shot at. Did not halt till five o'clock. This is a good day's work. Not far from our camp are a number of huts made with boughs. Jim pronounced it to be a spring village of a party of Mohawks, who have just gone " on the hunt." Distance, twenty- eight miles. 2^th. — It was my morning watch, and I was up at one. At half-past three I called the men, and we got away at half-past seven. It rained hard all day, much to our discomfort ; and to make matters worse, the packs came off about eighteen times. Saw five deer ; we had a long run after them, and Fred's deer- hound, " Killin," nearly pulled one down. The sight of game put us in a better humour. This is almost the first time we have seen any, notwithstanding that the country we have travelled through is beautifully wooded and watered, and covered with the finest grass. Stopped in a deserted village, like the one of yesterday. Slept under a lodge, and had a good night without musquitoes. Distance, twenty-five miles. 25^A._Fred and I left early to hunt. Put up several deer a long way from us, and stalked three ; but mistaking the look of the hills, which require a I 2 f K| ili 116 THE MEN FALL SICK. practised eye to recognise, we crawled for half a mile on our hands to see tiio deer feeding in quite a different direction. The moment we raised ourselves to look about, they left us to laugh at our stupid miscalculation. The heavy rains had made the prairie very swampy, and once or twice we were nearly bogged in riding across the country in search of our camp. We joined our companions shortly before dark upon the bank of the Loup Fork, a strong stream about a hundred yards in breadth. Incessant storms the whole night drenched us to the skin, and soaked through the tarpaulins into our baggage. Dis- tance, nine miles. 26th. — Made a large raft, and crossed the packs in two voyages. Had a difficult task to persuade the horses and mules to take the water. Moved five miles from the river, and camped under three large cotton, trees. Had neither wood nor water to cook with. All the party rather out of sorts. Our two best men, Louis and Jim, are very unwell. Nelson, Avho is a most willing and hard-working fellow, is unused to the sort of hfe, and wants to turn back. As to Jacob, his utter uselessness is a constant source of provocation to me ; and the parson's indif- ference, and Fred's misgivings, make the chapter of I'ACKING MULES — KID GLOVES. 117 our miseries complete. The mules are not much better off than we are ; five of them are suffering from severe back-sores, and all of them object strongly to carrying the packs ; they frequently cast themselves in the night, and get their legs badly cut with the picket ropes. It seems after all doubtful how far we shall get. Some of us talk of going on alone. I hardly know which would bo most un- pleasant, to advance or to turn back. 2*7 th. — Camanche ran away. We tried for two hours to catch her, but were obliged to give it up as hopeless. The mules travelled worse than ever. Generally speaking, we have all stopped whenever a pack required to be re-arranged. To-day we did not do so ; but continuing the march, left a couple of men to follow when they had put the disordered pack to rights. In this manner our party was split into four or five small ones, which were travelling in straggling order, sometimes with the distance of four or five miles between them. The one or two mules that had kept up with Fred and me, at last kicked off their loads, and we found it no easy matter to lift them on again ; the trial was a severe one for his white kid gloves, but when the grey mule, the most vicious of the band, flew at him and bit him in the II 118 TRAVELLING LUXURIES. leg, I firmly believed he wished that individual ouimal, and the whole of its race, in some unpleasant country which he mentally hoped might be no better than Jericho. By the time wo had decided upon an encamping ground, all hands were in a humour by no moans accommodating. We had fasted since yesterday morning, and felt, without acknowledging it, a con- siderable dash of the wild beast in our compositions. The clouds of musquitoes did not improve our tempers, and the horses bleeding at every pore, from the flies, fidgetted and fretted till we were ready to flog them from vexation. Our supper, bad as it was, acted as an immediate restorative ; and, with pipes in our mouths, we good-humourodly confessed, that if there was a luxui'y in the v.orld, that luxury was mouldy biscuit, dust, and rancid ham. Distance, thirty miles. 2^th. — A tremendous storm lasted several hours during the night. In the middle watch we all turned out to make a cover of the tarpaulins, and, huddling together under these, slept pretty well till day-light. Left the Loup Fork to the right, and struck northward for a broad belt of timber which we supposed to be on the banks of the Platte. The prairie before us was level as far as we could see. ANTKLOPE HUNT. no Tho grass is long and rank, and in many places boautifnlly interspersed with small flowers. Tho soil is a rich loam, and if drained would no doubt produce most luxuriant crops. Observed two antelopes feeding close to the roail. Fred and his deer-hound, Killin, gave chase to the old one, and Louis and I turned and rode after the fawn. For a few hundred yards the little antelope kept us a long way behind, but the speed and superior strength of my grey pony was more than a match for its weakness. Finding mo gaining on it, the poor little creature discontinued its straight course, giving Louis an opportunity to head it back upon me. It did not know which way to fly, and dodged from one to the other till wc closed in upon it. When within a few yards of me I fired from my saddle, but missed with both barrels of my rifle. The report warned it to make a struggle for its life, and away it bounded with Louis in full pursuit behind. It was amusing to watch the race ; the more so, as Louis's horse was too slow to leave any doubt for the deer's safety ; but the young hunter was eager to establish his reputa- tion as a sportsman, and spared neither wliip nor spur in his eagerness to come within shot. At last Louis perceived the object of his affections was 120 DEATH OF KILLIN, rapidly increasing the distance between them, and with a feeUng of despair let go the reins to take up his rifle, when the horse put its foot in a badger's hole, and seiit its rider flying over its head. This catastrophe, which took place in presence of all the camp, was particnbrly discomfiting to the French- man's vanity, and he returned to the road with downcast looks, much to the amusement of the lookers-on. Fred's sport had been equally unsuccessful, and more disastrous in its consequences than ours. He had followed his game for more than a mile, and had come ap with Killin just in time to see him drop down in a fit. The day was excessively hot, and the dog had been suffering for want of water before we had seen the antelope. Fred jumped from his horse, and tried in vain lo recover the hound; it wagged its tail as its master called it by name, and then it died. This was a sad loss. Killin was a iavourite with all of us. He was a present to Fred, and had accompanied him for some time in his travels through the States. Poor dog ! it is perhaps better for him to meet with this sudden death, than be reiierved for hardships we ii.now not of; in any case, the chances are that no dog survives so long a journey as this. SHOOTING THROUGH MUSQUITOES. 121 Shortly before sundown I got a shot at some deer lying in the long grass, on the banks of a stream. While I was stalking them, I could ha'-dly see or breathe for the quantity of musquitoes; they were always in my eyes, nose, and mouth. The annoyance of these httle wretches was so great, that I could not possibly manage to steady my aim, and consequently missed two of the easiest shots I ever had. Distance, twenty-five miles. 29n f<:H m v/ith the ■I PLEASURES OP THE CHACE. 123 party. My only chance was to strike the trail, and, fortunately I was successful. In hunting for a con- venient place to cross a small and muddy stream, I came to the very spot where my companions had crossed. They had proceeded for some distance through a swamp, so that I was able to follow them until T could see th j road. I was delighted to get my poor little grey again on a respectable path; and I am sure his satisfaction, when he recognised the tracks of his friends, was equal to mine ; he pricked up his ears, and made an effort to trot that was quite incompatible with the limping condition of his leg, which obliged me to walk by his side and give all the assistance I was able. There was about two hours of daylight stil) remaining, and I felt that to overtake my party I had an ordinary day's journey all before me. It is astonishing what an appetite a hard day's work on an empty stomach will give a man in the prairies. I was quite prepared to walk twenty miles rather than go without food for another twenty-four hours, and stepped out accordingly, to get as far as I could before darkness should prevent me from discovering my camp. The road wound over a succession of hills, and every time I surmounted one of these it was only to be disappointed with a fine i24 A LONG RIDE. view of more hills before me. Near one of their summits was lying the. carcase of a dead buffalo, upon which a wolf had been enjoying his supper. He fioemed to have had his fill and to be now indulging in pleasures of digestion. I almost envied the brute, and should have been tempted to try a steak had not the meat been rather high. When the plains opened upon me no signs of camp were visible, the wooded banks of the Platte I guessed to be ten miles from the foot of the hill. Most likely Fred would not have stopped till he reached the timber. The tracks in the plain seemed by t)ie faint light to be very fresh, but the pools of water through which they passed became so frequent that I expected every minute to lose them entirely. At last, before and behind, and on either side of m.e, the country was deluged with water, in places two or three feet deep. The musquitoes swarmed in thousands, and the poor little grey could hardly get one leg before the other ; I was so feverish that I several times filled my hat from my horse's back and took a long draught at the thick stagnant water. On coming to a little knoll about an hour after dark, I twice turned to spread my horse-cloth for the night, but the thoughts of what both the anir ■>] and I should RANCID HAM. 125 suffer from musquitoes urged me to press on. Still the pools continued. It was too dark to look for tracks. Had I met with another dry spot I should have made it my bed. Of a sudden my beast gave a neigh and quickened its pace ; I looked up and though I could see nothing, recognised the sound of voices ; in another minute a Ught was struck and I was at home. The quantity of rancid ham I consumed on this occasion made fliU amends for the length of time I had fasted. Fred told me that he camped as soon as he was able, not only on my account but because he had had a severe fall from his horse, and was suffering great pain from a bruise on his knee. Distance thirty miles. 30th. — Woke in the morning soaking wet, and was surprised to find that I had slept through two heavy storms. While at breakfast an antelope came and stared at us from the opposite side of a creek upon which we were encamped. He was not more than twenty yards from us, and kept his stand till we had snapped seven barrels at him ; fortunately for him the rifles were too wet to go off, and he walked away apparently unconscious of danger. Carried the packs over the creek and started at twelve o'clock. Louis went hunting in one direction, the parson and 126 TOMB IN THE DESERT. I in another. We brought home nothing, Louis killed a duck and a badger. Passed the grave of an American who died in April, 1849. It is a lonely place to be buried in ; a small piece of deal box is his tombstone, and nothing more durable than pencil writing records his name and fate. After all, his tomb receives more real homage than those of many greater men. Thousands yearly will pass and pity him. Forded a creek that we supposed to be Wood River. Jim, the half-breed, shot a wolf that visited us ai supper time. Distance fifteen miles. JuUi \st. — Last night the thermometer was at 38°. This is the lowest it has been with us yet. Stopped all day supposing it to be Sunday ; of this, however, we are not very sure, as there is much difference of opinion on the subject, and some afiirm positively that it is Tuesday. Whatever might be the day, we wanted rest and found it most refreshing. The general occupation, washing clothes, cleaning rifles, baking bread in the ashes, and bathing in the evening. 2mc?. — Roused the men early and were travelling at half-past six. Saw a vast number of buffaloes' heads and bones. I left the road and followed Wood River for seven or eight miles; the stream WOOD RIVER — THE PLATTE. 127 made a tortuous course through a level prairie, its average breadth was about thirty feet and depth about five. The cotton woo«l tree, the elm and the alder, all of which I observe are most frequently to be met with, here grew in tolerable abundance. Prom Wood River I crossed to the Platte on the other side of the road. The only game I got near to was an elk ; it was close to me, having come to drink in the river ; I had plenty of time to observe it, and as well as I could judge it resembled in all points the red deer of Scotland, with the exception of its horns, which were considerably larger than those of any deer of its size. I was preparing to take aim when the horse I had been riding finding itself free, started off" at full speed ; in an instant the elk disappeared and I was left to catch my wild mare if I could. Luckily the prairie was intersected with a number of ditches a yard or two wide, and while the mare hesitated to jump one of these I caught her. In returning to the party I accidentally rode over a nest of skunks. There were two old and five young ones. The stench they emitted infected the atmosphere for a circumference of nearly a hundred yards, and ray horse's hoofs smelt offensively for many hours afterwards. In the night we heard a drum 128 HUNTING ON THE WOOD RIVER. on the other side of the Platte. It may have been beaten either by emigrants or Indians. One of the men believes we are in the neighbourhood of Fort Kearney, and thus accounts for the strange sound in the wilderness. Distance, thirty-two miles. 3rd. — Jim who slept out joined us in time to assist in packing. Nelson and I went out hunting, rode all day by the side of Wood River, eight or nine miles from the waggon trail, saw several deer and thousands of prairie dogs. In the afternoon we came unexpectedly upon an antelope. He saw us immediately, but as quick as possible we were off our horses with our rifles cocked and raised. He trotted towards us to reconnoitre and stopped more than two hundred yards from us; I at once gave the word to fire high, and both together. The two rifles made but one report, the antelope made a bound and fell. We shouted with joy and were running to cut his throat when the horses took fright and bolted. We well knew how difficult a matter it was to recover them, and what the consequences would be if we could not do so. Down went our rifles in the grass and away we went. A long chase we had, but caught them at last, and then went to pick up the rifles, but no rifles were to be found. Hour after hour we hunted, PICKETING HOUSES — MUSQUITOES. \i\) measuring the distance and taking every probable bearing from tlie dead deer. We walked in line, we rode in line, we kicked the grass and let the horses kick it, but all to no purpose. To lose one's rifle would be as sad a misfortune as to lose one's horse ; however as long as the game lasted we determined to remain. But to this extremity we were not destined to be reduced. I desired Nelson to return with me to a place from which I had steered by compass. From this point I took exactly the course I had before taken, and keeping our eyes fixed on the ground we pulled up with the two rifles within a yard of our horses' feet. We soon butchered the antelope, a fine fat buck, and taking each a half behind our saddle, with the tongue and deUcacics of the inside hung at the bows, set out in the best of spirits for the road. We found the tracks of our mules, but could not tell how far they were a-head. We went about eight miles, then turned to a stream near the trail and camped. After picketing the horses close to our heads we made a pillow of half the deer, shared one blanket between us, and fell sound asleep. In the middle of the night we were awoke by musquitoes just in time to see the horses break their lariats and run away. When we had 130 SPY BUFFALOES. caught them, we could not find our blankets again till day-light. Distance, twenty-one miles. ith. — Reached camp at 8 a.m. The party were breakfasting, but at the sight of venison, the first that had been brought in, every one assisted in pre- paring for a good meal. Louis and Jim, being the oldest hunters, were considered great authorities in the culinary department, and officiated with profound dignity upon the loins and steaks, talking with an amiable pomposity, as they turned the meat upon the " broche," of wonderful feats performed by nous autres en haut. The only part I thought worth eating, was the fry. As for the rest, it was so tough and of such remarkable high flavour that none but the initiated could appreciate its merits. In the course of our march this day, we observed some black objects on the prairie, which our spy-glasses discovered to be buffaloes. It is impossible to describe the state of excitement we were in. Masters and men all wanted to leave the mules and go after them. Fred was so eager that, notwithstanding the pain in his leg, he would not wait till I had loaded my pistols, but in- sisted that the buffaloes would go before he could get up to them. Persuaded of this we galloped over a mile of prairie ; but so far from it being necessary to BUFFALO HUNT. 181 exhaust our horses in this manner, the buffaloes did not get on their legs till we were near enough to shoot at them. At first sight they seem to be the clumsiest animals in the world ; a large rolling mass of black hair — one wonders that a horse is obliged to gallop to keep up with their canter. My mare is not very fast, and already blown she found it hard work to gain upon the fugitives. The herd consisted of five bulls ; the largest of the lot soon separated, and I followed him, while Fred kept to the others. When near enough I discharged my rifle, and struck the bull in the flank ; taking no notice he dashed on until I pressed him so hard that he turned and snorted at me Reining up I took a deliberate aim and placed a ball behind his shoulder, but a little too high to bring him down. Fred Avho had also wounded one, came to my assistance and continued the chase, while I dismounted to load. We '^on caught him up, and waiting till he turned, I again fired at his shoulder, and Fred hit him in the leg. I put the contents of my second barrel into his ribs, and left Fred, as I thought, to finish him. Still he held out, and by the time I got my tired mare up to the besieger and besieged, the latter was at bay, unable to go farther, and neither of us had a bullet k2 m I * 182 NO WOOD — NO .SUPPER. left. At last tlio buffalo staggered away, an;, Jim, who was the hettei" swimmer of the two, reached the hank with toleral)le ense ; hut while he laughed at me puffing and blowini^, I had considerable difficulty in getting out of the middle stream. Wet shirts and mocassins were not, strictly speaking, very full uod, which termi- nated without loss of blood, but not without some expenditure of good feeling on all sides. It is shocking when people quarrel about little things, where so much give-and-take is absolutely necessary to the merest approach to comfort ; but, upon experience, I am convinced there is no severer trial of a man's temper than such a journey as the one we have undertaken. In reality, every circmnstance connected Avith it is provoking and disagreeable, and it requires a constant and vigorous effort of the mind to delude oneself into the idea that one is performing a romantic and heroic act. Now. when a quarrel arises, and we are told, in language more forcible than J 70 STALKING WILD (IKESK pulite, that the whole trip from be^iiiiiiiig to end is a decided and ridiculous failure ; that we individually heartily wish we had never heard of Californias and Rocky Mountains; and that, moreover, we consider each other, without any exception, as the most disagreeable and most provoking companions in the world, the liicts arc so startling as to suggest the possibility of their being true ; and all noble reso- lutions which one is incessantly making to behave like a man, are shaken suddenly to their foundation by the undeniable fact of somebody having behaved very like a fool. Stalked some wild geese, and shot one of them ; they were marked like what is commonly called in England the Canadian goose. After dinner, Fred and I started to hunt with my two horses; the chestnut I got in exchange at Fort Larimie, and the black mare, which has now quite recovered from her severe wound ; we took with us a little pack mule called, from its colour, Strawberry, and packed our blanket" and provisions for two days. We rode eastward for about seven miles, till we came to a camp of Mormons ; here we found one of our mules that escaped a few days since, and paid the jjcople who had caught it three dollars to take it up to our men. Striking BANKS OF THE HWEETWATEK. 171 thence for the Sweetwater, we continued along its banks for eight or ten miles, and took oif the sadtUe.s in a picturesque spot where the river runs through a pass in the mountains. The day was stormy, but cleared in the evening, and a rainbow appeared more perfect in form and colour than any we had ever seen. We remarked at the time, " We shall always remember this 12th of August by that beautiful rainbow." In the afternoon we had observed several herds of antelope and deer, but did not stop for them, as our particular object was to take advantage of our last chance for buftalo. The spot we selected for our bivouac was everything we could wish. Perfectly sheltered, abundance of excellent grass, plenty of dry wood, and a clear running stream. The surrounding scenery was magnilicent, and the night promised to be fine. We picketed the horses close round us, and cooked a leveret for supper which I had shot on the way ; with this, and a slice or two of raw ham, we made a delicious repast, and disposing ourselves side by side upon one buffalo skin while wo covered our- selves with another, we thouglit, as we watched the stars through the curling smoke of our pipes, if there were no greater hardships than such as we now 172 MOUNTAIN SHEEl' — MISSING ANTELOPES. experienced, that this prairie Hfe wuiikl nut bo so bail after all. I3t/i. — At tlaybrcak 1 roused Fred, and soon after five we were following the river in a southerly course. We had not gone far before I saw four antelopes feeding in a bend of the river ; dismounting, I approached to within about \~)0 yards, fired both barrels, and missed. My vexation was so great at this misfortune, that I felt I should not regain my confidence all day. Wo are by this time i)retty good shots with the rifle, and to miss a deer is considered quite a disgrace. For some hours we found no more game ; hundreds of deer had evidently been drinking at the river ; where they now were we could not tell. When we came to the mouth of the Sweetwater we crossed the Platte, and ascended to the high ])lains above the river. In every direction we searched for buffalo, but, alas ! could see none. We were sadly disappointed, and had no alternative but to retrace our steps. On our way home Fred had a sliot at an antelope, and missed it ; I also fired at a young one that ran straight up to me, but distinguished myself as my friend had done, much to the disgust of both of us. When we descended again to the Platte, we LEAVr: lNl)i:i'KN'I)F,NCE HOCK. 173 halted to breakfast, and slept for an liour, while the horses luxuriated in the long grass. Towards evening we met two young Mormons, bringing down a mountain sheep which they had shot on the hills ; these sheep are in their habits like the chamois, — they live amongst the highest peaks, and jump from rock to rock with the greatest agility. They are long in the leg, and have coats of sandy - coloured hair, exactly similar in texture to the deer's ; their horns are enormous, and as twisted as a ram's ; they are shy and difficult to a})proach, but well worth the trouble. The hunter of the Far West prefers their meat to that of any other animal. As we nearcd our home wo remarked two Indians mounted on horses ; they no sooner saw us than they turned and galloped off in a contrary direction. Had we seen them sooner, we might have saved ourselves the trouble of looking for buffalo ; as it is, we must k(;'']) a sharp look-out for our hoi-ses. William and the p.Ti'son had been out hunting, but did not get back til eleven o'clock. 14///. — liCave Independence Rock all very much out of sorts ; one of the men told a lie about a certain pack ; I liad accused him of putting some heavy things out of his baggage into mine, which he stoutly IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) Y // {/ A .S"^^ A u.. .^ 1.0 I.I |2B |2^ in 2: i;a IIIIIM 1.8 IL25 i 1.4 11 1.6 m 10 ENGLAND AND PAllTllIDGES, VERSUS THE rUAIRlE. of the valley we turned to the west, and continued to ascend till we came in sight of a valley still broader than the one we left this morning, The river we should have supposed to be the same, but here it flows from north to south, and the course of the other was vice versa. For some reason I cannot account for, 1 felt a nervous presentiment of danger, and went to sleep with my pistol under my head. I liad, however, no occasion to use it, nor was I disturbed till daylight. I suppose the lingering effects of my fever were the cause of this unusual feeling. For the life we lead is singularly calculated to overcome anythuig approach- ing to timidity, and, indeed, one becomes careless of perils which at other times might be foreseen, but do not now demand immediate attention. It is well for us that it is so, for quite sufl&cient for the day is the evil thereof. Distance, thirty- two miles. September 1st. — A hot day, and the road vcrv dusty. We thought of England and the partridges, and pictured to ourselves sundry individuals up to their knees about this time in the turnip fields. It struck us that their occupation was preferable to ours, and the question suggested itself, what on earth, or rather what in California, had brought us all this way TRAVELLING BUCOMINO TIHESOME. 211 from the partridges to make ourselves misui'ablc upon short commons and convict labour in a desert. It was difficult to find a satisfactory answer to this posing query. People talk about the erratic predisposition of the Anglo-Saxon race. If the Anglo-Saxon race have an innate affection for stubborn mules and rancid ham, the natural consequences of being dis- satisfied with railroads and roast beef, I am perfectly ready to respect their self-denial, but cannot admire their taste. Certainly, I am an Anglo-Saxon, and very proud of it too. But with all due deference to the founders of that respected race, I would repudiate my connexion with them at once, if I thought they had entailed upon me no more comfortable legacy, than the faculty of seeking discomfort in every quarter of the globe. Yet what other reason can I give for being here 1 If I ever had one I have forgotten it now. I believe I had as a boy romantic ideas about Chingachgooks and Longuc Carabines, but where they have got to now. Heaven knows ; perhaps they are infusing ideal vio"ons of buffaloed prairies and moccasined Red-skins, with all their paraphernaha of scalps and tomahawks into the juvenile minds of future wf iiderers in the Far West. Alas ! that familiarity should be so e:reat an enemy p2 ill 2I;J CAMP ON BEAU RIVKR. to romance. Alas ! that the last of the Mohicans did not hvc till tho 1st of September, 1850. Well, if I have no reason for what I have done, I believe there are plenty of people in tho world to keep mo company. And, perhaps, some day, who knows, T may fight my battles over agairi — my battles with mules I mean — and not bo sorry that I had a good chance of improving my temper, and of learning that there were things to bo thankful for besides railroads and roast beef, be they never so grateful to John Bull. At six o'clock wo encamped on Bear River, in a thick clump of willow brush. The little black mule wo could not catch, so left her to carry her pack all night, a just reward for her own folly. Distance, twenty-eight miles. 2nd. — The morning was cold and fogi^y. The ground was covered with a hoar-frost tlift made tho ropes stift' and painful to handle. However, the pace we travelled soon made us warm, for we trotted and galloped along at the rate of seven miles an hour. The country was barren and dry, and the grass com- pletely scorched up. Coming to a grove of cedars, we overtook Potter and Morris, who have joined company again. They were looking for some soda springs, which they had been told were at a place VALLEY OF UEAU UlVEtt. 218 like this. From the description we heard, we also thought they must have been hero. Tiie ground was white with hnio ; wo were at the head of the valley, and the river ran through a pass between two high rocks. The scenery corresponded exactly, but we could not find the springs. Continuing through the pass wo came to two roads, one leading to the north, the other to the west. On our left hand was a high cliff, on the right a low range of hills, and before us a large slightly undulating plain. These remarkable features at once showed us our position. Wo had entered the valley of Bear River. The high rock on our left was called Sheep Rock. The road to the west was one of the most northern branches to California ; that to the north led to Oregon. By this time we had, for various reasons, the lateness of the season amongst the number, given up all idea of California for the present, and made Oregon our point of destination ; so, without hesi- tation, we turned to the right, rejoicing that we could not be more than sixty or seventy miles from Fort Hall. At noon we came to a large basin, on the road side, about ninety feet in circumference and five or six in depth. The bottom was perforated with numberless small springs, sending forth jets of 214 THE SODA SPRINGS. clear AVcater, strongly impregnated with soda and carbonic acid. At first the taste of this water was acrid and unpleasant, but a little use made it drink- able, and even agreeable. It reminded me of flat soda water, but more nearly resembled Seltzer, wanting only a dash of rotten egg to render the flavour altogether similar. The basin itself and the ground surrounding it are composed of a scum which forms upon the surface of the water, and, accumu- lating at the edges, crystallizes and becomes exceed- ingly hard. The animals, like ourselves, soon became accustomed to it; and though at first they jerked away their heads the moment the fizzing liquid touched their noses, they finally drank it in such large qupntitiei that I was quite prepared for a case of spontaneous combustion. After resting here for two hours, we hurried on till dark, when, leaching a small stream, we turned off the road, but found the ground too swampy for camping. A little further on was a thick cluster of willows ; amongst these we took up our quarters for the night, choosing a shel- tered spot to protect us from the wind. William was much alarmed about his mare, which nearlv choked while feeding. Found this evening that wd had left the spoon and the fork at Soda Springs ; OVERTAKE EMIGRANT TRAIN, 215 rather unfortunate, as the only knife I have left is more than a foot long, and big enough to cut down a small tree. Distance, thirty-five miles. 3rd. — A sharp frost in the night. Passed camp- fires still alight. Since the emigrants had left them this morning, three bears, a mother and her two cubs, had followed them on the road for more than a mile. I should think the track of the big bear's hind foot was at least ten or twelve inches long ; the marks of the toes and claws were so plain in the mud that we were expecting to see them every minute. In the u\iddle of the day we overtook the emigrant train, consisting of six waggons. They were the same party that William belonged to when he left the States : he had forsaken them, thinking ho should travel quicker some other way, but, after all, had not gained much by the excha .^e. The emigrants told us that Fred, whom they described, had passed them two days since ; therefore we shall catch him at Fort Hall. Leave t]:c waggons, and seem to be getting out of the mountains. In this vast country, all its features are on a large scale. A month or tv/o back we were constantly travelling in prairies, till we got tired of them ; now we have had just such a dose of mountains, till we should be 216 SAGE BUSHES AND BURNT WEEDS. happy to compromise by meeting with a Uttle of our old feed and constant water, instead of heavy hills and barren pastures. Potter and Morris overtook us while fording a little stream with a muddy bottom. We looked about here for grass, but its banks pro- duced nothing but sage-bushes and burnt-up weeds. So we turned oflf the road, and encamped upon the slope of some hills, where the dry tuft grass was tolerably plentiful. My blankets I spread in a deer- path, which, fitting to the back, made a most com- fortable bed. Distance, thirty-two miles. Mil. — Started early, expecting to reach Fort Hall to-day. For fifteen miles we travelled through a desert, with the sand up to the horses' knees. It was hot and heavy work ; and, from the appearance of the country, where wild sage, grease wood, prickly pear, and weeds were the only signs of vegetation, one might have thought that a cettlement would be the ' .Ai thing to look for. Suddenly the scene changed. A fertile valley opened below us : at the further side of it ran a broad river, thickly studded with large cotton-wood timber. Near the river was a cluster of buildings, which we joyfully hailed as the Fort. After puzzliiig our way through a laby- rinth of winding rivulets, in one of which William TRADERS SETTLEMENT. 217 was bogged, we rode up to tlic houses, and were disappointed to learn that we had only reached a traders' settlement, and that Fort Hall was five miles further on. The settlement was not, however, so unwelcome, but what we could afford to enjoy some oi' its advantages, in the shape of dried elk and mi ;o meat, and allow our horses 9 couple of hours to browse upon the comparatively rich pasture in its neighbourhood. If it had not been for my anxiety to see Fred, I should have stopped where I was ; but thinking he might leave before we arrived, I pushed on to a spring two miles from the Fort- Distance, twenty-three miles. 5th. — Was waked by Jacob, on his way back to the emigre 'it train, in hope of getting provisions from tliti ! " t'lere were none to spare at Fort Hall. This wa*- \,n-''- i ,ws indeed, as we had not above a week's provisions left. Availing myself of the chance, I « :sii*ed William to accompany Jacob, and, telHng Jacob that WilUam, as an old friend of the party, would be more likely to succeed in ].urchasing anythi • the emigrants did not need for themselves, promii,..(' to chare equally all we got, if he would do the same by us. They left together. In the after- noon. Fred passed, on his way to the traders' settle- 218 PORT HALL, ment, as there was nothing at all to be got at Fort Hall. I was delighted to see him again, and, on his return, walked with him up to the Fort. We both agreed that, though not much happier since our separation, we had tra> i ^ 'early twice as fast as we did before ; and thougi^ 3 temptation, at least on my part, was strong to reunite, we thought that probably, in the journey before us, we should more than ev^er find the advantage of being in small parties. When I reached the Fort (this is a real nom de guerre for a very ordinary mud edifice, walied in with adobes), Mr. Grant, the commander, was bask- ing on the shafts of a wagon in front of his portals. His grey head and beard, portly form, and jovial dignity were a ready-made representation of FalstafF, and would have done justice to the character on the boards of any theatre, without the adscititious bolsters and bass voices generally considered requisite to support it. A more satisfactory specimen of " the old country" could not be wished for. He shook my hand as if he had known me for half a century, and conducted me to the sanctum of his castle. Here we met a family party, consisting of Mrs. Grant, apparently a most serviceable wife, two grown-up A GREAT SUPPER — DITTO BREAKFAST. 219 sons, and two or three very pretty little daughters. At supper I imagined that my prairie appetite would alarm the domestic circle, for I ate new-laid eggs and drank new milk till I almost astonished myself ; but when the second course appeared, and I was expected to keep pace with my worthy host in demolishing hot rolls and duck-pies, I felt quite ap^'-imed of my ' own incapacity, and could only applaud with veneration an example I could not imitate. When the repast was over, and we had chatted and smoked to a latish hour, I took my leave, sighing at the remembrance of my hospitable reception, and walked back to my camp. Fred went with me home part of the distance. After he left me I lost my way, being misled by the fire of some Indians, and was an hour or two before I could find my companions in the dark. Qth. — Breakfast on trout at Fred's tent, and am surprised to find it so great a luxury to be waited on. His three men — he has engaged another man, called Slater, since he came here — keep everything as clean and tidy as possible ; and Nelson, who was always a good cook, and a good fellow besides, was most assiduous in his attentions, supplying me with hot fish and clean plates as handily as a London waiter. 220 INDIAN VISITORS. With US it is quite another story : there the motto is, every man his own cook, and dirty dishes for us all. After breakfast I returned to take charge of the camp, that the parson might walk up to the Fort. One of his objects in seeing Mr, Grant was that he might get some fresh horses, to take him on. He had not long been absent when I received a visit from two Banack Indians. Their company annoyed me very much, for it obhged me to watch them closely the whole time they remained, for fear they should steal our things, which were spread to dry in the sun. When an Indian pays you a visit, and squats on his haunches in the middle of your camp, he generally manages to seat himself near some object which he has a fancy for, and takes the first opportunity of conveying it unseen into the folds of his blanket or buffalo-skin. From the Banacks I bought some dried meat, a pair of moccasins, and a bag of the dried leaves of a weed smoked by the Indians of this country. 7th.~Judna gave Mr. Grant a cheque for three hundred dollars in exchange for two horses. They are both in pretty good condition, and of a better size to carry his weight than any he has hitherto possessed. Three hundred dollars is a high price, and I have no PAHEWELL TO PORT HALL. 221 doubt the Hudson's Bay Company do a good stroke of business in the course of the year by their trade in horseflesh. Bought some trout of an Indian, and cooked them for my breakfast ; smoked kinek kinek out of a red stone pipe all day long, and enjoyed the real luxury of gratifying necessary rest. William returned without any provisions, but with a promise from his friends of flour and bacon. Some Indians, passing by as we were trying to catch the mules, were pressed into our service for the occasion. They readily assisted us, and were of the greatest use. It was amusing to see them catch the animals, grown quite wild with their repose and good feed. They galloped after them at full speed, and when within reach of the lariat ropes which dragged from their necks, let themselves drop like monkeys from their own horses, snatched up the rope, and vaulted on again. We stopped at the Fort as we passed it, to say farewell to Mr. Grant, and pay for a cheese which an Englishman had made for me. About sunset we left, with directions to follow a blind path till we reached Port Neuf river. Several times we lost our way in the dark, but at last got to the water. Distance, eight miles. %th. — Discovered the first thing this morning that 222 PORT NEUP RIVER. the two new horses had gone back, and that the pack- cover and a new lariat were left behind. Julius returned to Fort Hall, to see after them. In the meantime William and I amused ourselves by fishing in tne river : we caught some fine trout, of two or three pounds' weight, and cut a quantity of red willow bark, for smoking. In the afternoon Julius came back with the horses. Potter and Morris passed us. We were not able to move, as the mules had strayed some distance from the camp. 9///. — Up before daylight. Had a long search for the animals ; travelled through low swampy ground, having to cross several bad sloughs, in which the horses sank to their necks. At noon we halted on Snake. Hiver, by a large spring. Near this William shot a duck and two sage-hens. Soon after leaving the spring we reached the American falls. They are extremely picturesque, and immediately below them the river runs through a mountainous range, remarkable for its beauty of outline and the curious basaltic formation of the rocks. The columns of basalt are as perfect here, though not so large, as those of the Giant's Causeway. The soil is of the poorest nature, producing no grass, and not even sage bushes. Towards dusk we began to feel alarmed for SAflE nUSlIKS. — SAHARA. 223 our canimals, but by the greatest luck I discovered a small green patch in a deep ravine, at some distance from the road. We refrained from lighting our fire till a late hour, lest Potter should see it in passing. The motive was shockingly unchristian-like, but there was positively little more than a mouthful of grass for each of ours, and if that had been shared by the others, they would all have starved. Distance, twenty-eight miles. \Oth. — The morning was cold, and the horses very troublesome, but we travelled at a good pace, and halted at noon upon a small stream where a trail branches off for California. Our course kept to the northward, and a miserably interesting one it was. For sixteen miles the surrounding desert rivalled Sahara for barrenness. I often think that a good honest desert of sand would be infinitely superior to this filthy admixture of sand and sage bushes. There is something strikingly unromantic in a sage bush : it is a unique emblem of sterility. It reminds one of nothing in the world, either pleasant or unpleasant, unless it be of the peculiar smell of and the peculiar dust, which invariably adheres to the ivy that hides a coal-hole in the back-yard of a Brompton villa. 224 SAND — DUST — WILLIAM ON HORSKBACK. The road was rocky in places, but generally knee- deep in the finest possible sand. A strong and very cold wind blew dead in our teeth, and filled every pore, and covered us from head to foot with the dust. William presented such a ludicrous appearance that the parson and I burst into fits of laughter every time we looked at him. An old felt hat, fastened on by a red cotton handkerchief, tied under his chin, partly hid his lantern-jawed visage ; his face, naturally of a somewhat melancholy cast, w^is screwed into wrinkled contortions by the efforts he made to resist the piercing wind. The dust, almost as white as flour, had settled thick upon him ; the extremity of his nasal organ being the only spot which, on account of its prominency, retained its pristine tint and bright- ness. A pearly drop occasionally descended from this salient point, and lodged upon a chin wiiich, if possible, protruded beyond the nose ; his shoulders were shrugged up to a level with the top of his head, and his long legs, dangling from the sides of the smallest of mules, were not more than an inch or two from the ground, apparently quite independent of the owner, and giving him a marked resemblance to a hobby-horse in a masquerade. The animals were quite as much annoyed by the wind and dust as the OVERTAKE THE EMIORANTS. 225 rest of us, and ran about as if to avoid it, giving great trouble to drive them along. About sundown we came up with the emigruiit train we had met the other side of Fort Hall. They were encamj)ed on a small stream, in a marshy bottom, below the plateau of desert, which divides this creek from the last. We stopped and supped with them, upon buttermilk and bread. They complained bitterly of the hardships of this life, lamenting their folly in leaving comfortable farms in the States for the uncertainty of finding better in Oregon. They seemed to thnk their troubles Avould never come to an end. They had already been more than four months on the march, and they had got a long way to go. Their oxen were suffering from the stony roads, and the men were tired of their labour. We encouraged them as much as we could, and, by comparing our case with theirs, proved to them that there were others in worse predicaments than they ; which most people, when aware of, think a subject of congratulation for themselves. We told them that however slow they travelled, they had their homes and famiUes con- tinually with them. They were all, more or less, used to some hardships, and driving oxen in a waggon was no harder work than driving the same oxen in a '' m £86 WE PREACH TO THE EMI0KANT8. plough. They had plenty of provisioius ; their wives baked them good bread, for they carried stoves with them ; they were always protected from the weather, for if the ground was too wet, they could sleep perfectly well in their covered wagons ; whereas the labour of packing mules three or four times a day ; the impossibility of sending, as they did, one of the party in advance to choose a camping ground, and the consequent uncertainty of sustaining the animals ; our weakness, if attacked by Indians ; the fatal results that would ensue upon the sickness of any one of so small a party ; the want of provisions, and the constant exposure from being entirely without tents, were evils which, when combined, were what few emigrants had ever undergone, and which, when compared with theirs, should remind them of the many advantages they possessed. Distance, thirty- two miles. l\th. — Bought 14 lb. of bacon, 15 lb. of hard bread, and three loaves, all at a reasonable price. It is fortunate for us that these emigrants had provisions to spare. We had none left of our own, and there are no wagons behind that we could fall back upon. After breakfasting with the emigrants, for which we had to pay three dollars, Julius and NO FOOD, NO GRASS, NO WATEIt. ;>!J7 William each left a horse to be brought on with tiie wagons, and we started, having nothing now but serviceable cattle. My little black mare, Gipsy, as I call her, is the only remaining one of all the animals we bought in the States. Bad as was her wound from the buflalo, and constant as her work has been, she still carries me faithfully. Made fourteen miles through sage, and nooned upon a small creek with ■^rate grass. Dine off raw ham and water, without bread. At nine, we camped above Snake River, without a morsel of food anywhere near. Distance, twenty-seven miles. \2t/i. — No change in the country. Have to ride eighteen or twenty miles before we find water or grass. The road was full of pointed rocks covered sometimes a foot deep in loose dust. When I took oh' Rebecca's saddle, at noon, I observed a small sore place, about the size of a sixpence, on the skin over the back-bone. It is almost impossible to ride an animal all day and every day without chafing it somewhere. I had hoped that the thick skin of a mule would escape the certain fate of all horses ; but this nasty place on the tender part of her back distresses me beyond measure. I know so well from experience the dreadful progress of that little sore. 22S A MILE FROM SNAKE EIVER. Four of the parson'& horses have been killed by degrees from the effects of these deadly -wounds ; and already I see myself deprived of the invaluable services of the best animal of our bancl. In the afternoon, we travelled by the stream we halted upon, till it Kunk into a canon and became inaccessible for eleven or twelve miles. After dark, we arrived at an opening, which enabled us to get to the water, and descending, we took off the packs in the hollow. Distance, thirty miles, ISt/i. Rose reluctantly. It is hard work to be up at daylight every morning, camping as we do, several successive nights, after ten and eleven o'clock. How- ever, there is no help for it : nothing but patience and perseverance will bring this drudgery to an end. Stopped a mile from Snake River, and about the same distance from the trail. Owing to the height of the banks above the river, we wore not able to give water to our animals, and with difficulty pro- cured a pailful for ourselves. Two miles further on the road brought us close to the edge of the cafion. Here we discoveied a small path, and descending a declivity of nearly eight hundred feet, arrived at the bottom just" before dark. While searching for grass, we lost sight of Rebecca and Gipsy, and were obliged SCENERY OP SNAKE RIVER. 229 to leave them for the night, and go two or three miles down the river. Fine grass was growing in great abundance, but in consequence of the long drought was so salt that the horses could not eat it. Distance, twenty-two miles. \Uh. — Sent William up to the road to look for my journal-book, which I left there last night. Walked eight or nine miles up the canon to seek for Gipsy and Rebecca. The mare I found in some willows ; the mule was hiding herself amongst the rocks, half-way up the bank. Rebecca's back was worse to-day ; so that I am obliged to pack her and ride Uttle Strawberry : a bad exchange for me, as he has never been ridden before, and does not like having a bit in his mouih. The track by which we came down last night being too steep to ascend, we followed the river along the bottom of the canon. In some places, it was a diflBcult matter to get the horses on ; but bad as the road was, I would rather travel ten miles here than five by the beaten track through sand and sage. The scenery at this part of Snake River is most extraordinary, and by no means devoid of beauty. The banks are often supported by basaltic columns, from six to eight hundred feei high. Tbe river. 230 FIND A PARTY OP SNAKE INDIANS. which averages three or four hundred yards in breadth, is deep and clear, with a fine sandy bottom, perfectly free from all alluvial properties. This is evident from the barren nature of the soil which it inundates. Unlike other countries, the nearer the water the less fertile is the land. The whole region bears undoubted indications of volcanic action. The rock is perforated or honeycombed like a cinder, and, where tlie walls of the canon have given way, large quantities of vitrified matter may be found amongst the crumbled mass. The dust, also, on the surface, too fine for sand, appears to be the ashes of ante- diluvian eruptions in a pr'.crised state. Leaving the river, we struck a track which V)rouglit us to it again at a camping-place. We halted here for three hours, and started about seven with a full moon. Crossed a rapid stream, and trotted along in high glee at the rate of six miles an hour. Shortly before midnight we were attracted from the road by a hght. On riding up to it, we found a party of Snake Indians. Some of them were engaged in drying salmon. Others were asleep upon the ground. We gave them a small flask of powder, and picked out half-a-dozen fish. They seemed perfectly satisfied with the bargain. THE SALMON FALLS. 2S1 although powder was not of the slightest use, as there was no rifle or gun in the party. An hour after we left them, we came in sight of the salmon-falls. They are formed by a succession of rapids, extending more than two miles down the river. The body of water which runs over them is immense. At a point where the river again becomes smooth, the road ascends rapidly, winding along the brink of the precipice. From this spot the view was magnificent. The moon shone brightly upon the rushing waters a thousand feet below us. The deep shadow of the high cliffs falhng upon the bends of the river, contrasted in their impenetrj-ble darkness with the brilliancy of the reflecting foam. The vast plain, which we overlooked, fading in the soft light, rose gradually into a low range of distant hills. The continuous roar of the rapids, and the desert stilness of all else around, combined to produce an effect upon the mind more imposing than the sight of the great Niagara. As the moon went down, the clouds gathered thick in the west, and frequent flashes of lightning were accompanied by large drops of rain. It was too dark to proceed, and the threatening storm compelled us to camp on the hill. We had no grass and no 232 CHOKING DUST — LITTLE GRASS — NO WATER. water. This continual want of water is the greatest of all our evils, as it is the source of all. It seldom happens that we can make sure of water once in twenty-four hours. And unless this can be done, the horses suffer so much from thirst, that they cannot swallow even the small quantity of food they are able to gather. Our proximity to the river only tantalises without relieving their sufferings. The depth of the strange chasm, through which it flows, entirely shuts out all intrusion of four-footed beasts, and in very I'ew places is it accessible to man without endangering either life or limb. The weak and feverish state of the animals increases their thirst, and the fine flowing dust, which everywhere covers the ground, and rises in clouds as we travel, fills their mouths and nostrils till they can hardly breathe. Distance, thirty-eight miles. I5fh. — Up with the sun. Julius could not find his horses, William had also to look for his. Finally they discovered their animals, but lost each other, themselves, and the camp. All this I observed from a lofty eminence, but was a long way ofi^, and could not, for the colour of the rock, make myself visible to them. Not wishing to waste time, I took the mules, and had driven seven or eight miles before they WATER ACCESSIBLE AT LAST. 233 caught me up. At the first break in the cpiion we descended to the water. Before we got to it, I had a narrow escape from reaching it in rather a prema- ture manner. Little Strawberry, whom I was riding, being in a desperate hurry to get down, took it into his head that the shortest way would be to avoid the regular path, and take a line of his own over the precipice. I, of course objected to this, and struggled to make him follow the leaders ; but a mule is more fond of his own way than of any body else's, and he plunged about till he was within a foot or two of the edge. In another minute nothing would have saved us, when fortunately the girths of my saddle gave •way, and I rolled on the ground. The bridle was in my hands, and making a picket pin of myself, I held on till Juliufs came to my assistance. After quenching my thirst, we followed as we had done yesterday, rather than return to the road ; but we found the path worse than we anticipated. It skirted a steep slope of loose sand, which was continually giving way under our horses' feet. Notwithstanding this, the march was a pleasant one. The river was full of small rapids, and deep pools, and salmon of all sizes were rising in great numbers. On arriving at a small patch of willow brush, we agreed to stop the 234 ANGLING BY THE WAY. remainder of the day, and try our luck at fishing. Close at hand were some deserted Indian wigwams. Taking the longest and thinnest of the lodge poles from these, we supplied ourselves with primitive but serviceable rods. The parson, who was quite the sportsman of the party, produced his reels, and a bookfull of flies ; and in the course of an hour or two we were wading up to our waists, flogging, splashing, and flicking off the flies, but catching no fish, and never indeed getting a single rise. While we were enjoying ourselves in this manner, I asked William to give me a sketch of his life. It had neither been remarkably eventful, nor remark- ably common-place ; but as it is, no doubt, a very fair specimen of the biography of hundreds of his class in this country, I will endeavour to tell it as he related it to me, substituting only a familiar English phraseology, for a less intelligible Yankee one. CHAPTER VII. William's Story. — Salmon Spearing. — Snake River. — Disastrous Crossing. — Danger. — Death. — Marvellous Escape. — Pas Scul, with chorus of Wolves obligate. — Novel mode of wearing one's Shirt. — Indian Village. — Extempore Canoe. — Recross Snake River. — Find Indians. — "Seized of my Gofda and Chattels." —Resume Possession thereof. — " A Trifling Misiake corrected." — Loss of my last Pistol. — Hot Springs. — Boisee River. — Traffic. — Monetary Value of Percussion-caps. — Seductions of Broiled Salmon. — Arrival at Fort Boisee. — A Samaritan in the Desert. — Mr. Craigie. WILLIAM'S STORY. I WAS born at Maumee, or Miami, as some call it, in the State of Ohio. I think it is about forty years ago, but I can't remember rightly, for I never knew the date of my birth. My fathf.r was a timberer, and gained his livelihood by bringi ig rafts of timber down the river, ft-om below Fort Wayne, to Maumee. When I was old enough to assist him in chopping, he took me with him. Four times in one spring we made the trip together. I liked the occupation better than stopping a' home, for when we got up to where my father used to chop, I was always sent into the wood II in 236 William's story. with his rifle to hunt for game. Sometimes I brought home half a dozen squirrels, sometimes a turkey, and now and then I was fortunate enough to kill a deer. I became a good shot, and as fond of my father's big rifle as he was of me. The last time we brought the raft doA\Ti my father fell ill on the passage. After he sold the timber, he took to his bed, and, though my mother — good soul ! did all a \vife could do, the old man died, leaving her, however, money enough to buy a small farm, and me the rifle, a score or two of traps, and his blessing. All that summer I felt the loss of my father, and, being without occupation, got into idle habits, by making the acquaintance of all the idle boys in the village. My mother used to take me to task for being so seldom at home. She said I ought to get employed somewhere near, so that I could be kept out of mischief in the day time, and be glad of a supper and a bed at night. She also said that her neighbour had spread a report that I was com-ting the daughter of an English family that had lately emigrated to this country. She hoped it was not true, for she was sure I meant no good ; and if a son of hers was to be the ruin of honest people, she wished she had never given birth to such a bad boy. Such lectures as these, William's story. 287 which were liberally bestowed upon me, made my home of all places the most disagreeable. When I look back upon that time of my life, I see in the constant anxiety of my mother the real affection she entertained towards me. I remember how she used to cry when I got into any serious scrape, and how she would listen for hours to the tales 1 told of hunting bears below Fort Wayne. But still she scolded me for keeping bad company, and still she talked bitterly of English Mary; and for these reasons I believed that she disliked me, and I resolved in my heart to wait till winter was over, and start with spring to seek my fortune elsewhere. I watched with impatience the breaking up of the ice, and, when the time arrived for my departure, I had no regret in leaving Maumee, except in the strong attachment I had formed for English Mary. Amongst the number of my acquaintances was one Jefferson Blurt on. He was six or eight years my senior, and had already made several trips as a timberer on the Wabash river. To him I had con- fided my intention of making hunting my calling. He w^as a clever fellow in his way, and had always shown me great kindness from the commencement of oiu: intimacy. On this occasion he applauded my 238 WILLIAM'8 story. resolution, and, naming a day, said he should start for the Wabash, and would take me with him. It was finally agreed that, if I proved a successful hunter, we should bring the skins down with the raft, and, by becoming partners in our different speculations, share the profits of the trip at the first place where we could sell our articles. Sunday was the day fixed for leaving. I remember the fact of its being Sunday; for, while my mother was at church, I went home, made a small bundle of my clothes, slung my traps across the old rifle, put four dollars in my pocket, and joined Blurton outside the village. Four days' tramping brought us to the head waters of the Wabash. We had followed an old trail, known to Blurton, till we struck the river ; here we squatted, — Blurton to commence a clearing, I to find meat for us both and skins for the trade. It was a pleasant life we spent up in that wild place. " Jeff' Blurton could chop a cord as quick as the next man, and the old rifle didn't use to crack twice at a squirrel's head in those times. Once I come nigh a fixing myself to all etarnity on the banks of that blessed river. I kep a lot of traps in a swamp whar a heap o' musk rats used fr^^-quent ; it war a high old place for musk rats, it war, but a 'nation bad place. William's story. 889 fix it how you would, for getten up the traps, One day as I was thar, I missed one of the trpps, and couldn't find it no how. Last I catched sight of it stickcn out 'an a house. A reglar screamer had draged it more 'an a rod from whar I set it. Well, I makes slick for this here screamer, when, quick as buck-wheat cakes, I slumped through the moss hags and was up to the waist before I could say, Borsting !" The first thing as I did was to throw the rifle crosswise and hold on by that. It was no use floundering about and wasting lay strength in the mud, so I thought a little, till I remembered that Jeff" couldn't be more than a mile, and began to halloo to him for help. I hallood till I was hoarse, and was afraid that he hadn't heard me after all ; at last I saw him looking for me from the banks of the river, and shouted to him to pull me out. He ran back to his clearing, fetched a rope, and tugged away till I was safely landed on hard ground. About three weeks after this, Jeff" had cut as much timber as would make a ,'7''.od-sized raft, and I had collected a tolerable lot of skins, mostly squirrels' and musk rats'. So, floating the raft, and putting all our things aboard, we started with the stream. It was near a fortnight before we reached Clinton, about a 240 William's stouy. huntlrc'd and fifty miles down the Wubush, and not far from the mouth of Red River. .left' hud sold his timber, onee or twice before, to the owner of u saw- mill at Clinton, and the day after our arrival we went to the same place. The boss of the mill bought Jeff"8 raft, and introduced me to a friend of his, with whom I afterwards traded the skins. My friend and I now had nearly four hun(b'ed dollars between us ; most of the money was paid in silver, and, as JefF was the oldest and perhaps the strongest of the two, it was settled that he should carry it till we got a canoe to take us up the Wabash. Jeff" agreed, when he sold his timber, to help to get it into the mill ; so, when I had got tlu'ough trading skins and given him the money, we set off" for the raft. As we were passing through the town, JefF asked me if I woiddn't liquor. I guessed I would ; and so we went in at the first bar we came to. Having an unusual supply of money, we invited several bystanders to drink with us. The end of all this was that both of us became slightly intoxicated. Jeff Blurton, however, would go to the mill, and when we got there the men were dragging the timber with mule-teams up from the river. T'.ie mill itself was situated close to the bank, and the wheel was turned William's stouy. -iw by a sluice running through a natural channel, formed by a K'Jgc of rocks on one side and the main shore on the other. VVlien ^handed in safety, I started, accompanied by all my watermen, in the direction of my camp. \Mi( ii I reached it, after a long and tedious walk, the par.xj)ected that they had stolen all onr valuables, which had hcvu I laid out to drv after their yesterdav's soakina-. ll HESTITUTION — REWARD. 259 was possible they might be liostilely disposed ; if so, 1 hud better have ackiiowdedgcd the law of possession at once. However, 1 tlionght, 1 can try a stroke of dij)l(nnaey, Avhieh will soon decide this question. The Indians with me expected to be rewarded, but the Indians against me had possession of the rewards. Now if I took my things from tlu^ j)resent possessors to appi'>/^>riate them to n)yself, they might knock me on the liead for my trouble : but if I borrowed from my enemies to give to their friends, they j)erhaps miglit not object to part with their ])lnnder. If, on the other hand, they did object, 1 could set on my frieiids to help tlieinselves, and so get rid of them all on the ])riiiciple uf (he l)atth' of the Kilkenny cats. Poor William's clothes Avere the first objects that attracted my eye. Quietly divesting the j)resent wearer of some three or four of his shirts, J made them over to the old man whom I had first met. Either a respect for his years, or a proper sense of my justice, silenced all connnents on my hehaviom* ; and, taking advantage of their ready submission, 1 repeated the operation of skinning all the interlopers, and bestowing their spoils upon more worthy objects of my hospitality. Having freed them from the burden of all the B 2 mi I I 260 PREPARE TO RESUME OUR JOURNEY. valueless property, besides any itleas they might have entertained concerning their rights to the same, I hunted up my rifle, ana loaded it mth all the haste I thought it prudent to evince. With such n friend 1 was a match for the whole party ; and shoAving the effrontery of conscious superiority, I requested them one and all, in the civilest manner, to retire to a respectful distance, while I arranged my toilet, and restored the camp to order. Late in the evening the parson returned. He had hunted for me fifteen or twenty miles along the river, and had at first given me up in despair. His pre- sence relieved me of all anxiety about the Indians, who began to move ofi^, as their chance of I'utering the camp v>'as less than ever. Julius, good-naturedly, made me some tea, and before turning in, we packed up the remains of our luggage, preparatory lo making an early start in the morning. Never was I more worthy of a blank.. '. ^han this night. The sun had scorched me all over, and my feet were blistei'cd and sore with tlie Httle tliorns of the prickly ])ear. Till midnight I slept like a top, when a disturbance amongst the animals, which we had pick(et(Hl dose to us, caught my ear, [)r(>pared by habit for the :.lightest alarm, and made me jump u|) TAKK THE KOAU. 261 of tO|), bv to see what was the matter. I was hardly on my legs before the horses and mules rushed past the camp at full speed. Calling to Julius that the animals were stampedoed, we seized our pistols and started in pursuit. By guessing at the direction they would take, we managed to get ahead of them. They stopped, and no Indians were to be seen. We were tryhig to account for their sudden alarm, when we observed a wolf skulking away from us. This appa- rition at once accounted for the whole disturbance, for which he would have paid the penalty, but being on tiic qui cice, as well as oiu'selves, contrived to make himself scarce before we could get a shot. When 1 got back I missed my pistol ; I retm'ned to look for it but it was lost. It was the last small-arm that I had, and was moreover the present of a friend. 19///. — We were much troubled by the mules and horses, in consequence of the millions of little sand- flies which bit and teased them. The Indians also, our friends of yesterday, bothered us the whole ti?ue we were putting the packs on, till I thought we never should get away from this ill-fated spot. For some distance the road was hilly and very stony, and we fully made up our minds to meet with the usual scantiness of water and grass ; at noon, however, the "vl i-,i M 263 ARRIVE AT GRASS AND SPRTNO'.VATEH. prospect brightened, and we readied a country that promised an abundance of both. One stream Ave forded three th.ies in less than as many hundred yards. The grass was up to the horses' behies, and it was with difficnhy we were able to keep the trail. Just before dark we reached a rocky plateau, out of which were bubbling three beautifully clear springs. Here we threw oft' the packs, and stooped down to refresh ourselves in the sparkling waters, when, to our disa{)pointment, we fouiul them to be at nearly boiling heat ; the ranles scahled their noses in several fruitless attem[)ts to (pionch their thirst, and at last Avandered doAvn the stream, with an histinctive hope that the farther fiom the fountain the cooler Avould be the water. We found the Avater, Avhen at a drinkable temperatm'c, Avas free from any unj)leasant taste ; a slight smell of sulphur issued from the steam, but its flavour was not })erceptible in the tea, nor did it spoil the half of an excellent salmon, Avhich aat boiled m it for our supper. This fish the IncUans had captured in the morning, Avhile floimdering in shallow water close to our camp. It Aveighed nearly thirty- five pounds, and was not by any means in its best condition. Distance, twenty-one miles. 20M. — Juhus went to hunt up the horses, Avhile I INDIANS AID US TO PACK. 263 lit the fire and prepared our moriiing meal. lie liad been absent nearly two honrs, and I began to fear the Indians had at last taken advantage of our incautions- ness. At length he appeared, tugging tlie five mules and four horses, with the lariats over his shoulders, like Gullivci- with the Lilliputian fleet; I conld not help laughing at the struggles he made to advance, and at the obstinacy of the nudes in hanging back. Towards mid-day we rested on a pretty stream, shaded by thorn-bushes and willows. In tlie evening we left the high rocky hills, at the base of which we have been travelling for the last two days, and opened upon a dry and undulating country. In the hollows tuft grass was always to be found, but every water- course was without water. Unable to find a stream, we unpacked and pickettid the horses aboui nine. Distance, twenty-four miles. 2U-/. — At starting, three antelopes paid us a visit, I gave them a random shot, but they were out of reach ; they are the only game we have met with for m* hundred miles. From the sunnnit of a high hill we saw a party of Indians ecjuipped for a lumting excur- sion ; some of them rode up to us, and helped to pack one of the mules. At the bottom of a deep ravine we stopped to cut kinnek kinnek, which grew in large mi 264 SUMrTKtt MULK LOST AND FOUND. bushes upon the edge of a nmddv stream. When we were ready to ri^ on, tlie black mule had separated from her compauions and could not be found. After lumtin"t for her in every direction, we were forced to give up the search until we had unpacked and seciu'cd all the others. I then took a horse, Toby, belonging to Julius, and rode back to the place we left this morning. I knew the print of every animal's foot in the herd, but could not distinguish the lost one's anywhere. If she was lost, our pro- visions and blankets Avere gone with her. The mule we could ill spare. To lose her pack would, indeed, be serious. Coming back I kept a bright look-out, but this I liao done as I went, and had no reason to expect better success now. Suddenly, when looking over the brow of a hill my eye was attracted by two little black points, like the tips of a pair of long ears ; there could be no mistake about it, the mule was there. It was a wonderful piece of good fortune finding her again ; five yards further I should have been too low to have seen her, and the nuile, blankets, and pro- visions, would have become the prey of wolves, or Indians, whichever happened to fall in with her first. I drove her bark as fast as I could gallop ; and thinking ourselves the luckiest fellows in the world, HALT ON BOISI^E KIVEli. 266 we were consoled for the loss of the clay, by cooking ill the ashes of our fire some of the recaptured floiu'. Distancf;, sc>^en miles. 22;/r/. — The night was wet and hot ; the morning cold and showery. The road was vciry hilly, but we made about five miles an hour, and halted at half-past two, u})on the Bois^e river. Like all other rivers in this country, it was completely walled in by a deep canon. Some distance below its outlet from the mountains, the cafiou widens into a fine rich vallev, but the surrounding region still presei"ves its sterile character; that is to say, the table-land is abruptly separated from the valley by a sudden fall of forty or fifty feet in the level. After escaping from the canon, the banks of the Boisee are thickly wooded with willo\ ", quaking aspen, alder, wild cherry, and cotton wood. The afternoon turned out wet; the rain of the last twenty-four hours is the first we have had for five weeks. We are afraid that the rainy season will soon begin. When we left the States we were used to being wet through, but the long succession of dry weather has spoilt us for the minor pleasures of wet blankets and water-beds. We camped nearly two miles off" the trail, close to the river's edge ; the grass was four feet high and very thick. The advantages * I I *■• if' II 2(5(5 FIFTY JIILKS FROM FORI H0IS1-1e. of tills place to the horses conipeiisiitcd for the dis- comfort to us of being Avith(jiit wood, and althoup;h I went to bed cold and without supper, I felt better pleased than if the disposition of circumstances had been the other way. Distance, thirty miles. 2Srd. — A sliai-p frost made our blankets stiff with ice, and until the sun came out the frozen pack-ropes cut my hands, already sore, and caused them to bleed in several })laces. The severe cold at night docs more harm to the horses than to us. Gij)sey's shoulder is as big as a butlalo's hump, Rebecca's back is perfectly raw, the chestnut is slow and worn out. Our spurs are hardly of any use, yet the horses would be useless without them. All the time we an,' riding we stick our armed heels into the horses' ribs, as a man hel|)s a jaded hunter over his last fences. Poor brutes, they groan at every kick, but trot they cannot. After all we shall have a hard job to reach Fort Bois^e, which cannot be more than fifty miles distant. Halted close to some Indian huts. The men were absent ; the squaws were dressing fish and hanging them on poles susp( nded in front of the lodges, to dry. On(! old woman was watching the progress of a broiling salmon, turning it from time to time upon BAKTKK. 207 u forked stick, which stretched it before the fire. As the nicely crimped fish siinniered and browned with the steady heat, my hps watered at th(.' sight, and I was strongly tempted to break a fast of tiiirty liours, l)y seizing vi vl annii the dehcute morsel 1 had no means of paying for. On consideration, however, of the nnnrotected state of the females, and the certain knowledge that they wonld get a pole-hiding from their hnsbands, shoidd these retm'n and find no dimier, 1 resisted the temptation Avith a sigh : virtue was its own reward ; on putting my hands in my p(K'kets my fingers came in contact with a quantity of percussion caps. Taking them out as if I liad at last made uj) my mind to part with an invaluable treasure, I selected, in the attentive presence of the squaws, five of the brightest ; they were all damaged, and of as little service to me as to them ; and pointing to the salmon held out the golden looking ornaments. The efit'ct, of course, was electric, the old woman flou- rished about the sahnon, too delighted to exchange, with the fork and all iifto ihe bargain. A more sagacious bystander wanted more caps before slie parted vAih. the fish, but this I strenuously objected to, more indeed for their sakes than mine, for however little dearer the fish would have been to me. caps Ml Si IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-S) l/j ^(3 1.0 I.I ■ 50 "^ 1^ III 2.0 1.8 - 6" 11.25 11.4 111.6 V] <^ /2 e] ^. y /A Photographic Sdences Corporation 23 WEST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, NY. M5B0 (716) 872-4503 k ^ c *5* k 268 TRAVELLING TWO MILES AN HOUR. would evidently become cheaper with them, lii fact, the sole merit of the bargain existed in the delusive supposition with regard to the intrinsic worth of copper caps. The parson was mightily pleased with the barter, and we both agreed upon expenraent that although the salmon might be cheap, it was anything but nasty. In the evening we forded the river, not without some trepidation, for the current was very strong, and took little Strawberry, who is again packed on account of Reij?cca, off his legs. We both thought of Snake River, as the mule was carried down the stream ; but we did not refer to the subject, for the remembrance of poor William's death is so disagree- able, that by mutual consent we never mention his name. On the north side of the river we observed signs of Indians, but could not tell in what direction they were, so we chose a very secluded nook between a hill and the river for our night's lodging. Distance, twenty-three miles. ^Mh. — It began to rain at two in the morning and continued pouring till eleven. All this time we sat shivering round a fire we cou^ld hardly keep alight for the wet. At noon it cleared and we started, whipping and spurring, but never exceeding two F(»UT BOIS^E REACHED. 269 mil^s an hour. About sunset we thought we saw smoke a-head of us. What could it be ? an Indian camp perhaps. Soon we passed a herd of tame cattle ; this was a sign that the fort could not be far oif, twenty or thirty miles perhaps. If we were lucky we might reach it the day after to-morrow. Wliat an inspiring prospect, only one day's march to Fort Bois^e. Once there we shall consider our journey ended. Three hmidred and fifty miles will be a mere nothing when there is nothing behind it. And oh ! what a blessing when this nothing is accomphshed. One's impatience increases as the length of the joiu-ney diminishes. Passed more cattle and fresh tracks of horses, saw more smoke, then a light, then several other lights, and then Indian lodges, and at last a square built house, a fort. As we rode up a white man was catching some horses in a corral. " Pray, sir," said I, " is this Fort Bois6e ?" " Yes." " Thank God for that," I an wered. The gentleman then informed me that his name was Craigie, that he was the master of the Fort, and the only white man in the place. " Fred," he said, " was here, and intended to start in the morning ; he had lost a man and a miUe, both drowned in Snake River." Strange coincidence ! Wlio 270 PASS THE NIGHT AT PORT BOIS]^E. was the man ? INIr. Craigie did not know. " Was my name Coke?" It was. He expected and was glad to see ns. I asked about Fred's horses ; they were in a terrible condition, and there was not a horse or mule to be had at any price. We accepted Mr. Craigie's invitation to pass the night mider his roof, and hired an Indian for a blanket to watch and herd oiu- animals till the morning. Mrs. Craigie, a Panack squaw, cooked some of our own ham and floiu*. Milk and salmon was all their hospitality could afford. The milk at all events was a luxury, and under the circumstances we could have enjoyed anything, even if our host had not done his best to make us comfortable. Mr. Craigie is a Scotch- man by birth ; he came out to this country as a common laboiu-er, served for some years in that capacity to the Hudson's Bay Company, and by his integrity and good conduct obtained the post he now holds. In a pecuniary point of view the preferment is worth very little. As to the honoiu- and glory, to any one short of a hero they would be imaginary enjoyments. He is banished from all intercourse with his own species, and what is worse, is surrounded by a number of the most rascally tribe of Indians. The comforts of life are easily dispensed with by a moun- LIFE AT PORT BOIS^E. 271 taineer, but Craigie's situation denies him its common necessaries. Tlie house he Uves in was built by his own hands, and the river which runs by his door suppHes him with sahnon, the only food he subsists on. Flour he seldom procures, and all attempts to raise vegetables have been frustrated by the mischief of the Red Men. How a human being can continue to exist in this a oluntary state of exile, I know not. Give me Botany Bay and a grey-coated companion in my miseries, and I woidd not change places with Mr. Craigie. One consolation this worthy man may find in his present condition, is that of doing good. Since the days of emigration Fort Bois^e has been an asylum to the sick and needy, and its master has always fulfilled the part of the Good Samaritan. ATany are the instances of his charitable deeds, and nany are the travellers on these plains who survive to pray for blessings on this disinterested and generous being, to whom they owe their preservation. At the present time Mr. Craigie has one emigrant under his roof, who but for the hospitality of Fort Boisde, must have perished on the road. This man is suffering from the effects of a gunshot wound. His rifle exploded accidentally, while he was in the act of cleaning it. 27^ "GO THOU AND DO LIKEWISE." The ball passed through the shoulder, t'ractui'ing the bone, and cutting the principid muscles of the aim ; the wiping-stick was also diiven through the flesh ; parts of it were extracted from the back of the neck ; parts still remain in, and occasionally force their way through the skin in splinters. The wounds appear very much lacerated, and the whole arm is in a terrible state of inflammation. Twice a-day does Craigie wash and bandage these wounds, performing with assiduity the double office of nurse and surgeon. The patient is a Swiss. He came out to work at the mines. He is destitute of means, and his accident, if he survives it, will prevent him from earning a living in this country. All therefore that Craigie does for him is from disinterested motives and kindness of heart, animated by a sense of Christian duty. When I retired to my blankets, spread, the first time for many weeks, in a comfortable room, I could not help reflecting upon the multitudes of poor wretches who had suffered on these plains ; some from disease, some from accidents, like this man's ; some from starvation, some from the Indians, &c. &c. So far I have arrived safe. I was never in better health in my life, and I have escaped from every mishap. I KKPLEUTIONS. 273 woiild wish for more adventures, but to do so would be ingratitude to Providence. If I complete the rest of the journey us successfidly as I have accomplished this part of it, I shall feel thankful. SI ii« CHAPTER VITT. Journey Resumed. — The Shothoiic Tribe. — Mallieur River, Night Thoughts — Toby "gives on'.."— Snlnioii Shooting. — Dlessings of Sunday. — Provisions become scarce. — Another clinrus of Wolves. — Aurora Horcalis. — f Srand Rond, — Different species of Fir. — Lose our sole remaining tobacco-pipe. — Kaqua Vocabulary. — Another Emigrant Train. — London Fog, — The Columbia. — Proceed on Foot. — Henry Clarke joins us. — Norfolk Dumplings. — The Quenelles. — Shadow"gives out."— More Emigrants. — Indian Exquisite. — John Day's River.— Narrow Escape. — Tecbuty River. — Sowcte Sonp. — Ford the Techuty.- -The Dalles at last. Soptemhor 25///. — Called Craigic at daylight, and rowed across to Fred, who had come down the south side of the river, and Avas encamped for safety on a small island. Fred gave me an account of poor Nelson's death. He was drouTied in attempting to save a mule that had got out of its depth while drink- ing. It was singular that accidents so similar should have happened to both of us. We all breakfasted together at Craigie's, after which Fred left us to continue his journey. Before starting he cautioned me to be more careful of my horses. Twice had his own been stolen by the Indians, J>K