iNionna
 
 *. 
 
 NARRATIVE 
 
 TEXAN SANTA FE EXPEDITION, 
 
 COMPRISING A DESCRIPTION OK 
 
 A TOUR THROUGH TEXAS, 
 
 ACROSS THE GBEAT SOUTHWESTERN PRAIKIES, THE CAMANCHE AND 
 
 CAYGUA HUNTING-GROUNDS, WITH AN ACCOUNT OF THE 
 
 SUFFERINGS FROM WANT OF FOOD, LOSSES FROM 
 
 HOSTILE INDIANS, AND FINAL 
 
 CAPTURE OF THE TEXANS, 
 
 THEIR MARCH, AS PRISONERS, TO THE CITY OF MEXICO. 
 WITH ILLUSTRATIONS AND A MAP. 
 
 BY GEO. WILKINS KENDALL. 
 
 IN TWO VOLUMES. 
 
 VOL. I. 
 
 NE W-Y ORK: 
 HARPER AND BROTHERS, sz CLIFF-STREET. 
 
 1844.
 
 Entered, according to Act of Congress, in thtt year 1841, by 
 
 HARPKH & BROTHERS, 
 In the Clerk's Ofiiee of the Southern District of New-York.
 
 A WORD with you, kind reader, before you commence the 
 perusal of the following narrative. The object of the author 
 has been to tell his story in a plain, unvarnished way in the 
 homely, every-day language which is at once understood by 
 all. He will not, at this time, apologize for any errors of 
 omission or any broken links in the principal chain of con- 
 nexion which may be noticed ; he trusts that all such faults 
 will explain themselves in the progress of the narrative, as 
 the difficulties he has had to encounter become apparent. 
 
 For the description of the Spanish Missions in the neigh- 
 bourhood of San Antonio de Bexar, which will be found in the 
 early part of the third chapter, the author is principally in- 
 debted to Mr. Falconer, by whom full notes were taken of 
 these old religious establishments. The author also acknowl- 
 edges his indebtedness to Mr. F. for the names of the several 
 places through which the Santa Fe prisoners passed on their 
 march from San Miguel to the city of Mexico, together with 
 the dates. For dates and events previous to the capture of 
 the expedition he has been obliged to rely upon his own mem- 
 ory, and upon that of such of his companions as he has been 
 able to see and converse with since his return to the United 
 States. 
 
 The main facts in the history of Don Manuel Armijo have 
 been obtained from a gentleman who has known that petty 
 tyrant and his career for nearly fifteen years. The author has 
 only added such incidents as came under his personal obser- 
 vation.
 
 11 PREFACE. 
 
 In making up the map of the country between the Cross 
 Timbers and the settlements of New Mexico, much informa- 
 tion has been obtained from Mr. Gregg, an intelligent mer- 
 chant who has been for many years engaged in the Santa Fe 
 trade, and also from Albert Pike, Esq., of Arkansas. Both 
 these gentlemen have travelled over the immense prairies, 
 stretching from the western limits of Louisiana and Arkansas 
 to the Rocky Mountains, and both agree with the author in 
 his remarks in relation to Red River. Of course, in the con- 
 struction of this map, much of what the Yankees term " guess 
 work 1 ' has been resorted to ; but it will be found, in the main, 
 correct. 
 
 A few of the incidents in the first volume of this work, 
 which appeared, in a series of rough sketches, in the New- 
 Orleans Picayune of 1842, have since been stolen from that 
 journal and incorporated with the " Narrative of Monsieur Vi- 
 olet," written by Captain Marryat and published in London 
 during the fall of 1843. The author has deemed this exposi- 
 tion necessary, lest some of his readers, unacquainted with the 
 circumstances and who may peruse both books, should suspect 
 him of having poached upon the wondrous tale of Violet. The 
 larceny lies at the door of either the Captain or the Monsieur 
 a matter they must settle between themselves. 
 
 Violet's " Narrative" also contains an attack, directly im- 
 peaching the veracity of the author in the account he has given 
 of the murder of Golpin. It may not be deemed a work of su- 
 pererogation for him simply to state, that this wanton attack 
 is made up of deliberate falsehood. The time, place, and 
 manner of the death of the unfortunate Texan, were precisely 
 as the author has stated them : out of more than one hundred 
 and eighty witnesses of the murder, many are still living to 
 verify his account in every particular. 
 
 In speaking of the manners, customs, institutions, and char-
 
 PREFACE. Ill 
 
 acter of the Mexicans, the author has simply related what 
 came under his own observation ; he has censured where he 
 considered that reproof should fall, has praised where he 
 deemed commendation due. Should his strictures not meet 
 the approval of the leading men of that country, the blame 
 cannot attach to him ; for if the Mexican government, in its 
 wisdom, saw fit to deny a friendly traveller the privilege of 
 viewing aught save the darker shades of life while within the 
 limits of that republic, it certainly cannot upbraid him for 
 painting them in all their deformity. In whatever light a gov- 
 ernment or an individual may choose to " sit for a portrait," 
 it is certainly the duty of every honest artist to give it with 
 scrupulous fidelity. 
 
 In commenting upon the weakness and inefficiency of his 
 own government, as regards its external or foreign policy, 
 the author has approached the subject with much reluctance. 
 American born and American at heart, he has always felt a 
 just pride in the achievements of his countrymen, in their 
 firm and untiring opposition to all usurpation and tyranny, and 
 to every infringement upon their liberties. The people of the 
 United States the mass from whom all power emanates 
 although ever ready to sustain their rulers in the protection 
 of the humblest of their countrymen while abroad, are too fre- 
 quently kept in ignorance of the wrongs they suffer through 
 the inattention of those who are bound to redress every en- 
 croachment upon their rights. Were it not that the exposure 
 of errors and abuses is the only means of ensuring their cor- 
 rection, the author would shrink from lifting the curtain which 
 conceals almost the only weak point in the administration of 
 his government. For proof of the correctness of his stric- 
 tures he has only to refer to every American who has visited 
 Mexico. 
 
 The engravings which accompany this work demand a short
 
 IV PREFACE. 
 
 notice. The scene in the buffalo range the " scamper" after 
 those huge animals is a truthful picture from the quick and 
 fertile imagination of Chapman. Scenes of a similar nature 
 were of almost daily occurrence while the Santa Fe pio- 
 neers were in the buffalo region, and the artist seems to have 
 caught the spirit of the exciting chase. The " Incident upon 
 the Prairies" is from a design by Casilear, and gives a faithful 
 delineation of a wild and singular race. Both these engra- 
 vings are from the burin of Messrs. Jordan and Halpin, and 
 need no commendation. The view of " Puente Nacional" is 
 taken from Ward's work upon Mexico, the diligencia and the 
 litera only added. The " City of Guanajuato" is from the 
 same work, and gives a faiihful view of the place : the author 
 cannot say as much for the appearance of the Texan prison- 
 ers. They did not ride thus far into the city, and to attempt 
 to picture them with fidelity would be impossible. The en- 
 graving of the Mexican girls is adopted from Nebel, and is 
 given to show the costume and one of the customs of the fe- 
 males of that country. 
 
 Another word or two, and the author will throw himself 
 upon the kindness of his reader. His attempt has been to in- 
 terest and amuse ; should it be thought that he has thrown 
 too much levity amid scenes of suffering and of gloom, his 
 excuse must be that he belongs rather to the school of laugh- 
 ing than crying philosophers to a class who would rather see 
 a smile upon the face of melancholy than a tear in the eye of 
 mirth.
 
 \ 
 
 CONTENTS 
 
 OF 
 
 THE FIRST VOLUME. 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 Objects of the first Texan Santa Fe Expedition. Determination to accom- 
 pany it. The Western Limits of Texas. Her Claim to the Rio Grande. 
 Colonel Butler's contemplated Expedition to Santa Fe. Causes of its 
 Failure. Preparations for joining the Texans. Departure from New-Or- 
 leans. Steam-ship New-York. Captain Wright's Specific against Thirst. 
 Arrival at Galveston. Frank Combs. City of Houston. Stories of 
 old Hunters and Campaigners. Houston Horse Jockeys. Choice of an 
 Animal. Leave Houston for Austin. Ladies on Horseback. Race with 
 a Thunder-shower. Incidents upon the Road. Arrival at Austin. Mr. 
 Falconer. English Travellers. Party to San Antonio made up. Jim 
 the Butcher sent to the Stable. Mexican Mountain Pony. His Musta- 
 ches, and Powers of Endurance Page 13 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 Leave Austin for San Antonio. Prospects of a Shower. Singular Conduct 
 of Mat Small. A regular Soaking. Crossing the Colorado. No Bottom 
 for short-legged Animals. Venison for Supper. More of Mat Small. 
 Damp Lodgings. Serenade of Wolves. Meeting with old Friends. The 
 St. Mark's. Head Springs. Disturbance at Night. Arrival of Friends 
 from Austin. Journey towards San Antonio renewed. Colonel Cooke in 
 search of a Short Cut. Encounter with a Texan War Party. Hostile 
 Indians about. A Texan killed. Mr. Falconer's Portrait taken while sit- 
 ting upon a Mule. Amusing Adventure. More scared than hurt. The 
 Guadalupe. The Salado. Night Entry into San Antonio. Yelping 
 Curs. Fun at a Fandango. A Mexican Dance. Monte. Getting the 
 Hang of the Game. Return to Lodgings. Comparative Merits of Floors. 
 Difference between Plank, Stone, and Earth. Rough Life in Perspec- 
 tive. Nothing after getting used to it 31 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 Description of San Antonio. Fondness of the Women for Bathing. Cli- 
 mate. Irrigating Canals. Fruits. The old Spanish Missions. Objects
 
 VI CONTENTS. 
 
 for which they were constructed. The Alamo. Concepcion. San Juan. 
 San Jose. La Espada. Bowie and Crockett. Church of San Antonio. 
 Anecdote of General Cos. Mexican Merchants from the Rio Grande. 
 Return to Austin. Incidents upon the Road. A Texan Leather Stocking. 
 An Adventure. Out-tricking a Party of Indians. Another Night at the 
 St. Mark's. Fruitless Chase after Camanches. Hog-wallow Prairie. Ar- 
 rival at Camp. More of the Camanches. Plain Supper and good Appe- 
 tite. Insight into Astronomy. Once more at Austin. A Fall in the 
 Dark. Speculations while falling. Broken Bones, Dancing Days over, 
 or the " Jig up." Consolation under Misfortune . . . Page 35 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 Visit from General Lamar. Preparations for a Start. Pleasant Anticipa- 
 tions. Northers. Bright Side of the Picture. Speculations as to the Re- 
 ception of the Expedition at Santa Fe. No Thoughts of Fighting the New 
 Mexicans. Senor Navarro. A Jersey Wagon provided. Departure from 
 Austin. Adieu to Civilization. A modern Athens. Its sudden Rise, and 
 more sudden Fall. President Lamar in Camp. Arrival at the Brushy. 
 General Joy among the Pioneers. Reviewed by the President. Order of 
 March. Tricks of young Oxen. Upsets. Arrival at the San Gabriel. 
 Camp Stories. Opossum Creek. Scene of a Fight with the Camanches. 
 Anecdote of two Brothers. A night Storm. Buffalo in Sight. Petri- 
 factions. Stories of Buffalo. A Youngster caught. Methods of Hunting 
 the Buffalo. A regular Chase. Buffalo on every Side. Fitzgerald, and 
 his Zeal. Falconer among the Buffalo. Returns of Killed and Wounded. 
 Arrival at Little River. Buffalo Calves in Camp. Manner of taking 
 them 63 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 Sending back for more Cattle. Rations of Beef for each Man. Idle Hours 
 in Camp. Annoying Insects. Night Alarms. Death of Lockridge. A 
 Dutchman shot at. Improvident Waste of Provisions. Game in our Vi- 
 cinity. Sickness of General McLeod Once more on the Road. Bird's 
 Battle-ground. A Visit from Mustangs. The " White Steed of the Prai- 
 ries." Stories in relation to this Horse. Cow Creek. Plenty of Buffalo. 
 Repairing Wagons. Profanity of the Teamsters. Out of Water. 
 Fourth of July on the Prairies. Celebration among the Clouds. A 
 troublesome Visiter. Rattlesnakes and Tarantulas. Death of Flint. 
 Crossing the Bosque The Antelope, or Mountain Goat. Simplicity of 
 this Animal. Another Branch of the Bosque. Difficulty of crossing. 
 More Swearing. A Stampede ! Singular Effect of Fright upon Horses 
 and Oxen. Falconer's Horse at his Eccentricities. A Private Stampede. 
 Laughable Antics. Falconer's Philosophy 84
 
 CONTENTS, Vll 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 The Valley of Cedral Creek. Singular Natural Road. Another Delay. 
 Arrival of General McLeod with additional Cattle. The March resumed. 
 Bad Travelling. Delicious Spring of Water. Valley of the Brazos. 
 Fondness of our Animals for its Waters. Crossing the Brazos. Prairie 
 on Fire. Out of Water again. Sufferings of Man and Beast. A cool 
 Spring discovered. Natural Bathing-tub. Fresh Indian " Sign." A re- 
 cently-deserted Village. Trick of a Wag. The Camanche Peak. " See- 
 ing the Elephant." The " Cross Timbers." Description of this singular 
 Forest. Arrival at Noland's River. Destruction of our Tents. The 
 crossing of Noland's River. Deserted Indian Village. Latitude and Lon- 
 gitude taken. In the Midst of our Troubles Our last Day in the " Cross 
 Timbers." A gloomy Night. Once more upon the open Prairie. A 
 hearty Meal. Speculations as to the Route we had taken, The Banks 
 of Red River supposed to be visible Page 100 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 Trail of the Chihuahua Traders. Causes of the Failure of that Enterprise. 
 A fresh Indian " Burn." Dr. Whittaker lost. Indian Dogs. Their for- 
 lorn Appearance. Exciting Scene. An Indian Buffalo Chase. Well rid 
 of annoying Visitors. Buffalo Meat for Dinner. Pack of miserable Curs. 
 A recently-deserted Indian Camp. Dr. Whittaker again among us. A 
 white Flag sent out. Beautiful Camping-ground. An Eclipse. Once 
 more on Horseback, Singular Chnse. Both Parties mistaken. A Soak- 
 ing. Carlos, a Mexican, joins the Spy Company. Plausibility of his Sto- 
 ries. The supposed Red River. Parley with a Party of Wacoes. Their 
 Insolence. Arrival at a Waco Village. Its desertion by the Inhabitants. 
 Beautiful Location of the Town. Its Houses and Corn-fields. An In- 
 dian Musical Instrument. Speculations upon Love. High State of Civi- 
 lization of the Wacoes. Causes of the Hostility of the Wacoes to the 
 Texans. Departure from the Village. Brackish Water. Fear of the 
 Prairie Indians of Artillery. Origin of this Fear .... 120 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. . 
 
 Join the Spy Company. Farther Speculations as regards Red River. Ad- 
 vantages of travelling with the Spies. Beautiful Streams and cool Ar- 
 bours. Visit from Mustangs. A dashing wild Horse. Different Modes 
 of catching Mustangs. Indians in Sight. Guarding against a night At- 
 tack. Description of Country. Rough Travelling. Arrival at a Fresh- 
 water Stream. Carlos thinks Himself at Home. General Joy in Cainp. 
 Scanty Rations. A Shower and a Stampede. Cross the supposed Red 
 River again. Scarcity of " Sign." Mountains ahead. A Labyrinth of 
 Difficulties. Broken Country. A hunting Adventure. Get lost upon 
 the Prairie. Hopelessness of my Situation. Ruminations upon the 
 Horrors of being Lost. Fortunate Escape from Difficulty. A Ride
 
 Vm CONTENTS. 
 
 through u Rattlesnake Region. Once more among my Friends. Unpleas- 
 ant Dreams. A Mesquit Prairie. Carlos again " at Home." Three of 
 the Texans sent forward to the Settlements. Carlos takes the Guidance 
 of the Expedition. A Buffalo Chase. River seen to the South. An Ad- 
 venture with Deer. Great Waste of Powder and Ball. A severe Case of 
 the " Buck Ague." Symptoms and general Appearance of that singular 
 Disease Page 145 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 Brackish "W ater. Los Cuervos, or The Crows. Carlos and his Speculations. 
 Stream on our Left visited. Opinion of " Old Paint." Startling Sur- 
 mises. No Water. Endurance of the Mule. Singular Valley. Water 
 seen in the Distance. Perilous Descent of a Bluff. Arrival at the River. 
 More Brackish Water. An Alarm. Fire in Camp. Terrific Spread of the 
 Flames. Explosion of Cartridges. Night Ascent of the Bluffs. Ravages 
 of the Fire. Extent of our Loss. Magnificent night Scene. Our Camp 
 by Daylight. Coffee too much burned. Compelled to fall back upon First 
 Principles. Again on the March. Intolerable Suffering from Thirst. A 
 Beautiful Camp. Disappearance of Carlos and Brignoli. Horrors of our 
 Situation. Lost, and without a Guide upon the Prairies. Shower on the 
 Espy Principle. Party sent out to Explore. Rough Travelling. Gloomy 
 Prospects. Return to Camp. Ten Miles for a Draught of Water. "Do- 
 ing" our Washing. Company of Spies sent out. Death of Doctor Brashear. 
 Bitter Water. Rations reduced. Sufferings now commencing. Return 
 of one of the Spies. Again on the March. Visit to a Commonwealth of 
 Prairie Dogs. Description of these singular Animals .... 173 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 A Meal of Prairie Dogs. Arrival at another brackish Water Camp. Shower 
 at Night, with fresh Water in the Morning. Return of the Spy Company. 
 A regular " Northeaster." Report of the Spies. Disagreeable Biv- 
 ouac. Indians in Camp. Horses stolen. A bad Bargain. Daring of the 
 Indians. Fine Weather again. Once more on the Road. Dog Towns. 
 Meeting with a Party of Indians. Horse Meat far from being bad Eat- 
 ing. Wolves about. A dreary Desert. Delicious fresh-water Stream. 
 Latitude and Longitude again taken. Pleasant Prospects. Again en- 
 compassed with Difficulties. A Passage out found. Steppes. Mesquit 
 Prairie and Prairie Dogs. Mountains in the Distance. Singing Birds, and 
 Thoughts of Home. Delusive Hopes. More Horses stolen. Bed of 
 Large Rivpr crossed. Arrival at the Quintufue. Large Indian Camp 
 discovered. Caygiias on all Sides. Indian Provisions. A Party sent out. 
 Farther Advance impossible. A Night without Water. Preparations 
 for taking a back Tra^k. Exciting News. Firing of Guns heard. Lieu- 
 tenant Hull and four Men killed by Caygiias. A Chase after Indians. 
 Return to the Quintufue. Determination to divide the Command. De- 
 scription of the Caygiias . 195
 
 CONTENTS. JX 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 Departure of the Advance in search of the Settlements. Summit of the 
 Steppe gained. Level Prairie before us. A lovely Scene. Speculations 
 in relation to Red River. A Bear Chase. Bruin noosed. The March 
 continued. Sagacity of a Mule. Arrival at a singular Chasm. Impossi- 
 bility of crossing. A heavy Prairie Shower. Appearance of our Men. 
 Description of the Chasm. A Crossing found. Loneliness of the Prai- 
 ries. Scarcity of Game. Begin to suffer Hunger. Arrival at another 
 awful Abyss. Farther Difficulty in crossing. Hunger increasing. Sin- 
 gular Birds. Mustangs and Antelopes. Their exceeding Shyness. Cur- 
 lews. A Buffalo descried. Preparations for a Chase to the Death. Tom 
 Hancock and his Skill. Endurance of Jim the Butcher. Description of 
 the Chase. Poor Prospects of a Supper Page 215 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 A successful Search. The Buffalo brought to Bay. Appearance of my 
 Horse after the Chase. Prospects of another Shower. Adventure with a 
 Rattlesnake in the Dark. Fortunate Escape. The Shower upon us. 
 Buffalo found in the Morning. March resumed. Swimming our Animals. 
 Singular Method of Cooking. Wolves in our Vicinity. Encounter with 
 a Drove of Mustangs. Excitement among us. Mountains discovered 
 ahead. Leave the grand Prairie. Singular Hills. Compelled to abandon 
 our Course. Chances becoming Desperate. Suffering and Starvation. 
 Large fresh- water Stream discovered. Speculations as to its Name. 
 Mexican " Sign" seen. More Remarks in relation to Red River. Plum 
 Patches. Carlos and Brignoli seen. Their Sufferings. The Texans 
 driven to the greatest strait for Food. An Anecdote. Compelled to eat 
 broken-down Horse Flesh. A cold, raw Night. Fairly among the Rocky 
 Mountains. A beautiful Valley. A Feast of Catfish. Arrival at the 
 Angosturas. Encounter with a Party of Mexicans. Unwonted Excite- 
 ment. Matias sent back to the Command. Advance towards the Settle- 
 ments. Farther Sufferings of the Texans. Meet with an immense Herd 
 of Sheep. A Feast. Dissertation on Starvation. Mexican Shepherds 
 and their Dogs 239 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 Farther Feasting. Party sent to the Settlements. Author accompanies it. 
 Objects of sending the Party ahead. News respecting Howland and his 
 Companions. Encounter with Mexican Muleteers. Their Fright at our 
 Approach. Farther Information in relation to Howland. Manuel sent 
 back. Suspicious Horsemen seen. Arrival at Anton Chico. Consterna- 
 tion of the Inhabitants. Scanty Raiment of the Women. Confidence re- 
 stored. Description of Anton Chico. Scantiness of the Furniture. A 
 Dinner under Cover. Start for San Miguel. Compelled to return. A 
 Night at Anton Chico. Bad Colds, with worse Coughs to match. A sus- 
 4
 
 X CONTENTS. 
 
 picious Visiter. Report that we were to be arrested. Start again from 
 Anton Chico. Valuables concealed. Arrival at Cuesta. Commotion in 
 the Village. Our Party surrounded by Mexican Troops. Apparent Frank- 
 ness of their Leader, Dimasio Salezar. Our Arms taken from us. Con- 
 sultation of Salezar and his Officers. We are formed in Line and search- 
 ed. Mexican Duplicity. A trying Scene. Prompt Interference of Vigil 
 in saving our Lives. We are marched towards San Miguel. Kindness of 
 the Women. Don Jesus, and his Attempt to tie us. Description of our 
 Guard. Puertecito. More of the Women. Arrival at San Miguel. 
 Meanness of the Alcalde and Kindness of the Priest. Our first Night in 
 Prison Page 269 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 Ordered to march towards Santa Fe. Departure from San Miguel. Gloomy 
 Anticipations. Our Guard increased. A Present from a Woman. Meet 
 with a Party of Mexican Troops. Brutality of their Leader. Lewis, Van 
 Ness, and Fitzgerald tied with Cords. Description of Don Jesus. Large 
 Bodies of Troops passed. Their miserable Appointments Our first In- 
 terview with Governor Armijo. His Reception. Conduct of Lewis. 
 We are ordered back to San Miguel. Armijo's last Command. Carlos 
 seen. First Appearance upon a Donkey. Antics of the Animal. A heavy 
 night Shower. Once more at San Miguel. Barbarous Execution of one 
 of our Comrades. We are ordered before the Governor. An exciting 
 Trial. Rowland condemned to Die. Cruel Mode of Execution. Noble 
 Conduct of Howland. Kindness of a young Priest. Reflections upon our 
 Situation. Departure of Mexican Troops for Anton Chico. News of Col- 
 onel Cooke and his Men. Plans of Armijo. Particulars of the Capture 
 of Howland. Description of Manuel Pino. News of the Capture of our 
 Friends at Anton Chico. Great Rejoicings at San Miguel . . 291 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 New Quarters. Our Party taken before Armijo. Reception by that Func- 
 tionary. His bombastic Account of the Soldiers of New Mexico. Again 
 taken to Prison. Appearance of Armijo. Description of our Prison. 
 Overrun with Chinches. The Family next Door. The Zapatero's Wife. 
 A singular Custom. The Seilora Francisca abandons her Paint. Dress 
 of the Females of New Mexico. Its Scantiness. Freaks of Fashion. 
 Description of the Reboso and Mantilla. Beauties of the Women of Mex- 
 ico. Kindness of the Girls of San Miguel. Colonel Cooke's Men march- 
 ed through San Miguel. Lieutenant Lubbock's Account of the Surren- 
 der. Agency of Lewis in the Affair. Change of Quarters. Prison Occu- 
 pations. Manner of passing our Time. Chances of an Escape canvassed. 
 Arrival of Caravans from the United States. We are not permitted 
 Conversation with our Countrymen. A seasonable Supply of Luxuries. 
 The Author assured of his personal Release. A Mexican Loafer. Tomas 
 Bustamente Employ him as our principal Agent. Thomas Rowland
 
 CONTENTS. X 
 
 His Release from Arrest. Bustamente sent on a Mission to Lewis. Its 
 unsuccessful Result. Thoughts upon Pipes. Bustamente's Trickery 
 found out. Confidence lost in the Man. Come to the Conclusion that 
 the Mexicans will bear watching Page 313 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 Arrival of a Party of our Companions as Prisoners. Great Excitement in 
 San Miguel. Recognition of our Friends, and their Departure. Don An- 
 tonio Baca. Attachment of one of his Daughters for a Texan Prisoner. 
 " Old Paint" Caldwell and Nine of his Men brought in Prisoners. Still 
 greater Excitement in San Miguel. The Patron Saint brought from his 
 Niche in the Church. A Mexican Procession. A funny Figure. Pro- 
 gramme of the Procession. An old Priest with queer Spectacles. A Pair 
 of Musicians. More of San Miguel, the Patron Saint. End of the Pro- 
 cession. Startling Information. Bustamente informs us that all our Com- 
 rades have been taken Prisoners. Great Rejoicing in San Miguel. Gen- 
 eral McLeod and other Texans brought into the Plaza. Mr. Falconer. 
 Arrival of all the Prisoners. Dreadful Appearance of the Texans. Lewis 
 arrives. News that the Author is to be liberated. Division of the Spoils. 
 Agency of Lewis in the Transaction. A Visit from Lewis. More of 
 his Treachery and Rascality. His Departure for Santa Fe. A veritable 
 History of Don Manuel Armijo, from his Youth upward, being a short but 
 faithful Narrative of his thieving, gambling, assassinating, and other base 
 Acts and Propensities 334 
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 Unrealized Hopes. A Brood of unhatched Chickens. We are quartered 
 with our Companions. Arrival of " Old Paint." Joy at seeing the Vet- 
 eran. Another Meeting with Friends. Stories of Suffering. Liberated 
 Prisoners again confined. Armijo and Lewis. Departure for the City of 
 Mexico. A long and gloomy March before us. The Brute Salezar in 
 Command. Bustamente and the Women of San Miguel. Causes of the 
 Failure of the Santa Fe Expedition. Arrival at a deserted Mission. 
 Sufferings of the Prisoners from Cold. More of Salezar's Brutalities. 
 The dreary March continued. Arrival at Pino's Rancho. Farther Suf- 
 ferings. A cold Camping-ground. Hard Fare. Frostbitten Feet. Hor- 
 rible Threat of Salezar. Santo Domingo. Kindness of the Women. San 
 Felipe. First Sight of the Rio Grande. Algodones. A Second "Black 
 Hole of Calcutta." Arrival at the Indian Village of Sandia. A singu- 
 lar Rite. Description of the Inhabitants. Alameda. Scene in an Oven. 
 Misery makes us acquainted with strange Bedfellows. Sufferings on 
 the Increase. Bottoms of the Rio Grande ; their Fertility. Albuquerque 
 in Sight. Herons and Wild Geese. A dashing Mexican Horseman. 
 Lieutenant Hornsby abducted. Arrival at Albuquerque. The Family of 
 Armijo. Farther Kindness of the Women. General Pike's Journal. The 
 Pretty Girl of Albuquerque 361
 
 Xll CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 Los Placeres. Another dark Leaf in Salezar's Character. Women and 
 Watermelons. Reappearance of Lieutenant Hornsby. His singular 
 Story of Adventure. The dashing Horseman and his gentle and generous 
 Wife. Arrival at Valencia. Farther Sufferings of the Prisoners. Kind- 
 ness of an old Woman. Death of Ernest. An American Traveller. Cru- 
 el Murder of McAllister. Its Effect upon the Prisoners. Casa Colorada. 
 A comfortable Camp. Appearance of the Valley of the Rio Grande. 
 Uses of the Cotton-wood. Salezar and the Alcaldes. The Mexican But- 
 ton Market. Straits to which the Prisoners were driven. A Story of 
 Stump. Magoffin's Wagons passed. American Drivers. Not allowed to 
 hold Converse with them. Arrival at Joya. A Fandango. Salezar Drunk. 
 Conduct of the American Drivers on the Occasion. Parrida. Crossing 
 the Rio Grande. Arrival at Socorro. A short Rest allowed. Character 
 of the Inhabitants. A Party of Apaches. Anecdote of the Priest of Socor- 
 ro. Head Chief of the Apaches. His dignified Bearing. Obsequiousness 
 of Salezar. Basque de los Apaches. Recrossing the Rio Grande. The 
 Camp of Fray Cristobal. A Snow-storm at Night. Appearance of the 
 Prisoners by Daylight. Colds and Coughs Page 386
 
 NARRATIVE 
 
 FIRST TEXAN SANTA F EXPEDITION, 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 Objects of the first Texan Santa Fe Expedition. Determination to accom- 
 pany it. The Western Limits of Texas. Her Claim to the Rio Grande. 
 Colonel Butler's contemplated Expedition to Santa Fe. Causes of its 
 Failure. Preparations for joining the Texans. Departure from New-Or- 
 leans. Steam-ship New-York. Captain Wright's Specific against Thirst. 
 Arrival at Galveston. Frank Combs. City of Houston. Stories of 
 old Hunters and Campaigners. Houston Horse Jockeys. Choice of an 
 Animal. Leave Houston for Austin. Ladies on Horseback. Race with 
 a Thunder-shower. Incidents upon the Road. Arrival at Austin. Mr. 
 Falconer. English Travellers. Party to San Antonio made up. Jim 
 the Butcher sent to the Stable. Mexican Mountain Pony. His Musta- 
 ches, and Powers of Endurance. 
 
 " WHAT were the objects of the Santa Fe Expedi- 
 tion?" and "What induced you to accompany it?" are 
 questions which have been so often asked me, that I 
 cannot carry my reader a single mile upon the long 
 journey before us until they are answered. Without 
 preamble or preface, then, I will to the task. 
 
 In the early part of April, 1841, I determined upon 
 making a tour of some kind upon the great Western 
 Prairies, induced by the hope of correcting a derange- 
 ment of health, and by a strong desire to visit regions 
 inhabited only by the roaming Indian, to find new sub- 
 jects upon which to write, as well as to participate in 
 
 VOL. I. B
 
 14 CHARACTER OF THE TEXAN EXPEDITION. 
 
 the wild excitement of buffalo-hunting, and other sports 
 of the border and prairie life. 
 
 The determination to take an excursion of this kind 
 once made, my next object was to fix upon the route. 
 The prairies west of St. Louis, the hunting-grounds of 
 the Pawnees and other savage tribes, had been explo- 
 red by Charles Augustus Murray, and described by his 
 graphic pen ; here was no new opening. Again, M. 
 C. Field, one of my assistants in the " Picayune," had 
 made the journey to Santa Fe by way of Independence, 
 Missouri, and a series of articles written by him, upon 
 the subject of his adventures, had found favour in the 
 eyes of the public, being much copied into other jour- 
 nals. Here was another beaten and well-known road ; 
 yet I determined to traverse it if no other offered. 
 
 About the first of May of the same year, a number 
 of young gentlemen' of my acquaintance set on foot the 
 project of an excursion to the prairies and buffalo- 
 grounds, taking either Fort Towson or Fort Gibson in 
 the route, and roaming through the Osage country and 
 over a part of that section visited by Washington Ir- 
 ving in his foray upon the prairies. While canvassing 
 the chances and merits of a trip of this kind, I met with 
 Major George T. Howard, then in New-Orleans pur- 
 chasing goods for the Texan Santa Fe Expedition. 
 
 Of the character of this enterprise I at once made 
 inquiry. Major Howard informed me that it was com- 
 mercial in its intentions, the policy of the then President 
 of Texas, General Mirabeau B. Lamar, being to open 
 a direct trade with Santa Fe by a route known to be 
 much nearer than the great Missouri trail. To divert 
 this trade was certainly the primary and ostensible ob- 
 ject ; but that General Lamar had an ulterior intention 
 that of bringing so much of the province of New
 
 WESTERN BOUNDARY OF TEXAS. 16 
 
 Mexico as lies upon the eastern or Texan side of the Rio 
 Grande under the protection of his government I did 
 not know until I was upon the march to Santa Fe. He 
 was led to conceive this project by a well-founded be- 
 lief that nine tenths of the inhabitants were discontented 
 under the Mexican yoke, and anxious to come under 
 the protection of that flag to which they really owed 
 fealty. I say a well-founded belief ; the causes which 
 influenced him were assurances from New Mexico 
 positive assurances that the people would hail the 
 coming of an expedition with gladness, and at once de- 
 clare allegiance to the Texan government. 
 
 With the proofs General Lamar had, that such a feel- 
 ing existed in New Mexico, he could not act otherwise 
 than he did could not do other than give the people 
 of Eastern New Mexico an opportunity to throw off" 
 the galling yoke under which they had long groan- 
 ed. Texas claimed, as her western boundary, the Rio 
 Grande ; the inhabitants within that boundary claimed 
 protection of Texas. Was it anything but a duty, then, 
 for the chief magistrate of the latter to afford all its cit- 
 izens such assistance as was in his power ? 
 
 Texas claims, as I have just stated, the Rio Grande 
 as her western boundary ; yet, so isolated were Santa 
 Fe, and such of the settled portions of New Mexico as 
 were situated on the eastern side of that stream, that 
 the new Republic had never been able to exercise juris- 
 diction over a people really within her limits.* The 
 time had now arrived, so thought the rulers of Texas, 
 when rule should be exercised over the length and 
 breadth of her domain when the citizens of her far- 
 thest borders should be brought into the common fold 
 
 * Santa Fe is situated some fourteen miles east of the Rio Grande, on a 
 small branch of that stream.
 
 16 ROUTE OF THE EXPEDITION. 
 
 and with the full belief in their readiness and willing- 
 ness for the movement, the Texan Santa Fe Expedition 
 was originated. On its arrival at the destined point, 
 should the inhabitants really manifest a disposition to 
 declare their full allegiance to Texas, the flag of the 
 single-star Republic would have been raised on the 
 Government House at Santa Fe ; but if not, the Texan 
 commissioners were merely to make such arrange- 
 ments with the authorities as would best tend to the 
 opening of a trade, and then retire. The idea, which 
 has obtained credence to some extent in the United 
 States, that the first Texan Santa Fe pioneers were but 
 a company of marauders, sent to burn, slay and de- 
 stroy in a foreign and hostile country, is so absurd as 
 not to require contradiction ; the attempt to conquer a 
 province, numbering some one hundred and fifty thou- 
 sand inhabitants within its borders, was a shade too 
 Quixotical to find favour in the eyes of the three hundred 
 and twenty odd pioneers who left Texas, encumbered 
 with wagons, merchandise, and the implements of their 
 different trades and callings. The expedition was un 
 fortunate, and, as a natural consequence, the censorious 
 world has said that it was conceived in unwise policy. 
 In the progress of my narrative, it will be seen that its 
 failure arose from causes purely fortuitous ; in a word, 
 that the enterprise had failed and been broken up long 
 before those engaged in it had reached the confines of 
 New Mexico. 
 
 The expedition was to leave Austin, the capital of 
 Texas, about the last of May or first of June. The 
 route to be taken had not been determined upon when 
 Major Howard was in New-Orleans, but it was thought 
 that the pioneers would follow up the San Saba road, 
 from San Antonio to Santa Fe ; a route extending in
 
 I 
 
 ANECDOTE OF A FRENCH GENTLEMAN. i7 
 
 nearly a northwest, and, as was then thought, a direct 
 line. Fearing that there might be a scarcity of water 
 on this trace, the direction was afterward changed. 
 
 That an enterprise, so purely commercial in its as- 
 pect, was intended for a hostile invasion of Mexico, did 
 not, as I have already stated, enter the mind of any one 
 at the time at least not in Texas, where the inhabitants 
 should be best able to judge. That a military force of 
 some three hundred men accompanied the expedition is 
 well known, and it is equally well known that the route 
 across the prairies, whether by the San Saba or the 
 Red River, would lead directly through the very heart 
 of the Camanche and Caygiia country inhabited by 
 Indians who are foes alike to both Mexicans and Tex- 
 ans. It cannot be considered very strange, then, that 
 in a country so infested with hostile savages as Texas 
 is, where a man hardly dares go out to catch his horse 
 without a rifle and pair of pistols about him, a military 
 force accompanied this expedition. The number of men 
 was really not larger than that which accompanied the 
 earlier Missouri enterprises ; and large as it was, it did 
 not prove sufficient for the purposes intended, many 
 valuable lives being taken, and a large number of horses 
 stolen, by the Indians we encountered on the route. 
 These remarks I have made to counteract assertions 
 put forth by the ignorant few, that the very fact of a 
 military force being sent with the expedition was prool 
 sufficient of its original hostile intentions. They would 
 have had us, forsooth, start off with walking-sticks and 
 umbrellas, and been scalped to a man in order to prove 
 our object pacific. Perhaps their knowledge of the bar- 
 barians, through whose territory we were to pass, was 
 of a piece with that of a very worthy agent sent to Tex- 
 as, some years ago, by the French government. This 
 
 B2
 
 18 COLONEL BUTLER'S EXPEDITION. 
 
 gentleman planned an excursion after buffalo, directly 
 into the hunting-grounds of the Camanches, to be ac- 
 companied only by two of his friends with servants. 
 On being told of the certainty that he would be killed, 
 he confidently remarked that he should carry the flag of 
 France with him the Camanches would never dare in- 
 sult that ! 
 
 It was while making inquiries, as to the nature and 
 objects of the Texan expedition, that I first heard of an 
 enterprise somewhat similar, then in contemplation in 
 the United States. A company, under the command 
 of Colonel Pierce M. Butler, formerly governor of South 
 Carolina, and well known as an efficient and gallant of- 
 ficer, was to leave a point high up on Red River for 
 Santa Fe, having for escort a body of United States 
 dragoons. What was the object of this enterprise, 
 whether to counteract the Texans in their attempt to 
 divert the New Mexican trade or otherwise, I am un- 
 able to say. It was abandoned, at all events, for the 
 reason that Colonel Butler could not make all his prep- 
 arations in season to ensure a sufficiency of grass and 
 water upon the prairies ; but had it started, I should 
 have made one of the party. 
 
 Thus foiled, I finally resolved upon accompanying 
 the Texans. My intentions were, on joining this expe- 
 dition, to leave it before it should reach Santa Fe, so as 
 in no way to commit myself, and then to make the en- 
 tire tour of Mexico visiting the cities of Chihuahua, 
 Durango, Zacatecas, San Luis Potosi, Guanajuato, and 
 others on the road to the capital. These intentions I 
 made known to all my friends in New-Orleans, not one 
 of whom thought I should in any way compromise my- 
 self as an American citizen, or forfeit my right to pro- 
 tection, by the route I proposed pursuing. By a law of
 
 DEPARTURE FROM NEW-ORLEANS. 19 
 
 Mexico a law of which I must confess myself at the 
 time ignorant a foreigner is prohibited from entering 
 that country through the territory of Texas ; but the 
 only punishment for this offence is being ordered out of 
 Mexico by the nearest road, a penalty which would 
 have been very willingly submitted to by me at any mo- 
 ment while I was in that country. 
 
 Having made every other preparation for my tour 
 through Texas and Mexico, I went, on the morning of 
 the 15th of May, 1841, in company with James H. 
 Brewer, Esq., to the office of the then Mexican vice- 
 consul at New-Orleans, and obtained from him a pass- 
 port, which gave me permission to enter, as an Ameri- 
 can citizen, any place in the so-called Republic of Mex- 
 ico. Thus fortified, and with intentions the most pacific 
 towards both the countries through which I was to pass, 
 on the 17th of May I sailed from my native land, in the 
 steam-ship New- York, Captain Wright, for Galveston. 
 On bidding adieu to my friends, I anticipated an exci- 
 ting and interesting tour of some four months' duration, 
 and expected to meet with the usual dangers and par- 
 ticipate in the usual sports to be met with on the bor- 
 ders and prairies nothing more. 
 
 Our voyage from New-Orleans to Galveston was 
 characterized by little worthy of remark. Some of the 
 passengers were seasick, and all such were laughed at ; 
 some of them asserted, very positively, that if they could 
 once set foot upon shore, they never would be seen out 
 of sight of it, while others said they cared but little 
 whether they ever saw land again. One circumstance 
 I well remember : our captain told me that a piece of 
 raw hide, placed in the mouth while suffering thirst, 
 would impart much moisture, and consequent relief; 
 and months afterward, when in a situation to try the
 
 20 ARRIVAL AT GALVESTON. 
 
 experiment, I found that there was much truth in the 
 recipe of our experienced skipper. 
 
 Early on the morning of the 19th of May we reached 
 Galveston. This, in a commercial point of view, is the 
 most important place in Texas ; yet no vessel larger 
 than an ordinary sloop of war can cross the bar at the 
 highest tide. The harbour is considered far from safe ; 
 yet it is one of the best on the entire coast, from the 
 mouth of the Rio Grande to the Sabine, and must be 
 the point from which a large portion of the cotton and 
 other products of Texas will always be shipped. 
 
 At Galveston I found every one talking of the pro- 
 posed Santa Fe Expedition. It was looked upon as no- 
 thing more than a pleasant hunting excursion, through 
 a large section of country, much of which was unknown 
 to the white man. Such portions of the route as had 
 been previously explored were known to abound with 
 buffalo, bear, elk, antelope, and every species of game, 
 besides fish and wild honey. The climate was also 
 known to be dry and salubrious ; in short, until a point 
 high up on Red River should be gained, the trip prom- 
 ised to be one of continued interest and pleasure. But 
 beyond that point the country was a perfect terra in- 
 cognita, untrodden save by wild and wandering In- 
 dians, and all were eager to partake of the excitement 
 of being among the first to explore it. 
 
 At Galveston I became acquainted with young Frank 
 Combs, son of General Leslie Combs, of Kentucky. 
 He had partially made up his mind to accompany the 
 expedition, in the hope of recovering his hearing, which 
 had been for some time defective ; on learning that I 
 intended to start that evening for Houston, on my way 
 to Austin, he made hurried preparations to set off in 
 my company on board a steamer. The next morning 
 we were landed safely at Houston.
 
 STORIES OF OLD CAMPAIGNERS. 21 
 
 Here all was bustle and preparation. A company 
 of volunteers, comprising some of the most enterprising 
 young men residing in and about Houston, had been 
 formed, and all were busy in making arrangements for 
 their departure for Austin, the point whence the expe- 
 dition was to take the line of march for Santa Fe. Ev- 
 ery gunsmith in the place was occupied, night and day, 
 in repairing guns and pistols ; every saddler was at 
 work manufacturing bullet-pouches, and mending the 
 saddles and bridles of the volunteers all was hurry, 
 preparation, and excitement. 
 
 To give some idea of the opinions entertained at 
 Houston, of the objects of the expedition to Santa Fe, 
 I will here describe the general tone of conversation. 
 Hardly a word was said of any hostile collision with 
 the inhabitants of New Mexico ; on the contrary, a 
 chase after buffalo or a brush with the Camanches or 
 some of the hostile tribes known to be wandering about 
 the immense Western prairies, was the principal topic 
 upon every tongue. Old campaigners and hunters 
 were among the speakers, and the wild stories they 
 told of their forays upon the borders and beyond the 
 borders of civilization, of their hair-breadth 'scapes and 
 encounters with bears, rattlesnakes, Camanches, buffa- 
 loes, and other inhabitants of the boundless prairies, 
 with the thousand and one tales of the marvellous these 
 frontier Leather Stockings always have at their com- 
 mand either ready made or easy of construction at 
 the time of need all served to render those who had 
 already made up their minds to join the party more 
 eager than ever, and induced the lukewarm to ' pack 
 up" and follow their example. 
 
 I remained at Houston some three or four days, in 
 which I made additional arrangements for the tour.
 
 22 HOUSTON HORSE MARKET. 
 
 Determined to be in no way connected with the expe- 
 dition, farther than travelling with it at my own pleas- 
 ure, and for such time as might suit my own interest 
 and convenience, I had scrupulously avoided involving 
 the Texan government in the least expense in providing 
 the minutest article of my outfit. My rifle short, but 
 heavy barrelled, and throwing a ball,* with great 
 strength and precision, a long distance I had pur- 
 chased of the well-known Dickson, of Louisville, Ky., 
 and a most excellent rifle it was. My pistols, powder 
 and lead, bowie and other knives, blankets, accoutre- 
 ments for my horse, and other implements and articles 
 necessary for a prairie tour, I had picked up here and 
 there some having been given me by my kind friends 
 in New-Orleans, while others I had purchased before 
 leaving that city. My necessities now required little 
 save a horse, and as this was one of the most important 
 points in an efficient " fit out," I determined to take my 
 time and obtain a good one. 
 
 Any one who has entered the Houston horse-market 
 with the intention of purchasing, is well aware that it is 
 easy enough to buy a nag, but not so easy to procure 
 one of the right sort. 
 
 When it became known that i wished to operate a 
 little in horseflesh as a purchaser, all sorts of nags were 
 " trotted out" by the different dealers and proprietors. 
 There was the heavy American horse, whose owner 
 had probably entered Texas by the inland or Red River 
 route, and wishing to return by way of New-Orleans, 
 had no farther use for him ; then there were the wiry- 
 looking Indian pony, doubtless broken down and short- 
 winded from hard usage ; the light but game Mexican ; 
 and last, the recently caught, restless, and apparently 
 
 * Twenty-four to the pound.
 
 JIM THE BUTCHER. 23 
 
 vicious mustang, or wild horse of the prairie : all these 
 different samples were offered for my inspection, with 
 the usual catalogues of their many merits, particularly 
 their great powers of endurance. From so large an 
 assortment I found not a little difficulty in making a se- 
 lection. I looked, with an eye of fondness and craving, 
 upon a beautiful nag, half Spanish, half wild, of fine ac- 
 tion and most delicate points. I thought of the " show 
 off" I could make upon a horse of this peculiar descrip- 
 tion, for he had an ambling and a proud gait, but just at 
 this moment prudence suggested the idea of the long 
 journey I had before me, and I purchased a heavy and 
 powerful American horse for four times the sum with 
 which I could have bought the spotted and sprightly 
 Spanish pony. He was far from being " a good horse to 
 look at," but was " an excellent one to go," and never 
 was money better invested. Bravely, and without once 
 flagging, did he carry me my long journey through, 
 ever ready to start off on a buffalo or other chase, and 
 enduring to the last. " Jim the Butcher" not a very 
 romantic or euphonious name, but so he was called by 
 the man of whom I purchased him is now in the hands 
 of the Mexicans, and sincerely do I hope they have 
 treated him with more kindness and consideration than 
 they did his master. Would that I had him now. Want 
 should never overtake him until it had first conquered 
 me. 
 
 With the purchase of my horse ended my immediate 
 wants. I was now fully armed, mounted, and equipped 
 for the prosecution of my journey. I cannot take leave 
 of Houston, however, without tendering my thanks to 
 the many kind friends I found there. To Captain Rad- 
 cliff Hudson, and Lieutenants Lubbock and Ostrander, 
 in particular, I was under many obligations. They
 
 24 RACE WITH A SHOWER. 
 
 were the officers elect of the Houston Company of 
 Santa Fe Pioneers, and cordially invited me to mess 
 with them as a " guest" on the expedition. Although 
 reluctantly compelled to decline their invitation, I could 
 still appreciate the kind motives which induced them 
 to proffer it. 
 
 Frank Combs and myself, with one or two others 
 also on their way to Austin, left Houston late in the af- 
 ternoon. The weather was hot and sultry, and dark 
 clouds in the southwest gave every indication of a 
 heavy shower before nightfall. The house that had 
 been recommended to us to stop at over night was 
 some twelve miles distant, inducing us to gallop rapidly 
 along with the hope of reaching our resting-place be- 
 fore the coming down of the shower. As we cleared 
 the pine woods by which Houston is environed, and 
 struck out into the prairies, we met a party of ladies 
 and gentlemen on horseback. They, too, were press- 
 ing their nags to the utmost, evidently to reach shelter 
 before the heavy black clouds should commence dis- 
 charging their torrents ; and the loud and merry laugh 
 of the ladies, as they gayly and swiftly passed along, 
 showed that they were perfectly at home on horseback, 
 and heedless of any break-neck risks they might be 
 running. 
 
 After a closely-contested race, of an hour's duration, 
 with the shower, during which it was almost impossible to 
 say which would come out ahead, we finally reached our 
 stopping-place neck-and-neck in racing parlance, made 
 a " dead heat" of it. No sooner had we thrown our- 
 selves from our jaded animals and hastily stripped them 
 of their saddles, than the large and widely-scattered 
 raindrops, which usually precede a shower, gave place 
 to a perfect avalanche of water. Our log-house quar-
 
 THE LOSS OF A SCALP. 25 
 
 ters, however, were closely " chinked and daubed,"* 
 and we passed a dry and comfortable night. 
 
 The heavens were still overhung with clouds on the 
 ensuing morning, although the rain had nearly subsided. 
 After partaking of a warm breakfast, we resumed our 
 journey across the gently undulating and fertile prairies 
 to be found between all the many streams which water 
 Texas. Although not yet June, the corn was nearly as 
 high as a man's head, and gave goodly token of a most 
 abundant harvest. The following day we crossed the 
 Brazos at San Felipe de Austin, formerly a place of 
 some little note, but now falling to decay. Another day, 
 after two or three tolerably severe drenchings from the 
 almost hourly showers that were falling, carried us 
 through Bastrop to a noted stopping-place for travel- 
 lers, within some twenty miles of Austin. The proprie- 
 tor of this plantation, with his brother or son-in-law, and 
 a few others, had settled upon it long before the revo- 
 lution, and in the most troublous Indian times. Frequent 
 and bloody were the encounters between the whites and 
 their savage neighbours, in which the former generally 
 came off victorious, although at times they lost some one 
 of their number. On taking seats at the dinner-table, 
 in the house I have just mentioned, I noticed, with some 
 little surprise, that one of the male members of the fam- 
 ily sat down with his hat on. I thought him guilty of 
 great rudeness or forgetfulness ; but before we left, the 
 mystery was explained. In one of the early encounters 
 with the Indians he had been shot down, tomahawked, 
 and scalped by his brutal enemies, and then left for dead. 
 After remaining senseless for some time, the wounded 
 
 * The process of filling, with clay, the interstices between the logs of all 
 houses in the new countries for there all the houses are at first made of logs 
 is called " chinking and daubing." 
 
 VOL. I. C
 
 26 ARRIVAL AT AUSTIN. 
 
 man revived. He had bled much from several wounds, 
 and was suffering extremely from pain ; yet he had 
 strength and resolution to crawl first to a spring of wa- 
 ter, and then to his log-shanty, a distance of several 
 miles. He suffers to this day from nervous headache, 
 and, I believe, always wears his hat closely drawn down. 
 He is the second person I have seen who has survived 
 the barbarous process of scalping, and may be looked 
 upon as a living witness of what the honest Hibernian 
 said was a fact, namely, " that a man is not always dead 
 when he is killed !" . 
 
 On arriving at Austin, I was introduced to Colonel 
 William G. Cooke and Doctor R. F. Brenham,* two of 
 the commissioners appointed by General Lamar to treat 
 with the inhabitants of New Mexico. They informed 
 me that the expedition would not leave under a week at 
 least probably not under ten or twelve days. This 
 delay I did not much regret, as it would give me an op- 
 portunity of visiting San Antonio, by far the most inter- 
 esting place in Texas, not only from the beauty of its lo- 
 cation and the old Spanish missions in its neighbourhood, 
 but from its being the spot where some of the fiercest 
 battles in the early part of the Texan Revolution were 
 fought. 
 
 At Austin I first became acquainted with Mr. Falco- 
 ner, a young English gentleman of high literary and 
 scientific attainments, mild and agreeable manners, and 
 
 * Poor Brenham ! He passed safely through all the perils, hardships, and 
 sufferings of the Santa Fe expedition, to be again taken prisoner at the san- 
 guinary battle of Mier, fought in the early part of the past year, 1843. 
 While again on his march as a prisoner to the city of Mexico, Brenham in- 
 duced his fellow-prisoners to join him in an attempt to escape. He led the 
 attack upon the guards, had already killed two of them, and severely wound- 
 ed a third, when he stumbled and fell directly upon the bayonet of his falling 
 enemy. Thus died Brenham, and in him Texas lost one of her bravest and 
 most generous spirits.
 
 ENGLISH TRAVELLERS. 27 
 
 what is rare among his countrymen when away from 
 home, extremely sociable and companionable qualities 
 from the first. Your English traveller, unless he is an 
 old stager, has seen much of the world, and has learned 
 to take the many discomforts he is sure to encounter 
 with composure, is prone to grumble. Nature has 
 made him a most excellent growler, but not a traveller ; 
 and he cannot combat against her arbitrary laws. Meet 
 him in a stage-coach, a steamboat, or a railroad car, 
 and as far as his dress goes for no man knows better 
 how to dress, while travelling, than an Englishman* 
 all is right ; but attempt to draw him into conversation,* 
 and he will wrap a hauteur about him more impenetra- 
 ble than his rough overcoat. He will answer your 
 question, it is true, but in such a way that you think 
 he wishes to shut the gate against your asking another. 
 His yes is short and quick, like the breaking of a pipe- 
 stem ; his no comes snappingly from him, like the growl 
 of a hyena when punched through the bars of his cage 
 with a long pole. Yankee ingenuity tries, but in vain, 
 to find out his name, his place of residence, his business 
 in short, who or what he is and all this while the close 
 observer may detect a half smile of self-satisfaction on 
 the round and ruddy face of John Bull, as he cruelly, 
 yet successfully puzzles his indefatigable interlocutor. 
 
 Yet, with all his coldness and unapproachability, one 
 cannot help admiring the English traveller. There is 
 nothing assumed or studied in his formality all is nat- 
 
 * How different with the American traveller. He must needs, on starting 
 on a journey, array himself in his " Sunday-go-to-meeting" dress. He makes 
 his toilet with the greatest care, alike regardless of rain, dust, or sparks 
 from locomotives. The Englishman laughs at him, and with good show of 
 reason ; for a more absurd custom could not well be devised. I have been 
 pleased to observe, of late, that my countrymen are gradually dropping thi 
 foolish habit.
 
 28 ENGLISH TRAVELLERS. 
 
 ural. He never asks questions never, therefore, gives 
 you an excuse for addressing questions to him. You 
 think him unsocial and distant, from the coldness of his 
 answers : he thinks you impertinent and forward, from 
 the boldness of your questions. Both, to a certain de- 
 gree, are right and both are wrong. Could a medium 
 rule of conduct be adopted, I am not certain that the 
 ethics of those little sovereignties the stage-coach, the 
 car, and the steamboat would not be greatly improved. 
 I have said that the Englishman is not " cut out" for 
 a traveller ; nor is he. With all the comforts of home 
 about him, he will still find something to grumble at 
 but when he leaves it, everything goes wrong. The 
 roads over which he travels are bad, the landlords of the 
 houses where he may chance to stop are unaccommo- 
 dating, the servants are inattentive, the beef is over- 
 done, the mutton is tough and unsavoury. All this may 
 be true, to a certain extent, for your traveller cannot 
 find everything to his liking or taste away from his own 
 homestead ; but where your American good-humoured- 
 ly cracks a hyperbolical joke at the expense of the land- 
 lord ; where your Frenchman shrugs his shoulders, and 
 grins and bears it ; where your German resorts to his 
 pipe or cigar for consolation, your Englishman " makes 
 a muss" about it, and growls his dissatisfaction in looks 
 and in words. While in the stage-coach, should your 
 only companion by chance be an Englishman, you 
 would be led to think that a sentence to six months' im- 
 prisonment on the " silent system" would be neither pun- 
 ishment nor bore to him ; but set him down to his din- 
 ner, at a common roadside tavern, and, like Billy Bot- 
 tom in the old play, he will " roar you like any lion." 
 But in the social circle, or in the drawing-room, where 
 the formalities of a regular introduction have been gone
 
 MAT SMALL. 29 
 
 through, there our friend John is a (afferent sort of per- 
 sonage there an English gentleman is a gentleman 
 in every sense of the word. Having now left our Eng- 
 lishman in comfortable quarters, where he is enjoying 
 himself, I will return to my friend, Mr. Falconer. 
 
 He informed me that he had some little business at 
 San Antonio, and that he should start on the ensuing 
 day, in company with one or two friends, for that city. 
 Here was just the opportunity I wished for. The dis- 
 tance from Austin to San Antonio is some eighty miles, 
 without a single human habitation on the route. Par- 
 ties of hostile Indians are continually hovering about in 
 the vicinity of the road, ready to attack any party they 
 may think themselves able to overcome. The bones of 
 many unfortunate white men are now bleaching upon 
 the prairies, between the two cities, where the travel- 
 lers were waylaid and killed. At one time the way- 
 farer is shot at by a party of foot Indians from some 
 cover or ambuscade ; at another, he is attacked upon 
 the open prairies by a superior number of mounted Ca- 
 manches a tribe that appear to live, move, and have 
 their being, or, in other words, to eat, sleep, work and 
 fight, on horseback. 
 
 Mr. Falconer's little party consisted of himself, a Ken- 
 tuckian named Mat Small, and a Canadian Frenchman 
 named Gramont. Small had received the first rudi- 
 ments of a hunter's education in Kentucky, and had fin- 
 ished it in Texas. An experience so extensive, and 
 formed upon such excellent models, had rendered him 
 somewhat noted the country round for his science and 
 skill as a finished borderer. Gramont, on the contrary, 
 had been educated at Trois Rivieres for the priesthood, 
 but had never taken holy orders. He was now, instead 
 of selling masses and hearing confessions at so much 
 C2
 
 30 MEXICAN MOUNTAIN PONY. 
 
 apiece, quietly pursuing the calling of a surveyor in the 
 country of San Patricio, to which point he was on his 
 way. This was Mr. Falconer's entire force, and with this 
 he had made all his arrangements for the journey ; but 
 he was now re-enforced by myself and Frank Combs, 
 the latter having made up his mind to join the party. 
 We thus mustered five strong, all well armed and equip- 
 ped for a trip that is set down as extra-hazardous. 
 
 Wishing to give my horse every chance to gain flesh 
 and strength before starting for Santa Fe, I left him with 
 a livery-stable keeper at Austin, and hired a little, rough- 
 looking Mexican mountain pony in his stead. The lat- 
 ter was considerably advanced in years, disposed to take 
 every advantage, and shirk from everything in the shape 
 of hard work. He moreover had a huge pair of mus- 
 taches on his upper lip, appendages which belong, I be- 
 lieve, almost exclusively to horses from his particular 
 section and of his particular species ; at all events,! have 
 never seen them worn by other nags. He was tough, 
 however, as wrought iron, and although one hour's ri- 
 ding would bring on a lazy fit, ten would not tire him ; 
 a fact of which I had most abundant evidence after- 
 ward.
 
 PREPARATIONS FOR DEPARTURE. 31 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 Leave Austin for San Antonio. Prospects of a Shower. Singular Conduct 
 of Mat Small. A regular Soaking. Crossing the Colorado. No Bottom 
 for short-legged Animals. Venison for Supper. More of Mat Small. 
 Damp Lodgings. Serenade of Wolves. Meeting with old Friends. The 
 St. Mark's. Head Springs. Disturbance at Night Arrival of Frien-Js 
 from Austin. Journey towards San Antonio renewed. Colonel Cooke in 
 search of a Short Cut. Encounter with a Texan War Party. Hostile 
 Indians about. A Texan killed. Mr. Falconer's Portrait taken while sit- 
 ting upon a Mule. Amusing Adventure. More scared than hurt. The 
 Guadalupe. The Salado. Night Entry into San Antonio. Yelping 
 Curs. Fun at a Fandango. A Mexican Dance, Monte. Getting the 
 Hang of the Game. Return to Lodgings. Comparative Merits of Floors. 
 Difference between Plank, Stone, and Earth. Rough Life in Perspec- 
 tive. Nothing after getting used to it. 
 
 THE morning of the day on which we were to start 
 for San Antonio was unusually hot and sultry, with 
 hardly a breath of air stirring. We had determined 
 upon leaving Austin late in the afternoon, riding about 
 twelve miles, and then encamping for the night on the 
 banks of a small creek. This plan is generally adopted 
 by persons travelling between the two places, although 
 they are obliged, in consequence, to " camp out" two 
 nights instead of one ; but as starting early in the morn- 
 ing makes two long and tiresome days' marches, the 
 former plan is deemed the most feasible and agreeable. 
 
 After dinner, while we were saddling our horses and 
 making preparations for departure, a black cloud about 
 the size of a buzzard was seen in the southwest. Be- 
 fore we were ready to mount, this cloud had spread 
 over the whole quarter of the sky where it made its 
 first appearance. The distant rumbling of thunder \vas
 
 32 PROSPECTS OF A SHOWER. 
 
 by this time plainly heard, and the most uninitiated in the 
 knowledge of the " weather-wise," could easily enough 
 see that a tremendous shower was shortly to break 
 over us. Such prudence as I was at that time in pos- 
 session of, though unenlightened by experience in what 
 most appertains to bodily comfort in the forest and 
 prairie, suggested that if we were to send our nags to 
 the stable, until the shower, or at least the weight of it, 
 should be over, our evening ride would be more agree- 
 able and the risk of catching cold far less ; but instead 
 of pursuing this course. Mat Small seemed hurrying 
 himself to the utmost to make a start before the rain 
 began to fall, as if anxious to get the full benefit and 
 luxury of the shower, if any it had. He appeared to 
 be our leader, though self-delegated ; and against his 
 experience I deemed it prudent not to raise a murmur. 
 Not a word did he utter his very look was law. 
 
 To a person who, like myself, had been admonished 
 from early infancy, both by precept and example, to 
 keep within doors as much as possible during the heavi- 
 er species of showers, the prospect now was certainly 
 neither pleasant nor flattering. Yet there was Small, 
 tightening his saddle-girths and arranging his wallet of 
 stores with as much unconcern as if he did not see the 
 threatening deluge that was hanging over us, or if he 
 did, cared nothing for it. My companions, too, appear- 
 ed to be suddenly taken with a fit of haste, and hurried 
 through the little preliminary preparations as though 
 life and death depended upon their " getting off" before 
 the rain commenced falling. That some of them did it 
 for effect I am confident. 
 
 " You'll be mighty apt to get wet," said a thorough 
 bred Texan who stood watching our movements in 
 front of Bullock's Hotel.
 
 CROSSING THE COLORADO. 33 
 
 " Wet to the skin to a certainty," I answered aloud, 
 with the hope that I might draw Small's attention to 
 the threatening heavens ; but he never once looked at 
 the cloud. I saw that he was determined to start ; and 
 as I should only be making a laughing-stock of myself 
 by demurring, I assumed an indifference I was far from 
 possessing, and pretended to care as little for the im- 
 pending flood as any of my companions. Before my 
 journeyings were half through I got bravely over my 
 antipathy to thunder-showers, and took them as coolly 
 and kindly as a young duck. 
 
 The Colorado, which we were compelled to cross 
 immediately on leaving the city, was distant some half 
 or three quarters of a mile. We had scarcely mounted 
 our animals before the rain commenced falling, and ere 
 we had gone two hundred yards from shelter the full 
 weight of the shower was upon us. It may have rain- 
 ed harder before, may have rained harder since these 
 are questions I do not feel called upon to decide ; but 
 this much I will say, that if it ever has I did not happen 
 to be out at the time. It rained as though every win- 
 dow in heaven was thrown wide open, and a perfect 
 Niagara of water was falling upon us. 
 
 By the time we reached the Colorado I was drench- 
 ed to the skin as wet as though I had been out in the 
 forty days' deluge without greatcoat or umbrella. We 
 found the river somewhat swollen by the previous rains, 
 and the current running unusually fast ; but the man 
 Small, who appeared to have adopted the motto of 
 " go ahead" without taking Crockett's precaution of first 
 ascertaining whether he was right or wrong, spurred his 
 animal directly into the stream. Gramont and Frank 
 Combs, well mounted on tall and spirited horses, did 
 the same, and made the crossing without swimming ;
 
 34 VENISON FOR SUPPER. 
 
 Falconer and myself, perched upon animals of smaller 
 size and shorter limbs, were not equally successful. 
 We were obliged to swim them across ; but finally, 
 after not a little floundering, reached the opposite bank 
 in safety. 
 
 At a brisk pace we rode through the rich and fertile 
 bottom of the Colorado, and soon reached the green and 
 rolling prairies. In half an hour the rain had passed 
 over, but the sun was still hidden by dark and heavy 
 clouds in the west. When within two miles-of the 
 place where we were to encamp, I descried a deer 
 some distance from our trail, quietly feeding. As there 
 was a small clump of bushes near the animal, affording 
 a good cover for an approach, I jumped from my horse 
 with the determination of having a little fresh venison 
 for supper if possible. I was fortunate enough to reach 
 the low bushes without being seen, and after carefully 
 peeping through them for a few moments discovered 
 the deer, with head erect and nostrils distended, gazing 
 steadily in the direction of my cover. Ever and anon 
 he would give the well-known blow or whistle, showing 
 plainly that he scented danger, although he could not 
 see it. I raised my rifle suddenly and fired. The 
 smoke hung lazily on the damp atmosphere, and sev- 
 eral seconds elapsed before I could see whether I had 
 made a successful shot. I had been told, by old hunters, 
 never to stir from my tracks, after firing, until I had re- 
 loaded, and this advice I now followed. On approach- 
 ing the spot where, but a few moments before, the deer 
 had stood so full of life and activity, I found him lying 
 stiff the heavy ball from my rifle having passed di- 
 rectly through his body. Although the task was diffi- 
 cult, I succeeded in throwing the dead animal across 
 my horse's back, and with this extra load rode to the
 
 STRANGE CONDUCT OF SMALL. 35 
 
 camp. Small gave a species of half-smothered, chuck- 
 ling laugh as I threw what I deemed no inconsiderable 
 trophy of my skill to the ground, I noticed the smile, 
 but did not, at the time, fully understand it. 
 
 In less time than it takes me to record it, the veteran 
 hunter had cut a shoulder and some of the more deli- 
 cate and eatable portions from the deer, and then, roll- 
 ing the remainder and larger portion out of the way 
 with his foot, remarked that it was but " poor doe." I 
 told him that it was no doe at all, but a young buck I 
 could not say much as to its fatness. He gave another 
 half-laugh, accompanied by a slight shrug of the shoul- 
 ders and a sarcastic leer out of the corners of his eyes, 
 and then thrust a stick through the pieces of meat which 
 he still held in his hand. Another minute passed, and 
 the venison, with some clumsily-cut slices of ham which 
 Mr. Falconer had providently brought with him, was 
 cooking before a large fire which the latter gentleman 
 had kindled. A goodly-sized pot of coffee was also 
 quickly boiling upon the same fire, and what with the 
 scent of the roasting meat, and the fragrance of the old 
 Java, I soon was the possessor of an appetite a city 
 gourmand might envy. Most ample justice did I do to 
 it in the way of eating, after the meat was cooked ; and 
 a tm cup of coffee, sweetened, it is true, but without 
 milk, I then thought the most delicious draught I had 
 ever tasted. It would be folly to deny that an appetite, 
 known only in the woods and on the prairies, lent a 
 sauce to our plain repast which neither wine and bit- 
 ters, catsup, nor any of the provocatives and seasonings 
 usually resorted to, could have given. There was one 
 thing, however, which was running in my mind all the 
 while, and which I could not understand those appa- 
 rently half-contemptuous and ill-suppressed laughs of
 
 36 DAMP LODGINGS. 
 
 Small, and his calling young buck " poor doe !" I grew 
 wiser before I had been a month upon the prairies, and 
 learned the full meaning of conduct which I then thought 
 sneering. He was laughing, in the first place, to see 
 me pack an entire deer into camp when our utmost ne- 
 cessities were more than supplied by less than a quar- 
 ter of the animal, and among the Texan hunters the 
 term " poor doe" is applied, regardless of gender, to any 
 deer that may happen to be lean. Small, no doubt, 
 thought me lamentably ignorant of the ways of that 
 portion of the wide world in which he moved with so 
 much credit, as indeed I was ; and what was still worse 
 for me, I had taken his honest and well-meant smile and 
 accompanying chuckle for tokens of derision and open 
 effrontery. 
 
 By the time we had finished our meal it was near 
 dark, and a dense fog was rising upon the little creek, 
 the banks of which we had chosen for our camp. My 
 clothes were wet, my blankets were wet, the grass 
 was wet, and the air was damp a prospect by no 
 means pleasant to one who, up to that time, had 
 always been the possessor of shelter and a bed. To 
 complain, however, would have given Small another 
 opportunity to indulge in one of his quiet chuckles ; so 
 I put as good a face upon the matter as was possible, 
 spread my wet blankets upon the still wetter grass, and 
 after rolling myself up. resigned myself, as well as I 
 could, to the circumstances. My friends, all of whom 
 had some little experience in " out-door" life, were 
 huddled around me, and made themselves exceedingly 
 merry and facetious at my expense ; but all their seem- 
 ing indifference to the damp and disagreeable position 
 we were placed in I then thought assumed, and I did 
 not believe that one of them thought of obtaining any
 
 PLAN OP TRAVEL CHANGED. 37 
 
 sleep. For myself, I would have freely staked no in- 
 considerable sum that not the most skilful professor of 
 animal magnetism who has ever lived, even old Mes- 
 mer himself, could have got a single wink of sleep out of 
 me that night ; but, while reflecting upon the impossibil- 
 ity of the thing, I absolutely fell into a sound slumber, 
 as refreshing as though I had been upon the best bed in 
 the world. Once or twice in the night I was awakened 
 by the yelping and howling of a pack of sneaking, hun- 
 gry wolves, drawn close to our camp, doubtless, by the 
 scent of the deer 1 had killed. Otherwise my sleep was 
 uninterrupted. 
 
 Early the next morning, while preparing our break- 
 fast, Major Howard and Mr. George Van Ness, who 
 had started from San Antonio the preceding day, rode 
 up to our camp. Van Ness I had formerly known in 
 Vermont, but had not seen him for several years. 
 These gentlemen were on their way to Austin, on busi- 
 ness requiring much expedition. They proposed that 
 we should go no farther than the St. Mark's that day, 
 and promised that they would meet us there early the 
 next morning, and go with us to San Antonio. Al- 
 though we had intended travelling to the Guadalupe, 
 a river some distance beyond the St. Mark's, we now 
 altered our plan and consented to their proposal. With- 
 out stopping to partake of our meal, to which we in- 
 vited them, they gave their jaded animals the spur, and 
 were soon lost to sight beyond a roll of the prairie. 
 After finishing our breakfast, we saddled our animals 
 and rode slowly towards the beautiful St. Mark's. By 
 two o'clock we reached a deserted military station, near 
 the head springs of that stream the rendezvous ap- 
 pointed by our friends in the morning and there en- 
 camped for the night. During the day, Small pointed 
 
 VOL. I. D
 
 38 NIGHT AT THE ST. MARK*S. 
 
 to several large clouds of smoke rising at some distance 
 ahead of us, and a little to the left of our route, remark- 
 ing that they proceeded from Indian fires ; but at the 
 time we thought but little of them. 
 
 Than the country in the vicinity of the St. Mark's 
 one more lovely and fertile can hardly be found. The 
 stream rises at the base of a low chain of mountains, a 
 short distance from the spot on which we were encamp- 
 ed. The St. Mark's is not formed by a series of small 
 branches or creeks, but takes its rise and character from 
 its fountain head, which is a large spring of clear, cool, 
 and most delicious water, inexhaustible in its supply. 
 But a few hundred yards below this spring we find a 
 deep and swift-running river, stocked with a variety of 
 fish. The bottoms on either side are wide, well-tim- 
 bered, and of the greatest fertility, admirably adapted to 
 either cotton or corn. Once clear of the bottoms, the 
 traveller meets with gently-undulating prairies, afford- 
 ing nutritious grass for pasturage, and a good depth of 
 soil of fair quality. The climate is dry and salubrious, 
 and the settler finds himself occupying lands equally 
 fertile, yet exempt from the bilious fevers and debilita- 
 ting agues so prevalent upon the Colorado, the Brazos, 
 and other muddy and sluggish rivers of Eastern Tex- 
 as. The vicinity of the Guadalupe, another swift and 
 clear stream which we passed on the ensuing day, re- 
 sembles that of the St. Mark's, and could emigrants but 
 enjoy facilities for getting their produce to market, no 
 finer or more healthy openings exist in America. 
 
 We passed the night at the St. Mark's with no inci- 
 dent worthy of relation, other than an alarm among our 
 animals, which were hobbled and staked close by our 
 camp. We started up and found our beasts gazing, 
 with pricked ears, into a darkness which to us was im-
 
 A TEXAN WAR PARTY. 39 
 
 penetrable. Thinking they were probably frightened 
 by a family of noisy screech-owls, perched in a neigh- 
 bouring tree, or else by a more distant pack of howling 
 wolves, we only examined their fastenings to see that 
 all were secure, and retired again to our blankets. 
 From circumstances that transpired afterward, I have 
 little doubt that Indians were prowling about our camp, 
 and that they were either seen or scented by our beasts. 
 It is a well-known fact that the horses or mules of a 
 white man are invariably terrified at the approach of 
 Indians, can scent them at a most astonishing distance, 
 and, from the circumstance that they always give the 
 alarm, are considered excellent sentinels. 
 
 At daybreak Howard and Van Ness, now accom- 
 panied by Colonel W. G. Cooke, made their appear- 
 ance. They had started from Austin at nightfall, and 
 as the distance to the St. Mark's was some forty miles, 
 had had a hard night's ride. The only rest they made 
 was while we prepared a hasty breakfast ; when this 
 was over we saddled our animals and pursued our jour- 
 ney. The distance to San Antonio was still forty miles 
 not a severe day's ride for fresh and good horses but 
 as some of those in our company were but indifferent 
 nags at best, and much travel-worn, the march proved 
 extremely slow r and fatiguing. 
 
 We had proceeded but a short distance, before Colo- 
 nel Cooke, thinking we had lost the shortest trail to San 
 Antonio, separated from our party and struck off across 
 the prairies to the left at a brisk canter. He was hardly 
 out of sight before we saw, rapidly approaching us, at 
 a distance of some mile or mile and a half, a body of 
 about sixty horsemen, whose character it was impossi- 
 ble to distinguish. Apprehensive at first that they 
 might be Indians, we drew up in a body, with a small
 
 40 TEXAN KILLED BY INDIANS. 
 
 mot* of timber close by to which we could easily re- 
 treat, and awaited their approach. It proved to be a 
 party of Texans that had been out some four months on 
 an expedition against the Camanches. So long had they 
 been absent from the settlements that they really bore 
 the strongest resemblance to Indians. Their hunting- 
 shirts had become torn and greasy, their hair long and 
 matted, and their faces, from long exposure to the sun 
 and only an occasional acquaintanceship with water, 
 imbrowned nearly to the color of mahogany. They, 
 too, had at first mistaken us for Indians, and under this 
 belief had approached at no inconsiderable speed : but 
 on nearing us they discovered their mistake, and slack- 
 ened their gait to one more in consonance with the feel- 
 ings of their jaded animals. 
 
 Almost the first question asked by the leader of the 
 party was, whether we had encountered Indians. On 
 being answered in the negative, he stated that two of 
 his comrades had started in advance, the afternoon be- 
 fore, for the purpose of hunting ; that one of them, a man 
 named Moore, had been killed and scalped by Indians ; 
 that his companion, Hunter, had also been wounded by 
 the same gang, yet was enabled to make his escape, and 
 was then safe among his men. His arm was broken 
 by a ball, and on his name being mentioned he rode 
 up to the advance with his wounded limb in a sling. 
 Hunter gave us a description of the spot where he and 
 his companion had been waylaid, and thought it singular, 
 as we had passed directly along the trail, that we had 
 not discovered the mutilated body of the latter. His 
 own horse was untouched by the volley fired by the 
 savages, and being a strong, fleet animal, brought his 
 master off in safety. He described the Indians as being 
 
 * In Western Texas a small clump of timber is called a mot.
 
 FALCONERS PICTURE. 41 
 
 on foot, armed principally with guns and rifles, and num- 
 bering about seventy. At the conclusion of this short 
 interview, the Texans hurried off in the direction of the 
 St. Mark's, to find and bury their unfortunate comrade, 
 while we continuec. our journey towards San Antonio. 
 That we had made a most fortunate escape the day be- 
 fore, by halting at the St. Mark's, was now evident 
 enough. Had we kept directly on we should, in all 
 probability, have fallen into an ambuscade and been cut 
 to pieces. It was now also rendered evident that the 
 alarm among our animals, the previous night, was oc- 
 casioned by Indians, and Mat Small's remark, that the 
 smoke we had seen in the afternoon arose from the sig- 
 nal-fires of a party of hostile savages, received direct 
 confirmation. 
 
 But we had other matters than the past to speculate 
 upon. Our little party was now seven strong, all well 
 armed if not well mounted, and we doubted not being 
 able to give a good account of ourselves should the In- 
 dians attack us. All that was necessary was to keep a 
 bright look-out, and not fall into an ambuscade while 
 passing the different mots and ravines scattered along 
 our trail. But where was Colonel Cooke all this while ? 
 He was ahead, perfectly unconscious of the close prox- 
 imity of Indians, and might be cut off and killed without 
 our knowledge, or without our being able to render him 
 the least assistance. This reflection caused us great 
 uneasiness, and induced us to push forward with the 
 hope of overtaking him. 
 
 Up to this time I have neglected to draw my friend 
 Falconer's picture as he sat for it that day upon his mule. 
 Hogarth might have done it justice ; I shall only pre- 
 tend to give a rough outline. Although belonging to 
 and reared in an excellent family, and accustomed to 
 
 D2
 
 42 WAYWARDNESS OF A MULE. 
 
 all the comforts of the polished life he had but recently 
 left, he easily assimilated himself to the hardships and 
 privations incident to a wild border life. The luxuries 
 and good things of an English fireside he appeared en- 
 tirely to have forgotten the plain and simple substan- 
 tials of a prairie alone occupied his attention. While 
 at Austin he had elected himself our commissary, stew- 
 ard, cook in fact, our purveyor-general had provided 
 a tea-kettle and coffee-pot for the general use, besides a 
 tin cup for each man's private accommodation. With 
 an eye to the general welfare he had also purchased a 
 ham of goodly dimensions, besides coffee, sugar, tea, 
 salt, and red pepper. Mrs. Bullock, the kind and atten- 
 tive landlady of the best hotel at Austin, had added 
 something like a bushel of fresh-baked biscuit to our oth- 
 er stock, so that we were most amply provided for. 
 For all these nic-nacs Mr. Falconer had kindly furnish- 
 ed transportation on his mule, a rickety, lame, self- 
 willed, long-eared brute, of stature not exceeding eleven 
 hands. If we can judge of a mule's obstinacy by the 
 length of its ears, the animal in question was certainly 
 endowed with a portion far exceeding that of any other 
 of the species it has ever been my good or bad fortune 
 to meet. And then, as I have before stated, she was 
 lame of one leg, and had naturally a mincing, shuffling, 
 hobbling gait with the other three. In addition to all 
 this, the mule had a way of stumbling and tumbling 
 down peculiarly her own a habit which she indulged 
 in to an excess absolutely inconvenient, besides being 
 at times somewhat dangerous. To offset all these rare 
 qualities, she was as hardy as a grizzly bear and as tough 
 and untiring as a hound. The latter quality might not 
 have been constitutional, but rather the result of the 
 rigid system of economy she displayed in the disburse-
 
 AN OMNIUM-GATHERUM. 43 
 
 ment of her strength and speed, regardless alike of 
 blows, spurs, cuffs, and whacks. This is a very nice 
 point, and one upon which I dare not hazard a decision. 
 She is now dead, poor thing, and some two months af- 
 ter the events I have just recorded made a meal for 
 many a half-starved man ; but even at this time I can- 
 not help laughing at her eccentricities. 
 
 Now, upon the back of this animal I have been de- 
 scribing, on the morning in question, was perched my 
 friend Falconer. He was arrayed in a costume some- 
 what resembling a New-England washing-day dinner, 
 inasmuch as it was picked up here and there. I have 
 before stated that Mr. F. had kindly offered to give 
 transportation to our commissariat, and this offer he ful- 
 filled. We now have him seated upon his mule, with a 
 double-barrelled smooth bore upon his shoulder, while 
 around and underneath him, tied on and hanging in 
 festoons, was a general assortment of a little of every- 
 thing. There were a ham, a tea-kettle, a wallet of bis- 
 cuit, half a dozen tin cups, a gourd, a pair of pistols, and 
 a coffee-pot, all occupying prominent situations imme- 
 diately around him. In addition, Falconer had with him 
 a number of books and scientific instruments, and these 
 were arranged, here and there, among the hardware 
 and groceries. Thus arrayed and mounted he really 
 seemed more like a gipsy or a travelling tinker than a 
 member of the best society in London and a distinguish- 
 ed barrister of that city. 
 
 We had proceeded some five miles, scattered Indian 
 file along the trail, and were growing more and more 
 solicitous in relation to Colonel Cooke, when the sharp 
 report of a rifle was heard some hundred yards ahead, 
 in a narrow skirting of timber which fringed the banks 
 of a small stream. Van Ness, who was in advance,
 
 44 A DOWNFALL. 
 
 and had reached the edge of the timber, immediately 
 reined up his horse and drew a pistol from his holsters. 
 Major Howard was jogging along next to Van Ness, 
 but at least forty yards behind him, Falconer was close 
 to Major Howard, while myself and companions brought 
 up the rear. The first impression with all, on hearing 
 the report of the rifle, was that the Indians had formed 
 an ambuscade for the purpose of cutting us off. 
 
 " Indians !" shouted Major Howard, drawing one of 
 Colt's revolving pistols and then putting spurs to his 
 steed and making for the thicket. 
 
 " Where ?" said Mr. Falconer, drumming his spurless 
 heels into his mule's sides, and evincing a zeal truly 
 laudable to be one of the first in the brush that all felt 
 confident was about to take place. 
 
 Frank Combs, who was well mounted, came dashing 
 by at the top of his horse's speed. This induced Fal- 
 coner to redouble his kicks and exertions to force his 
 mule along, and he had really induced the animal to 
 make some show tow r ards a species of Canterbury gal- 
 lop as I came up with him. Just as I had reached him, 
 and was about to pass, down went my unfortunate 
 friend's entire establishment, strewing the road, for some 
 ten feet, with mule, Falconer, and sundries. Although 
 in what a Kentuckian would call " all sorts of a hurry," 
 I could not help stopping for a moment to survey the 
 scene and ascertain whether my companion had injured 
 himself. There, side and side, reposed a volume of 
 Lord Bacon and a Kentucky ham there too were a 
 thermometer and a teakettle tin cups, biscuits, fishing- 
 tackle, a barometer, wallets, pistols, knives scattered 
 about in enviable confusion. I can only liken the scene 
 to the promiscuous and miscellaneous appearance of 
 the furniture of a house, saved from a fire and thrown
 
 MEXICAN DOGS. 45 
 
 helter-skelter in the street. At any other time,- after 
 finding that my companion had sustained but little per- 
 sonal injury, I should have laughed outright at the lu- 
 dicrous tumble ; as it was I could not restrain a smile 
 as Falconer hurriedly scrambled upon his feet. By this 
 time the secret of the rifle-shot was fully explained by 
 the appearance of Colonel Cooke from the timber. It 
 seems that he had become lost in endeavouring to find 
 a shorter trail, and discharged his rifle as the only 
 method of making his whereabout known. 
 
 Having assisted the fallen Falconer in repacking and 
 remounting his mule, we renewed our ride. At noon 
 we reached the Guadalupe, without having met with 
 any farther incident. Here we rested an hour or two 
 under some shade trees, while our animals were feed- 
 ing and fighting prairie-flies close by. Towards sun- 
 down we arrived at the Salado, a stream which sinks 
 in the sand and rises again some distance below the 
 regular crossing-place between Austin and San Anto- 
 nio. It was on the banks of this river that Captain 
 Caldwell, with a small number of Texans, defeated the 
 army of General Woll in 1842. After allowing our 
 animals an hour's rest, we resumed our tiresome jour- 
 ney, and about eleven o'clock passed the old and ruin- 
 ed Alamo and entered the outskirts of San Antonio. 
 From every house some half dozen Mexican curs would 
 jump forth and greet us with a chorus of yelps and 
 barks, and before we had fairly entered the town the 
 canine hue and cry was general. Those who have 
 for the first time entered a Mexican town or city must 
 have been struck with the unusual number of dogs, and 
 annoyed by their incessant barking ; but the stranger 
 soon learns that they vent all their courage in barks 
 thev seldom bite.
 
 46 FUN IN A FANDANGO. 
 
 It "was nearly midnight before I could find a resting- 
 place for myself and horse. Late as it was, the sound 
 of a violin drew me across the plaza, or principal 
 square, and up one of the narrow streets leading to it. 
 Poor Power, in one of his plays, used to say that 
 " wherever you hear a fiddle you are pretty sure to 
 find fun ;" in the present instance I found a fandango. 
 As I entered the room, which was destitute of other 
 floor than the hard earth, and lighted by two or three 
 coarse tallow candles, a single couple were shuffling 
 away, face to face, and keeping time to a cracked vio- 
 lin. Ever and anon the woman would sing a verse in 
 Spanish, both herself and male partner standing until its 
 completion. Then they would shuffle away again, using 
 a species of break-down, negro step, entirely devoid of 
 grace and ease. Another verse and then another shuf- 
 fle, and the dance was over. The woman was as des- 
 titute of beauty as an Egyptian mummy in fact, if 
 dried, would have made a very good counterfeit of one 
 of those curiosities ; her partner was even more ugly. 
 Some half dozen slovenly, badly-dressed Mexican girls 
 were sitting upon benches at either end of the room, 
 while an old woman in one corner was selling paper 
 cigars and vile whiskey.* I passed through an open 
 door, leading into a back room, where were a small 
 party of men and women betting at monte. I lost a 
 couple of dollars " just to get the hang of the game," as 
 the facetious Sam Slick would say, and then retired to 
 my lodgings. Here I had no other bed than my own 
 blankets and the hard earth floor ; if anything can be 
 harder than such a couch I have yet to find it, and my 
 
 * This was but a fandango of the lowest order. The reader must not sup- 
 pose that there is no better society among the Mexicans of San Antonio than 
 I found at this place.
 
 THOUGHTS ON FLOORS. 47 
 
 experience has been rather extensive. A plank really 
 seems to have a " soft side," and those who have tried 
 both, as I have, will say that there is a species of " give," 
 if I may be allowed the expression, to a stone floor ; but 
 a Mexican, hard-trodden, earth floor has a dead solidity 
 about it which fairly makes the tired bones ache again. 
 The experience of the few past days now came like an 
 unpleasant panorama across my mind, and I began to 
 reflect that I had a rough life in perspective ; but as 
 every one said " it was nothing after getting used to it," 
 I resolved to " go ahead." 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 Description of San Antonio. Fondness of the Women for Bathing. Cli- 
 mate. Irrigating Canals. Fruits. The old Spanish Missions. Objects 
 for which they were constructed. The Alamo. Concepcion. San Juan. 
 San Jose. La Espada. Bowie and Crockett. Church of San Antonio. 
 Anecdote of General Cos. Mexican Merchants from the Rio Grande. 
 Return to Austin. Incidents upon the Road. A Texan Leather Stocking. 
 An Adventure. Out-tricking a Party of Indians. Another Night at the 
 St. Mark's. Fruitless Chase after Camanches. Hog-wallow Prairie. Ar- 
 rival at Camp. More of the Camanches. Plain Supper and good Appe- 
 tite. Insight into Astronomy. Once more at Austin. A Fall in the 
 Dark. Speculations while falling. Broken Bones. Dancing Days over, 
 or the " Jig up." Consolation under Misfortune. 
 
 BY far the most pleasant as well as interesting town 
 in Texas is San Antonio, or Bexar as it is frequently 
 called by the inhabitants. The San Antonio River, 
 which heads a short distance above the town, meanders 
 through its streets, and its limpid waters, by the differ- 
 ent turns it makes and the irrigating canals, are brought 
 within a convenient distance of every door. The tem- 
 perature of the water is nearly the same all the year
 
 48 SAN ANTONIO. 
 
 through neither too hot nor too cold for bathing and 
 it is seldom that a day passes in which all the inhabi- 
 tants do not enjoy the healthy and invigorating luxury 
 of swimming. I say all for men, women, and chil- 
 dren can be seen at any time in the river, splashing, 
 diving, and paddling about like so many Sandwich 
 Islanders. The women in particular are celebrated for 
 their fondness for bathing, and are excellent swimmers. 
 
 The climate of San Antonio is pure, dry, and healthy ; 
 so much so, that the old but rather hyperbolical saying, 
 " If a man wants to die there he must go somewhere 
 else," appears specially to apply to the place. During 
 the summer months, a cool and delicious breeze is al- 
 most continually blowing, bringing health and comfort. 
 But little rain falls ; and to supply this defect the rich 
 and fertile bottoms of the river are intersected in al- 
 most every direction by irrigating ditches, which carry 
 the limpid waters in every direction. Whenever the 
 ground requires a moistening, the water from the canals 
 is let over it at once ; so that even should the summer 
 pass without a drop of rain, the crop is invariably abun- 
 dant. Peaches and melons arrive at great perfection, and 
 I have little doubt that many other species of fruit could 
 be cultivated with success. The prairies in the vicinity 
 afford the finest pastures for cattle and horses to be 
 found in the wide world, and so mild is the climate that 
 they thrive at all seasons. 
 
 By far the greatest curiosities in the neighbourhood 
 of San Antonio are the missions. Before I describe 
 these immense establishments it is necessary to observe 
 that early after the conquest of Mexico a main object 
 of the Spaniards' policy was to extend the authority of 
 the Roman Catholic Church. The conversion of the 
 Indian and the promulgation of Christianity were as
 
 SPANISH MISSIONS. 49 
 
 eagerly sought by them as the gold and silver which 
 first lured them to the Western World ; and this mission- 
 ary zeal produced some of the most remarkable inci- 
 dents in the history of the country. The new doctrines 
 were first inculcated by force and cruelty, but subse- 
 quently in a more humane temper, by allowing the su- 
 perstitions of the Indian to mingle with the rites intro- 
 duced among them; and to this day, the anomalous 
 consequences of this policy are to be seen in the Indian 
 ceremonies, some of which I will describe when I shall 
 hereafter speak of our journey through the Mexican 
 country. For the purpose, however, of affording pro- 
 tection to the Roman Catholic missionaries, there were 
 established, at various times, settlements which still bear 
 the name of Missions. They are very numerous through- 
 out California, and in Texas there are several. The 
 Alamo, at San Antonio, was one of much importance, 
 and there were others, hardly of less consideration, in 
 the neighbourhood, called the Missions of Concepcion, of 
 San Juan, San Jose, and La Espada. They were all 
 most substantially built ; the walls are of great thick- 
 ness ; and in their form and arrangement they were 
 frontier fortresses. They have generally, though not 
 always, a church at the side of a square having one en- 
 trance. Seen from without, they present the form of a 
 blank wall surrounding a square enclosure ; within is a 
 large granary, and the wall forms the back of a series of 
 dwellings in which the missionaries and their converts 
 lived. There was a large appropriation of the sur- 
 rounding district for the support of the mission, through 
 which small canals were made for the purpose of irri- 
 gation. Such, at least, is the case with the missions 
 which I have mentioned. The Alamo is now in ruins, 
 only two or three of the houses being inhabited. The 
 VOL. I. E
 
 50 THE ALAMO. 
 
 gateway of the church was much ornamented, and still 
 remains, though deprived of the figures which once oc- 
 cupied its niches. But there is enough still to interest 
 the investigator of its former history, even if he could 
 for a moment forget the scenes which have made it 
 celebrated in the history of Texan independence. The 
 exact spot where the eccentric but brave Crockett fell, 
 surrounded by a ring of Mexicans whom he had killed, 
 is shown, as also the quarter where the heroic Bowie 
 breathed his last. About two miles lower down the 
 San Antonio River is the Mission of Concepcion. It is 
 a very large stone building, with a fine cupola, and, 
 though plain, magnificent in its dimensions and the 
 durability of its construction. It was here that Bowie 
 fought one of the first battles with the Mexican forces, 
 and it has not since been inhabited. Though not so 
 well known to fame as other conflicts, this fight was 
 that which really committed the Texans, and compelled 
 those who thought of terms and the maintenance of a 
 Mexican connexion to see that the time for both had 
 passed. The Mission of San Jose is about a mile and 
 a half down the river. It consists, also, of a large 
 square, and numerous Mexican families still make it 
 their residence. To the left of the gateway is the gran- 
 ary. The church stands apart from the other buildings, 
 in the square, but not in the centre ; the west door is 
 surrounded with most elaborate stone carving of flow- 
 ers, angels, and apostles. The interior is plain. To the 
 right is a handsome belfry tower, and above the altar a 
 large stone cupola. Behind the church, and in connex- 
 ion with it, is a long range of rooms for the mission- 
 aries, opening upon a covered gallery or portaks of 
 nine arches. Though the Texan troops were long 
 quartered here, the stone carvings have not been iiir
 
 DISLODGING A GENERAL. 5J 
 
 jured. The church has been repaired, and Divine ser- 
 vice is performed in it. About half a mile farther dowi? 
 is the Mission of San Juan. The church forms part of 
 the side of the square ; it is a plain, simple edifice, with 
 little ornament. The adjacent buildings are poor and 
 out of repair. The granary stands alone in the square, 
 and on the northwest corner are the remains of a small 
 stone tower. The other mission, that of La Espada, is 
 also inhabited, as well as the last. The church, how- 
 ever, is in ruins. Two sides of the square consist of 
 mere walls ; the other sides are composed of dwellings 
 as in the other instances. 
 
 The church at San Antonio was built in the year 
 1717 ; and although it has suffered much from the rav- 
 ages of time and the different sieges which the city has 
 undergone, is still used as a place of public worship. 
 When San Antonio was attacked and taken by Colonels 
 Cooke and Milam, in 1835, General Cos made the bel- 
 fry of this church his headquarters. A well-directed 
 cannon-shot from the Texans struck just above his head, 
 inducing him to evacuate the place with his staff* im- 
 mediately. The hole made by the ball is still visible, 
 and, in fact, all the houses in the principal square of 
 the town are marked more or less by shot. 
 
 San Antonio is laid out and built with some little reg- 
 ularity. The houses are all of one story only, with few 
 windows and thick walls. The town probably contain- 
 ed, at one time, a population of some twelve or fifteen 
 thousand ; but the different revolutions, the many bloody 
 battles which have been fought within its walls, and the 
 unsettled state of the frontiers, have combined to lessen 
 this number materially. It is still, however, a place of 
 no inconsiderable trade, and should peace be concluded 
 with Mexico, will regain its former standing. While I
 
 52 AN ORIGINAL. 
 
 was there a company of Mexican merchants from the 
 other side of the Rio Grande arrived, who were allow- 
 ed to trade and depart in peace ; and had the expedi- 
 tion to Santa Fe been given up, as was at one time an- 
 ticipated, I should have joined one of these companies 
 and entered Mexico by way of Loredo. 
 
 After spending some six or eight days very agree- 
 ably at San Antonio, I set out on my return to Austin. 
 Two days before I left, a number of wagons, loaded 
 with goods by the merchants of San Antonio and des- 
 tined for the Santa Fe market, left the former place ; 
 these we overtook at the Guadalupe, and thence jour- 
 neyed towards Austin in company. 
 
 While " nooning" on our third day's march from San 
 Antonio, or in plain terms, while stopping a couple of 
 hours in the heat of the day to rest, I set off, in com- 
 pany with an original named Tom Hancock, in the 
 hope of being able to kill a deer. This fellow Hancock 
 was a perfect " character," as much so as the celebra- 
 ted Leather Stocking of Cooper's novels. In person he 
 was spare and gaunt, with a loose, shambling carriage 
 of body that ill betokened the firm-set muscles and iron 
 powers of endurance he really possessed. When stand- 
 ing erect, his height may have been five feet seven or 
 eight inches ; but he had a lazy, listless stoop, which 
 shortened his stature two or three inches and gave him 
 the appearance of being misshapen and round-shoulder- 
 ed. His limbs were anything but symmetrical, and 
 seemed to hang dangling about him this on ordinary 
 occasions ; but when the muscles were nerved, and the 
 body straightened in the excitement of adventure, it 
 was then that Tom appeared in his true light, a wiry, 
 knotted imbodiment of action, power and determina- 
 tion.
 
 THE PRAIRIE RANGER. 53 
 
 Decidedly the best point about him was his eye, a 
 small twinkling orb, of no definable colour, but which 
 never allowed any object within the farthest reach of 
 human vision to pass unnoticed. And yet, one might 
 journey with him for days, might be in his company 
 even for weeks, and never suppose that he was looking 
 at or for anything. But not a footprint, not a trail, es- 
 caped the notice of that quiet-rolling eye Tom could 
 tell you the animal that made it, the direction in which 
 it was going, and the time that had elapsed since it was 
 impressed upon the surface of the prairie. 
 
 In every species of backwoods, border, and prairie 
 strategy Hancock had his gifts, and they were such as 
 have been vouchsafed to but few. An Indian he could 
 circumvent and outmanoeuvre at his own games, and at 
 killing every kind of animal known in the woods or on 
 the prairies, at fishing, or at " lining" bees, the oldest 
 and best hunters acknowledged Tom's supremacy. He 
 could lie closer to the ground, creep farther, expose 
 less of his person and get nearer a deer, bear, buffalo 
 or enemy's camp, than any other man, and these quali- 
 ties made him invaluable not only as a mere provider 
 of meat for a camp, but as a spy. He had been in frays 
 innumerable with the Mexicans, as well as Indians, and 
 invariably performed some exploit that would furnish 
 his companions with a topic for conversation. He had 
 been a prisoner among the Camanches, but had got 
 away from them in short, had made hair-breadth 
 'scapes innumerable. Yet he never, on any occasion, 
 boasted of his feats never even adverted to them. 
 Such is a rough and imperfect picture of Tom Han- 
 cock of one nurtured amid the solitudes of the woods 
 and prairies whose days had been spent in the excite- 
 ments and dangers of the chase or of Indian frays, and 
 E2
 
 64 A HUNTING ADVENTURE. 
 
 whose nights had passed amid serenades of prairie 
 wolves and owls. He had been hired at San Antonio 
 by Mr. Falconer not as his servant, for Tom would 
 scorn being the washer of dishes or brusher of clothes 
 for any man but simply to accompany the Santa Fe 
 Expedition. His obligations to Mr. F. extended this 
 far he was to find him if lost, and to keep him in pro- 
 vision should other supplies fail. Such was the singu- 
 lar contract. 
 
 Tom's ordinary weapon, and the one upon which he 
 most " prided" himself, was a long, heavy, flint-lock rifle, 
 of plain and oldfashioned workmanship, for he could 
 not be made to believe in percussion caps and other 
 modern improvements. In the adventure I am about 
 to describe he was armed with one of Colt's repeating 
 rifles, which he had borrowed, his own being out of or- 
 der. The spot where we had stopped to pass the heat 
 of the day was a little prairie on the eastern side of a 
 small branch, the borders of which were skirted by a 
 narrow fringe of timber, running nearly north and south, 
 and ranging in width from one hundred yards to a quar- 
 ter of a mile. Tom and myself skirted along the east- 
 ern side of the trees until we had travelled nearly a 
 mile, without seeing a living thing save two or three 
 large prairie rabbits, which would suddenly jump up 
 and leap off as we approached. 
 
 Thinking we might meet with deer on the opposite 
 side of the timber, Tom noiselessly led the way through 
 while I followed closely upon his heels. We put up 
 two or three turkeys near the branch, but the underbrush 
 was so thick it was impossible to get a shot at them. 
 When through the timber, Tom descried a couple of 
 deer quietly feeding in the prairie. He attempted to 
 get a shot, and laid his plans for that purpose with great
 
 AN INDIAN CAMP. 55 
 
 judgment and every prospect of success ; but the ani- 
 mals appeared extremely shy, and discovered him be- 
 fore he was within reach of them. A little farther up 
 the prairie another deer was discovered ; but like the 
 others, it was timid and on the look-out for danger, and 
 ran off before my companion was within two hundred 
 yards. " There's been Injuns round here lately, I know 
 by the way the critters work," said Tom in his quiet 
 way, at the same time pointing to the last deer we had 
 started, which was rapidly bounding away in the dis- 
 tance. 
 
 The hunter now hesitated a moment, took a hurried 
 but careful survey of the surrounding scene, and then 
 kept on his course up the prairie, in an opposite direc- 
 tion from that in which our party were encamped. We 
 had not proceeded a quarter of a mile, and were within 
 about the same distance of the wood on our left, when 
 an abrupt roll of the prairie brought us suddenly in 
 sight of a large, and, to all appearance, recently desert- 
 ed Indian camp, for the embers of some of the fires 
 were still smouldering. " I knew it," said Tom, and 
 pausing a moment, and circling the prairie with his eye, 
 finished the sentence with " and some of 'em are close 
 by, now." I said not a word, but watched every move- 
 ment of the hunter. That danger was lurking near I 
 was well aware, and if any one could combat it success- 
 fully I felt equally confident it was my companion. Al- 
 though the movement appeared singular enough to me, 
 Tom kept directly on nearly in the same direction, only 
 so far varying his course as to leave the Indian camp 
 fires on the right. We had advanced but a few steps 
 before the footprints of men were plainly visible on the 
 prairie grass. That they were footprints, and of five 
 men, I could see myself; but which way they had gone,
 
 56 SAGACITY OP TOM HANCOCK. 
 
 and what time had elapsed since the prints were form- 
 ed, were matters to me of the most profound mystery. 
 My first impulse was to hasten immediately to our camp, 
 keeping on the same side of the wood until opposite, or 
 nearly so, to our party ; but I said not a word. Tom 
 hastily threw himself upon his hands and knees, bent 
 his head close to the ground, and attentively examined 
 one of the footprints. As he rose to his feet he quietly 
 remarked, " The grass ain't done risin' yet," his eye in 
 the mean time following the fresh trail until it was lost 
 in the wood at a point directly opposite where we then 
 stood. That the Indians had but just passed was a 
 fact brought home to my senses by the superior craft 
 of my companion, and eagerly did I watch his farther 
 movements. He ran his eye along the line of timber in 
 either direction, lifted his rifle from the ground and has- 
 tily examined the lock and caps, and then, as if his 
 mind was fully made up for any emergency, started at 
 a fast walk for a point of the timber still farther from 
 our camp. I followed him in silence, and I must say in 
 astonishment, for to my understanding there was the 
 utmost danger in the course he took ; but with all my 
 astonishment I still felt the utmost confidence in Han- 
 cock, for there was a decision in his movements that 
 gave assurance he fully understood the nature of the 
 dilemma in which we were placed, and had adopted the 
 wisest measures to extricate us from it. 
 
 At a long, steady stride, and without apparently turn- 
 ing his eyes either to the right or left, Tom kept a 
 straight line for the timber. The wood was soon gain- 
 ed, and at a pace even increased we struck directly 
 through. I had not noticed the circumstance before, 
 but now that we were among the trees I saw that at 
 this point the belt of timber was much narrower, more
 
 EXTRICATION FROM DANGER. 57 
 
 open, and presented fewer facilities for an ambuscade. 
 Arrived on the eastern side, Tom did not slacken his 
 pace until we had left the woods some three hundred 
 yards in our rear, when placing the breech of his rifle 
 upon the greensward, giving one long breath, and cast- 
 ing his eye along the thicket we had just passed, he 
 quietly remarked, " We needn't be afraid of 'em now 
 five foot Injuns ain't goin' to attack us in gunshot hear- 
 in' of camp, 'specially when there ain't no place for 'em 
 to hide." Not another word did he utter, but lifting his 
 rifle from the ground with a slight jerk, and catching it 
 as it fell with his right hand, he leisurely took the direc- 
 tion back towards our camp. This little adventure, 
 which certainly would have been fraught with some 
 danger had it not been for the craft of Hancock, im- 
 pressed me more fully than ever with a belief in his su- 
 perior skill. Another fact I ascertained from our little 
 hunting trip : the Indian camp we had discovered was 
 the same from which ascended the different smokes that 
 we saw while journeying from Austin to San Antonio, 
 and undoubtedly was the general rendezvous of the 
 large party who had killed Moore and wounded Hunter 
 near the St. Mark's. Where the main body was, when 
 Hancock and myself visited their premises, it is impos- 
 sible to conjecture, but it was probably engaged in some 
 marauding expedition. We were certainly fortunate in 
 not falling in with it, and some of the warriors who com- 
 posed the party were unfortunate so far as the missing 
 a couple of scalps may go. 
 
 We arrived in camp as our companions were sad- 
 dling their animals and preparing for departure, so that 
 we had no time for rest after the fatigue of a two hours' 
 march in the hot sun. Our nags, however, had enjoyed 
 a rest, if we had not, and were fresh and ready for the
 
 58 A NARROW ESCAPE. 
 
 journey. That night we spent at the St. Mark's, and 
 after enjoying a bath in its cool waters, I had a sound 
 and refreshing sleep. In the early part of the ensuing 
 afternoon, some three or four of us who were ahead 
 descried three Camanches ascending a distant roll of the 
 prairie on horseback. We gave chase at once; but 
 finding, after a race of some ten minutes, that they were 
 going at least three yards to our two over the hog-wal- 
 low* prairies, we reined up and returned to the trail. 
 
 On arriving at the spring where we were to encamp 
 that night, we found two of our young men, who had 
 gone out early in the morning in quest of game, busily 
 dressing a fat buck they had been lucky enough to kill. 
 We told them the circumstance of our having given 
 chase to a small party of Camanches, and after we de- 
 scribed to them the route the Indians were taking when 
 we first discovered them, our hunters at once said they 
 were following on their trail. They also stated that 
 in their morning hunt they had noticed fresh Indian 
 "sign"f in many places, and had little doubt the Ca- 
 manches we had chased had been hanging upon their 
 path and waiting an opportunity to cut them off. They 
 even deemed our appearance providential in saving 
 their lives, as they had exhausted all their ammunition, 
 and must have been massacred if the Indians had over- 
 taken them.J 
 
 * So called from the roughness of the prairie in many parts. In some pla- 
 ces the ground has every appearance of having been torn up by hogs root- 
 ed, I believe, is the expression and hence the name. The Indian horses 
 are early trained to run over these rough places with freedom. 
 
 t Any evidences seen upon the prairies of the appearance, whether recent 
 or otherwise, of animals or men, is called " sign." If the marks appear re- 
 cent the term is " fresh sign" if otherwise, " old sign." The term will very 
 likely appear often in this work, and I have therefore given this short ex- 
 planation. 
 
 t It may be considered singular that both these young men, before the
 
 PRAIRIE LEARNING. 59 
 
 By the time our main party reached the spring where 
 we had come up with our hunters, it was near six 
 o'clock in the afternoon. As I had eaten nothing since 
 daylight, and had had no little exercise in the way of 
 riding and walking in the interim, the reader will readi- 
 ly imagine that I had a tolerably sharp-set appetite. At 
 all events, I ate venison enough to satisfy a half-famish- 
 ed wolf; there were no other accompaniments than red 
 pepper and salt but at that time I thought it the most 
 delicious meal I had ever swallowed. Since then I have 
 made a meal of the flesh of a poor, broken-down horse 
 with far keener relish. 
 
 The next morning, after a brisk ride of some three 
 hours, we reached Austin again in safety, having been 
 absent nearly a fortnight. More than half of this time I 
 had " camped out" upon the prairies, with no other bed 
 than the ground, no other covering than the sky blue 
 or black, according to the state of the weather and a 
 Mexican blanket. I had already made considerable ad- 
 vancement, practically, in the science of astronomy, 
 being able to tell the north star with much accuracy 
 after first occupying some ten minutes in arranging the 
 " pointers" so as to bear upon it. A friend had also 
 promised to hunt up and make me acquainted with the 
 " big bear" some fair night. Farther than this, I could 
 now easily distinguish the howling of a prairie wolf from 
 
 Sanla Fe Expedition reached the settlements of New Mexico, met a violent 
 death. One of them, a young man named Lockridge, shot himself on Little 
 River whether by accident or not was never ascertained. He was a native, 
 I believe, of Louisiana, a lawyer by profession, of good manners, excellent 
 education, and modest, retiring deportment. He was much beloved by all 
 who knew him, and was buried with military honours near the spot where 
 he breathed his last. The other, Doctor Bell, was an assistant surgeon, and 
 a brother of his is said to be a captain in the United States army. The doc- 
 tor was killed by Indians on the Grand Prairie, and his loss was deeply re- 
 gretted by those who knew him best.
 
 60 AN AWKWARD TUMBLE. 
 
 the screeching of an owl, points upon which I was sore- 
 ly puzzled the first time I heard one of their concerts. 
 But to speak seriously, I had found no bad effects from 
 exposure so far, and was every day growing more and 
 more reconciled to the long tour which still lay in pros- 
 pect before me. 
 
 The evening after my return to Austin, however, an 
 accident occurred which not only came near preventing 
 me from leaving for Santa Fe, but for any other place 
 in this lower world. The day had been hot and sultry, 
 threatening rain, and when night came the sky was 
 shrouded in clouds of pitchy blackness. A man's hand 
 could have been seen as plainly had it been in Kams- 
 chatka as when held before his face at arm's-length ; but 
 notwithstanding the darkness, some four or five of us 
 made up a little party for the purpose of bathing, and 
 started for the Colorado with that intention. As the 
 river is approached, the traveller meets with a fork in 
 the road, one trail leading directly down a cut- way ex- 
 cavated in the high steep bank, while the other conducts 
 to the bluff and then turns abruptly off along its edge. I 
 happened to be ahead, and unfortunately took the wrong 
 trail ; yet so confident was I that I was right, that I walk- 
 ed directly up to and over what may emphatically be 
 called the " jumping-off place" of the Rio Colorado. It 
 was no stumble, no pitching head first over a steep pre- 
 cipice, but on the contrary I walked directly off the gid- 
 dy height to use a common expression, went over " all 
 standing." 
 
 It is to be presumed that a man's feelings are by no 
 means pleasant when he suddenly finds that his feet have 
 no footing, and that his gravity is carrying him, with a 
 velocity absolutely uncomfortable, to say nothing of the 
 attendant danger, from a third or fourth story window
 
 RESULTS OF A FALL. 61 
 
 to a sidewalk, with every brick in which he is perfectly 
 familiar ; but his feelings border upon dissatisfaction and 
 distrust when he ascertains that he is standing upon 
 nothing, with an unknown destination before him, and 
 has time to reflect, while descending, upon the distance 
 he has already come and to indulge in speculations as 
 to the distance he has yet to go. My experience in, 
 falling from high places is limited to one or two flights 
 of this kind, and that the world may have the benefit of 
 it, I will return to the height from which I first started, 
 and give a plain recital of the fall and the injuries I sus- 
 tained in consequence. 
 
 The distance through which I passed I have never 
 been able to ascertain, but it was far from inconsidera- 
 ble. I was fortunate in retaining an upright position 
 while falling, and had presence of mind to brace myself 
 strongly, thinking that I should be better enabled there- 
 by to meet the shock of striking the bottom, whether of 
 earth, or stone, or water, I was at the time ignorant. My 
 right foot reached terra firma first, the concussion shat- 
 tering the ankle badly, and, as I then thought, breaking 
 every bone in my body. My back, in particular, was 
 so severely injured by the shock, that I was entirely be- 
 reft of the power to move. My friends hurried back as 
 fast as the darkness of the night would permit, groped 
 their way until they had found the road I had unfortu- 
 nately missed, and were finally successful in reaching 
 me. I was excessively faint, and called for water. One 
 of the party soon returned from the river with his hat 
 full, sprinkled my face and neck, and gave me a draught. 
 They next lifted me, with as much care as possible, to 
 their shoulders, and carried me back to the hotel we 
 had left but a few minutes before in high and buoyant 
 spirits ; but it seemed as though every faculty of my 
 
 VOL. I. F
 
 62 A FINIS TO DANCING. 
 
 body was paralyzed. Doctor Brenham, who was board- 
 ing at the same hotel, immediately called upon me and 
 did everything in the power of a physician or surgeon. 
 The next morning I was enabled to ascertain the extent 
 of my injuries, which, though severe, were not so bad 
 as at first supposed. My back was still weak, and 
 pained me so much that I was unable to move without 
 assistance ; my ankle, in the mean time, was extremely 
 swollen and entirely useless, and in addition gave me 
 much pain. Yet my friends, one and all, said that I 
 should be on my feet again in three or four weeks, as 
 well as ever, and able to ion down a buffalo bull on an 
 open prairie. I could not feel quite as sanguine, but 
 still thought that six weeks, or two months at farthest, 
 would restore my bruised and shattered limb to its ori- 
 ginal strength. But even my expectations were wide of 
 the mark, for some two months elapsed before I could 
 even bear the least weight upon my lame foot, and it 
 was three before I could walk without much pain. 
 
 Even to this day, and some two years have slipped 
 away since I sustained the injury, the ankle is weak 
 and far from being cured. Time was when I was able 
 and willing to essay a cotillon with the sprightliest 
 when I could cut pigeon- wings and extras, and perform 
 the double shuffle with no inconsiderable precision and 
 activity ; but those days are over now the " jig is up." 
 I still have one consolation, however, and one which I 
 freely recommend to all who may be similarly situ- 
 ated ; when a man breaks his leg he should always be 
 thankful it is no worse for instance, not his neck.
 
 VISIT FROM GENERAL LAMAR. 63 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 Visit from General Lamar. Preparations for a Start. Pleasant Anticipa- 
 tions. Northers. Bright Side of the Picture. Speculations as to the Re- 
 ception of the Expedition at Santa Fe. No Thoughts of Fighting the New 
 Mexicans. Senor Navarro. A Jersey Wagon provided. Departure from 
 Austin. Adieu to Civilization. A modern Athens. Its sudden Rise, and 
 more sudden Fall. President Lamar in Camp. Arrival at the Brushy. 
 General Joy among the Pioneers. Reviewed by the President. Order of 
 March. Tricks of young Oxen. Upsets. Arrival at the San Gabrielle. 
 Camp Stories. Opossum Creek. Scene of a Fight with the Camanches. 
 Anecdote of two Brothers. A night Storm. Buffalo in Sight. Petri- 
 factions. Stories of Buffalo. A Youngster caught. Methods of Hunting 
 the Buffalo. A regular Chase. Buffalo on every Side. Fitzgerald, and 
 his Zeal. Falconer among the Buffalo. Returns of Killed and Wounded. 
 Arrival at Little River. Buffalo Calves in Camp. Manner of taking 
 them. 
 
 THE day succeeding my unfortunate accident, I was 
 visited, at my room, by crowds of friends, among whom 
 was the President, General Lamar. The only topics 
 discussed had some relation to the expedition. Prepar- 
 ations were going on in every quarter. The merchants 
 were packing their goods, and mending and strength- 
 ening the heavy wagons upon which they were to be 
 transported. Volunteers were cleaning and preparing 
 their arms, as we were to enter an Indian and buffalo 
 range almost immediately in a word, all was hurry, 
 bustle, and excitement. Every one was anticipating an 
 exciting, a glorious frolic, the wild gossiping tales of old 
 hunters and campaigners tending, not a little, to in- 
 crease the fever of impatience to be upon the road. 
 Not a word was said of the hardships, the dangers, the 
 difficulties we were to encounter the biting "north-
 
 64 REASONS FOR THE EXPEDITION. 
 
 ers,"* the damp and dreary bivouac, the intolerable 
 thirst, the gnawing hunger these were the dark sides 
 of the picture, and were never exhibited. 
 
 As to our reception on reaching Santa Fe but little 
 was said. Texas claims, as I have before stated, to the 
 Rio Grande ; and as Santa Fe is situated some fourteen 
 miles from that stream, on the eastern or Texan side, 
 no invasion of the territory of Mexico was thought of. 
 It is true Texas had never been able to exercise juris- 
 diction over that section, because of its isolated position 
 and the immense wilderness that separates it from the 
 other portions of the Republic ; but this was no reason 
 why she should not, at some time, assert her claims. 
 The universal -impression in Texas was, that the inhabi- 
 tants of Santa Fe were anxious to throw off a yoke, 
 which was not only galling, but did not of right belong 
 to them, and rally under the " lone star" banner ; and 
 events which have since transpired, and which I shall 
 refer to hereafter, have convinced me that such was the 
 feeling with the larger part of the population. Should 
 any opposition be made to the peaceable entry of the 
 Texan pioneers, it was thought it would come from the 
 few regular troops always stationed at Santa Fe by the 
 government of Mexico ; and this force would easily 
 have been put down if a large majority of the residents 
 were in favour of such a course. As for having any- 
 thing like a regular battle, or forcibly subduing the 
 country should the inhabitants be found hostile, such 
 events were neither intended nor talked of. Invading 
 armies, when hard fighting is anticipated, seldom take 
 merchandise with them to sell to their enemies. The 
 
 * The prairies of Texas are visited, every season, by cold rains and winds 
 from the north, called " northers." The winds have full sweep directly from 
 the mountains, and not only animals, but men have frequently perished du- 
 ring their continuance.
 
 OBJECTS OF THE VOLUNTEERS. 65 
 
 merchant, who sends a " venture" to some distant and 
 barbarous shore, anticipates, on reaching his destination, 
 either losing all or reaping a rich harvest of profit. 
 The Texans looked for danger on the road across the 
 prairies nothing more. Safely arrived in New Mex- 
 ico, their perils were all passed they had, with the 
 hopes and expectations offered them, no farther risks to 
 incur. But adverse circumstances stepped in to thwart 
 their bright dreams of commercial success they were 
 robbed of all, property and liberty and after drinking 
 thus deeply of the bitter cup of misfortune, have been 
 held up, by those who knew neither the men nor their 
 intentions, as a " gang of marauders," a " horde of land 
 pirates." 
 
 But what, the reader will ask, induced so large a 
 body of young men to start upon an expedition of this 
 kind ? What objects could they have in view ? The 
 answer is easy enough. They were actuated by that 
 love of adventure, which is inherent in thousands of our 
 race ; they were anxious to participate in the excite- 
 ments ever incidental to a prairie tour. What induced 
 Washington Irving and his companions to make a trip 
 to the prairies west of the Osage hunting-grounds? 
 Why did the Honourable Charles A. Murray spend a 
 summer with the buffaloes and the Pawnees ? And why 
 does Sir William Drummond Stewart, year after year, 
 leave wealth and title, to say nothing of the comforts 
 and honours in their train, and pass his summers among 
 the Indians high up on the waters of the Missouri and 
 its tributaries ? To our party, the incentives were un- 
 usually strong and exciting. We were to pass over a 
 portion of country entirely unknown to the white man, 
 and might reasonably expect to meet with a larger 
 share of adventure than usually falls to the lot of the 
 F 2
 
 66 THE AUTHOR'S PERSONAL MOTIVES. 
 
 Western travellers. We felt confident that we should 
 meet with large bands of Indians, known to live direct- 
 ly on our path, who were hostile alike to Texas and 
 Mexico, and with whom we should have an occasional 
 " skrimmage." We should see the American Indian, 
 too, in his primitive and unhunted retreat. Thus fraught 
 with adventure, the tour promised to be one of unusual 
 interest. 
 
 While lying confined to my bed at Austin, I receiv- 
 ed, from Mr. Roberts, then acting Secretary of State, a 
 letter written at the request of General Lamar, inviting 
 me to join the expedition as a " guest." I was to be 
 subject to no control, civil or military ; I was free to 
 remain with the expedition so long as it suited my con- 
 venience, and to leave it when I pleased in short, I 
 had no connexion, other than that of a stranger who 
 happened to be travelling the same road, with the men 
 whom I accompanied, or with the objects in which they 
 were engaged. In the same letter I was kindly invited 
 to mess with the commissioners, or civil branch of the 
 expedition, an invitation I gladly accepted. This letter, 
 with my passport, and other papers of importance as 
 defining the relation in which I stood to the expedition, I 
 placed in a secure parcel, and always kept about my 
 person. I was determined, by no act of mine, to forfeit 
 my claim to American protection any farther than by 
 accompanying the expedition across wild and unknown 
 prairies ; and considering these papers the best proofs 
 I could have to sustain me should difficulties, which I 
 certainly did not anticipate, arise on my reaching New 
 Mexico, I was careful in preserving them. The obli- 
 gations I considered myself under to the officers of the 
 expedition were these : to obey all general orders for 
 the well-being and safety of the men, and if we were
 
 PROVISION FOR CRIPPLES. 67 
 
 attacked by Indians on the march, or met with any op- 
 position from them, to take an active part with my 
 friends. Here my obligations ceased. I had started 
 with the intention of making the entire tour of Mexico, 
 and could not compromise myself so far as to take any 
 part in the events which might occur on reaching the 
 settlements of New Mexico, whether these events should 
 be pacific or hostile. But to continue my narrative of 
 the movements of the expedition. 
 
 The 18th of June arrived, and with it the time for 
 the departure of the pioneers. It was now three days 
 since I had met with my unfortunate accident, and I 
 was still unable to move without assistance. A few of 
 my friends endeavoured to dissuade me from going ; but I 
 was blessed, or cursed, as the case may be, with strongly- 
 developed organs of self-will, obstinacy, and " go-ahead- 
 ity," and made up my mind to go even if I had to be car- 
 ried. " I will go it if I lose a leg," is a common yet not 
 very classical remark among a 'certain class of Western 
 men, when they have fully made up their minds to 
 do a thing. I determined upon starting for New Mex- 
 ico although I had already as good as lost a leg, at least 
 for all present purposes, and it is now too late to regret 
 that I did so. 
 
 Among the Texan Commissioners was Jose Antonio 
 Navarro, Esq.,* who, like myself, was unable to walk. 
 For our accommodation, General Lamar provided a 
 neat Jersey wagon, drawn by two mules, and covered 
 so as to protect us from the sun and rain during the 
 long marches. 
 
 * Mr. Navarro is the only member of the Santa Fe pioneers still retained 
 a prisoner. He is a Mexican by birth, was once a senator in the Congress 
 of that Republic, is a man of no inconsiderable abilities and influence, and has 
 been punished with unusual severity. I found him a kind-hearted, gentle- 
 manly man, and regret that he was not liberated with the rest of the prisoners.
 
 68 ENTRANCE ON THE PRAIRIES. 
 
 As I have stated above, it was on the 18th of June 
 that the last detachment of the expedition left Austin. 
 This was at least one month later than it should have 
 been, on account of both water and grass ; but unavoid- 
 able delays had arisen in getting everything in readi- 
 ness, and even as it was, General McLeo.d, the com- 
 mander of the military portion, was obliged to march 
 unprovided with many necessaries. The main body of 
 the expedition had been lying encamped for some time 
 on the Brushy, a small stream about twenty miles from 
 Austin. As far as this point General Lamar accompa- 
 nied the last party. I was assisted into the wagon on 
 leaving, but still bade adieu to civilization, its comforts 
 and enjoyments, in good spirits. 
 
 At Austin we left the last tokens of a settlement 
 beyond, all was in a state of wild, uncultivated nature. 
 Singular as it may appear, the then capital of Texas 
 was ,the extreme frontier town, and what may appear 
 still more strange, daring bands of hostile Indians have 
 frequently been known to enter the principal streets, 
 run off with horses tied to the very doorposts of their 
 owners, and in some instances have even murdered the 
 inhabitants within a few hundred yards of the govern- 
 ment-house. 
 
 From Austin to the Brushy the road for here there 
 is an old military road runs over rolling and beautiful 
 prairies, occasionally relieved by the slight skirting of 
 timber which fringes the margins of the small streams, 
 or by a small grove of timber so regularly planted by 
 nature that it would almost seem the hand of man had 
 assisted in its production. 
 
 To the left of the road, at the distance of some mile 
 and a half or two miles, is a high and delightful situation, 
 which some visionary speculator, years since, endeav- 
 oured to convert into a stirring: town.
 
 A CITY ON PAPER. 69 
 
 In the first place, he purchased a beautiful site for a 
 city lacking only all the essentials to support a large 
 population. Highly-coloured plans were got out, and 
 on paper, at least, a more flourishing place never exist- 
 ed. There were colleges and squares, city halls and 
 penitentiaries, public walks and public houses and, 
 looking at the engravings, so well were they executed, 
 a man could almost imagine he heard the carriages rat- 
 tling over the pavements, and the busy hum which de- 
 notes the large and thriving city. 
 
 The name by which it was known on the plans it 
 cannot be found on the map of Texas was Athens ; 
 and so firmly did the visionary who planned it believe 
 in his speculation, that he built a house and made some 
 other and expensive improvements on the premises. 
 While engaged in digging a well, assisted by some two 
 or three negroes, he was attacked by a roaming party 
 of Camanches and driven off, narrowly escaping with 
 his life. The person who gave me this information said 
 that the man never returned, and that everything re- 
 mained just as he had left it. Thus fell a modern Athens. 
 
 We made a short stop, during the heat of the day, at 
 a cool grove. Near it was a fine spring of water, and 
 under the shade of the over-arching boughs a plain din- 
 ner was prepared. Every man appeared to be his own 
 cook, President Lamar as well as the rest. I also ob- 
 served that his excellency unsaddled and staked his own 
 horse on a small plot of grass near by. There was a 
 specimen of Republican simplicity the chief magistrate 
 of a nation cooking his own dinner and grooming his 
 own horse ! In all my intercourse with General Lamar 
 I ever found him a courteous and honourable gentle- 
 man, possessing a brilliant intellect, which has been 
 highly cultivated ; and if Texas ever had a warm and 
 untiring friend, it was and is Mirabeau B. Lamar.
 
 70 THE JOURNEY IN PROSPECT. 
 
 It was late in the afternoon when we reached camp, 
 a beautiful and romantic situation on the Brushy, near 
 several large springs of cool and most delicious water. 
 The camp was all animation on our arrival, as it was a 
 token that the expedition was soon to be on the march. 
 Many of the volunteers had been stationed at this place 
 three or four weeks, and had become impatient of the 
 delay ; now that it was rendered certain that they were 
 soon to be on the move to Santa Fe, all was joy, activ- 
 ity, and life. 
 
 General Lamar was accompanied by the Honourable 
 Mr. Chalmers, Secretary of the Treasury, and several 
 other gentlemen, who all " roughed it" upon the ground 
 at night with the volunteers a single blanket forming 
 each man's bed. The next morning the different com- 
 panies were reviewed, a neat and appropriate address 
 was delivered by the President, after which himself and 
 party returned to Austin. 
 
 Two days were now passed on the Brushy in reload- 
 ing the wagons, and making the necessary arrange- 
 ments for the long journey we had before us. Here I 
 would state, that never since the discovery of America 
 had such a journey been undertaken. Years before the 
 first wagon started from St. Louis for Santa Fe every 
 inch of the country was well known and the route that 
 was to be taken clearly defined ; all that was known in 
 our case was, that Austin was in such a latitude and 
 longitude and Santa Fe in another of the principal 
 part of the country between the two points not a man 
 among us knew anything. That deep rivers were to be 
 crossed, that ravines were to be encountered, that salt 
 and dry prairies were to be met in short, that innu- 
 merable obstacles would be found in our path, were 
 tilings that every one expected : of the nature and ex-
 
 OFF AT I*mT. 71 
 
 tent of these obstacles all were alike ignorant. Yet in 
 the face of difficulties which seemed almost insurmount- 
 able the expedition started, and after toil almost incred- 
 ible they were overcome twenty-four wagons were 
 taken in safety over nearly a thousand miles that never 
 had been trodden before except by the savage. At 
 starting it was known that the direct course was almost 
 northwest ; but as it was feared there might be a scar- 
 city of water by taking a straight line, it was deemed 
 prudent to follow the course of the Brazos, cut through 
 the celebrated Cross Timbers before reaching Red Riv- 
 er, and then follow up that stream, the course of which 
 was supposed to be nearly east and west. By this route 
 we made nearly a right angle, and the journey was 
 much longer, and probably more difficult. 
 
 On the morning of June 21st, the expedition finally 
 took up the line of march from the fertile valley and 
 cool springs of the Brushy. Two companies, number- 
 ing some eighty men, were detailed to go forward as an 
 advanced guard ; then came the wagons, in single file, 
 and the beef cattle that were to furnish us with meat. 
 One company was also detailed for fatigue duty driving 
 the cattle and cutting away the banks of creeks, or re- 
 moving any obstacles that might obstruct the passage of 
 the wagons. This was the most irksome and laborious 
 duty of all, and was performed by the companies in 
 turn. The rear-guard brought up the long procession, 
 and consisted of three companies, there being six in all. 
 These companies were commanded by Captains Cald- 
 well, Sutton, Houghton, Hudson, Strain, and Lewis, the 
 latter commanding the artillery company, which had 
 one brass six-pounder. The number of volunteers do- 
 ing duty was two hundred and seventy. In addition, 
 there were about fifty persons attached to the expedi-
 
 72 THE FIR* DAY'S MARCH. . 
 
 tion in some way, being General McLeod and his staff, 
 the commissioners, merchants, tourists, and servants. 
 None of these, except the first named, did military or 
 guard duty. 
 
 The long train of wagons moving heavily forward, 
 with the different companies of volunteers, all well 
 mounted and well armed and riding in double file, pre- 
 sented an imposing as well as an animating spectacle, 
 causing every heart to beat high with the anticipation 
 of exciting incidents on the boundless prairies. On the 
 first day many of the young oxen, " critters" that had 
 never been yoked before, performed divers unseemly 
 antics, diverting enough to themselves in all probability, 
 but by no means pleasing to the drivers. The conse- 
 quence was that a number of the wagons were upset, 
 occasioning delays which made it near night before we 
 reached our camping ground on the San Gabriel. 
 The road this day was over beautiful rolling prairies, 
 the land rich, and susceptible of cultivation. 
 
 The San Gabriel is a picturesque stream running 
 into the Brazos. A few miles above our camp, on its 
 banks, a settlement had formerly been made by one or 
 two families ; but they had been attacked by Indians, 
 and those who were not killed driven off. The stream 
 abounds with trout, perch, and catfish, as do nearly all 
 the watercourses in this section of Texas. Some of 
 our party, who were first in, amused themselves by 
 fishing, and shooting alligators, the latter being too plen- 
 tiful for any useful purposes. 
 
 On the arrival of the beef cattle, one of them was se- 
 lected, shot, and dressed with the greatest expedition, 
 and then followed the cooking and eating of both dinner 
 and supper. We had made no stop during the day, 
 which necessarily brought both meals together and 
 good appetites to do them justice.
 
 EXTENSIVE LODGINGS. 73 
 
 Our fare was simple enough roasted or broiled beef, 
 cooked on sticks or ramrods before the fire, with salt, 
 coffee, and sugar. No breadstuffs were provided, un- 
 less*, small quantity of rice can be dignified with that 
 title ; but the appetites we contracted during our long 
 ride across the high, dry, and bracing prairies served 
 us instead of bread and dessert, and a more hearty 
 meal it has seldom been my lot to partake of. 
 
 Our meal over, knots of the volunteers would con- 
 gregate, here and there, around the camp fires, telling 
 stories of the marvellous and spinning long yarns about 
 border forays, buffalo hunts, and brushes with the In- 
 dians of the prairies. The stories of buffalo hunting, in 
 particular, were eagerly listened to, as it was known 
 that in ten days we should be in the best range for these 
 animals in Texas. 
 
 An hour or two would be whiled away in this man- 
 ner, and then preparations would be made for retiring 
 to sleep a very simple process upon a campaign. A 
 person has only to pick out a soft place upon the ground, 
 roll himself up in his blanket, and take immediate pos- 
 session of his bedroom ; and though people who have 
 never lived " out of doors" may picture anything but 
 comfort with such lodgings, sounder, sweeter, and more 
 refreshing sleep never visited the downiest couch than 
 can be found upon the earth on one of our western 
 prairies. Should any of my readers ever undertake a 
 tour of the kind, and find any difficulty in getting to 
 sleep, I can recommend a plan to bring about that de- 
 sirable object which has never been known to fail in a 
 single instance : just count the stars. 
 
 As the days were now extremely warm, early morn- 
 ing starts were recommended and adopted. Accord- 
 ingly, at daybreak on the 22d of June, we were awa- 
 
 VOL. I.--G
 
 74 A FIGHT WITH THE INDIANS. 
 
 kened by the cheering notes of the reveille. We had a 
 small but tolerably well-organized band with us, in- 
 cluding some two or three clarionets, a horn and bu- 
 gle, besides fifes and drums. To the latter instruments 
 was assigned the task of waking us in the morning ; 
 and at first there was something so inspiriting in the 
 lively notes of the reveille breaking the deep stillness of 
 the early dawn, that with me farther sleep was uncared 
 for. I was heartily tired of it before the campaign was 
 half over. 
 
 Notwithstanding our early start, we made but twelve 
 miles this day, encamping on Opossum Creek, as there 
 was no water beyond within several miles. During 
 this day we passed the scene of an Indian fight which 
 took place a year or two previous, and in which Major 
 Howard, having drawn a party of Camanches into an 
 ambuscade, gave them a severe drubbing. His men 
 were fortunate enough to discover the Indians before 
 these had seen their white enemies, giving the latter 
 every advantage. Knowing, full well, that he never 
 could come up with the Camanches in a chase, or pro- 
 voke them into an open fight on the prairies, for in num- 
 bers the two parties were nearly equal,* Major H. re- 
 sorted to a stratagem. Secreting his men in a thick 
 grove of timber, he started off alone, well mounted, in 
 the direction of the enemy. The moment the Indians 
 saw him they considered his scalp as certain as though 
 it was already hanging at their saddle-skirts, and 
 with frightful yells gave chase. The gallant officer 
 trusted to his steed, at a time when a stumble would 
 have been inevitable destruction to both. The Texans, 
 in their covert, could plainly hear the distant whoops 
 
 * The Camanches, even on the prairies, never attack the whites unless 
 they greatly outnumber them.
 
 , FRATERNAL DEVOTION. 75 
 
 of the savages, and hugged still closer the trees behind 
 which they were sheltered. With almost lightning 
 speed the pursued and pursuers scoured across the 
 prairie, the former leading the savages directly within 
 range of his own men. When at a point opposite the 
 Texans, and within a few yards' distance, a well-direct- 
 ed volley tumbled seven of the Camanches dead from 
 their horses. So sudden and unexpected was this re- 
 ception, that the Indians turned their horses and made 
 a precipitate retreat. One only remained behind, whose 
 heroic conduct deserves a passing remark. Among the 
 dead was his brother, and in endeavouring to save the 
 body from the hands of the Texans the savage lost his 
 own life. He dismounted, and absolutely succeeded in 
 packing his lifeless brother upon his horse amid a 
 shower of bullets ; but while mounting, a well-directed 
 rifle-ball pierced him to the heart, and the brothers 
 came together to the ground. Not one of Major How- 
 ard's men was injured. 
 
 In the night we passed at Opossum Creek we were 
 visited by a tremendous storm of thunder, lightning, and 
 wind, although but little rain fell ; our tent had been 
 pitched, and, as we thought, securely ; but the first 
 heavy gust of wind carried it completely from its fasten- 
 ings, and the rest of the night, to quote the expression 
 of one of our men, we " took plain without kiver." 
 
 Our next day's travel carried us across rolling prai- 
 ries, not a tree being in sight in any direction. Here 
 and there, in the distance, small gangs of buffaloes could 
 be seen scampering off, the scouting parties, it would 
 seem, of the immense herds we were soon to encounter. 
 Several of the huge animals were run down and killed 
 during the day by some of our hunters, and that night, 
 for the first time, I made a meal of buffalo meat one
 
 76 AN OLD HUNTER'S STORY. 
 
 of those killed being a fat cow, and her flesh of fine tex- 
 ture and delicious sweetness. Two buffaloes had also 
 been killed on the previous day ; but they were old and 
 poor, and nothing but their tongues was brought in. 
 
 Large numbers of petrifactions, some of them un- 
 commonly perfect, were found in the vicinity of our 
 camp on Deer Creek. Although the distance must be 
 some three hundred miles from the seacoast, we still 
 found fossil specimens of oysters and other shell-fish in 
 abundance, and in good preservation. I remember one 
 oyster, in particular, the shell of which, on being forced 
 open, displayed the edible part of that delicate luxury 
 in form and colour so natural that I could not help 
 thinking of pepper, salt, vinegar and a fork, at once. 
 
 The stories this night in camp were all in relation to 
 buffalo, the abundance of " sign" in the shape of tracks, 
 and places where the grass had been eaten close, plain- 
 ly denoting that we were in the vicinity of a large herd. 
 The old campaigners, and there were many among us, 
 told stories of the immense number they had seen at a 
 time, while the harum-scarum youngsters of the camp 
 would listen eagerly to their tales, manifesting, at the 
 same time, a restless impatience to be among the huge 
 monarchs of the prairies. 
 
 " How many buffalo did you ever see at one time ?" 
 asked a young man, whose greatest achievement had 
 been the bringing down a fat buck, addressing one of 
 the oldest backwoodsmen in camp. 
 
 "Can't say, exactly probably between two and 
 three million !" replied the old one. with a cool, matter- 
 of-fact indifference, as much as to say that he was keep- 
 ing as near the truth as possible. 
 
 I was an attentive listener to this conversation, and 
 could not but remark the singular expression on the
 
 INCREDULITY OP A YOUNGSTEH. 77 
 
 countenance of the young man. At first, he partially 
 closed his left eye, and opening his right to its utmost 
 width, gazed intently in the face of the old hunter with 
 a look half comic, half incredulous. Then, as if think- 
 ing he might not have fully understood the answer to 
 his question, he turned his head to one side, somewhat 
 after the manner of a hog in an oak grove listening for 
 the fall of an acorn, and curving his left hand into the 
 form of a half-moon and placing it behind his ear, so as 
 to be certain of hearing every word, he again address- 
 ed his older and more experienced friend with " Per- 
 haps I mistook your answer what number of buffalo 
 did you say you had seen at one time ?" 
 
 " Between two and three million !" repeated the old 
 one, with a countenance as immovable as though it had 
 been made of cast iron. 
 
 " Y-e-s," drawled the youngster, with that peculiar 
 tone and expression which signify that one neither be- 
 lieves nor disbelieves a story, or in other words, intima- 
 ting that while he did not wish the old campaigner to 
 think he altogether discredited the number, he was at 
 the same time anxious to avoid being considered over 
 credulous by entirely swallowing a story which might 
 possibly be intended as a quiz. As for myself. I did 
 not believe a word the old hunter said, but rather 
 thought he was indulging an appetite for which all of 
 his class are notorious, that of " stretching" their stories 
 far beyond the line between the probable and incred- 
 ible. Since then, however in fact the very next day 
 I " saw sights" which induced me to alter my mind, 
 and to give the aged borderer more credit for keeping 
 within the bounds of probability than I was at first 
 willing to accord him. I do not say that I have seen 
 " between two and three million" at the same time ; but 
 G2
 
 78 METHODS OF HUNTING BUFFALO. 
 
 I have stood upon a high roll of the prairie, with neither 
 tree nor bush to obstruct the vision in any direction, 
 and seen these animals grazing upon the plain and dark- 
 ening it at every point. There are perhaps larger herds 
 of buffalo at present in northern Texas than anywhere 
 else on the western prairies, their most formidable ene- 
 mies, the Indians, not ranging so low down in large 
 parties, on account of the whites ; but I was told that 
 every year their numbers were gradually decreasing, 
 and their range, owing to the approach of white settlers 
 from the east and south, becoming more and more cir- 
 cumscribed. It would seem almost impossible, espe- 
 cially to one who has seen them, numerous as the sands 
 of the seashore, on their immense natural pastures, that 
 the race can ever become extinct ; but when he re- 
 flects upon the rapid strides civilization is making west- 
 ward upon the domain of the buffalo, he is brought to 
 feel that the noble race will soon be known only as a 
 thing of the past. 
 
 The whites have two ways of hunting these animals. 
 One is to creep up within a short distance, and shoot 
 them with a rifle carrying a heavy ball, or with a mus- 
 ket a mode of hunting seldom resorted to except by 
 those who are in want of meat. The other way is to 
 sally out after them on horseback, armed with heavy 
 holster-pistols, run alongside, while under full speed, 
 and shoot from the saddle. Of all hunting in the world 
 this is probably the most exciting, at the same time in- 
 volving the sportsman in no little danger. The horse 
 that has been trained to it soon gets as fond of the sport 
 as his master, will run directly up within three or four 
 yards of the immense animal, and is always ready to 
 sheer off and get out of the way in case the buffalo 
 shows a disposition to fight. When the hunter wants
 
 BUFFALO ON ALL SIDES. 79 
 
 meat he rides in among the animals, and singles out a 
 fat cow or young bull, which he marks for his own if 
 he is merely hunting for the sport, or for " grandeur" 
 as it is called in the West, he attacks the oldest and 
 largest bull he can find, and continues to blaze away at 
 him with his pistols until he brings him down. He 
 may possibly secure the tongue of the animal the car- 
 cass is soon sought and preyed upon by the legion of 
 buzzards which are ever on the scent. 
 
 Early on the morning of June 24th we left our en- 
 campment on Deep Creek, intending to reach Little 
 River before night. We had travelled but a few miles 
 before the cheering cry of " Buffalo ! buffalo !" was 
 heard along the line. Directly ahead, on the right and 
 left of our road, innumerable small black objects could 
 be seen, more resembling stumps than aught else. As 
 we slowly approached them, the objects became more 
 distinct, gave signs of life, and appeared to be slowly 
 moving about on the interminable prairie. When with- 
 in half a mile it was evident, even to those who had 
 only seen badly-executed woodcuts of the animal in 
 " picture-books," that they were buffalo, spread out over 
 the immense space, and in countless numbers. 
 
 Notwithstanding orders had been given the volun- 
 teers not to break their double-file ranks, nothing could 
 restrain the youngsters from leaving the command and 
 sharing in the exciting chase. The merchants, and 
 others not attached to the military, were at perfect lib- 
 erty to go when and where it might please them, as a 
 matter of course. We were soon surrounded by buffalo, 
 and every two minutes a Texan malecontent would 
 leave the ranks at full gallop, and dash off after some 
 huge animal, which chance, or a more clumsy gait, had 
 left behind his fellows. Never have I beheld a scene
 
 80 GREAT EXCITEMENT. 
 
 so full of excitement. Such of the command as did not 
 join in the hunt continued steadily along, myself and 
 Mr. Navarro, in our Jersey carry-all, keeping in line 
 with . them, while all around us was hurry-scurry and 
 confusion. We had not advanced a mile, after reach- 
 ing the outposts of the immense herd, before we were 
 in their midst, seeing nothing in any direction save the 
 immense animals speeding along at a heavy, lumber- 
 ing gallop, the larger ones more resembling loads of 
 hay in motion than anything else I can liken them to. 
 In the distance, far as the eye could reach, they were 
 seen quietly feeding upon the short prairie grass, and 
 apparently unconscious of the wild riot and danger so 
 near at hand. 
 
 Unable to mount a horse, I could not join the exciting 
 chase ; yet I could plainly see and enjoy the animated 
 scene. At times, I could discern one of our men, ap- 
 parently hemmed in on all sides by the frightened and 
 infuriated animals, and running the greatest risk of be- 
 ing run over and trampled to the earth. Anon, the 
 smoke of a pistol would rise, followed quickly by the 
 report, and then succeeded a general and confused scat- 
 tering. Perchance a bull for the " green-horns" gen- 
 erally select the largest of the herd as affording a better 
 mark would be seen to totter, his tail lashing the air 
 in furious circles, and then to tumble headlong to the 
 earth ; at another time, one of the animals, wounded 
 and rendered furious by pain, would rush blindly and 
 madly at his pursuer. The largest number of horses 
 were entirely unused to the sport, and " fought shy" of 
 the unsightly animals ; others, again, had been regular- 
 ly trained, and would eagerly carry their riders up to 
 the buffalo, and allow them to " bang and blaze" away, 
 pistol after pistol, without starting, or even moving a
 
 A REGULAR MADCAP. 81 
 
 muscle. Such is a faint description of the stirring scenes 
 I saw around me on that day's travel. 
 
 Among the merchants was a wild, frolicking Irishman, 
 named Fitzgerald, one of the best fellows that ever the 
 sun shone upon. Fitz, as he was universally called, 
 was descended from one of the best families in Ireland, 
 nearly every member of which has been distinguished 
 as an officer in the British service. His mother was a 
 daughter of the celebrated Archibald Hamilton Rowan, 
 who acted so conspicuous a part in the Irish rebellion 
 of '98, and one of his uncles, a major-general in the 
 English army, has recently returned to England from 
 Bombay, where he was governor. As several of Fitz- 
 gerald's brothers held commissions in the British ser- 
 vice, his family thought it expedient to make a clergy- 
 man of him, although nature had intended him for any- 
 thing but that. To carry out their plans successfully 
 they sent him, when only some eight years of age, to a 
 school near Boulogne, in France. There he learned 
 the usual amount of Greek, Latin, and Hebrew, and, 
 according to his own statements, an extra amount of 
 mischievous practices generally. At the age of eigh- 
 teen he returned to Ireland, and on his peremptorily re- 
 fusing to take holy orders his father ordered him to 
 Jamaica, to fill a lucrative station he had procured for 
 him in the customs. He set off for that island, but on 
 getting as far as London, he saw the walls covered with 
 handbills calling upon volunteers for General Evans's 
 Legion, then about to embark for Spain to the assist- 
 ance of Isabella. Here was just the thing that suited 
 Fitzgerald's wild temperament and ardent impulses, and 
 to enlist, leaving the customs at Jamaica to regulate 
 themselves, was his first movement. Arrived in Spain, 
 he was promoted, step by step, for his gallant conduct,
 
 82 AN ADVENTUROUS WANDERER. 
 
 and finally, for skilfully and successfully leading a for- 
 lorn hope, received a captain's commission, and was also 
 created a knight of the Order of St. Ferdinand. The 
 return of the Legion to England left Fitz without em- 
 ployment ; but hearing that he could obtain a commis- 
 sion in the Persian army, he pushed for that country to 
 join the service. Finding, on reaching his new and sin- 
 gular destination, that there was little fighting and less 
 pay, he returned to England. He next visited the Cape 
 of Good Hope, either with or in search of his father, and 
 from that point went to Van Diemen's Land and the 
 parts adjacent. Thence he returned to England, taking 
 Brazil in his route. A life of inactivity he could not 
 endure ; so hearing that there was not only fun but 
 fighting in Texas, he embarked for that Republic by 
 way of New-Orleans. We next hear of him selling 
 dry goods at San Antonio de Bexar. This business, 
 however, did not prevent him from joining the different 
 expeditions against Mexicans and Indians that were 
 continually fitted out at that place, and in this way he 
 became enamoured of a prairie life a feeling which in- 
 duced him to join the Santa Fe Expedition. Educated 
 in France, he spoke the French language, and his three 
 years' sojourn in Spain had given him a smattering of 
 Spanish enough, at all events, to carry on an ordinary 
 conversation. 
 
 Always willing, ready, and among the first to enter 
 into any madcap, daring, or break-neck scrape, as a 
 matter of course Fitz led off the chase after the buffalo. 
 He was mounted on a game and untiring Mexican pony, 
 loaded down with saddlebags, water-gourd, blankets, 
 and the miscellaneous equipage which constitutes the 
 fit-out of a campaigner ; but all this did not deter him 
 from starting off at once. Away he went in neck-or-
 
 HUNTING AT LEISURE. 83 
 
 nothing style, riding up to the first buffalo he met, and 
 banging away with his pistols as fast as he could 
 load and fire. In all his wanderings he had never met 
 with buffalo before, and so exciting was the dangerous 
 sport of riding among them that he could not command 
 himself. In the mad chase he lost first his hat, then his 
 blanket, and finally his saddlebags and water-gourd ; 
 but these were mere trifles when such game was in 
 sight, and as Fitz never stopped to pick them up, they 
 are probably now lying on the prairie in the exact places 
 where he dropped them, 
 
 My friend Falconer, too, was seized with a fit of ex- 
 citement. His horse, however, unlike that of Fitzger- 
 ald, was a sedate, quiet, slow-and-easy kind of animal, 
 holding a gallop or canter in such special abhorrence 
 that neither whip nor spur could induce him to indulge 
 in either. Still Falconer must needs have a trot after 
 the buffalo, as he could not chase them in a gallop ; and 
 it was droll enough to see a gentleman, who had started 
 upon the expedition in search of strange weeds, stones, 
 and the picturesque, now jogging along after buffalo, 
 with a glass raised to his right eye. As he was armed 
 only with a double-barrelled gun, loaded, probably, with 
 bird shot, he did not essay the killing of any of the huge 
 monsters by which he was at times surrounded. 
 
 The number of buffalo killed during the day, in our 
 immediate vicinity, was twenty-eight ; the number of 
 prisoners taken in the shape of young calves, some ten 
 or twelve. As to getting the number of wounded, that 
 would have been impossible. 
 
 In the afternoon we reached Little River, where we 
 encamped for the night, and where we had a feast of 
 choice buffalo meat, tongue, and also the marrow bones 
 of that animal ; some of the calves also were killed, and
 
 84 BUFFALO CALVES. 
 
 furnished us with delicious veal. The simple things 
 followed our men into camp without the least trouble. 
 It was only necessary to blind their eyes with the hands 
 for a moment, push their noses to the ground, and hold 
 them in that position until their dams were out of sight. 
 On raising their heads they would stare about, and the 
 first object that caught their gaze, whether man or 
 horse, they would follow like dogs. Thus ended our 
 first day among the immense buffalo herds of the West- 
 ern Prairies. 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 Sending back for more Cattle. Rations of Beef for each Man. Idle Hours 
 in Camp. Annoying Insects. ISight Alarms. Death of LockriJge. A 
 Dutchman shot at. Improvident Waste of Provisions. Game in our Vi- 
 cinity. Sickness of General McLeod Once more on the Road. Bird's 
 Battle-ground. A Visit from Mustangs. The "White Sleed of the Prai- 
 ries." Stories in relation to this Horse. Cow Creek. Plenty of Buffalo. 
 Repairing Wagons. Profanity of the Teamsters. Out of Water. 
 Fourth of July on the Prairies. Celebration among the Clouds. A 
 troublesome Visiter. Rattlesnakes and Tarantulas. Death of Flint. 
 Crossing the Bosque. The Antelope, or Mountain Goat. Simplicity of 
 this Animal Another Branch of the Bosque. Difficulty of crossing. 
 More Swearing. A Stampede ! Singular Effect of Fright upon Horses 
 and Oxen. Falconer's Horse at his Eccentricities. A Private Stampede. 
 Laughable Antics. Falconer's Philosophy 
 
 BEFORE the main body of the expedition left Austin, 
 in May, it was thought by those most familiar with the 
 subject that the journey to Santa Fe would not occupy 
 more than six weeks, or two months at the very farthest, 
 and a supply of beef on the hoof was purchased, amply 
 sufficient for that length of time. On arriving at Little 
 River, our commissary stated that it would be impru-
 
 ANOTHER DELAY. 85 
 
 dent to go farther without sending back for more beeves, 
 as in the long delay on the Brushy the volunteers had 
 consumed a large portion of those originally furnished. 
 Had the expedition started at the time originally pro- 
 posed, there would have been no necessity for a fresh 
 supply ; but inasmuch as it had been delayed three 
 weeks, the wants of the men, admitting that the journey 
 would occupy two months, would require some thirty 
 head of cattle more. The regular ration to each per- 
 son was three pounds of beef a day, a quantity amply 
 sufficient for an ordinary man even when he has no 
 breadstufFs or vegetables, as was our case. In addition 
 to the beef, coffee enough to give each man two pints a 
 day, with the needful sugar, was served out. Instead 
 of breadstuffs, for which transportation could not be 
 provided, a quantity of tobacco was served to each 
 man. 
 
 The sending back to the settlements for an additional 
 number of beeves occasioned a delay of five days, the 
 time being passed in fishing and hunting by some, 
 lounging and sleeping by others, and heavily enough 
 by all ; for the desire to be on the move was a serious 
 drawback upon the enjoyments even of those most fond 
 of buffalo hunting. The place where we encamped 
 abounded with a small insect called, I believe, the seed 
 tick, which penetrates under the skin in great numbers, 
 raises small sores or pimples, and causes a burning and 
 continual itching. I was completely covered, or rather 
 filled, with these annoying visitors, and lost many an 
 hour's sleep in consequence. 
 
 We had two alarms the second night we passed on 
 Little River. The first was about ten o'clock, and was 
 caused by the sharp report of a rifle directly in the cen- 
 tre of the camp. A circumstance so unusual started 
 
 VOL. L H
 
 86 NIGHT ALARMS. 
 
 every man to his feet, and the alarm was far from in- 
 considerable until it was ascertained that the young 
 man Lockridge, of whom I have spoken elsewhere, had 
 shot himself. Some two hours after, the camp was a 
 second time thrown into excitement by the startling 
 " Who goes there ?" of one of the guard, followed by 
 the heavy report of a musket. The hands of every 
 man were instantly upon his gun, and every preparation 
 was made to resist an attack from Indians, for in the 
 hurry and alarm we could think of nothing else ; but on 
 inquiring into the affair it was ascertained that an hon- 
 est Dutchman, a servant of Colonel Cooke, was return- 
 ing late into camp, with a horse he had found after a 
 long search, and that not answering the sentinel prompt- 
 ly, he had been fired upon. Fortunately he was un- 
 touched, although badly frightened. This second alarm 
 satisfactorily explained, we again returned to our blank- 
 ets, and the rest of the night was passed in quiet and 
 sleep. 
 
 While encamped upon Little River, and I may say 
 during the whole of the time we were in the buffalo and 
 game country, there was a most improvident waste of 
 beef, the regular rations being served out to each man. 
 Those who could obtain choice portions of the buffalo 
 and deer, which were now killed in immense numbers, 
 of course threw away the coarse and tougher parts of 
 the beef given them. These, however, soon found cus- 
 tomers ; for clouds of buzzards were immediately hov- 
 ering over and lighting within the lines, playing the 
 part of most excellent scavengers. Could we but have 
 anticipated the horrible sufferings we were then bring- 
 ing upon our heads, or rather stomachs, by this prodi- 
 gality ; had we thought the time was near at hand when 
 the poorest morsels we were throwing away so lavish-
 
 RENEWAL OF THE MARCH. 87 
 
 ly would be absolutely necessary to sustain life, a more 
 provident course would have been adopted. Some of 
 the old campaigners spoke of this waste at the time, re- 
 marking that the buzzards were fattening upon meat of 
 which we should all feel the want before we got to our 
 journey's end ; but by far the greater portion of us were 
 inexperienced, and went on the principle of taking spe- 
 cial good care of ourselves to-day and letting to-mor- 
 row look out for itself. We gained experience and 
 wisdom afterward, but we bought it at an enormous 
 price. 
 
 The place where we encamped on Little River was 
 the site of an old picket fort, garrisoned, some years pre- 
 vious, by a detachment of Texan soldiers, who were 
 stationed there to keep a look-out for Indians. The lo- 
 cation is one of exceeding loveliness, healthy, and com- 
 bining every advantage for a flourishing settlement. A 
 growth of heavy timber, some two miles in width, 
 covers the fertile bottom, while the rich prairies afford 
 the best of grazing for the immense herds of buffalo and 
 deer always to be found in the vicinity. Bears and 
 Mexican hogs, the latter a ferocious animal, are found in 
 great numbers in the bottoms, fish of different varieties 
 are caught in the stream, and many of the trees are fill- 
 ed with delicious wild honey. 
 
 While encamped at this place, General McLeod was 
 attacked with fever, and was carried in a wagon to Bry- 
 ant's Station, some twenty miles to our right, near the 
 Brazos. Major Howard took the command of the ex- 
 pedition during his illness. On the evening of the 29th 
 of June the order was given for an early march next 
 morning an order received with joy by all. The next 
 morning, therefore, saw us again on our road, crossing 
 prairies on which buffalo could be seen in almost every
 
 88 WHITE STEED OF THE PRAIRIES. 
 
 direction. In the afternoon we passed the scene of 
 Bird's celebrated battle with the Indians. With thirty- 
 three Texans only he fought some two hundred and 
 fifty Indians several hours, killing large numbers of 
 them. Bird himself was killed, towards the close of 
 the battle, which was a drawn one, both parties retiring 
 after sustaining great loss. 
 
 At sundown a drove of mustangs, or wild horses of 
 the prairie, paid us a flying visit. They were first seen 
 ascending a hill at the distance of half a mile, and as 
 they were coming towards us were taken for Indians. 
 When seen on a distant hill, standing with their raised 
 heads towards a person, and forming a line as is their 
 custom, it is almost impossible to take them for any- 
 thing but mounted men. Having satisfied their curi- 
 osity, they wheeled with almost the regularity of a cav- 
 alry company and galloped off, their long thick manes 
 waving in the air and their tails nearly sweeping the 
 ground. They are beautiful animals, always in excel- 
 lent condition, and although smaller than our American 
 horses, are still very compact, and will bear much fa- 
 tigue. 
 
 Many were the stories told that night in camp, by 
 some of the older hunters, of a large white horse that 
 had often been seen in the vicinity of the Cross Timbers 
 and near Red River. That many of these stories, like 
 a majority of those told by gossiping campaigners, were 
 either apocryphal or marvellously garnished, I have lit- 
 tle doubt ; but that such a horse has been seen, and that 
 he possesses wonderful speed and great powers of en- 
 durance, there is no reason to disbelieve. As the camp 
 stories ran, he has never been known to gallop or trot, 
 but paces faster than any horse that has been sent out 
 after him can run ; and so game and untiring is the
 
 A FRUITLESS CHASE. 89 
 
 " White Steed of the Prairies," for he is well known to 
 trappers and hunters by that name, that he has tired 
 down no less than three race-nags, sent expressly to 
 catch him, with a Mexican rider well trained to the busi- 
 ness of taking wild horses. The latter had nothing but 
 a lasso or lariat with him a long rope made either of 
 hemp or horse hair, but generally the latter. One end 
 of this rope is made fast to the pommel of the saddle, 
 while the other is formed into a noose : the Mexican 
 carries it coiled up in the right hand, and throws it with 
 astonishing dexterity and precision, casting it directly 
 over the head, feet, or even tail of the animal he may be 
 pursuing. 
 
 The Mexican who was sent out to take the wild 
 steed, although he mounted a fresh horse as the one he 
 was riding became tired, was never near enough the 
 noble animal to throw a slip-noose over his head, or even 
 to drive him into a regular* gallop. . Some of the hunt- 
 ers go so far as to say that the white steed has been 
 known to pace his mile in less than two minutes, and 
 that he could keep up this rate of speed until he had 
 tired down everything in pursuit. Large sums had been 
 offered for his capture, and the attempt had been fre- 
 quently made ; but he still roamed his native prairies in 
 freedom, solitary and alone.* The fact of his being al- 
 ways found with no other horse in company was ac- 
 counted for, by an old hunter, on the ground that he 
 was too proud to be seen with those of his class, being 
 an animal far superior in form and action to any of his 
 brothers. This I put down as a rank embellishment, 
 
 * Since my return, I have been informed, by a Texan gentleman, that a 
 horse in many respects answering the description of the " White Steed of the 
 Prairies" has been caught, after a hard chase, between the head waters of the 
 Trinity and Brazos. He lived but a short time, however, the excessive fa- 
 tigue of the race causing his death. 
 
 H2
 
 90 TEAMSTERS OATHS. 
 
 although it is a fact that the more beautiful and highly- 
 formed mustangs are frequently seen alone. 
 
 On the 1 st of July we reached Cow Creek, killing 
 large numbers of buffalo during the day. The 2d 
 we halted to repair some of the wagons which had 
 been upset and injured. The gullies and creeks we 
 were compelled to cross were many of them impassa- 
 ble until much time had been spent in cutting and dig- 
 ging away the steep and lofty banks. With all the cut- 
 ting and digging, however, hardly a day passed in 
 which we escaped an upset ; and then the expressions 
 made use of, by the drivers and fatigue-men, sounded so 
 much like swearing of the most forcible kind that there 
 was no mistaking it. It appeared to be the only study 
 of some of our teamsters to invent the most blasphe- 
 mous oaths ; and the cool, slow, and decided manner in 
 which these imprecations were uttered showed that they 
 wished all within hearing to' have the full benefit of their 
 studies. I asked one of them, just as he had finished a 
 long and most horrid oath which I would not dare to 
 put on paper, why he uttered such profanities. His an- 
 swer was, they saved much whipping, and that his 
 oxen drew much better than with the common kind of 
 swearing. Be this as it may, I believe that if the unfor- 
 tunate animals had possessed the powers of understand- 
 ing they would have run away in the middle of one of 
 the long list of blasphemies. I have heard swearing in 
 many quarters, but for originality, deliberate utterance, 
 and deep wickedness, I have never heard that of some 
 of the drivers on the Santa Fe Expedition equalled. 
 
 Our route from Cow Creek led us over high and dry 
 prairies, and after travelling some twenty miles a long 
 distance for wagons we were finally obliged to en- 
 camp without water. The day had been insupportably
 
 PRAIRIE THUNDER. 91 
 
 hot, without a cloud, or hardly a breath of air stirring, 
 and all the water in our canteens was consumed before 
 noon. As a consequence, we suffered extremely that 
 night ; and had there been a glass of water up at auc- 
 tion, I should certainly have bid high for it. Visions 
 of sherry cobblers, soda, and other cooling drinks haunt- 
 ed me the whole night, and when I awoke it was to the 
 painful reality that there was no reality in my dreams. 
 Since that time I have gone ten miles for a cup of wa- 
 ter. 
 
 An early start the next morning, which was the Fourth 
 of July, enabled us to reach a cool and delicious spring 
 early in the afternoon, and here we slaked our intoler- 
 able thirst. A few seconds after, we had forgotten 
 our sufferings. A man may endure the most torturing 
 thirst for thirty-six or forty-eight hours thinking of 
 water, and nothing but water the while but the mo- 
 ment he has reached it, and swallowed a sufficiency, all 
 thoughts of past suffering are at once banished. 
 
 We had no opportunity of keeping the birthday of 
 American Independence as many of us could have 
 wished ;. but the heavens got up a private celebration, 
 in the shape of a thunder-storm, and seldom have I 
 heard such continued, heavy, and rattling peals. It al- 
 ways seemed to me that in the early part of summer 
 the thunder was louder, the lightning more vivid, and 
 the storms generally were more severe on the prairies 
 than anywhere else. They are not, perhaps, attended 
 with as much rain, but the accompaniments are alto- 
 gether on a grander and more magnificent scale. 
 
 We had a troublesome and unwelcome visiter in 
 camp on the night of the Fourth of July. The storm 
 had induced the mess to which I was attached to pitch 
 a tent. The wet grass without probably drove a prai-
 
 92 A RATTLESNAKE. 
 
 rie rattlesnake to more comfortable quarters within our 
 canvass, the first intimation we had of the vicinity of 
 his snakeship being his crawling over one of us in an 
 attempt to effect a lodgment under some of the blan- 
 kets. A more disagreeable companionship cannot well 
 be imagined, even if one has his choice from among all 
 living, moving, creeping, flying, running, swimming, and 
 crawling things ; and to assert that any of us felt per- 
 fectly easy and at home with such a neighbour among 
 us would be saying what is not true. For myself, fear- 
 ing to move lest I should molest the reptile, I rolled 
 myself, head and all, under my blanket, and lay per- 
 fectly quiet until daylight. Where the intruder went 
 no one could tell, and we had the very great satisfac- 
 tion of seeing no more of him. 
 
 Very frequently, on the great prairies, a man wakes 
 up in the morning and finds that he has had a rattle- 
 snake for a sleeping partner ; but there is one excellent 
 trait in the character of these reptiles they never bite 
 unless disturbed, and will get out of the way as soon as 
 possible, except in the month of August, when they are 
 said to be blind, and will snap at any and everything 
 they may hear about them. The ordinary prairie rat- 
 tlesnake is of small size, seldom being seen over three 
 feet in length ; but those living in the holes of the prai- 
 rie dogs, mention of which I shall make hereafter, grow 
 to an immense magnitude. The former, I believe, are 
 considered not only the most vicious, but the most 
 poisonous. 
 
 In addition to the rattlesnake, the tarantula is fre- 
 quently met with on the Texan prairies, is also often 
 found under the blanket of the campaigner, and is said 
 to be as poisonous as the former. They are large, 
 black, venomous-looking insects, with bodies about the
 
 TARANTULAS. 93 
 
 size of a dove's egg, although their long and strong 
 legs make them appear much larger. When attacked 
 with a stick, they will rear up on their hind legs and 
 attempt to bite, and are extremely ferocious in every 
 respect. The least scratch from their long fangs 
 throws a person into convulsions, and will produce 
 death unless immediate remedies can be procured. 
 The ballet of Le Tarentvle, in which Elssler gained so 
 much applause, is a beautiful creation, although found- 
 ed upon an idle superstition of the Italians. The bite 
 of the real tarantula drives a person to anything but 
 dancing, subjecting him rather to fits and strong ner- 
 vous excitement. The opinion prevails, among the igno- 
 rant and superstitious of many countries, that music 
 will cure the individual who has been bitten by one of 
 these venomous insects. What effect it might have in 
 soothing the nervous system I am unable to say ; but 
 were I bitten by a tarantula I should certainly prefer 
 hartshorn, taken inwardly and outwardly, for the pur- 
 pose of procuring a safe and speedy cure. 
 
 It is deemed an easy matter to keep the rattlesnake 
 from sharing your bed while sleeping upon the prairies. 
 It is said that they will never cross a hair lariat, so that 
 by circumscribing the ground you occupy with one of 
 these instruments, you enjoy an exemption from their 
 more sociable visits ; but this is no guard against the 
 poisonous tarantula. Few persons, however, are bit- 
 ten by either, not an instance occurring on the route, 
 although we saw great numbers of each. 
 
 On awaking the next morning, after the adventure 
 with the rattlesnake, we found that there had been an- 
 other visitor in camp, and one from whose insatiate 
 fangs there is no escape. Death had carried off a poor 
 fellow named Flint. He had eaten freely of unripe
 
 94 THE ANTELOPE. 
 
 grapes or berries during the previous day, which 
 brought on a colic that no medicine could reach. He 
 was buried at an early hour, and a volley was fired 
 over his grave, after which the march was resumed. 
 
 We had already, and with no inconsiderable diffi- 
 culty, crossed one branch of the Bosque, and on the 
 evening of the 5th arrived at another fork of the same 
 stream, where we encamped for the night. It abounds 
 with excellent trout and soft-shell turtle. This day, for 
 the first time, we saw the antelope, or mountain goat, 
 an animal somewhat resembling both the deer and the 
 goat, but with flesh preferable to that of either. It 
 runs with great speed, and has a stride like a horse. 
 How fast the animal can run when in possession of 
 four legs is a question I am at a loss to answer, but 
 one with a fore leg broken by a rifle ball made out to 
 escape from one of our best horses after a long chase. 
 On the table-lands at the foot of the Rocky Mountains 
 they are met with in great numbers, and many are 
 seen on the Upper Brazos and Colorado. Although a 
 shy, they are still a very inquisitive animal, and are 
 frequently lured within gunshot by simply hanging a 
 red handkerchief upon a ramrod or stick, and moving 
 it aloft. The hunter keeps his body out of sight as 
 much as possible, when the antelope, seeing nothing 
 but the handkerchief, approaches, with head erect and 
 by slow degrees, until within rifle-shot, and then pays 
 the penalty of its curiosity with its life. 
 
 The early part of the 6th of July was spent in cutting 
 a road through the thick belt of wood which skirts ei- 
 ther side of the main branch of the Bosque, and in par- 
 tially digging away the high, steep banks of the stream. 
 The labour of crossing the river was incredible. In 
 descending the abrupt banks which led to the channel,
 
 A STAMPEDE. 95 
 
 it was necessary, not only to lock the wheels, but to 
 hold back the wagons with ropes to prevent them from 
 pitching down, " head first" as it were ; the greatest 
 difficulty, however, was in ascending on the other side. 
 The ascent was nearly perpendicular and some forty 
 feet high, with no better footing than a deep sand. 
 Some twenty yoke of oxen would in the first place be 
 hitched to a wagon ; then ropes would be attached 
 wherever there was a place to make them fast, manned 
 by about fifty or sixty of the fatigue party ; finally, all 
 the drivers would be called in requisition, and when all 
 was ready for a start such a jumping, whipping, crack- 
 ing, yelling, pulling, cursing and swearing would arise 
 as to set all description at defiance. Bedlam itself, with 
 five hundred Indians as an accompaniment, seemed let 
 loose in a body. I will not pretend to say that had Bo- 
 naparte met with the Bosque while crossing the Alps 
 he would have been compelled to return ; but he would 
 have found a serious detention at all events. Yet diffi- 
 cult as was the crossing, everything was safely over 
 before the middle of the afternoon, and we still made a 
 march of a few miles to a spring a short distance from 
 the River Brazos. At this camp we were favoured for 
 the first time with the magnificent but much-dreaded 
 sight of a stampede among our horses. 
 
 As there was no wood near our camping-ground, 
 some half a dozen men pushed on to a small piece of 
 timber in search of it. One of them had a wild, half- 
 broken, Mexican horse, naturally vicious and with dif- 
 ficulty mastered. His rider found a small, dry tree, cut 
 it down with a hatchet, and very imprudently made it 
 fast to his horse's tail by means of a rope. The animal 
 took it unkindly from the first, and dragged his strange 
 load with evident symptoms of fright ; but when with-
 
 96 TERRIFIED OXEN. 
 
 in a few hundred yards of camp he commenced pitch- 
 ing, and finally set off at a gallop with the cause of all 
 his uneasiness and fear still fast to his tail. His course 
 was directly for the camp, and as he sped along the 
 prairie it was soon evident that several of our horses 
 were stricken with a panic at his approach. At first 
 they would prick up their ears, snort, and trot majesti- 
 cally about in circles ; then they would dash off at the 
 top of their speed, and no human power could arrest 
 their mad career. 
 
 " A stampede /" shouted some of the old campaign- 
 ers, jumping from the ground and running towards their 
 frightened animals ; " a stampede ! look out for your 
 horses, or you'll never see them again !" was heard on 
 every side. Fortunately for us, the more intractable 
 horses had been not only staked, but hobbled before the 
 panic became general, and were secured with little diffi- 
 culty, else we might have lost half of them irretrievably. 
 
 It is singular, the effect that sudden fright has, not 
 only upon horses, but oxen, on the prairies. The latter 
 will, perhaps, run longer and farther than the former, 
 and although not as difficult to "head," because they 
 cannot run so fast, their onward course it is impossible 
 to stay. Oxen, so I was informed, have been known to 
 run forty miles without once stopping to look back ; 
 and when they did finally hold up, it was simply because 
 exhausted nature would allow them to go no farther. 
 Not one in fifty of them had seen the least cause for 
 fear, but each ran simply because his neighbour did. 
 Frequent instances have occurred w T here some worth- 
 less but skittish horse has caused the loss of hundreds of 
 valuable animals. In the instance I have above alluded 
 to, we did not lose one, but on a subsequent occasion, 
 no less than eighty-seven were irrecoverably lost by 
 one stampede.
 
 HORSES IN THE FLIGHT OF TERROR. 97 
 
 Nothing can exceed the grandeur of the scene when 
 a large cavallada, or drove of horses, takes a " scare." 
 Old, weather-beaten, time-worn, and broken-down steeds 
 horses that have nearly given out from hard work 
 and old age will at once be transformed into wild and 
 prancing colts. When first seized with that indescri- 
 bable terror which induces them to fly, they seem to 
 have been suddenly endowed with all the attributes of 
 their original wild nature. With heads erect, tails and 
 manes streaming in air, eyes lit up and darting beams 
 of fright, old and jaded hacks will be seen prancing and 
 careering about with all the buoyancy of action which 
 characterizes the antics of young colts ; then some one 
 of the drove, more frightened than the rest, will dash 
 off in a straight line, the rest scampering after him, and 
 apparently gaining fresh fears at every jump. The 
 throng will then sweep along the plain with a noise 
 which may be likened to something between a tornado 
 and an earthquake, and as well might feeble man at- 
 tempt to arrest either of the latter. 
 
 Were the earth rending and cleaving beneath their 
 feet, horses, when under the terrifying influence of a 
 stampede, could not bound away with greater velocity 
 or more majestic beauty of movement. I have seen 
 many an interesting race, but never anything half so ex- 
 citing as the flight of a drove of frightened horses. The 
 spectator, who may possibly have a nag among them 
 which he has been unable to get into a canter by dint 
 of spur and W 7 hip, sees his property fairly flying away 
 at a pace that a thorough-bred racer might envy. Bet- 
 ter " time," to all appearance, he has never seen made, 
 and were it not that he himself is as much astounded as 
 the horses, there might be very pretty betting upon the 
 race. 
 
 VOL. L I
 
 98 FALCONER'S NAG. 
 
 On one occasion, when a closely-hobbled horse was 
 rushing madly along the prairie under the influence of 
 fright, his owner coolly remarked, "I wish I could 
 make that critter go as fast on my own account with- 
 out hobbles, as he can on his own with them I'd gam- 
 ble on him sure" And so it is. No simile can give 
 the reader a fair conception of the grandeur of the spec- 
 tacle, and the most graphic arrangement of words must 
 fall far short in describing the startling and imposing 
 effect of a regular stampede ! 
 
 While upon this subject, I should not, perhaps, neg- 
 lect to notice one of the little private stampedes my 
 friend Falconer's horse was in the habit of occasionally 
 getting up, principally on his own individual account 
 and to gratify his own peculiar tastes and desires, en- 
 tirely regardless, all the while, of his master's conveni- 
 ence as well as of the public safety. 
 
 He was a short, thick-set, scrubby, wiry nag, tough 
 as a pine knot, and self-willed as a pig. He was more- 
 over exceedingly lazy, as well as prone to have his own 
 way, and take his own jog preferring a walk or gen- 
 tle trot to a canter ; and so deep-rooted were his preju- 
 dices in favour of the former methods of getting over the 
 ground, that neither whip nor spur could drive him from 
 them. He possessed a commendable faculty of taking 
 most especial good care of himself, which he manifested 
 by being always found where water was nearest and the 
 grass best, and on the whole might be termed, in the lan- 
 guage of those who consider themselves judges of horse 
 flesh, a " tolerable chunk of a pony" for a long journey. 
 
 He had one bad quality, however, which was contin- 
 ually putting his master to serious inconvenience, and 
 on more than one occasion came near resulting serious- 
 ly to all. One day we stopped to " noon" close by a
 
 A TOTAL WRECK. 99 
 
 spring of water, and had simply taken the bridles from 
 our horses to give them a chance to graze, when he 
 improved the occasion to show off one of his eccen- 
 tricities. Falconer had a way, as I have before stated, 
 of packing all his scientific, cooking, and other instru- 
 ments upon his horse, and on the occasion to which I 
 have alluded, some one of them chanced to chafe or gall 
 the pony, inducing him to give a kick up with his hin- 
 der limbs. The rattling of the pots and pans started 
 him off immediately, and the faster he ran the more 
 they rattled. We immediately secured our horses by 
 catching up the lariats, and then watched the fanciful 
 antics of the animal that had raised all the commotion. 
 
 He would run about ten jumps and then stop and 
 kick up about as many times ; then he would shake 
 himself violently, and then start off again on a gallop. 
 Every now and then a culinary or scientific instrument 
 would be detached from its fastenings, when the infu- 
 riated pony would manage to give it a kick before it 
 struck the ground and send it aloft again. The quad- 
 rant took the direction towards the sun without taking 
 it ; the saucepan was kicked into a stew ; the thermom- 
 eter was up to 100 inches above the ground, and fell 
 to worth nothing. To sum it all up, what with rear- 
 ing, pitching, kicking, and galloping about, the pony 
 was soon rid of saddle and all other encumbrances, and 
 then went quietly to feeding, apparently well satisfied 
 with all the trouble he had given his owner. 
 
 The whole affair was ludicrous in the extreme, defy- 
 ing description. The rattling of the tin, earthen, and 
 other ware, as the pony snorted, kicked, and pranced 
 about, made a noise resembling that produced at a char- 
 ivari. His antics were of the most unseemly nature, 
 too and the cool philosophy of Mr. Falconer, as he
 
 100 A LOVELY VALLEY. 
 
 quietly followed in the wake of the vicious animal, 
 picking up the fragments scattered along, completed a 
 picture which would have made the fortune of Cruick- 
 shank had he been on the spot to take it down. Some 
 time after this adventure the Indians stole the horse, 
 but they made a bad bargain of it 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 The Valley of Cedral Creek. Singular Natural Road. Another Delay. 
 Arrival of General McLeod with additional Cattle. The March resumed. 
 Bad Travelling. Delicious Spring of Water. Valley of the Brazos. 
 Fondness of our Animals for its Waters. Crossing the Brazos. Prairie 
 on Fire. Out of Water again. Sufferings of Man and Beast. A cool 
 Spring discovered. Natural Bathing-tub. Fresh Indian " Sign." A re- 
 cently-deserted Village. Trick of a Wag. The Camanche Peak. " See- 
 ing the Elephant." The " Cross Timbers." Description of this singular 
 Forest. Arrival at Noland's River. Destruction of our Tents. The 
 crossing of Noland's River. Deserted Indian Village. Latitude and Lon- 
 gitude taken. In the Midst of our Troubles Our last Day in the " Cross 
 Timbers." A gloomy Night. Once more upon the open Prairie. A 
 hearty Meal. Speculations as to the Route we had taken. The Banks 
 of Red River supposed to be visible. 
 
 ON the evening of the 6th of July, the day after the 
 stampede mentioned in the preceding chapter, we en- 
 camped in a rich and beautiful valley through which 
 Cedral Creek meandered. Our descent into this valley 
 was down the sides of a steep hill, and by a road so 
 perfect that it seems almost impossible nature had any 
 hand in making it. From the top we had a fine view 
 of the romantic valley far below us, which was studded 
 here and there with clumps of trees, ivhile in the dis- 
 tance a dim outline of mountains and the wooded bot- 
 toms of the Brazos relieved the eye. 
 
 At first it was thought impossible to get the wagons
 
 A NATURAL ROAD. 101 
 
 down the steep declivity, but the spies soon found that 
 there was a regular road winding down the sides, and 
 by means of this we descended with ease and safety. 
 For some two miles there was every appearance of a 
 regular excavation on the upper, and of an embank- 
 ment thrown up on the lower side of the hill ; and if 
 this road, upon which there was little vegetation, is 
 really the work of nature, it may be put down as one 
 of her strangest doings. Had it not been accidentally 
 discovered we should not have made the descent with- 
 out great labour, if at all. 
 
 Some of the wagons needing repairs, and our present 
 encampment affording every facility for that purpose, 
 it was resolved to remain here until General McLeod 
 should arrive, and with him the additional cattle for our 
 subsistence. On the afternoon of the 8th we were all 
 overjoyed to see the expected party winding their way 
 down the singular natural road which we had travelled 
 two days previous. General McLeod now resumed the 
 command, and ordered us to make every preparation 
 for an early start on the following morning. Our 
 course, up to this time, had been north, varying a little 
 to the east, perhaps, as the broken and hilly country 
 intervened. The object of Mr. Rowland, our guide, 
 was to cross the Brazos at the nearest practicable point, 
 and follow up between the waters of that stream and 
 the Trinity. 
 
 After travelling some sixteen miles on the 9th, to 
 gain certainly not more than half that distance, we 
 were fortunate in reaching a small spring of water. 
 Our progress had been considerably impeded and made 
 devious and tiresome by deep gullies and runs. The 
 ensuing night we encamped upon the banks of a small 
 creek of fresh water, emptying into the Brazos. This 
 
 12
 
 102 A LAND OF PLENTY. 
 
 latter stream was now but a few miles to our right, its 
 rich and fertile bottoms, flanked by a heavy growth of 
 timber, being plainly visible. 
 
 Our route, on the llth of July, was along a chain of 
 rough hills which separate the valley of the Brazos 
 from the prairies. During the day, several wagons 
 were in some way broken and injured, and it was only 
 after a tedious and toilsome march that we were en- 
 abled to reach a cool and delicious spring of water, and 
 find good pasturage for our jaded horses and oxen. 
 Here we found 'grass in great abundance, and as many 
 of the wagons were again in need of repairs, we remain- 
 ed until the 14th. 
 
 The location upon which we were encamped, being 
 in the edge of the timber, with rich prairie directly 
 in front of us, was one of the finest we had yet met 
 on our route. The valley of the Brazos at this place 
 abounded with every species of timber known in Texas ; 
 grapes, plums, and other fruit were found in profusion ; 
 honey could be obtained in almost every hollow tree ; 
 trout and other fish were plentiful in the small creeks 
 in the neighbourhood, and the woods and prairies about 
 us not only afforded excellent grazing for our cattle and 
 horses, but teemed with every species of game elk, 
 deer, bears, wild turkeys, and, at the proper season, buf- 
 falo and mustang. No fresh Indian " sign" was dis- 
 covered, but the year previous a large body of Chero- 
 kees or Wacoes had evidently made the neighbourhood 
 their home, old tent poles being found still standing 
 near our camping-ground, as well as corn-fields which 
 had been cultivated the year before. 
 
 As I have said, we were encamped by a cool and 
 delicious spring of never-failing water. Some half a 
 mile distant, in an eastern direction, the Brazos mean-
 
 A PRAIRIE ON FIRE. 103 
 
 dered along, whose salt and brackish waters, although 
 unpalatable for man, were swallowed with avidity by 
 both horses and cattle. Indeed, so fond were the latter 
 of this water that they drank incredible quantities of it, 
 and could hardly be induced to leave the stream the 
 first time they were taken to it. At certain periods of 
 the year the prairie Indians visit the salt streams of 
 Texas, considering the waters highly beneficial to their 
 stock. 
 
 We crossed the stream on the 14th, after much diffi- 
 culty from the quicksands and high banks. The wag- 
 ons all over, we stopped for an hour or two under the 
 shade of some oaks that skirted the border of the val- 
 ley, and here, for the first time, I saw the magnificent 
 spectacle of a prairie on fire. It wa's purely accidental, 
 and caused us little damage ; but had the wind been in 
 a different direction it would have swept the whole 
 face of the country for miles and miles in advance. 
 The dry grass flashed up like powder, and the fire 
 spread over the prairie with alarming speed. At first 
 an attempt was made to extinguish it, by means of 
 switches made of green boughs and bushes ; but those 
 who exerted themselves in this way returned from the 
 task with singed whiskers, eyebrows, and hair, and 
 without having effected anything. 
 
 We pursued our journey in the afternoon, and reach- 
 ed a mud-hole for it could not be called anything else 
 where we encamped. All night the long and bright 
 line of fire, which was sweeping across the prairie to 
 our left, was plainly seen, and the next morning it was 
 climbing the narrow chain of low hills which divided 
 the prairie from the bottoms of the Brazos. 
 
 With a single exception of one day and night, we 
 had suffered little from want of water up to the 15th of
 
 104 SUFFERING FROM THIRST. 
 
 July. After a tortuous and tedious march, over a dry 
 prairie ridge, we were finally obliged to encamp with- 
 out water. Of course we suffered most intolerably 
 ourselves, after having travelled all day in a hot sun ; 
 but the cattle and horses felt it even more seriously. 
 At night the guard found great difficulty in herding 
 and keeping them together, so anxious were they to 
 start off in search of water, and the next morning the 
 horses had a wild expression about the eyes, combined 
 with an uneasiness and fretfulness, which forcibly told 
 their suffering. 
 
 Our start in the morning was early, and eagerly did 
 we press forward with the hope of finding water. No 
 breakfast had been cooked, as eating only tended to in- 
 crease a thirst which was already distressing. Late 
 in the afternoon, and when we had almost despaired 
 of finding water, one of the spies returned with the joy- 
 ful intelligence that a large and cool spring had been 
 discovered but a little way off our course. The line of 
 march was now instantly broken ; for those who had 
 good horses dashed madly forward, while the drivers 
 bestowed heavy blows, and imprecations if possible 
 more horrible than ever, upon their tired cattle, to press 
 them onward. In small straggling parties we reached 
 the goal of our hopes. A ledge of rocks, from which 
 cool and limpid water was gushing in all directions, 
 formed the head of the spring, and a few yards below 
 the different branches fell into a common basin some 
 twenty yards in width, and filled to the depth of eight 
 or ten feet with the transparent element. A purling 
 stream was here formed, which carried the surplus wa- 
 ters of the beautiful reservoir to mingle with the brack- 
 ish current of the Brazos a base and most unnatural 
 union.
 
 M OLD PAINT." 105 
 
 Our thirst was slaked at the very fountain-head the 
 basin was converted into an immense bathing-tub, where 
 all hands enjoyed the invigorating luxury of a bath. 
 My ankle was still much swollen, and so sore that I 
 was unable to use it in the least ; but I made out to 
 hobble to the basin on one foot, and gained great 
 strength by lying at the edge and allowing one of the 
 cool streams from above to fall upon the lame part. 
 The next morning, after enjoying another bath, we left 
 this delicious spring with regret, and pursued our jour- 
 ney with no prospect of water before us. We were 
 fortunate enough, however, to reach a small branch of 
 running water at nightfall, upon which we encamped. 
 
 Our camp was hardly formed before Captain Cald- 
 well, or " Old Paint,"* as he was generally called, re- 
 turned with the spy company, and reported that he had 
 fallen in with an Indian camp which apparently had 
 been deserted but a few hours. The duties of the spy 
 company, I might here add, were to keep one day in 
 advance of the main body, for the purpose of picking 
 out the best road for the wagons, finding water, and 
 keeping a look-out for Indians. Captain C. brought in 
 a number of roasting ears, and stated that he found 
 many unripe melons and pumpkins among the corn. 
 
 * Captain Caldwell received the soubriquet of " Old Paint," from the fact 
 of his naturally dark hair, whiskers, and beard being covered with large 
 white spots. In Texas, and some of our Southern States, a horse or other 
 animal which is spotted is called a " paint." Captain C. was an old back- 
 woodsman, had been engaged in conflicts almost innumerable with the Mex- 
 icans and Indians, and was what is termed in Texas an excellent " rough 
 fighter" and hunter. He was one of the signers of the Declaration of Inde- 
 pendence of Texas, and many of his daring achievements are often recount- 
 ed in that country. He was released, with the other Texan prisoners, and 
 returned to his family at Gonzales ; but on the invasion of Texas in 1842, 
 by General Woil, he recruited a company and defeated that officer at the 
 Salado. The following winter he died, much regretted by all who knew 
 him.
 
 106 INDIAN SIGN. 
 
 While on Little River, a report had been sent to Gen- 
 eral McLeod that a large party of Cherokees, Caddoes, 
 and individuals of other tribes, all hostile to Texas, had 
 planted themselves in a large and fertile bend of the 
 Brazos above the Camanche Peak, and that they had 
 extensive and well-cultivated fields, besides a large 
 number of horses and mules. At first it was determin- 
 ed to go somewhat out of our way and attack this party 
 in their stronghold, for it was said that they were well 
 fortified ; but upon after thought it was feared the de- 
 tention would be too great, and the adventure was 
 given up. It was now evident enough that we were in 
 the vicinity of these hostiles, and at night strict orders 
 were given the guard to be on the alert to prevent a 
 surprise, or our horses and oxen from being stampeded 
 and driven off. 
 
 The next day we made but five or six miles on our 
 journey, and encamped near several mineral springs, 
 the waters of which were strongly impregnated with 
 iron and sulphur. The scull of a white woman, but re- 
 cently killed, was found in the vicinity, and large and 
 fresh Indian trails were discovered running in the direc- 
 tion of the Brazos. We also passed through a recently- 
 deserted Indian camp upon the march, the bark wig- 
 wams still standing, and many of the implements gener- 
 ally seen in an Indian village remaining precisely as the 
 frightened inhabitants had left them. 
 
 Some ingenious wag had left our camp early in the 
 morning, alone, and happened to be the first to discover 
 this village. The fellow played off a fine trick upon 
 some of us in the manner following : the interiors of 
 some of the wigwams were lined with smooth bark, and 
 choosing one of the larger domiciles, he covered the 
 bark with rough but tolerably well-drawn figures of
 
 A CLEVER HOAX. 107 
 
 men, horses, and buffalo. He must have been a rapid 
 sketcher, as the entire ceiling, if I may so call it, was in 
 this way decorated. Underneath a group of figures 
 stood out, in bold relief and in good Roman characters, 
 the crack-jaw name of some Indian brave, leading us to 
 suppose, at once, that this was the artist who had ex- 
 ecuted the work above. Not suspecting, for a moment, 
 that any such hoax had been played, and never imagin- 
 ing that any of our men had gone ahead and alone, we 
 could not but come to the conclusion that some erratic 
 white genius had domesticated himself among the In- 
 dians, or that one of the wild sons of the woods and the 
 prairies had cultivated, in some way, a taste for the fine 
 arts. The author of the hoax, however, thinking the 
 joke too good to be lost, finally divulged the secret. 
 
 Our next day's march was along the high ridge of 
 prairies which divides the waters of what was thought 
 to be Noland's River from those of the Brazos. The 
 prospect on both sides was romantic in a high degree. 
 To the east, for miles, the prairie gently sloped, hardly 
 presenting a bush to relieve the eye. In the distance, 
 the green skirting of woods, which fringed either bor- 
 der of a large stream, softened down the view. Oc- 
 casionally a deer would jump suddenly from his noon- 
 day rest, and scamper off across the prairie, but other 
 than this no game was seen. The few deer we saw 
 were exceedingly wild, from the fact of there being so 
 many Indians in the vicinity ; while the buffalo had ev- 
 idently all been driven to the south. 
 
 To the west of the ridge, the immediate vicinity was 
 even more desolate, but the fertile bottoms of the Bra- 
 zos, with their luxuriant growth of timber, were still vis- 
 ible, and the Camanche Peak, rising high above the other 
 hills, gave grandeur and sublimity to a scene which
 
 108 SEEING THE ELEPHANT. 
 
 would otherwise have been far from monotonous. This 
 peak is celebrated as a looking-out point for the Caman- 
 ches, commanding, as it does, a complete view of the 
 country around as far as the eye can reach and hence 
 its name. 
 
 Late in the afternoon we reached a small spring of 
 water where we encamped, and the grass being excel- 
 lent in the vicinity, we remained nearly all the next day 
 to rest the jaded cattle and repair the rickety wagons. 
 Many of the latter were half worn out when we start- 
 ed, and the rough road over which we had travelled 
 was far from improving them. An afternoon's march 
 brought us to a noble spring in a grove of post oaks 
 a grove which turned out to be one of the outskirts of 
 the celebrated Cross Timbers. 
 
 Up to the 21st of July, one month from the time when 
 we left the Brushy, our course had been nearly north, 
 the country we traversed principally fertile and rolling 
 prairies, destitute of timber except the bottoms of the 
 different streams we had crossed. Our road, in the 
 mean time, although we had considered it very bad. was 
 a perfect macadamized turnpike in comparison with 
 what we were shortly to meet. There is a cant expres- 
 sion, " I've seen the elephant," in very common use in 
 Texas, although I had never heard it until we entered 
 the Cross Timbers, or rather the first evening after we 
 had encamped in that noted strip of forest land. I had 
 already seen " sights" of almost every kind, animals of al- 
 most every species, reptiles until I was more than satis- 
 fied with the number and variety, and felt ready and 
 willing to believe almost anything I might hear as to 
 what I was yet to see ; but I knew very well that we 
 were not in an elephant range, and when I first heard 
 one of our men say that he had seen the animal in ques-
 
 SIMPLICITY PUZZLED. 109 
 
 I 
 
 tion, I was utterly at a loss to fathom his meaning. I 
 knew that the phrase had some conventional significa- 
 tion, but farther I was ignorant. A youngster, how- 
 ever, was " caught" by the expression, and quite a laugh 
 was raised around a camp fire at his expense. 
 
 A small party of us were half sitting, half reclining 
 around some blazing fagots, telling stories of the past 
 and speculating upon our prospects for the future, when 
 an old member of the spy company entered our circle 
 and quietly took a seat upon the ground. After a long 
 breath, and a preparatory clearing of his throat, the 
 veteran hunter exclaimed, " Well, I've seen the ele- 
 phant." 
 
 " The what ?" said a youngster close by, partially 
 turning round so as to get a view of the speaker's face, 
 and then giving him a look which was made up in equal 
 parts of incredulity and inquiry. 
 
 " I've seen the elephant," coolly replied the old cam- 
 paigner. 
 
 " But not a real, sure-enough elephant, have you ?" 
 queried the younger speaker, with that look and tone 
 which indicate the existence of a doubt and the wish to 
 have it promptly and plainly removed. 
 
 This was too much ; for all within hearing, many of 
 whom understood and could fully appreciate the joke, 
 burst out in an inordinate fit of laughter as they saw 
 how easily the young man had walked into a trap, 
 which, although not set for that purpose, had fairly 
 caught him ; and I, too, joined in the merry outbreak, 
 yet in all frankness I must say that I did not fully un- 
 derstand what I was laughing at. The meaning of the 
 expression I will explain. When a man is disappointed 
 in anything he undertakes, when he has seen enough, 
 when he gets sick and tired of any job he may have set 
 
 VOL. I. K
 
 110 THE CROSS TIMBERS. 
 
 himself about, he has " seen the elephant" We had been 
 buffeting about during the day, cutting away trees, cross- 
 ing deep ravines and gullies, and turning and twisting 
 some fifteen or twenty miles to gain five we had finally 
 to encamp by a mud-hole of miserable water, and the 
 spies had been unable to find any beyond this com- 
 bination of ills induced the old hunter to remark, " I've 
 seen the elephant," and upon the same principle I will 
 here state that I had by this time obtained something 
 more than a glimpse of the animal myself, 
 
 We were now fairly within the limits of the Cross 
 Timbers, a singular strip of wooded country, a descrip- 
 tion of which may not prove uninteresting.* 
 
 The immense western prairies are bordered, for hun- 
 dreds of miles on their eastern side, by a narrow belt of 
 forest land well known to hunters and trappers under 
 the above name. The course of this range is nearly 
 north and south, with a width ranging from thirty to 
 fifty miles. The growth of timber is principally small, 
 gnarled, post oaks and black jacks, and in many places 
 the traveller will find an almost impenetrable under- 
 growth of brier and other thorny bushes. Here and 
 there he will also find a small valley where the timber 
 is large and the land rich and fertile, and occasionally 
 a small prairie intervenes ; but the general face of the 
 country is broken and hilly, and the soil thin. On the 
 eastern side of the Cross Timbers the country is varied 
 by small prairies and clumps of woodland, while on the 
 western all is a perfect ocean of prairie. The belt, there- 
 fore, for whatever purpose it may have been fashioned 
 
 * My own opinion is, that we entered the Timbers near the southern ex- 
 tremity. What distance this singular forest extends north I am unable to 
 say, but I believe it terminates not far from the Canadian or Arkansas. It 
 probably reaches no farther south than a point near the junction of Poland's 
 River with the Brazos.
 
 WILD HONEY. Ill 
 
 by the Great Creator of all things, appears to be an im- 
 mense natural hedge dividing the woodlands of the set- 
 tled portions of the United States from the open prai- 
 ries which have ever been the home and hunting-ground 
 of the red man. To use another figure, it may be look- 
 ed upon as the western side of the frame of an immense 
 landscape painting, the United States forming the sub- 
 ject. The Gulf of Mexico may be considered the frame 
 on the southern side, the Atlantic on the east, while the 
 great lakes which divide the picture from Canada must 
 serve for the northern side. 
 
 In that portion through which we passed, and we 
 spent nearly a fortnight in the Cross Timbers, we found 
 the face of the country broken, and full of deep and al- 
 most impassable gullies. These, in the rainy season, 
 carry off the waters from the hills to the larger streams 
 outside the woods, but in July we found them all dry. 
 Had we been able to travel directly west we should 
 have materially shortened our journey ; but the country 
 was such that we were compelled to pursue a diagonal 
 course, subjecting men, cattle, and horses to great pri- 
 vation and suffering, to say nothing of the vexations of 
 our slow and toilsome march. 
 
 Bear and deer are found in the Cross Timbers and 
 the vicinity, and small gangs of buffalo take shelter in 
 them when scattered and driven from the prairies by In- 
 dians. In many of the trees swarms of wild bees are 
 found, affording delicious honey a great luxury to those 
 who are engaged in a border life, for it is well known 
 that the absence of breadstuff's increases the appetite 
 for sweets of every description. Often, while living 
 upon nothing but poor beef and not half enough of that, 
 did fallacious pictures of confectionary-stores and cake- 
 shops pass before my dreaming fancies the shadows
 
 112 PRIVATIONS BEGINNING. 
 
 of pies, puffs, and patties, of comfits, candies, and creams 
 were there, but the substance was far away. 
 
 For two or three days we journeyed through the 
 middle of the belt, every attempt to find a passage out 
 proving futile. On one or two occasions, distant fires 
 were seen upon the hills at night, but we were unable 
 to get a sight of the Indians who were encamped by 
 them. 
 
 On the night of the 23d we reached Noland's River.* 
 As many of our oxen were much travel- worn, and some 
 of our horses needed shoeing, we encamped upon this 
 stream until the 26th. At this camp the officers of the 
 expedition held a consultation to devise means for more 
 rapi dP progress. While upon the praries, it was evident 
 that the wagons were too heavily loaded, and now that 
 we were in a much rougher country it was deemed im- 
 peratively necessary that they should in some way be 
 lightened. The first step towards effecting this desira- 
 ble object was the throwing away a large portion of 
 the dry beef we had brought from Austin, much of 
 which was found to be spoiled. This meat had been 
 provided as a last resort in case the Indians should de- 
 prive us of our cattle ; but to carry it farther was con- 
 sidered unwise, and such portions of it as were fit for 
 use were immediately served out to the men instead of 
 green beef, but half the weight of the latter being given. 
 It was also resolved to deprive us of one of our greatest 
 comforts the tents. There were many of them new, 
 well made, and easily pitched but that there should be 
 no repining, nor ill-feelings engendered in the camp, all 
 the poles were burned, as well those of the officers, 
 
 * Some of our men thought it was one of the forks of the Trinity. I am 
 inclined to believe they were wrong in their surmises, although far from 
 confident.
 
 PERPLEXITIES. 113 
 
 commissaries, and merchants, as of the men. But one 
 was saved the hospital tent, for the use of such as 
 might be sick and we had now nothing to protect us 
 from the rain or cold but our blankets and the sky. 
 During the three days we passed on the western side 
 of Noland's River the wagons received a thorough re- 
 pairing. The fatigue men also dug away the steep 
 banks of the stream, and cut a road through the heavy 
 timber of the bottoms. 
 
 By the 26th of July everything was in readiness for 
 resuming the toilsome journey, and after crossing the 
 river without accident we were enabled to travel some 
 ten miles before we encamped. The road was through 
 a stony and hilly country, interspersed with an occasion- 
 al grove of black jacks and post oaks. To the right of 
 our line of march we saw the ruins of what had been a 
 large Indian village, many of the wigwams being still 
 in a partial state of preservation. 
 
 The next day we reached a small grove of timber, 
 bounded on all sides by a level and beautiful prairie 
 an island, it would almost appear, in the heart of the 
 Cross Timbers. The water and grass being good at 
 this place, and the country beyond appearing rough and 
 our farther advance almost impossible, it was deter- 
 mined to remain until the spies had found some outlet 
 ' from the labyrinth of difficulties in which we were en- 
 tangled. 
 
 At this camp, for the first time, the latitude and lon- 
 gitude were taken by Mr. Falconer and Lieutenant 
 Hull, the latter of whom had been an officer in the Eng- 
 lish navy and fully understood the use of the quadrant. 
 According to their calculation, we were upward of two 
 hundred miles in a course nearly north from Austin, 
 and the distance to Santa Fe was close upon five hun- 
 
 K2
 
 114 BAD COUNTRY FOR TRAVEL. 
 
 dred miles, the direction a little north of west. The 
 exact latitude and longitude I made a memorandum of 
 in my note-book, together with a description of the 
 country through which we passed, the course each day, 
 and the number of miles we travelled. This book is 
 now in the hands of the Mexicans, and as a matter of 
 course I am compelled to depend upon memory. Cir- 
 cumstances difficult to forget, however, occurred every 
 few days, the dates of which were so strongly impress- 
 ed upon me that I still retain them, and the events of 
 the intervening time I am obliged to fill up, as I have 
 said before, from memory. 
 
 The spies returned in the evening and reported that 
 they had found a route through the timber in a north- 
 westerly direction the only one in which we could 
 travel. They stated the distance to be about twenty 
 miles, the country covered with brush and post oaks, 
 cut up by ravines, and without water ; but it was be- 
 lieved that by sending a large fatigue party in advance 
 with shovels and axes, and by making a very early 
 start, we could cut our way through in one day at all 
 events it was determined to attempt it. Mr. Navarro, 
 although extremely lame, would not trust himself in the 
 little Jersey wagon, but mounted a horse and left me 
 the only passenger. Fitzgerald volunteered to drive 
 the mules for this day only. His style of handling the 
 reins was peculiarly of the break-neck order, but as we 
 had to travel over a break-neck road the driving may 
 be set down as in perfect keeping. 
 
 The morning was pleasant, but the bright July sun 
 gave promise of an unusually hot day, and did not dis- 
 appoint us. At the first gully we crossed, which was 
 not more than half a mile from our starting-point, two 
 of the foremost wagons upset. The labour of righting
 
 WORSE AND WORSE. 115 
 
 them and repacking their heavy loads occupied some 
 two hours, and thus it was near the middle of the day 
 before we had made one quarter of our day's march. 
 In the mean time, the road grew worse and worse as 
 we advanced, the weather was unusually hot and sultry, 
 our stock of water was soon exhausted, and with that 
 went our patience and good temper. One difficulty 
 was no sooner passed, than even a worse stared us in 
 the face. The narrow passage cut for the wagons was 
 stumpy and stony, cut up every two or three hundred 
 yards by deep gullies, or the dry beds of what had 
 been running streams. The ground was covered with 
 a heavy undergrowth of briers and thorn-bushes, im- 
 penetrable even by mules, and these, with the black jacks 
 and post oaks which thickly studded the broken surface, 
 had to be cut away, their- removal only showing, in 
 bolder relief, the rough and jagged surface of the soil 
 which had given them existence and nourishment. 
 
 Night finally overtook us, when we were but half 
 way through our toilsome march. By this time fatigue- 
 men and drivers were worn down, hungry, half choked 
 with thirst, and completely dispirited ; the oxen were 
 jaded, unwilling or unable to draw, as well as suffering 
 for want of water, and the imprecations bestowed upon 
 them were louder, deeper, and more disgustingly blas- 
 phemous than ever. Several wagons had been upset, 
 broken to pieces, and left by the roadside, while the com- 
 mand was scattered for miles through the woods, every 
 one eagerly pressing forward for water, uncontrolled and 
 uncontrollable. To make the matter worse for Fitzgerald 
 and myself, we had fallen in the rear of the long train 
 of wagons, with the hope of finding a better road, and 
 it was impossible to pass them. Had we started with 
 the party in advance, we might have pressed forward
 
 116 THE CLIMAX. 
 
 in our light wagon, and thus have reached water ; as it 
 was, we were compelled to keep the position we had 
 originally taken in the cumbrous and gloomy pro- 
 cession. 
 
 To make our situation still more desperate, a dark 
 and cloudy night followed a clear and hot day. How 
 fervently we wished it might rain, that it might descend 
 in torrents, and thus enable us to slake a thirst which 
 was almost intolerable ; yet while the muttering thun- 
 der plainly told us that heavy showers were passing 
 around us, a few drops only fell to our share the clouds 
 but made our march more difficult and dangerous. 
 
 Midnight came, finding us in the midst, I might say in 
 the very thickest, of our troubles. The extended train 
 of wagons made an unusually long stop, and while we 
 were peering through the gloom 3nd wondering what 
 had caused the delay, word was passed along the line 
 that the artillery-carriage had stuck fast in a gully some 
 half a mile ahead, that most of the fatigue-men had 
 mounted their horses and started off in search of water, 
 and what was more annoying than all. that we must re- 
 main where we were through the night ! Here was a 
 climax to a day and night of horrors. Had I been in 
 possession of the use of my limbs I would have started 
 at once for water ; as it was. I was compelled to bear 
 nry sufferings as best I could. Fitzgerald merely un- 
 hitched the mules from the wagon, and without taking 
 off the harness made them fast to a neighbouring black 
 jack with the reins. He then betook himself to the 
 ground under our carriage, while I took an inside seat, 
 or rather couch. Thirsty and hungry as I was, I soon 
 fell asleep, and never woke up till morning. It must 
 have been sheer exhaustion that induced this sleep, for 
 my mind was certainly attuned to anything else.
 
 ESCAPE FROM THE CROSS TIMBERS. 117 
 
 When the morning light enabled us to see the sur- 
 rounding objects, we discovered that our mules had bro- 
 ken their fastenings, and started off, probably in search 
 of water. Here was a prospect of another annoying 
 delay, for we could form no opinion as to the time when 
 the mules had left or the course they had taken. After 
 a long search, however, they were found, led back to 
 the wagon, and a few minutes saw us again on our jour- 
 ney. About the middle of the day we finally emerged 
 from the Cross Timbers, and a short ride across a smooth 
 prairie brought us to our companions, who were com- 
 fortably encamped on the banks of a running spring 
 of fresh water. Those, and those only, who have 
 passed twenty-four hours without water, half the time 
 under a hot broiling sun and in circumstances of fe- 
 verish excitement, can judge of our feelings and suf- 
 ferings are alone able to appreciate the perfect hap- 
 piness experienced as the parched lips and swollen 
 tongue first touched the precious element. But our 
 march of the previous day and night never can I for- 
 get that march. I had previously travelled many wea- 
 ry miles, over the worst roads, and by the worst con- 
 veyances ; I had thought my sufferings great during 
 these different journeyings ; but to alter a remark of the 
 facetious and renowned Sancho Panza, all those suffer- 
 ings were cakes and gingerbread compared with what 
 I experienced the last day and night we passed in the 
 Cross Timbers. 
 
 We were hungry as well as dry on reaching our en- 
 campment ; so, after having slaked our thirst, we sat 
 down to a most delicious repast. And what was this 
 repast ? the gentle reader may ask : simply a piece of 
 ordinary beef, cooked before a fire on a ramrod ; but 
 keen appetites supplied bread, vegetables and seasoning,
 
 118 BETTER PROSPECTS. 
 
 and a heartier meal I never enjoyed. I thought, while 
 eating, of the gourmands of cities, men who spend half 
 their time in getting up an appetite to relish the delica- 
 cies placed before them I pitied them, and ate on. 
 
 It was not until a late hour in the evening that the 
 broken wagons and scattered oxen were safely brought 
 into camp ; if my memory serves me aright, several of 
 the latter had strayed so far away that they were never 
 found. The blacksmith's forge was, in the mean time, 
 put in operation, the greatest exertions being made so 
 to patch up the injured wagons that they would be in 
 condition to resume the journey early on the morrow. 
 
 Now that we had made the dreaded passage of the 
 Cross Timbers, we were sanguine in believing our troub- 
 les and difficulties over. As far as the eye could reach 
 in a west-northwest direction, which was the course re- 
 solved upon by our guide, Mr. Rowland, nothing could 
 be seen but a succession of smooth, gently-undulating 
 prairies. From several hills in our vicinity, known to 
 many hunters who were among us, it was evident that 
 we were within twenty miles of Red River : in fact, 
 the distant timber which skirts the borders of that 
 stream was now supposed to be in sight. It was also 
 known that we were but a short distance from an old 
 Towish Village, a noted camping-ground for the Paw- 
 nees and other prairie Indians in their annual excursions 
 south in quest of buffalo. 
 
 By going directly to the banks of Red River, and at- 
 tempting to follow it too closely, it was feared that we 
 should meet with many of the deep gullies through 
 which the waters falling during the rainy season pour 
 themselves into that stream, and should find none but 
 the river water for use, which, in the dry months, is 
 characteristically brackish and unpalatable. By keep-
 
 UNFORTUNATE MISTAKES. 119 
 
 ing farther out, it was thought we should not only find 
 fresh water in greater abundance, but a far better road 
 than by a route nearer the stream. Unfortunately for 
 us this was the course adopted. Mr. Howland formed 
 his plans with much judgment and deliberation ; that 
 we afterward encountered and followed a stream mis- 
 taking it for Red River, was one of those unfortunate 
 errors against which no human foresight or prudence 
 could have guarded. The fate of the expedition might 
 have been altogether different had we adopted the re- 
 pudiated plan, keeping on until we had reached the 
 above stream, and then followed it so closely that there 
 would have been no possibility of losing it. 
 
 Another important error, in the opinion of many, was 
 the crossing of the Brazos. Had we kept directly along 
 the ridge which divides that stream from the Colorado, 
 we should certainly have avoided the toilsome and te- 
 dious passage of the Cross Timbers, and it may be have 
 suffered as little from scarcity of water. This route 
 would certainly have been much nearer, as we could 
 have travelled almost a direct course ; but to oppose it, 
 different objections were raised. By some it was said 
 that we should be obliged to cross large prairies abound- 
 ing with salt lakes, where no fresh water could be pro- 
 cured ; others, again, prudently contended that the 
 country in that direction was much of it unexplored, 
 and consequently unknown, while by crossing the Bra- 
 zos, a short distance below the Camanche Peak, we 
 were almost certain of finding fresh water every day, 
 and a country over which the wagons could be taken. 
 Perhaps it was better that we took the course we did : 
 
 " There's a divinity that shapes our ends, 
 Rough-hew them how we will ;" 
 
 and until more is known of the country between the
 
 120 THE MARCH RESUMED. 
 
 head waters of the Brazos and Colorado, it is folly 
 to indulge in idle regrets that we did not take that 
 course. 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 Trail of the Chihuahua Traders. Causes of the Failure of that Enterprise. 
 A fresh Indian " Burn." Dr. Whittaker lost. Indian Dogs. Their for- 
 lorn Appearance. Exciting Scene. An Indian Buffalo Chase. Well rid 
 of annoying Visiters. Buffalo Meat for Dinner. Pack of miserable Curs. 
 A recently-deserted Indian Camp. Dr. Whittaker again among us. A 
 white Flag sent out. Beautiful Camping-ground. An Eclipse. Once 
 more on Horseback. Singular Chase. Both Parties mistaken. A Soak- 
 ing. Carlos, a Mexican, joins the Spy Company. Plausibility of his Sto- 
 ries. The supposed Red River. Parley with a Party of Wacoes. Their 
 Insolence. Arrival at a Waco Village. Its desertion by the Inhabitants. 
 Beautiful Location of the Town. Its Houses and Corn-fields. An In- 
 dian Musical Instrument. Speculations upon Love. High State of Civi- 
 lization of the Wacoes. Causes of the Hostility of the Wacoes to the 
 Texans. Departure from the Village. Brackish Water. Fear of the 
 Prairie Indians of Artillery. Origin of this Fear. 
 
 WE left our camp, near the western margin of the 
 Cross Timbers, late on the morning of the last day of 
 July, and, such was the excellence of the travelling on 
 the prairies, were able to make twelve miles on our 
 journey. During the forenoon we crossed the great 
 trail made the year before by the Chihuahua traders. 
 A company of American merchants, residents of Chi- 
 huahua, had conceived the project of opening a direct 
 trade with the United States by way of the prairies, in 
 lieu of the circuitous and expensive route through St. 
 Louis, Santa Fe, and El Paso del Norte. 
 
 Thinking that, by crossing the Rio Grande at a point
 
 INDIANS NEAR. 121 
 
 not far from the latter town, and then taking a course 
 nearly east, they could reach Red River near Jones- 
 boro, they visited the United States with the intention 
 of testing its feasibility by experiment. Having pur- 
 chased and loaded some eighty wagons, they left the 
 western borders of Arkansas early in the spring of 1840. 
 No less than five months were these men employed in 
 cutting their way through the Cross Timbers, while the 
 heavy bottoms, and the dismal bogs and fens of Red 
 River, were rendered thrice dreadful by constant rains. 
 After they had passed these disheartening obstacles, and 
 reached the open prairies, they were still three months 
 upon the road, making eight in all. So great was the 
 expense, and so much time was lost in crossing the 
 prairies, that the enterprise proved a losing speculation, 
 and has not been repeated. A company of American 
 equestrians, with all their horses, canvass, and circus 
 appointments generally, crossed the prairies with the 
 traders, and afterward performed in many of the towns 
 and cities of Mexico with various success. 
 
 We had scarcely crossed the Chihuahua trail before 
 we found ourselves upon a " burn," or place where the 
 prairie grass had been lately consumed by fire. Du- 
 ring the day we also noticed fresh Indian " sign," con- 
 sisting of recent trails ; and other more subtle eviden- 
 ces, cognisable only by the instincts of old campaigners, 
 convinced us that we were not far from a body of sav- 
 ages. We passed a small creek of sluggish water du- 
 ring the day, but at night were obliged to encamp with- 
 out any. Scarcely had the guard-fire been kindled, and 
 the sentinels posted, before it was discovered that Dr. 
 Whittaker, our surgeon, was missing, and no one could 
 give the least clew to his mysterious disappearance. 
 The band was immediately ordered out to play at dif- 
 
 VOL. I. L
 
 122 STRANGE VISITERS. 
 
 ferent commanding points, fires were kindled on the 
 highest rolls of the prairie around us during the night, 
 and the cannon was fired the next morning, with the 
 hope of attracting his attention ; but he came not, and 
 we were obliged to continue our march without him. 
 
 We had not gone more than three miles when a 
 mean, sneaking, scurvy-looking dog came crouching 
 and whining among us, and soon two others made their 
 appearance. They were poor, miserable curs, half 
 wolf apparently, and their homeless, half-starved, and 
 forlorn condition would have protected them from the 
 operation of any code of dog laws in Christendom. 
 Their appearance created a good deal of speculation 
 among us. That they were Indian dogs, and that their 
 owners w r ere not far distant, we were well satisfied ; 
 but why they came crying around us and seeking our 
 protection it was difficult to conceive, for the dog of the 
 red man usually avoids the whites. 
 
 But a far more exciting incident than the appearance 
 of these worthless curs took place during this day's 
 march. Our animals had had no water the night be- 
 fore, and this circumstance made all anxious to press 
 forward to a small stream which had been discovered 
 by the spies. As a consequence, such as had good 
 horses left the ranks for w r hen there is no water there 
 is no subordination the advance-guard left the wagons 
 to take care of themselves, the drivers pressed their 
 oxen forward, in the vain hope of keeping up with the 
 mounted men, and in this way the command soon be- 
 came scattered for miles along the undulating prairie, 
 the different parties not being even within sight of each 
 other. 
 
 Mr. Navarro, who had only mounted his horse the 
 last day we were in the Cross Timbers, had now resu?
 
 A CHASE ON THE PRAIRIE. 123 
 
 med his seat in the little wagon, Fitzgerald was still 
 driving, when we suddenly found ourselves out of sight 
 of any of our friends. This circumstance did not in 
 the least alarm us, as we anticipated no immediate dan- 
 ger, and the trail of the advance-guard was so plainly 
 visible on the grass that we could follow it at a rapid 
 pace. 
 
 While jogging briskly along at the foot of a prairie 
 ridge, the roll running nearly parallel with our course, 
 a buffalo cow came dashing madly past, and within but 
 a few yards of us. Her tongue was out and curved 
 inward, while her tail was carried aloft, showing that 
 she was running in hot haste, and apparently for very 
 life. 
 
 One of the wagon-curtains had at first prevented us 
 from seeing aught in the rear of the buffalo ; but as she 
 swiftly sped past us, a pursuer, in the shape of an In- 
 dian, who could not be more than ten yards behind her, 
 appeared in full view. The savage was mounted on a 
 small but beautifully-formed bay horse, of short, quick 
 stride, yet fine and powerful action. He was armed 
 with a long lance, which he held poised in his hand, 
 w r hile a bow and quiver were strapped to his back. 
 His dress was a buckskin shirt, with leggins of the 
 same material, while his long, black hair, although par- 
 tially confined by a yellow band about his head, was 
 waving in the breeze created by his rapid course along 
 the prairie. He had scarcely got clear of the curtain, 
 which confined our view to objects only in advance of 
 the wagon, when another Indian was discovered follow- 
 ing immediately in his steps. 
 
 " Los Indies ! Los Indies !" said Mr. Navarro, with 
 consternation depicted on his countenance, while he
 
 124 A FALSE ALARM. 
 
 was eagerly feeling about in the bottom of the wagon 
 for his rifle. 
 
 " Camanches !" shouted Fitz, at the same time pum- 
 melling and kicking the mules into a break-neck gallop, 
 in the hope of soon coming up with the advance-guard, 
 which now could not be far ahead. 
 
 " The whole tribe !" I could not help exclaiming, as 
 I now looked out at the hinder end of the wagon, and 
 saw still another well-mounted Indian dashing down 
 the roll of the prairie with the speed of the wind, and, 
 to appearance, making directly for us. 
 
 This whole scene was enacted in a few seconds, and 
 in our lame and unprotected situation our minds were 
 but ill at ease on the score of an attack. The appear- 
 ance of the last Indian, and the reasonable supposition 
 that a large body might be following him, induced Fitz 
 to kick and beat the mules more zealously than before, 
 and at such a rate of speed did they go, that the race 
 between us and the foremost Indian was close, and for 
 a short distance well contested ; while the buffalo led 
 her wild pursuers along directly by our side, and so 
 near that the very earth, thrown from their horses' 
 hoofs, rattled against the curtains of our wagon. The 
 savages, though they must have been aware of our 
 proximity, did not appear to bestow a single glance 
 upon an object so strange as a Jersey wagon must have 
 been to them, but kept their eyes steadily bent upon 
 their prey. 
 
 With mad eagerness this strange race went on, the 
 Indians using every endeavour to overtake and lance 
 the unfortunate cow, while we were even more anxious 
 to gain the protection of our friends. I had noticed, 
 not a little to our relief, that the hindmost Indian wheel- 
 ed his horse suddenly on seeing our wagon, and re-
 
 ARRIVAL AT CAMP. 125 
 
 traced his steps over the roll of the prairie ; but the 
 other two never deviated from their course. In a race 
 of half a mile they had gained, perhaps, a hundred 
 yards on us. An abrupt turn in the prairie ridge now 
 concealed them from our sight, and before we had 
 reached this point the sharp reports of several rifles, in 
 quick succession, convinced us that our unexpected 
 neighbours had been seen by the advance-guard, and 
 that succour was near if needed. 
 
 From the time when the Indians were first in sight, 
 until they were lost to view by a roll of the prairie, 
 could not be more than five minutes, yet there was an 
 ordinary lifetime of excitement in the scene. Had we 
 known that there were but three, or even three times 
 that number, and had we been in possession of our 
 limbs, with our rifles fresh loaded and in readiness, we 
 should have taken their sudden advent with less trepi- 
 dation ; but neither Mr. Navarro nor myself could more 
 than hop about on one foot, and our rifles were in the 
 very bottom of the wagon, where, in our over haste, we 
 could not get at them. We even found, on reaching 
 camp, that our arms were not loaded ; a pleasant situa- 
 tion, truly, for one to find himself in on being attacked 
 by prairie Indians, whose movements are characterized 
 by a startling rapidity, and who must be met with the 
 utmost promptness yet so it was. We took special 
 care, however, not to be caught in like predicament 
 again. 
 
 On arriving at our encampment, which was hardly a 
 mile from the point where the Indians had passed our 
 wagon, we found that all was hurry and excitement. 
 A small but well-mounted party had already set off in 
 pursuit, and General McLeod had detailed another 
 party who were on the eve of mounting. The savages 
 
 L2
 
 126 TAKING OTHER MEN'S GAME. 
 
 had driven the buffalo directly into the lines, the rifle- 
 shots we had heard turning the course of the pursuers, 
 but not that of the pursued. The cow was shot with a 
 musket by one of our officers, Lieutenant Scott, and 
 found to be young, and exceedingly fat and delicious. 
 
 Our encampment was a beautiful grove of timber, 
 and near a small stream of warm, turbid water. A few 
 yards below was a large Indian camp, apparently but 
 just deserted, some twenty or, thirty half-starved curs 
 still lingering about, which seemed too weak to follow 
 their masters. From the appearance of the closely- 
 picked fish, snake, terrapin, and pole-cat bones which 
 were scattered about, the late occupants of the camp 
 had suffered much from want of food, and the dogs 
 might be supposed to have eaten nothing for weeks. 
 The Indians who had driven the buffalo into our lines, 
 evidently belonged to this camp. The desperation of 
 their hunger was such as to overcome any astonishment 
 or intimidation the appearance of our wagon might have 
 caused, and they never gave up their chase until their 
 prey was in our very jaws. 
 
 After enjoying the hearty dinner which had thus ac- 
 cidentally been thrown in our way, preparations were 
 made for an evening march. The spies had discovered 
 a larger stream some six miles distant, with excellent 
 grazing in the vicinity. Before starting, General McLeod 
 sent out two or three parties, in different directions, in 
 quest of the Indians. Each party carried a white flag, 
 strong hopes being entertained, notwithstanding the un- 
 friendly reception given to the Indians who had driven 
 the buffalo into our camp, that some of the company 
 might be induced to come in on amicable terms. Guides 
 were wanted, not only to inform us of our present posi- 
 tion, but to lead or direct us onward by the best and
 
 RETURN OF A WANDERER. 127 
 
 easiest route. Not an Indian could be found, however, 
 but one of the parties went as far as the large river 
 north of us. The waters were described as brackish 
 and of a brownish colour, agreeing, in every way, with 
 the description of Red River. The stream was running 
 nearly east, and our west-northwest course had by this 
 time brought us within some ten miles of it. 
 
 As the command was on the eve of resuming the 
 march, we were all rejoiced by the arrival of Dr. Whit- 
 taker, for whose safety, now that Indians had been 
 seen almost in our very midst, the liveliest apprehen- 
 sions were felt. Our worthy surgeon told us that he 
 had halted a short distance from the line of march on 
 the previous day, for the purpose of enjoying a short 
 rest under a small shade tree ; that he had fallen into a 
 sleep from which he did not awake for two or three 
 hours, and that on rising he felt that he was " turned 
 round," or in other words, that he was completely lost, 
 and uncertain as to the direction in which the command 
 had come or gone. In this state of doubt he had taken 
 a course which he supposed to be the right one, and 
 when night came he hid himself in a quiet hollow, until 
 daylight should allow him to continue the uncertain 
 task of finding his companions. Fresh Indian sign he 
 had seen in every direction, and during the night his 
 horse, the end of whose rope he had made fast to one 
 of his arms, gave well-known indications that an enemy 
 was lurking in the immediate neighbourhood. With 
 the early dawn the doctor continued his hap-hazard 
 search. He had a good horse and rifle, with some 
 twenty rounds of powder and ball, but he was far from 
 being a skilful woodsman. Fortunately, I might say 
 providentially, he came upon our trail, although at the 
 time he was in doubt which direction we had taken.
 
 128 AN ECLIPSE. 
 
 An examination of the footprints, however, gave him the 
 course, and two hours' hard riding brought him in safe- 
 ty to our camp.* 
 
 Having crossed the sluggish stream upon which the 
 Indian camp was situated, we journeyed on some two 
 hours until we reached the new quarters found for us 
 by our spies. This situation was in a beautiful cove of 
 the prairie, nearly surrounding a skirting of timber. Our 
 camp was upon the banks of what appeared to be a 
 large stream in the rainy season, though now there was 
 but little water in its bed. Its course was nearly north- 
 east, and those among us who pretended to know any- 
 thing about the country at once concluded that it was 
 the Wichita,f a stream that was said to empty into Red 
 River high up, and about which but little was known 
 except by trappers and Indians. Unfortunately for us 
 we had none of these in our company. Finding excel- 
 lent grass, water, and timber upon the banks of this 
 stream, we remained the next day to recruit our cattle 
 and repair some of the wagons. The spies were sent 
 out, in the mean time, to examine the country and find a 
 good route. At night we had an eclipse of the moon, 
 without any one knowing that such an occurrence was 
 to take place ; the next morning many and queer were 
 the speculations, especially among the guard, as to what 
 caused the singular appearance of the heavens. 
 
 Although still unable to bear much weight upon my 
 foot, or walk without great pain, I made out to mount 
 
 * Dr. Whittaker has since paid the debt of nature. He was liberated at 
 the city of Mexico with the rest of the Santa Fe prisoners, but died at Puente 
 Nacional, of yellow fever, on his way home. He was a generous-hearted and 
 brave man, and left many warm friends. 
 
 t On some of the maps the reader will find this river put down as the Big 
 Washita. I believe the correct spelling and pronunciation to be Wichita, bul 
 the general course of the stream has been wrongly laid down.
 
 A WILD-GOOSE CHASE. 129 
 
 my horse, with assistance, on the 3d of August, and 
 bade farewell to the old Jersey wagon in which I had 
 journeyed nearly six weeks. Scarcely had we gone 
 three miles that morning, before a small herd of buffalo 
 was seen quietly feeding in a valley to the right. It 
 was the first opportunity that had been offered me of 
 enjoying the excitement of a chase, and I immediately 
 dashed after them ; but the hard gait of my horse over 
 the rough prairie pained my ankle so much that I was 
 obliged to give it up. 
 
 Another chase came off, however, on the same day, 
 which, for excitement, fairly went beyond anything in 
 the way of horse-racing. One of the volunteers had set 
 out in search of water by himself, and a short time after, 
 without knowing that he had gone, Major Howard left 
 the command on the same errand. By accident they 
 came suddenly upon each other in a little valley, and 
 the man, mistaking Major H. for an Indian, set off 
 at full speed. The latter, also thinking the other an In- 
 dian, gave chase with a yell, and away they bounded 
 across the prairies as fast as their horses would carry 
 them. The first part of the chase was plainly seen by 
 many of us, and created the greatest interest. The ma- 
 jor was by far the best mounted of the two, and was 
 also a bold and dashing rider ; but he was a much 
 heavier man than the pursued, and this gave the latter 
 an advantage. The chase continued until both were out 
 of sight, Major H. slowly gaining upon the supposed In- 
 dian by his superior riding. On one or two occasions 
 the former raised a pistol to shoot the other, and nothing 
 prevented it but a desire to bring him into camp alive. 
 Finally he came up with the chase, both horses nearly 
 broken down, when the frightened volunteer turned his 
 pale face imploringly around, and recognised, in his
 
 130 A PERILOUS MISTAKE. 
 
 pursuer, the well-known major, with a pistol cocked in 
 his right hand. 
 
 " Wh wh why, major," he exclaimed, stammering 
 from fright " Why, major, is that you ? D d don't 
 shoot me. Is it really you, major ?" 
 
 " Certainly it is, and I'm not going to shoot you ; but 
 what, in the name of common sense, did you take me 
 for, and what induced you to run so fast ?" 
 
 " I I I thought you was an Indian indeed I did," 
 replied the man, still pale and trembling from his recent 
 terror. 
 
 " Well," continued the major, " I thought you an In- 
 dian too, and you ought to consider yourself lucky that 
 I did not shoot you for one." 
 
 In the course of an hour Major Howard rode into 
 camp with his prisoner, who was really half frightened 
 to death. In fact, the man afterward died on the road, 
 and those who knew him best, said that he never got 
 over the " scare." It may appear singular that two 
 white men could mistake each other for Indians ; but it 
 should be recollected that we were in an Indian range, 
 and the small parties that went out were in constant 
 expectation of meeting gangs of them. It should also 
 be borne in mind that the dresses we wore were any- 
 thing and everything that came handy, and conduced 
 most to our comfort while upon the solitary prairies. 
 After being out two months upon a campaign, any man 
 will regard his personal convenience more than his per- 
 sonal appearance, and hence we all more resembled In- 
 dians in dress than civilized men. The hot sun and 
 winds of the prairies had also imbrowned our faces to 
 a light mahogany colour, while our hair, allowed to re- 
 main uncut, in every case where it was black made 
 the resemblance to the red man still more close and 
 striking.
 
 THE MEXICAN GUIDE. 131 
 
 On arriving at camp that evening, it was found that 
 Frank Combs was missing, and with him young Cur- 
 tis Caldwell, son of the old captain of the spy company. 
 Knowing as we did that so many enemies were in our 
 neighbourhood, their absence caused great solicitude ; 
 but they came in shortly alter our guard fires had been 
 kindled. 
 
 About nine o'clock at night we had a tremendous 
 shower, which continued until near daylight. When 
 the water first came trickling through my blanket, I 
 thought of snug rooms, clean bed, moscheto bars, and all 
 that sort of thing ; but while thinking of them I fell 
 asleep, and never had a better night's rest in my life, 
 although I awoke at daybreak wet to the skin. The 
 heavier part of the shower was over when we crawled 
 from our soaked blankets ; there was yet a misty, driz- 
 zling rain, however, and we were compelled to continue 
 the march that morning in wet clothes. 
 
 From the higher rolls of the prairies we could now 
 distinctly see, to the right and in a northern direction, 
 the dim outline of a belt of timber running nearly par- 
 allel with our course, supposed by all to be the skirting 
 of Red River. A Mexican named Carlos, a native of 
 Taos. in New Mexico, who was attached to one of the 
 companies, now for the first time said that he had trap- 
 ped up and down Red River, and knew every part 
 of it ; that the country around us resembled in every 
 respect the vicinity of that stream, and that he had no 
 doubt we were now close upon the Red River bottoms. 
 So plausible were his stories, and his knowledge of the 
 country appeared so extensive, that he was immediate- 
 ly transferred to the spy company ; and here I might 
 add, that Carlos had been employed as mail-carrier be- 
 tween Austin and San Antonio for several years, and
 
 132 INTERVIEW WITH INDIANS. 
 
 had always been found an honest and trustworthy fel- 
 low. This circumstance was related when his claims 
 as a person entitled to credit were canvassed in camp, 
 and went far to establish for him a character for prob- 
 ity which few of his countrymen of the same class re- 
 ceive or deserve. 
 
 As we desired neither to cross the river to our right, 
 nor approach too near its wooded bottoms, our course 
 was now altered a point or two perhaps more, as I no- 
 ticed we were frequently travelling a little south of 
 west. The fog, clouds, and drizzling rain of the early 
 morning had dispersed before the middle of the fore- 
 noon, the sun coming out intolerably hot. Some two 
 hours after meridian, the advance-guard, with which I 
 was now in company, came up with the spies, comfort- 
 ably encamped in a small grove of timber on the mar- 
 gin of a dry creek, where they were anxiously awaiting 
 our approach. 
 
 On the arrival of General McLeod, the spies had an 
 exciting adventure to relate. They had met and held a 
 parley with a body of Indian warriors, about their own 
 number, all well armed and mounted, many of them 
 upon large and powerful American horses which had 
 evidently been stolen. They were large, athletic men, 
 sat boldly and proudly upon their fat and well-trained 
 steeds ; and while many of them had American rifles in 
 their hands, and were far better dressed than the Ca- 
 manches, Cayguas, and other prairie Indians, their man- 
 ner was stately and overbearing. Their quick and ex- 
 perienced eyes, as they ran over the jaded and travel- 
 worn animals of the spies, at once convinced them that 
 they could outrun, if not outfight them, and hence 
 their daring and insolent behaviour. 
 
 Not one of the Indians could speak English ; but
 
 THEIR SUSPICIOUS DEPORTMENT. 133 
 
 there were two or three of them who had picked up a 
 smattering of Spanish, and Carlos, from the affinity their 
 language bore to the Camanche, which he partially un- 
 derstood, was enabled to carry on a conversation. 
 They frankly declared that they had been watching 
 our movements three or four days, and with cool ef- 
 frontery asked the spies whether we had come for 
 peace or war. The answer was, that our intentions 
 were peaceful ; that we were journeying towards Santa 
 Fe with merchandise, and had many wagons and a 
 large force a short distance in the rear. The Indians 
 retorted by saying that they knew all this well enough 
 they had seen and measured our entire strength. 
 They were next asked if they could direct us on our 
 journey by the best route, which would afford the most 
 grass and water ; all the Texans wanted was to culti- 
 vate a peaceful understanding with these men, and to 
 obtain their assistance in furthering us on our journey.* 
 The questions of the spies were answered in a sullen, 
 swaggering manner, so much so that Captain Caldwell 
 than whom no man in Texas better understood the 
 treacherous and uncertain " ways" of every tribe upon 
 its borders at once remarked to his men, in a low 
 tone and in English, that " these fellows looked ugly 
 and jighty, and that they must all keep an eye upon 
 their rifles, and be ready to give them a volley should 
 he make a signal." It was thought, by many of the 
 spies, that some one of the Indians could understand 
 English, as a movement towards examining the flints 
 and caps upon the rifles of the former was met by a 
 corresponding movement on the part of the red men. 
 
 * General McLeod was really anxious to encourage friendly relations with 
 these savages ; but they appeared to be far from disposed to reciprocate, 
 probably distrusting his motives. 
 
 VOL. I. M
 
 134 AN INDIAN VILLAGE. 
 
 Captain Caldwell next asked his new acquaintances 
 to what tribe they belonged. They told him they were 
 Wacoes, and volunteered the information that a party 
 of two hundred Camanches had been residing near 
 them for some little time, but that they had recently 
 left for the more western prairies. In addition, they 
 said that they themselves were now out on a hunting 
 expedition, and that their village was a long way off. 
 Captain C. now requested them to remain with him un- 
 til our commander arrived, as the latter was extremely 
 anxious to see and have a friendly talk with them. A 
 few muttered sentences passed between them in their 
 own language at this request, when the principal chief 
 replied that he would return at night and visit our 
 camp and its leader. The fellows then went off at a 
 brisk gallop, and were soon lost to sight by an undula- 
 tion of the prairie. 
 
 Anxious to ascertain the movements of these Indians, 
 Captain Caldwell, the moment they had disappeared, 
 sent out Tom Hancock and another trusty spy to watch 
 them. They returned in an hour, and said that they 
 had discovered a large village some five miles distant 
 in a northern direction, situated upon the banks of a 
 stream, and that, from the general appearance of the 
 country, we should be compelled to pass, with our wag- 
 ons, directly through the town. Our officers now held 
 a short and hurried consultation, at which it was deter- 
 mined to despatch fifty of our best-mounted men direct- 
 ly to the village. A flag of truce was taken, so that an 
 amicable understanding might be brought about, if pos- 
 sible, with fellows who could make themselves exceed- 
 ingly troublesome if they felt so disposed, and at the 
 same time the party examined well their arms, to be 
 ready in case the Indians should receive them in a hos-
 
 A FLIGHT. 135 
 
 tile manner. As I was now able to ride, and felt anx- 
 ious to be among the first to enter the village, I mount- 
 ed my horse and accompanied the party. The ad- 
 vance-guard under General McLeod followed at a con- 
 venient distance, ready to support us should hostilities 
 ensue. 
 
 When within a couple of miles of the Indian village 
 a beautiful spectacle suddenly presented itself. Before 
 us was a large and delightful valley, through which a 
 river coursed along, with just trees enough to relieve 
 the eye without concealing any of the beauties. In a 
 large bend of the stream the village was situated, and 
 all around were the corn-fields, pumpkin and melon 
 patches of the inhabitants. In the distance, on the other 
 side, the prairie rose gently, without a tree or bush to 
 destroy the uniformity of the rich carpeting of green 
 with which it was covered ; in a western and south- 
 western direction, exactly on our course should we not 
 cross the river, the country appeared rugged and bro- 
 ken, and offering the greatest difficulty to our progress 
 with the wagons. 
 
 As we descended the long wave of the prairie which 
 overlooked the valley, we could see that all was bustle 
 and commotion in the village, now scarce a mile distant. 
 Suddenly a considerable party was seen, dashing off 
 to the southwest, accompanied by a large troop of 
 horses. We were not near enough to distinguish, with 
 certainty, but saw enough to convince us that this 
 party was composed of the women and children, as 
 well as old men of the tribe, and that with these they 
 were despatching all their superfluous horses. This 
 seemed to indicate that our own reception would be any- 
 thing but pacific, as the warriors always send off their 
 families and movable property when they themselves
 
 136 A DESERTED VILLAGE. 
 
 make a stand ; but our party kept steadily on. Some 
 of the older Indian fighters cast glances back, to meas- 
 ure the amount of support we might receive from the 
 command in case we should be attacked, while all look- 
 ed well to their powder-horns and bullet-pouches, and 
 examined their flints and percussion-caps, to see that all 
 was right. In low and hurried tones one volunteer 
 would ask another for a few caps or ball patches, or 
 for a spare flint, and the whole face of things began to 
 assume an aspect decidedly belligerent, when suddenly 
 another party was seen dashing from the village and 
 following directly in the footsteps of the former and 
 larger throng. We were now within less than half a 
 mile, and it was evident enough that the latter party 
 was composed of warriors only, or grown men. Be- 
 fore we had reached the river, which bounded the vil- 
 lage on its southern side, still another party was seen 
 flying off in a northern direction, ascending the undula- 
 ting prairie on the opposite side of the town. 
 
 From these movements it now appeared evident that 
 the Indians were deserting their heretofore peaceful 
 home ; yet thinking there might still be some of the tribe 
 remaining, Van Ness and Carlos were sent forward with 
 the white flag. As they entered the village a solitary 
 Indian, the last of his tribe that had remained to this 
 time, was seen emerging from the opposite side and 
 dashing off at lightning speed on the trail of his broth- 
 ers. Thus, in certainly less than half an hour, was 
 the Wacoe village deserted by all its inhabitants, and in 
 even less time not one of them could be seen in any di- 
 rection upon the prairies. 
 
 A small party of us crossed the river and entered the 
 deserted town. Everything gave evidence of the hasty 
 departure of the inhabitants. Fires were still burning
 
 INDIAN HUSBANDRY. 137 
 
 in the vicinity of every lodge or wigwam, and earthen 
 pots were found, in which pumpkins were still boiling. 
 Deer, antelope, and wolf skins, sewed up and full of corn, 
 were left in their haste, and everything betokened the 
 unexpectedness of our approach, and the suddenness of 
 their flight. Not having time to examine everything as 
 closely as I wished, I recrossed the river, with the in- 
 tention of visiting the village at an early hour in the 
 morning. The command had arrived, and a camping- 
 ground been chosen by the time I reached the opposite 
 side of the stream. The site of this camp was near a 
 corn-field, the position rendered strong by a grove of 
 heavy timber immediately in our rear. The river would 
 have been crossed had there been a sufficiency of grass 
 on the opposite side for our animals. Strict orders 
 were given not to touch or molest anything belonging 
 to the Indians, and at the same time, fearing lest they 
 might undertake a night surprise, every preparation 
 was made to guard against such uncertain neighbours. 
 We reasonably anticipated that the Wacoes would at 
 least make an attempt to stampede and steal some of our 
 horses and cattle ; yet the guard were not disturbed, 
 and the night passed off quietly. 
 
 Early in the morning I visited the village on the oth- 
 er side of the river. The water of this stream was 
 slightly brackish, enough to make it unpalatable as a 
 beverage, but for boiling meat or making coffee it an- 
 swered very well. We felt confident that the Indians 
 must have a supply of fresh water near, but were un- 
 able to find the springs from which they procured it. 
 The village itself was situated at the western extremity 
 of a large bend in the river, and although the bend must 
 have been some five or six miles in length, by nearly 
 two in breadth in the wider parts, every portion of it 
 M2
 
 138 CONSTRUCTION OP THE WIGWAMS. 
 
 appeared to be under cultivation, and the land was 
 extremely fertile. The purlieus of the village appear- 
 ed to be kept clean, which can be said of few Indian 
 towns. 
 
 The wigwams or houses, rather, for they really de- 
 serve that name appeared to be built in rows, and had 
 an air of neatness and regularity about them such as I 
 had never observed before in an Indian village. They 
 were of conical shape, some twenty or twenty-five feet 
 in height, and of about the same diameter on the floor, 
 the materials used in their construction being poles, buf- 
 falo hides, and rushes. The poles were stuck in the 
 ground, and after running up perpendicularly some ten 
 feet, were bent over so as to converge to a point at the 
 top, thus giving a regular dome-like slope to carry off 
 the rains. Over these, buffalo hides in some instances 
 were made fast, and these again were covered with long 
 rushes thus making thatched cottages, impervious to 
 dust or rain. 
 
 Within many of the houses, at an elevation of four or 
 five feet from the ground, was a row of berths extend- 
 ing nearly the whole circuit, and very neatly got up. 
 The bottom of these berths appeared to be of rough bas- 
 ket work, the frame which supported them being of 
 large poles. As all the cooking for the family was done 
 out of doors, their lodges had neither fireplaces nor 
 chimneys. The inhabitants had carried off the princi- 
 pal part of their furniture, but had still left enough, from 
 the haste with which they departed, to convince us that 
 for Indians they lived in much comfort, and not a little 
 style. Attached to each residence, and immediately in 
 the rear, was another building of smaller dimensions, the 
 lower part of which was evidently used as a corn-crib 
 and storehouse. In these buildings we found a quan-
 
 AN INDIAN FLUTE. 139 
 
 tity of corn and pumpkins, besides finely-cured venison, 
 antelope and buffalo meat. Above the corn-crib was a 
 species of balcony, although without a railing, and this 
 led into a small room in the second story, if I may so 
 call it. One of the company said that this room was 
 the sleeping apartment of the young and marriageable 
 squaws of the family, and that their mother kept a lad- 
 der by which they climbed up to it at night and were 
 let down in the morning. This story may be true and 
 may be not I tell it as it was told me. 
 
 In one of the main buildings an instrument, evidently 
 intended for musical purposes, was found. It was made 
 of cane, and in some respects resembled a fife, although 
 much longer. It had five holes for the fingers, besides 
 a mouth-piece somewhat after the fashion of a clarionet. 
 The notes of the instrument were nearly as soft as those 
 of a flageolet, the workmanship extremely neat, and 
 evincing not only ingenuity, but taste ; and after hearing 
 the story of the ladder, I could not help thinking that 
 this same instrument had, perchance, while in the hands 
 of some Indian Romeo, discoursed most eloquent music 
 to a belle of the tribe, who, like Juliet, would step out 
 on her balcony and pour forth her love and fealty to her 
 soul's idol in return for this sweet token of his homage. 
 He would then, very possibly, tell of his flaming, burn- 
 ing, and inextinguishable passion recount to her his 
 perilous 'scapes in the chase talk of buffalo hunts, mus- 
 tangs, war-paths, bear-fights, corn dances, and scalps ; 
 while she, eagerly devouring each word, would throw 
 back volumes of tender affection tell what she would 
 do for him, where she would go for him, how she was 
 willing to pack meat, make moccasins, hoe corn, dig po- 
 tatoes, and do out-door work generally, besides sitting 
 up of nights for his sake, and for no other person's sake
 
 140 INDIAN LOVERS. 
 
 would she do a thing. He would then, as in duty bound, 
 drop on one knee, lay down his lute, and conjure her to 
 fly instantly fly with him, on a chosen steed, to the far- 
 thest prairies fly anywhere, everywhere, so that she was 
 with him, and only him. With beating heart and lip trem- 
 bling with emotion, she would tell him that her mother 
 had carried off the ladder, and that she dared not, even 
 for his sake, run the risk of breaking her neck by jump- 
 ing down. Such might have been a scene to which 
 this humble instrument I now held in my hand had been 
 a witness ; and then, again, it might not. 
 
 Little skilled am I in the vocabulary of an Indian 
 girl's pledges of love ; but as in these affairs between 
 parties in civilized life each makes out as long a cata- 
 logue as possible of what he or she intends to do to 
 make the other completely happy, it is more than prob- 
 able that the case is the same among the uncivilized 
 children of the. prairies. Love is a very pretty theme 
 for poets to dwell upon, and many of them have been 
 known to live upon it in the absence of more substan- 
 tial food ; but there is far more of matter-of-fact even 
 in this same love than your sentimentalists would make 
 us believe, and occasionally those afflicted with it have 
 a decided preference for mush, mutton, and safety over 
 moonbeams, moss-banks, and incensed mothers and 
 hence the Indian girl's repugnance to leaping the bal- 
 cony. This is all mere speculation the reader may 
 take it for what it is worth, while I return to my nar- 
 rative. 
 
 We spent two or three hours in the pleasant village, 
 examining the houses, implements, manner of cooking, 
 cultivating the land, and other matters. I will not say 
 that the Wacoes know as much of civilization as the 
 Cherokees or Choctaws, who have had the opportunity
 
 aOME ACCOUNT OF THE WACOES. 141 
 
 of intercourse with the whites ; have had their eyes 
 opened somewhat to the plan of civil government by 
 their treaty dealings with the United States, send been 
 made to know something of the system of the Christian 
 religion by the pious zeal of missionaries. I have seen 
 all these tribes, and while the Wacoes did not exhibit 
 any of those fruits of civilization which too often mar 
 the virgin leaf of those other nations, I confess that I 
 saw evidence of a more elevated kind of humanity than 
 I had supposed was to be found anywhere among the 
 original Americans. 
 
 Near the centre of the village was a house of larger 
 dimensions, and more elaborate workmanship than any 
 of the other dwellings. This may have been the gen- 
 eral council-house, or the abode of the medicine man of 
 the tribe, or it may have been the residence of their 
 principal chief, who must needs, as is the custom in more 
 civilized nations, live in better quarters and more costly 
 style than his subjects. Be this as it may, it was there, 
 and afforded additional food for the mind to speculate 
 upon. 
 
 The Wacoes, although not a numerous, are certainly 
 a brave and warlike, and consequently a strong tribe 
 when compared with the Pawnees and Camanches. 
 Like the latter, they are said to be always on horseback, 
 and equally well skilled in the uses of that noble animal ; 
 but here the comparison ends, for the Wacoes have 
 comfortable houses, and corn-fields, and many luxuries 
 to which their prairie neighbours are strangers. The 
 Wacoes have never been corrupted by association with 
 the whites, nor made weak and effeminate by the use 
 of alcohol ; and here again they enjoy advantages. In 
 the early history of Texas they were at peace with the 
 inhabitants of that Republic. Large hunting parties of
 
 142 RED RIVER. 
 
 the tribe were frequently seen within her limits, and 
 every relation appeared to bring additional peace and 
 harmony, until an unfortunate affray occurred which 
 induced them to dig up the tomahawk, and since that 
 time many have been the inroads they have committed 
 along the northern frontiers of Texas. 
 
 I heard it stated that the whites were guilty of bring- 
 ing on this war by some act of bad faith towards the 
 Wacoes, and the wound they then received has never 
 been healed. From the fact of their hurrying off their 
 women and children, as well as their large cavallada of 
 horses and mules, it was evident that they placed no re- 
 liance in our assertion that we came among them with 
 pacific intentions they had been deceived by our men 
 once, and Indian-like, looked for another violation of 
 our words. 
 
 The village we visited probably contained three or 
 four hundred inhabitants, and there were others, both 
 up and down the river, which we could see in the dis- 
 tance. A crossing of the river was effected about ten 
 o'clock in the morning, and after winding slowly through 
 the village, the command continued the journey along 
 the fertile bottoms of the river, our course a little south 
 of west. Carlos said confidently that it was the Red 
 River, and no one doubted, for a moment, that we were 
 upon the banks of that stream, some distance above 
 Coffee's Upper Station. The latter is a well-known 
 trading-house high up on Red River, and the place 
 where the different Indian tribes rendezvous to barter 
 off their skins for rifles, blankets, and ammunition. 
 
 At night we encamped upon the banks of the stream. 
 Although the waters of the river, as I have before re- 
 marked, were brackish, a pure and fresh stream was 
 discovered close by. This was used by the men, but
 
 INDIAN DREAD OF CANNON. 143 
 
 the cattle and horses would not touch it when they could 
 obtain the river water. 
 
 All the spoil we took from the Waco village con- 
 sisted of a few pumpkins ; the houses and everything 
 about them were left untouched. Fine fish were now 
 caught in the stream, which, with our regular rations 
 of beef and the pumpkins we had procured in the morn- 
 ing, gave us a feast. Many of my readers may think 
 this but a meager feast boiled beef, fried fish, and boil- 
 ed pumpkins but they should recollect that we had 
 eaten no vegetable substance for nearly two months, 
 and that even fried catfish was a rare dainty. 
 
 During the day, Indians were seen scouting about 
 on the distant hills, watching our movements ; but our 
 position was a strong one, and although we anticipated, 
 no one feared the consequences of a night attack, far- 
 ther than the danger of having our horses run off. 
 
 The fact that the Indians did not make an attack 
 upon us, or attempt to steal our horses, was probably 
 owing to the circumstance that they had seen our six- 
 pounder. It is well known that the Camanches and 
 other prairie tribes have the greatest dread of cannon, 
 and can never be induced to approach within a mile of 
 them. The story is told that a large party of Caman- 
 ches attacked, many years since, one of the early Mis- 
 souri expeditions journeying with a small cannon, load- 
 ed with grapeshot and rifle-bullets. 
 
 So greatly did the savages outnumber the traders, 
 that they felt confident of an easy and sudden victory, 
 and impressed with this belief attacked them in a solid 
 body, and with their usual yells. The traders calmly 
 waited until they had approached within a few yards, 
 when they let fly among them the unexpected shower 
 of missiles. The gun was well directed, and sent a
 
 144 ORIGIN OF THIS FEAR. 
 
 large number of the Indians tumbling to the ground. 
 Those who escaped were so panic-stricken at the 
 strange discharge, which carried such fearful destruc- 
 tion to their ranks, that they instantly wheeled and fled, 
 and could not be induced to renew the attack. Over- 
 rating, as they did, the power of a cannon from the ef- 
 fect of this well-directed and fortunate shot, from that 
 day to the present no party of the tribe has ever dared 
 attack openly any company fortunate enough to pos- 
 sess a fieldpiece. The fame of the big gun of the 
 whites, so it is said, has spread from the Camanches to 
 the neighbouring tribes, and to such an extent has the 
 story of its powers been magnified, that it is difficult to 
 get an Indian within its utmost range.
 
 MARCH ALONG RED RIVER. 145 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 Join the Spy Company, Farther Speculations as regards Red River. Ad- 
 vantages of travelling with the Spies. Beautiful Streams and cool Ar- 
 bours. Visit from Mustangs. A dashing wild Horse. Different Modes 
 of catching Mustangs. Indians in Sight. Guarding against a night At- 
 tack. Description of Country. Rough Travelling. Arrival at a Fresh- 
 water Stream. Carlos thinks Himself at Home. General Joy in Camp. 
 Scanty Rations. A Shower and a Stampede. Cross the supposed Red 
 River again. Scarcity of " Sign." Mountains ahead. A Labyrinth of 
 Difficulties. Broken Country. A hunting Adventure. Get lost upon 
 the Prairie. Hopelessness of my Situation. Ruminations upon the 
 Horrors of being Lost. Fortunate Escape from Difficulty. A Ride 
 through a Rattlesnake Region. Once more among my Friends. Unpleas- 
 ant Dreams. A Mesquit Prairie. Carlos again " at Home." Three of 
 the Texans sent forward to the Settlements. Carlos takes the Guidance 
 of the Expedition. A Buffalo Chase. River seen to the South. An Ad- 
 venture with Deer. Great Waste of Powder and Ball. A severe Case of 
 the " Buck Ague." Symptoms and general Appearance of that singular 
 Disease. 
 
 ON the 6th of August I joined the spy company. By 
 this time I was able to ride without pain, although I 
 walked with much difficulty, and required assistance in 
 mounting my horse. 
 
 The course of the stream we were upon was a little 
 south of east to follow it up was not the right direc- 
 tion to Santa Fe, but as every one supposed that we 
 must be on Red River, there was no suspicion that we 
 were not taking the true route in doing so. At times, 
 as we journeyed along its fertile bottoms, some bend 
 of the stream would bring us directly upon its banks, 
 which were fringed with a few cotton-wood trees ; 
 again, the river would turn away abruptly, leaving us 
 at a distance of several miles from its waters. It was 
 now low, being fordable in many places. Its bed may 
 
 VOL. L N
 
 146 A NATURAL ARBOUR. 
 
 have been sixty or seventy yards in width, its banks, in 
 many places, high and steep, and giving evidence that 
 in the rainy season there was depth of water sufficient 
 to float the largest steamers. 
 
 There were two great advantages in marching with 
 the spies : one was the opportunity of meeting with 
 more exciting adventure, while the other was the brisk 
 pace at which we travelled, being a steady trot, instead 
 of the snail-like movement of the wagons. On the day 
 when I joined them, after a pleasant ride of some ten 
 miles, we arrived at a small creek of fresh and running 
 water, a delicious treat on a hot prairie march. It was 
 a beautiful stream, overhung with grape and other vines 
 now in the full richness of summer verdure. In many 
 places the vines had completely crossed the creek, thus 
 forming a delightful natural arbour, and under this cool 
 shade the restless waters swept along to mingle with 
 the hot and brackish river, now some two or three miles 
 to the south. After finding an easy crossing-place, a 
 man was sent back to the command as a guide, while 
 we unsaddled and turned our horses loose to graze, 
 and then threw ourselves upon the green carpeting of 
 grass under the shade-trees, to enjoy a quiet noonday 
 siesta. 
 
 We scarcely had time to establish ourselves comfort- 
 ably before three or four mustangs were seen approach- 
 ing at a rapid gallop. Ever and anon they would halt 
 for a moment, throw up their heads as if to scan us 
 more closely, and then, as though not satisfied with the 
 scrutiny, would again approach at the same rapid pace. 
 It may be that they could not see us while reclining 
 under the shade-trees, or mistook our animals for some 
 of their own wild companions ; be this as it may, they 
 approached within a few hundred yards, wheeling and
 
 A SUPERB WILD HORSE. 147 
 
 dashing about with all the joyousness of unrestrained 
 freedom, and occasionally stopping to examine our en- 
 campment more closely. The leader was a bright bay, 
 with long and glossy black tail and mane. With the 
 most dashing and buoyant action he would trot around 
 our camp, and throw aloft his beautifully-formed head, 
 as if, after the manner of some ringleted school-girl, to 
 toss the truant hair from his eyes. Then he would lash 
 his silken tail, shake his flowing mane in pride, and eye 
 us with looks that plainly told his confidence in his 
 powers of flight should danger or treachery be lurking 
 in our vicinity. I had formed a strong attachment for 
 my own powerful bay, for he was gentle as a house- 
 dog, and would run all day if necessity required it ; yet 
 I would instantly have " swapped" even him for this 
 wild horse of the prairies, with no other knowledge of 
 his qualities than what I could discover at the distance 
 of a hundred and fifty or two hundred yards. 
 
 After gambolling about us for some little time, his 
 bright eyes apparently gleaming with satisfaction, as if 
 conscious that we were watching and admiring his 
 showy points, he suddenly wheeled, and, in a canter, 
 placed himself at a more prudent distance. Then he 
 turned again to take another look, curved his beautiful 
 neck, once more tossed his head, half timidly, half in 
 sport, pawed the ground playfully, and again dashed 
 off. Several times he turned to take still another 
 look at our encampment, and even in the far distance 
 we could distinguish his proud and expanded nostrils, 
 his bright, flashing eyes, and the elastic movements of 
 his symmetrical limbs as he playfully pranced and cur- 
 vetted about. I watched him until he was but a speck 
 upon the prairie, and then turned from gazing with re- 
 gret that he was not mine.
 
 148 MODES OF TAKING MUSTANG'S. 
 
 The Indians and Mexicans have a way of capturing 
 mustangs by running up on their fleetest and most un- 
 tiring horses and noosing them with the lariat. The 
 white hunters have also a method, which is often suc- 
 cessful, of taking the wild horses. It is called creasing, 
 and is done by shooting them with a rifle-ball upon a 
 particular cord or tendon in the neck, immediately un- 
 der the mane. If the ball takes effect precisely in the 
 right spot the animal falls benumbed, and without the 
 power to move for several minutes, when he is easily 
 secured. Should it strike too low, the horse is still able 
 to run off, but eventually dies. An attempt was made 
 to crease the magnificent steed I have mentioned ; but 
 it was impossible to approach near enough to shoot 
 with accuracy, and to endanger his life would have 
 been a wanton act, which the most eager hunter among 
 us would not have committed. When our provisions 
 became scarce several of these animals were shot for 
 their flesh. It seems repugnant to the feelings to eat 
 horseflesh ; but the meat is tender and finely flavoured, 
 and a three-year-old mustang is really better food than 
 either buffalo or common beef. 
 
 After the mustangs left us we passed two hours very 
 agreeably in a shade which completely screened us 
 from the hot, noonday sun. In the cool of the evening 
 we once more saddled our horses and continued the 
 march in close order. Deer and antelope were seen 
 in every direction, but as they were at too great dis- 
 tance to be shot from the ranks, not one of them was 
 killed. Our party was small, and as Indians were seen 
 several times during the day, watching us from the dif- 
 ferent swells of the prairie, it was deemed prudent to 
 keep close and in a body. The Indians seen were to 
 the right of our line of march ; that bodies of them
 
 DISAGREEABLE NEIGHBOURS. 140 
 
 were also watching us from the timber on the left was 
 more than probable, as there they could find secure hi- 
 ding-places. At nightfall we encamped upon the banks 
 of the river, and were obliged to drink the brackish 
 water or none, as no fresh spring could be found. An 
 abundance of the finest catfish were caught in the 
 stream, the bed of which was here nearly a hundred 
 yards in width. 
 
 Again a strong position was chosen for our camp, 
 and the guard had strict orders to keep a good look- 
 out at night, to prevent a surprise from the Wacoes. 
 It was evident that they were watching us at every 
 turn, and while their fears prevented them from attack- 
 ing us openly in a body, they were still, as is their cus- 
 tom, looking out for an opportunity to stampede our 
 horses and cattle, or cut off any little straggling party 
 that might wander from camp in search of water or to 
 hunt. The night passed, however, without a visit from 
 them, and the only inconvenience occasioned by their 
 proximity fell upon our horses, for we were compelled 
 to hobble them well and stake them inside the lines of 
 sentinels, where the grass was soon cropped close to 
 the ground. 
 
 For three days after leaving the village of the Wa- 
 coes our route was along the wide and fertile bottoms 
 of the river. Our course, as already mentioned, was a 
 little south of west, but being confident that we were 
 on the banks of Red River, it was thought from day to 
 day that the stream would soon turn off more to the 
 north. 
 
 On the opposite or south side of the river the country 
 
 had been rugged and broken up by hills on the side 
 
 along which we were travelling, nothing could be seen 
 
 but a boundless and unbroken prairie, with naught to 
 
 N2
 
 160 EXQUISITE RURAL BEAUTY. 
 
 destroy its sameness except here and there a light frin- 
 ging of trees bordering the banks of the small creeks 
 and rivulets, which, rising in the prairies to the north, 
 found their way to the river after flowing many miles 
 along cool and secluded courses. Rack fancy to the 
 utmost, and it is still impossible to draw a picture of 
 more enchanting, sylvan loveliness, than some of the 
 beautiful arches formed over these murmuring stream- 
 lets. In many places the limbs of the trees which deck- 
 ed either bank would cross over as if to commune and 
 shake hands, one with the other. Along these the wan- 
 dering grape-vines would creep, lock themselves, as it 
 were, in each other's embrace on meeting, and thus form 
 a cool and delicious arbour, so closely interwoven that 
 not a solitary ray from the sun could reach the recess 
 below. Under these natural arches the deer would 
 while away the hot, mid-day hours, slaking his thirst 
 from the gently-flowing waters which were gliding with 
 sweet music at his feet ; there, too, we saw the solitary 
 white heron, standing tall and erect, like some elfin 
 spirit. Our approach would frighten him from his se- 
 cret place, only to seek some other lonely dell of equal 
 beauty, coolness, and seclusion. Such scenes of rural 
 beauty of soft, pure, unsophisticated nature, are clear- 
 ly, brightly painted upon my memory but I am utterly 
 wanting in the power to delineate them. 
 
 Our encampment on the banks of the river we left 
 early in the morning, the spies starting so: e hour in ad- 
 vance in search of fresh water and the best route for the 
 wagons. We had travelled but a few miles when the 
 country before us appeared more rough and broken, 
 and by mid-day the hills and gullies we encountered al- 
 most prevented the farther progress of the wagons. 
 The spies finally were fortunate in finding a fresh-wa-
 
 DELUSIVE HOPES. 151 
 
 ter river, running into the larger and brackish stream, 
 and after much fatigue and trouble a crossing-place 
 was discovered, which we were able to reach with our 
 wagons. The banks, on the side at which we approach- 
 ed, were high and steep, offering serious obstacles ; on 
 the opposite side of the river, a gradual ascent from the 
 water led to a pleasant valley. Carlos, the Mexican, at 
 once pronounced it the Rio Utau, or Eutaw, a stream 
 upon which he said he had often trapped ; and to give 
 his story greater plausibility, he said that at the very 
 point where we made the passage the Mexican hunters 
 had frequently crossed with carts laden with dry buffa- 
 lo meat. 
 
 There really was every appearance of an old wagon 
 road when we reached the opposite side of the river, 
 and if any one had previously doubted the statements of 
 Carlos, those doubts were now set at rest. He said that 
 he was as well acquainted with the country in the vi- 
 cinity as with his mother's door-yard, and spoke of the 
 country beyond with a plausibility that convinced all of 
 his being now " perfectly at home." He said that the 
 angosturas, or narrows of Red River, were distant only 
 some seventy miles, and that the same distance beyond 
 would bring us to the Mexican ranches, or farms, in 
 the immediate vicinity of the frontier town of San Mi- 
 guel. 
 
 Placing confidence as we did in his reports, it is need- 
 less to say that all was joy and congratulation in camp 
 that evening. Our beef, the only thing we had in the 
 shape of provision, was now becoming extremely poor 
 from the fatiguing marches and want of grass and wa- 
 ter. Our sugar was all gone, and although our coffee 
 still held out, we were too near the end of that great 
 luxury to expect that it would last much longer. Inde-
 
 152 A HIDEOUS CONCERT. 
 
 pendent of this, many of us began to think, in earnest, 
 that bread, if not the staff of life, offered at least a very 
 comfortable support. We still had our regular allow- 
 ance, three pounds of beef a day, but it was greatly in- 
 ferior in comparison with the same allowance we had 
 in the earlier stages of our journey, and this inferiority 
 began to be felt seriously. Nevertheless, all was joy 
 and gladness in camp at the good news of our near ap- 
 proach to settlements, and it was thought that twenty 
 days, at farthest, would bring us to the rich wheat and 
 corn fields, as w r ell as the sheepfolds of New Mexico. 
 Far different would have been our feelings had we an- 
 ticipated the sufferings yet in store for us. 
 
 Had we known that four or five hundred miles of 
 dreary travelling were still before us, and that hunger 
 and thirst were to weaken our frames and destroy our 
 spirits ; had we been aware that hostile Indians in great 
 numbers were in our paths, and treacherous friends if 
 it is not a solecism in our very midst, far different would 
 have been our expectations and our feelings that night, 
 on betaking ourselves to our earth, our blankets, and our 
 sky. 
 
 Scarcely had we finished our scanty and homely sup- 
 per, and quietly nestled ourselves each on the spot he 
 had chosen for his lodging-ground, when a drizzling 
 rain set in, which, before sleep had visited our eyelids, 
 deepened into a heavy shower. Our encampment was 
 in a grove of small timber, within some thirty yards of 
 the river. A flock of hooting, screeching owls had en- 
 gaged a cotton- wood tree, almost directly over our heads, 
 for the purpose of giving a grand concert, while a pack 
 of sneaking wolves were howling a horrible accompa- 
 niment in the edge of the prairie near us. In the very 
 midst of this discord, our oxen, which had been quietly
 
 ANOTHER STAMPEDE. 153 
 
 feeding in a neighbouring prairie, took a stampede, and 
 came rushing madly towards us. The earth fairly 
 trembled as they bounded along, many of them with 
 their yokes still on, and all impelled by an indescriba- 
 ble panic. I took to a tree at once, or rather clamber- 
 ed up a small sapling hand over hand, to place myself 
 out of harm's way, for I well knew that no human ob- 
 stacle could check the onward career of a drove of fear- 
 stricken oxen. Fortunately the steep bank of the river 
 on the opposite side, or some other cause, stopped them 
 in their headlong flight. The guard were unable to col- 
 lect and herd them that night, yet they were all found 
 without much trouble the next morning. What could 
 have given them the " scare" no one could divine. The 
 cattle-guard declared that they suddenly started off in 
 a body, as if impressed by a common fear, and that in 
 the hurry-scurry they had no time except to look to 
 their own personal safety. Some of the old campaign- 
 ers hinted that the cries of owls and wolves, heard a 
 short time before the stampede, were but imitations of 
 these birds and beasts by Indians in the vicinity, and 
 that some lurking savage had frightened the oxen. 
 Whatever the cause, I knew the effect well enough ; 
 and in my half-asleep, half-awake condition, felt well 
 satisfied that I had not been run over and trodden under 
 foot. 
 
 Our start on the ensuing morning was late, several 
 hours having been occupied in drying our blankets and 
 collecting the scattered beeves. We had marched but 
 a short distance before it was evident to all that the 
 stream we had been following up the same we had 
 crossed at the Waco village now bore more to the 
 northward, and that from the appearance of the country 
 before us we should be compelled to recross it. This
 
 154 A LABYRINTH OF DIFFICULTIES. 
 
 troublesome labour was effected in the afternoon with 
 no little difficulty, and night found us once more en- 
 camped near its banks, with no other than its brackish 
 waters to drink. 
 
 By this time both buffalo and Indian " sign" had be- 
 come extremely scarce, and the little seen appeared to 
 be months old. The general impression among our 
 older hunters, whose opinions we all looked upon as law 
 and gospel, was that the buffalo had all gone north and 
 the Indians with them ; for although natural enemies, 
 they are seldom seen except in company. 
 
 The next day we made but six or seven miles, the 
 country in every direction becoming more and more 
 broken. Ahead we saw nothing but chains of steep and 
 rugged mountains ; low, but of sufficient height to ren- 
 der our farther advance extremely problematical, at 
 least in the right course. At night we found a small 
 spring of fresh water within a mile of the river, and in 
 the luxury of a cool, sweet draught, forgot the hardships 
 and privations of the previous twenty-four hours. 
 
 Carlos still insisted that he was acquainted with the 
 country, and that he could extricate us, in a day or two, 
 from the labyrinth of difficulties by which we were sur- 
 rounded. An early start was made the next morning, 
 and near half the day was spent in climbing steep and 
 abrupt hills, so rocky that the feet of the oxen suffered 
 severely, and many of them had to be unyoked and 
 turned loose. I thought I had previously seen a coun- 
 try in a state of nature, but this was the roughest part 
 of " out doors" it had ever been my unfortunate lot to 
 traverse. It appeared to have been just got out rough 
 hewn, without a single finishing stroke in any quarter. 
 Rough and misshapen hills, formed of rocks and sand, 
 were piled up here and there without system or order,
 
 LOST ON THE PRAIRIE. 155 
 
 tmd not a bush or blade of grass could be found upon 
 them to relieve their desolate appearance. 
 
 By noon we had partially extricated ourselves from 
 the maze of hills on which our feet had been stumbling 
 during that morning's march. Seeing what appeared to 
 be a level and grassy prairie, a mile or a mile and-a 
 half to the left of our line of march, which seemed as 
 though it might afford pasturage for a stray deer or an- 
 telope, myself and " Old Paint" rode off in that direction. 
 As the old hunter expected, we quickly saw a drove of 
 some fifteen deer; but they happened to see us first, 
 and set off on a run. My companion was well enough 
 versed in their " ways" not to think of following them ; 
 for after having once seen an enemy, the deer seldom 
 allows him to come within gunshot.* 
 
 My experience, in comparison with that of the veter- 
 an borderer, was limited, and I was simple enough not 
 to resist the temptation of following the herd over a roll 
 of the prairie, in the vain hope of obtaining a shot. They 
 halted, as I supposed they would, but were on the look- 
 .out, and before I was within three hundred yards again 
 bounded off across the prairie. Hope induced me to 
 give one more trial, which terminated like the first. I 
 now reluctantly gave up the chase and cast my eyes 
 about for my fellow-hunter, but he was nowhere in 
 sight. I tried hurriedly to ascertain the direction in 
 which I had left him ; but the result of my reflections 
 convinced me that I was, to use a common expression, 
 thoroughly " turned round" lost. I put spurs to my 
 horse and galloped to the highest roll of the prairie, with 
 the hope of obtaining a sight of my companion or com- 
 panions, but without success. 
 
 * It appears to be a point of honour with an old hunter never to follow a 
 deer after the animal has once discovered him.
 
 156 A TRYING SITUATION, 
 
 A sickening feeling of loneliness came over me on 
 finding myself in that worst of all situations upon a 
 prairie lost ! The sun was still high in the heavens, 
 and I could not tell which was north or which south. 
 I had my rifle and pistols with me, was well mounted, 
 and had a sufficiency of ammunition, but I was not well 
 enough acquainted with a prairie life to steer a course, 
 even if I had known what course to start upon, neither 
 was I hunter enough to feel confident that I could kill a 
 sufficiency of meat in case I should be unsuccessful in 
 finding my companions. Another thing : I had already 
 found out, what every hunter knows, that the more hungry 
 a man grows upon the prairies the more unlikely he is 
 to find game, and the more difficult it is to shoot it. 
 There, then, I was, without a companion and without 
 experience starvation staring me in the face, or even 
 if I was fortunate in obtaining meat, I still was almost 
 certain to be killed and scalped by the Indians or end 
 my days in vain efforts to reach the settlements. I 
 thought of home, and made up my mind firmly that if 
 ever I was fortunate enough to reach it, I should be in 
 no particular hurry to leave it again. 
 
 I dashed off to what appeared a still higher prairie 
 swell than the one I now stood upon nothing could I 
 see except a solitary wolf, trotting stealthily along in the 
 hollow below me : I even envied this most contemptible 
 of the brute creation, for he knew where he was. I 
 strained my eyes as though to penetrate beyond the 
 limits of human vision ; but all was a waste, a blank. I 
 leaped from my horse and sat upon the ground for a 
 moment ; it was only for a moment, for in my uneasi- 
 ness I could not remain motionless. I tried to reflect, 
 to reason ; but so fast did thoughts of starvation and of 
 Indian perils crowd on my mind, that I could come to
 
 THE WOES OP SOLITUDE. 157 
 
 no definite conclusion as to my present position with 
 reference to that of my companions. I tried to follow 
 my own trail back to the point where I had so foolishly 
 left " Old Paint," but the ground was so hard that my 
 horse's hoofs had made little or no indentation, and I was 
 too impatient to examine the face of the prairie with 
 that searching scrutiny which might have resulted in 
 success. 
 
 Yet I resolved to make one desperate effort, at least, 
 to find the command. I knew enough of my situation 
 to feel convinced that by circling about, from prairie 
 roll to prairie roll, I might gallop my horse for hours, 
 and at last find myself at the point I started from, " with 
 confusion worse confounded" travelling in a straight 
 line alone might save me. Here was another difficulty; 
 for the course I might adopt, even were I successful in 
 keeping it, might leave me at a still greater distance 
 from my friends. How I wished for the presence of 
 Tom Hancock the presence even of the greatest dul- 
 lard in the command would have assisted in removing 
 the mountain of torturing uncertainty that pressed upon 
 my mind. Man never knows the full weight of hope- 
 lessness until he is made to bear it alone, with no human 
 intelligence near from whose resources he can hope to 
 draw something for his relief when he is too consciously 
 aware that his own are exhausted. Even sympathy 
 imparts something of hope. I felt that even my horse 
 was some company to me : I patted him kindly on the 
 neck and told him so, aloud. 
 
 "But," the reader will perchance inquire, "why did 
 you not give your horse the reins and trust to his natu- 
 ral instinct for regaining his and your companions ?" 
 And again, " Why did you not wait until the sun was low 
 in the western heavens, then reflect, for one moment, in 
 
 VOL. I. O
 
 158 THE MIND LOST, WITH THE ROAD. 
 
 what direction the command was travelling and the side 
 on which you had left it? You knew that the sun 
 would set in the west, and that as you faced it, north 
 was to the right and south to the left surely you could 
 then steer a course, even if you could not while the sun 
 was vertical." 
 
 Gentle reader, you have never been lost on a wide 
 ocean of prairies, unskilled in border life, and little gifted 
 with the power of first adopting a course to follow and 
 then not deviating from it. You must recollect that 
 there, as on the wide ocean, you find no trees, no friend- 
 ly landmarks, to guide you all is a wide waste of eter- 
 nal sameness. To be lost, as I and others have experi- 
 enced, has a complex and fearful meaning. It is not 
 merely to stray from your friends, your path, but from 
 yourself. With your way you lose your presence of 
 mind. You attempt to reason, but the rudder and com- 
 pass of your reflective faculties are gone. Self-confi- 
 dence, too, is lost in a word all is lost, except a mani- 
 acal impulse to despair, that is peculiar and inde- 
 scribable. 
 
 In my case fate, fortune, good luck call it by what 
 name you may stepped in to my assistance. While 
 upon one of the highest rolls of the prairie I resolved to 
 proceed in a certain direction, and, if possible, to keep it 
 without variation. Whether I did so or not I am un- 
 able to say I only know that after travelling at a rapid 
 pace, it may be some five miles, I suddenly found my- 
 self upon the brow of a high and steep declivity, over- 
 looking a narrow but beautiful valley, through which a 
 small creek was winding. I had examined the prairies 
 in every direction, during my short ride, until my eyes 
 ached from over-straining, yet had not for a moment 
 allowed my horse to slacken his pace. I now paused
 
 A DEN OF SNAKES. 159 
 
 to examine the valley before me. The reader may 
 judge my feelings when, after a hasty glance, I discov- 
 ered the white tops of the wagons, far off in the distance 
 to the right, slowly winding their way down a gentle 
 slope into the valley. Never was the sight of friendly 
 sail more welcome to the eye of a shipwrecked mariner 
 than was the appearance of those wagons to me, and I 
 fairly laughed aloud at my good fortune. 
 
 Immediately in front of the spot where I had made 
 this truly fortunate discovery the declivity was steep, 
 amounting almost to a precipice, with craggy rocks jut- 
 ting out in every direction. A few steps beyond, the 
 descent, although rough, appeared less steep, and in 
 such haste was I once more to reach the command 
 that I put spurs to my horse and dashed headlong down. 
 Scarcely had I proceeded twenty steps ere my horse 
 snorted and jumped furiously aside, frightened by, a rat- 
 tlesnake lying almost directly in the path. Blind at the 
 time, in all probability, it being in August, the snake did 
 not give the well-known and frightful alarm until the 
 feet of my horse were close upon him. Numbers of 
 these poisonous reptiles, coiled among the rocks imme- 
 diately around, soon joined in the alarm, and at the same 
 time emitted an odour which was disagreeable in the 
 extreme.* If I had been frightened while lost upon the 
 prairies, it was now my horse's turn to share a panic 
 with me. With quick yet tremulous leaps he dashed down 
 the craggy steep, and I was unable to restrain or check 
 him until he had reached the smooth, grassy bottom in 
 safety. How many snakes there were in this imme- 
 
 * Every animal, with the single exception of the hog, has an instinctive 
 fear of the rattlesnake, can scent them easily, and will fly at their approach 
 with terror. The hog cares nothing for the reptiles, but on the contrary has 
 been known to attack, kill, and devour them with avidity and impunity.
 
 160 UNdUIET DREAMS. 
 
 diate neighbourhood is more than I can tell I did not 
 stop to count or calculate ; but if the lot had been pur- 
 chased at five hundred, I honestly think the buyer never 
 would have had reason to find fault with the reckoning. 
 On looking back, I discovered a large hole or cave 
 among the rocks, and near the path I had taken, which 
 I had not seen before. This was probably the den or 
 dwelling-place of the reptiles, and at the time when I 
 passed along they were all out airing themselves in the 
 sun. Half an hour's brisk trot brought me up with the 
 command, which I found my companion had already 
 rejoined. He did not know even that I had been lost un- 
 til I informed him of my adventure. I said little about 
 it, but inly resolved never to be caught out of sight of 
 the command again. 
 
 Two or three rattlesnakes had been killed that night 
 within our lines, stragglers, probably, from the den I 
 had passed, and belated, or else too blind to find their 
 way back. After falling asleep at night my dreams 
 partook of anything but the agreeable. At one time I 
 thought myself, like Mazcppa, beset on every side by 
 ravenous wolves, grinning and snapping at me at every 
 step. Next, I was suffering horribly from both hunger 
 and thirst my powder had all become spoiled by rain, 
 and the clouds gave down no other than bitter water. 
 Soon I was chased by a gang of bloodthirsty Indians, 
 and to increase my fright my faithful horse suddenly 
 lost half his speed. Anon, the prairie was covered in 
 every direction with rattlesnakes, and at the next mo- 
 ment it was on fire, myself standing on a small unburn- 
 ed knoll, the flames rapidly approaching me in every 
 direction. From these dreams I would awake with a 
 start, the horrors of the night even exceeding those of 
 the day which had preceded it. Right glad was I
 
 MESaUIT GRASS. 161 
 
 when morning at length came to dissipate the annoying 
 dreams. 
 
 After proceeding a short distance on our journey that 
 morning, we encountered even a worse road than any 
 over which we had travelled, if my memory serves me. 
 We boxed the compass for several hours, going some 
 ten or twelve miles to gain three on our course, but 
 were finally fortunate enough to reach a high piece of 
 table-land where the mesquit* grass was fresh, and far 
 better than, any we had previously found. To this spot 
 Carlos said the Mexicans frequently brought their sheep, 
 on account of the superiority of the pasturage, and he 
 also pointed in the direction of a large spring and creek 
 of fresh water, which he said emptied into Red River 
 a few miles to the north. Although no sign could be 
 seen indicating water in the direction he assigned, his 
 assertion proved correct ; for after a travel of five or 
 six miles a spring was found in the precise situation 
 which he had described. More singular than this, he 
 had frequently informed the men where plum-patches 
 were to be found in the vicinity of our journey, and he 
 was almost invariably correct. With all these corrob- 
 
 * Whether this is a Mexican or Indian name for a particular kind of grass, 
 found in great abundance on the great prairies of the West, I am unable to 
 say. Cattle and horses are extremely fond of it, and it is very nourishing. 
 There is a small, brambly bush of the same name, and also a tree about the 
 size of a cherry or peach tree. The latter bears a pod containing beans, 
 which are greedily devoured by horses and cattle, and are said to fatten them 
 as well as grain. The Camanches make a species of meal from the beans, 
 very palatable and nutritious, and the Mexicans also use them in making 
 beer as well as sugar. When our provisions and coffee fell short, the men 
 ate them raw in immense quantities, and also either roasted or boiled them. 
 The wood makes the best of charcoal, throws out a great heat, and lasts a 
 long time. The tree, as well as the small bush, has a long, sharp thorn. I 
 have spelled the word mesquit, believing that to be the Spanish mode it is 
 pronounced meskeet. West of San Antonio there are immense groves of 
 mesquit-trees, and the grass is also found there in several varieties. 
 
 02
 
 162 A FORTUNATE ENCUMBRANCE. 
 
 orating circumstances, it cannot be wondered at that 
 we all thought we were within a few days' march of 
 the frontier Mexican settlements. 
 
 On encamping at night, fully convinced as the com- 
 missioners were of the truth of the statements made by 
 Carlos, who said that San Miguel was not more than 
 seventy-five or eighty miles distant, they determined 
 upon sending Messrs. Howland, Baker, and Rosenberry 
 forward to procure sugar, coffee, and breadstuffs, and 
 consult with the inhabitants, more particularly with 
 some of the principal men, as to the reception the ex- 
 pedition would probably meet. Howland had lived 
 several years in Santa Fe and the vicinity, spoke Span- 
 ish fluently, and was well acquainted with all the lead- 
 ing inhabitants. He was a man of great intelligence, 
 brave, and at the same time cautious. The party took 
 with them but three days' provisions, and as large num- 
 bers of hostile Indians were known to infest the borders 
 of New Mexico, they were to travel only by night, ly- 
 ing concealed during the day. 
 
 Had it not been for this circumstance alone, I should 
 most certainly have accompanied this party ; but I had 
 a pack-mule with no inconsiderable wardrobe to take 
 along, and to travel through an Indian country with 
 such an encumbrance was deemed not only unsafe, but 
 impracticable. So anxious was I to hasten my journey, 
 that I was almost tempted to leave my mule, and take 
 such articles only as I could carry on my horse ; but 
 my friends so strongly advised me to continue with the 
 command that I relinquished the idea of accompanying 
 them, much against my wishes. After circumstances 
 proved, almost beyond a doubt, that the fact of my be- 
 ing compelled to remain with the command saved my
 
 A LAST FAREWELL. 163 
 
 life.* I was particularly anxious to hasten forward on 
 more than one account. In the first place, the season 
 was becoming far advanced, and I was in no little anx- 
 iety to prosecute my journey through the interior of 
 Mexico, so as to reach the United States by the early 
 part of winter ; in the next place, I had passed about 
 time enough, I will not say lived, on weak coffee with- 
 out sugar, and a rather short allowance of beef, any- 
 thing but good ; and I was extremely solicitous to 
 change my diet. To sum up all, " / had seen the ele- 
 phant." 
 
 The whole of August llth we remained in camp, 
 partly to repair some of the wagons, but principally to 
 rest the oxen, many of their feet having been worn to 
 the quick by the rough and stony roads. In the even- 
 ing, Howland and his unfortunate friends left for the 
 settlements, and were never seen again save by four of 
 us. On the ensuing morning we made an early start, 
 under the guidance of Carlos, who now was stationed 
 with the advance-guard, as the spy company had been 
 broken up. The day was extremely hot and sultry ; 
 yet our guide found a smooth and level prairie, and we 
 were enabled to make some twelve miles in a north- 
 west course before the middle of the afternoon. The 
 advance-guard had by this time arrived at the brow of 
 a small hill, overlooking a cool and shady dell, when a 
 fine buffalo cow was seen lying under a large mesquit- 
 tree, and apparently fast asleep. 
 
 One of our party immediately dismounted with the 
 intention of creeping up within gunshot of the animal, 
 
 * Afterward I saw Howland and Baker shot, like dogs, in the plaza at 
 San Miguel. Rosenberry was also killed, although I was not present at his 
 death. My fate would, in all human probability, have been the same had I 
 accompanied them.
 
 164 ANOTHER BUFFALO HUNT. 
 
 while two of us disencumbered our horses of saddle- 
 bags and all superfluous articles, handed our rifles to 
 some of the men, with a request that they would take 
 charge of them, and then closely examined our pistols 
 to see that they were in order. My comrade's name 
 was Torry, and we felt determined on giving the buf- 
 falo a hard chase should the first hunter not succeed in 
 killing her. 
 
 He was successful in creeping within sixty yards of 
 the unconscious animal, but unfortunately his rifle hung 
 fire, throwing the ball wide of the mark. The buffalo 
 rose at the report, and turned her head until her eye 
 caught a glance of us, when she immediately set off in 
 a westerly direction and at a lumbering gallop. My- 
 self and companion were instantly in pursuit at a brisk 
 canter, not intending to push our horses to the utmost 
 until we were close upon our prey. After climbing the 
 acclivity, on the opposite side from where the buffalo 
 was first seen lying, we had a level plain before us, 
 miles in extent, and presenting no other obstacles to a 
 fair race than an occasional patch of small and tangled 
 mesquit bushes. As we were some little distance from 
 the hunter when he fired, the buffalo had a good half 
 mile the start of us ; yet before we had been two miles 
 in chase, we were within fifty yards of her. With full 
 confidence that we should soon be alongside, we now 
 spurred our horses to their utmost speed. At almost 
 every stride a deer would start in affright from his 
 covert under the larger mesquit-trees,* and with a few 
 jumps place himself out of harm's way. Never have I 
 
 * It should be understood that the larger class of these trees, and the 
 only ones which afford a shade on the prairies, never grow close together, 
 but are generally found fifteen or twenty feet apart. At a short distance, a 
 grove of them resembles a peach-orchard.
 
 AN ESCAPE. 165 
 
 seen the deer so plentiful as they were during that ex- 
 citing chase, and so close did we come to them before 
 they started, that we could easily have shot them with 
 our pistols. 
 
 We were almost up to the buffalo as we neared a 
 large patch of the smaller mesquits, and had already 
 cocked our pistols, when the affrighted animal dashed 
 directly into the thickest part of the matted thicket. 
 Many of the bushes were dry, yet breaking and crashing 
 through, she rushed madly on, utterly regardless of the 
 long and sharp thorns with which they were covered. 
 Not so with our horses ; their chests and shoulders were 
 not shielded by the long, shaggy hair found upon the buffa- 
 lo, and as the thorns entered their flesh, they shied, bolt- 
 ed, and ran so unkindly that we could hardly spur them 
 through. This gave the cow every advantage, and en- 
 abled her to gain some fifty yards while going twice 
 that distance ; but on emerging from the thicket the race 
 was our own again. Once more we were nearly up 
 with the flank of the huge and unwieldy animal, and 
 about to discharge our pistols, when another tangled 
 thicket intervened to cut us oft'. A third and a fourth 
 time we were nearly up with our prey, and considered 
 her in our very hands ; but just in the very nick of time 
 another tangled patch would present itself as a shelter 
 and protection to the hunted beast. In this way the 
 race continued some five or six miles, and until our 
 nags gave manifest symptoms of distress. Had the 
 prairie been smooth and clear of thickets, we should 
 have at least discharged every pistol we had, and in all 
 probability brought our noble game to the ground ; as 
 it was, with jaded animals and every prospect of farther 
 obstacles ahead, we reined in and gave up the chase 
 reluctantly enough on my part.
 
 166 A BIRD IN THE HAND, ETC. 
 
 We immediately dismounted from our horses to give 
 them an opportunity of recovering their wind and rest- 
 ing, and in the mean time watched the still retreating 
 animal we had vainly endeavoured to kill. She never 
 appeared to check her heavy, lumbering gallop until 
 lost to view on the distant prairie. The ridge upon 
 which the chase had taken place ran nearly east and 
 west, on the side along which the buffalo led us there 
 appearing to be a slight gradual slope towards the 
 south. In that direction, and running parallel with the 
 ridge, we could see the dim outline of what appeared to 
 be a heavy belt of timber the bottoms, as we then 
 thought, of a large river. Having noted well the points 
 from which this timber could be seen, we once more 
 mounted our horses, and slowly retraced our steps. The 
 deer, which, as we sped along after the buffalo, had 
 jumped almost from under the very feet of our horses, 
 were now nowhere to be seen gone with our hopes of 
 a meal of the fat cow, and affording another specimen 
 of the luck of hungry hunters. 
 
 We found the command encamped near the spot 
 where we had first seen the buffalo, although there was 
 barely water enough for the men, and our animals stood 
 in the utmost need. We mentioned the circumstance 
 of our having seen a long line of timber to the south- 
 ward, with every appearance of a large stream in that 
 direction ; but Carlos said that such could not be the 
 case, and he spoke with a confidence that gained belief 
 even over the testimony of our senses. He admitted, 
 however, that there might be a creek or small stream, 
 but thought it could not run in a parallel course with 
 the river north of us, the bottoms of which we could 
 see on every day's march. Here, for the time, the mat- 
 ter of a southern watercourse rested.
 
 ANOTHER TRIAL FOR GAME. 167 
 
 With the result of our buffalo hunt I was far from 
 satisfied. I had fully made up my mind to have a meal 
 of wild meat that night ; and now that visions of the 
 cow, with her delicious marrow-bones, had faded, my 
 mind was led to investigate the chances of obtaining at 
 least a fat buck for our mess. We had seen enough 
 during our hard chase to convince us that they were 
 not only exceedingly numerous, but very tame. The 
 main body of those we had frightened from their noon- 
 day rest, as we galloped along, had gone in the direc- 
 tion of a beautiful valley scarcely a mile from our camp. 
 Confident that I could find some of these feeding in this 
 valley, I shouldered my rifle and hobbled off, as well as 
 my lame ankle would allow me, in that direction. 
 
 The sun was just setting as I crossed a little roll 
 which overlooked this retreat. So far from being dis- 
 appointed in my expectations of finding deer in the 
 quiet dell, I was agreeably surprised on seeing a large 
 drove of them feeding upon the short, sweet grass. 
 They saw me, too, for they lifted their heads on high, 
 gave the well-known whistle, and stared with their 
 mild, large eyes directly towards the spot where I was 
 standing ; but instead of leaping hurriedly away, as is 
 their wont when worried and hunted by either whites 
 or Indians, they soon bent their heads to the ground 
 again, and unconcernedly resumed their evening meal. 
 
 I could have shot the nearest, from the spot where I 
 first discovered them, and without, to borrow one of the 
 comedian Hackett's expressions, running any great risk 
 of straining my rifle ; but they were so exceedingly 
 tame that I thought I would creep directly into their 
 very midst, where I could have my choice of the largest 
 and fattest buck. It seemed hardly necessary, so little 
 did the naturally timid animals regard my approach, to
 
 A HARMLESS BULLET. 
 
 seek the cover afforded by some scattering mesquit- 
 trees ; yet I made use of them, and in five minutes was 
 in a position where I could make my selection from 
 among at least fifty, and the farthest was not seventy 
 yards from me. I soon selected a victim, a noble buck 
 whose plumpness and lightish blue colour betokened an 
 exceeding degree of fatness. Sitting upon the ground, 
 I raised my rifle across my knee -as a half rest, took a 
 sight which I thought close and deliberate, and " blazed 
 away." The light blue smoke curled slowly upward in 
 fleecy wreaths upon the still evening air, and as it par- 
 tially dispersed I saw my deer staring me full in the face, 
 somewhat astonished, perhaps, but far from frightened 
 at the report of my rifle. He hoisted his tail, made five 
 or six bounds, and then stopped to give another inqui- 
 ring look in the direction where I was sitting. Sup- 
 posing, of course, that I had given him a mortal wound, 
 I quietly began to reload my rifle with the intention of 
 sacrificing another buck, for not one of the gang had 
 moved ten steps ; but what was my astonishment, after 
 having driven well home a bullet and put on a percus- 
 sion cap, to see the buck I had shot at absolutely nip- 
 ping the grass with as good a relish as any of the herd. 
 I knew that I had hit him I could not, by any possi- 
 bility, miss him at so short a distance ; but there he 
 stood, a living witness that if I had hit I had at least not 
 hurt him much. 
 
 I could easily, from the spot where I was sitting, 
 have selected a victim for my second shot much nearer 
 than was my first love by this time ; but having certain 
 misgivings that he might not have received a mortal 
 wound, I determined upon paying my respects to him 
 a second time it was my duty to " put him out of his 
 misery" as quickly as possible. With these intentions
 
 GREAT SHOOTING. 169 
 
 I again rested my rifle across my knee, again pulled 
 the trigger, again the rifle went off with a good, sharp, 
 and as I thought killing crack, and again the deer went 
 off, too, some half a dozen jumps across the prairie. If 
 I thought I had given a mortal wound the first time, I 
 was sure of it now it could not be otherwise there 
 was no such thing as missing a vital part twice at a 
 distance which was absolutely short enough for putting 
 out a squirrel's eye without spoiling his skin. 
 
 But to be ready for another, I again commenced re- 
 loading. Once or twice, while handling the powder 
 and lead, I cast a glance at the buck to which I had al- 
 ready dedicated two shots, every moment expecting to 
 see him totter to see his legs give way yet there he 
 stood, as firm on his pins as ever, and what was stran- 
 ger than all, again commenced a supper from which he 
 had been twice interrupted. Still, there was no neces- 
 sity of wasting more lead upon him he could not get 
 away and I therefore commenced a survey of the 
 herd for the next biggest. There was no difficulty in 
 making a choice, for by the time my rifle was ready 
 for a third discharge another large buck had fed along 
 until he was within forty steps of me. I waited until 
 he presented a fair broadside, and then fired. The re- 
 sult was precisely the same as on the first two dis- 
 charges the buck I had last shot at jumped off as did 
 the first : his bounds may have been a trifle longer, and 
 there may have been a few more of them. That he 
 was a dead or dying deer there was no question. 
 
 Once more I commenced loading my rifle. Some of 
 the deer, in my more immediate vicinity, had, after the 
 three shots, placed a few yards more of ground between 
 us ; but others had taken their places, and I was still 
 within half rifle-shot of at least twenty of them. By 
 
 Vol. I. P
 
 170 PLENTY OF GAME. 
 
 the time I had reloaded, and was ready to renew the 
 destruction I had commenced, the dark shades of even- 
 ing had fallen upon the more distant prairie swells, yet 
 it was still light enough for me to see distinctly every 
 object in my neighbourhood. Deeply did I regret the 
 lateness of the hour, as with a little more light I was 
 sanguine in the belief that I could strew the prairie with 
 trophies of my skill as a hunter. Often, while in the 
 settlements, had I remained patiently at a stand, hour 
 after hour, watching for a pack of hounds to drive some 
 affrighted deer within gunshot, and had even considered 
 myself in some way rewarded if, during a long day's 
 hunt, I had a glimpse of a buck dashing madly through 
 the bushes at a distance of three or four hundred yards, 
 and had heard the exciting bay of the hounds while in 
 hot pursuit. If, by any chance and such accidents had 
 happened two or three times in my life I was fortu- 
 nate enough to bring down a deer, the exploit would 
 furnish me with food for thought and speech for a twelve- 
 month now, look in what direction I would, the an- 
 imals were staring me in the face within a stone's throw, 
 and seemed coaxingly to ask me to shoot at them : 
 surely, never before were deer seen so tame. 
 
 Anxious to make the most of my time before it was 
 yet too dark, I drew up my rifle a fourth time and dis- 
 charged it at still another buck. He followed in the 
 footsteps of his shot-at predecessors, evincing astonish- 
 ment or alarm no otherwise than by bounding off a few 
 jumps and then stopping to gaze at me. Of the two I 
 was probably the most astonished astonished that he 
 did not fall instantly to the ground. 
 
 What was the matter ? It might be that my rifle, 
 " sighted" for a distance of one hundred and twenty-five 
 yards, carried too high at forty or fifty. But then, if I 
 ft
 
 GREAT SHOOTING. 171 
 
 did not shoot them directly through the heart, the ball 
 could not have passed far above it the animals must 
 be badly, if not mortally wounded. 
 
 After having poured a charge of powder into my 
 rifle, I found that I had but a single ball left for not an- 
 ticipating such luck, I had started with only five. The 
 confidence I at first felt, that the deer I had shot at must 
 soon full, was now sensibly diminishing, although lin- 
 gering hopes were still harboured in my mind that the 
 more tender portions of some one of them, at least, 
 would furnish the raw material for my supper. I had 
 finished loading, and on looking over the little valley I 
 noticed that the deer, with the daylight, had become 
 scarce. There was one buck, however, close by me 
 not sixty yards distant. Determined to make sure of 
 this one, if the others were really unhurt, I crept up 
 until I verily believe he was not thirty steps from me. 
 The motion of placing my rifle across my knee, for I 
 made each shot sitting upon the ground, attracted the 
 animal's attention so much that he absolutely advanced 
 several steps towards me. He fairly seemed bent upon 
 his own destruction to meet me half way in my desire 
 to make my last shot certain. 
 
 The dimness of night by this time rendered it impos- 
 sible to " draw a fine bead," in hunter's parlance ; but 
 then at a distance at which I could have killed him with 
 a brickbat, what was the necessity of being too partic- 
 ular about my aim ? I fired. 
 
 The buck did not bound off as the others had done, 
 but, on the contrary, advanced towards me with looks of 
 inquiry ! I knew that the severest and most mortal 
 wounds are frequently unattended with pain or a sense 
 of injury I must have given the buck one of this de- 
 scription. I jumped from the ground and hobbled to-
 
 172 TOM HANCOCK'S SUCCESS. 
 
 wards him as fast as my lameness would permit. He 
 turned and scampered off after his comrades. By a fair 
 mathematical calculation the animal went at least twen- 
 ty yards while I went one ; yet I continued the pursuit 
 with the hope that his race would soon be run. Until 
 his broad, white tail was lost in the dim twilight of 
 evening did I press forward, and only gave up the chase 
 when I could see nothing to pursue. 
 
 Thus ends a long but veritable account of an adven- 
 ture with a herd of deer on the Western prairies. To 
 account for their exceeding tameness and approachabil- 
 ity, I can offer no other solution than that they had never 
 before met either the white or red man. The narrow 
 space of country which afforded them food was bound- 
 ed by sterile wastes, and their natural enemies, the red 
 men, had never visited their peaceful dell. 
 
 I slowly picked my way back to camp, out of hu- 
 mour and out of conceit with myself, my rifle, my pow- 
 der, and more especially my bullets. On reaching my 
 comrades, I ascertained that Tom Hancock had shot 
 three noble bucks, and had gone out some time after me. 
 Nothing, he said, save the want of light, had prevented 
 him from killing twenty. I was asked if I had seen any 
 deer. I merely remarked that I had seen several, and 
 here the conversation dropped. I was not disposed to 
 be communicative. 
 
 And what, the reader will probably ask, was the rea- 
 son of my want of success ? In all frankness, and with 
 a desire to answer his question fairly, and to the best of 
 my knowledge, belief, and ability, I will here state that 
 there is a very common disease prevalent among young 
 and inexperienced hunters in Texas, which is known as 
 the " buck ague" It manifests itself whenever the subject 
 is suddenly brought in close proximity with game of
 
 THE " BUCK AGUE. 173 
 
 the larger class, and more difficult to kill, and its effects 
 are to give a hurriedness of action, a tremulousness of 
 the nerves, and an unwonted excitableness to the feel- 
 ings generally. It strikes me forcibly, and I have little 
 doubt the reader's impressions are closely akin to mine, 
 that I underwent a severe attack of the " buck ague" 
 while on the little hunting excursion of which I have just 
 given a description in plain English, that I was too 
 nervous even to hit a barn door at twenty steps. 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 Brackish Water. Los Cuervos, or The Crows. Carlos and his Speculations. 
 Stream on our Left visited. Opinion of " Old Paint." Startling Sur- 
 mises. No Water. Endurance of the Mule. Singular Valley. Water 
 seen in the Distance. Perilous Descent of a Bluff. Arrival at the River. 
 More Brackish Water. An Alarm. Fire in Camp. Terrific Spread of the 
 Flames. Explosion of Cartridges. Night Ascent of the Bluffs. Ravages 
 of the Fire. Extent of our Loss. Magnificent night Scene. Our Camp 
 by Daylight. Coffee too much burned. Compelled to fall back upon First 
 Principles. Again on the March. Intolerable Suffering from Thirst. A 
 .Beautiful Camp. Disappearance of Carlos and Brignoli. Horrors of our 
 Situation. Lost, and without a Guide upon the Prairies. Shower on the 
 Espy Principle. Party sent out to Explore. Rough Travelling. Gloomy 
 Prospects. Return to Camp. Ten Miles for a Draught of Water. "Do- 
 ing" our Washing. Company of Spies sent out. Death of Doctor Brashear. 
 Bitter Water. Rations reduced. Sufferings now commencing. Return 
 of one of the Spies. Again on the March. Visit to a Commonwealth of 
 Prairie Dogs. Description of these singular Animals. 
 
 THE 13th of August was an eventful day with us > 
 one which few of the party can ever forget. The night 
 previous we encamped without water for our cattle or 
 horses, and the little we obtained for our own use was 
 of the worst quality, and swallowed only to allay the 
 intolerable thirst brought on by a long day's march un- 
 der the hot sun. The hard buffalo chase had jaded my 
 P 2
 
 174 STARTLING INFORMATION. 
 
 horse severely, and at such a time I well knew he need- 
 ed water more than ever ; but not a drop could I pro- 
 cure for him. 
 
 We had proceeded but a short distance, on the morn- 
 ing of the 13th, before the blue tops of several mount- 
 ains were seen, far in the distance to the west. Car- 
 los was the first to discover them, and remarked that 
 they were Los Cuervos, or The Crows, three high mount- 
 ains in the chain through which the supposed Red River 
 has cut its way. The place where the stream winds its 
 course through the mountains is called the Angosturas, 
 or Narrows, and The Crows stand out in bold relief to 
 guide the distant traveller to that point. 
 
 Our route, at the present time, was along a high prai- 
 rie which appeared to be a dividing ridge between two 
 large streams. During the morning, Captain Caldwell 
 visited the stream which my companion and I had dis- 
 covered the day previous, while chasing the buffalo. 
 On returning, about noon, he said that the stream was a 
 large one, and that he believed it to be the Brazos ! 
 This river was supposed by all to be a long distance to 
 the south. Captain C. also, for the first time, declared 
 his conviction that the stream we had been following 
 up from the Waco village was the Wichita, and that the 
 Red River was some seventy-five or a hundred miles to 
 the north. All were startled at this report ; but still, so 
 strong was the reliance placed in the assertions of Car- 
 los, few could be induced to give it credit. 
 
 We continued our journey until the middle of the af- 
 ternoon, altering our course somewhat to the north to 
 avoid the bad travelling we found more immediately on 
 our route. Small parties of men were out in every di- 
 rection in search of water, but they met with no suc- 
 cess. By this time the want of the reviving element
 
 SUFFERING FROM THIRST. 175 
 
 was plainly seen in our horses ; their wild and glaring 
 eyes, with their broken, nervous, and unsteady action, 
 showing the intensity of their suffering. The mules, too, 
 suffered much from the want of water, but nothing in 
 comparison with the horses and oxen. The endurance 
 of the mule is never so well tested as on a journey 
 where both water and grass are scarce. 
 
 I have said that we continued our journey until the 
 middle of the afternoon. About that time, and without 
 seeing any sign ahead that could lead us to expect there 
 was so great a change in the face of the country, we 
 suddenly reached the brow of a precipitous bluff, some 
 two or three hundred feet in height, which overlooked 
 a large valley of broken and rugged appearance. This 
 valley was four or five miles in width, a ridge of rough 
 hills bounding it on the northern side, and not only the 
 descent to the valley from the bluff on which we stood, 
 but the whole surface below, was covered by dry cedars, 
 apparently killed the previous year by fire. The spot 
 upon which we stood was a level plain, covered with 
 rank and coarse grass several feet in height. This 
 grass, no rain having fallen for weeks, had become as 
 dry as tinder. While consulting as to what course we 
 should pursue, some one of our party discovered water 
 at a distance of three or four miles across the valley 
 below, a turn in the river bringing it to view T . We im- 
 mediately determined, if possible, to effect the descent 
 of the steep and ragged bluff before us, and at least give 
 our suffering animals a chance to quench their thirst, 
 even if the water should prove too brackish for our 
 own use. 
 
 Some thirty-five or forty of the advance-guard in- 
 stantly determined upon undertaking the toilsome and 
 dangerous descent, and, to give my horse the earliest
 
 176 A PERILOUS DESCENT. 
 
 turn at the water, I accompanied this party. After 
 winding and picking our way for a full hour, pitching 
 down precipices that were nearly perpendicular, and 
 narrowly escaping frightful chasms and fissures of the 
 rocks, we were all enabled to reach the valley with 
 whole bones ; but to do this we were frequently obliged 
 to dismount from our horses, and in some places fairly 
 to push them over abrupt descents which they never 
 would have attempted without force. I have said that 
 this bluff was some two or three hundred feet in height 
 we travelled at least a mile to gain this short distance, 
 so devious and difficult was our path. The side of the 
 bluff was formed of rough, sharp-pointed rocks, many 
 of them of large size, and every little spot of earth had, 
 in former years, given nourishment and support to some 
 scraggy cedar, now left leafless and desolate by fire. 
 Shoots of young cedars, however, were springing up 
 wherever they could find root-hold ; but they were not 
 destined to attain the rank and standing of their sires. 
 
 After reaching the valley, we soon found the sandy 
 bed of what had been a running stream in the rainy 
 season. Immediately on striking it, our tired nags 
 raised their heads, pricked up their ears, and set off at 
 a brisk trot, instinctively knowing that water was in 
 the vicinity. The horse scents water at an incredible 
 distance, and frequently travellers upon the prairies are 
 enabled to find it by simply turning their horses or 
 mules loose. 
 
 A tiresome ride of three or four miles now brought 
 
 O 
 
 us to the river. On reaching its banks, nothing could 
 restrain our nags from dashing headlong down. Equal- 
 ly thirsty ourselves, we had fondly hoped that the wa- 
 ters might prove fresh and sweet ; but they were even 
 more brackish than any we had yet tasted. Repulsive
 
 AN EXPLOSION. 177 
 
 as it was, however, we swallowed enough to moisten 
 our parched lips and throats, and ten minutes after 
 were even more thirsty than before. Our horses, more 
 fond of this water than any other, drank until apparent- 
 ly they could swallow no more. 
 
 While some of our party were digging into the sand 
 at the edge of the stream, with the hope of finding wa- 
 ter more fresh, and others were enjoying the cooling 
 luxury of a bath, a loud report, as of a cannon, was 
 heard in the direction of the camp, and a dark smoke 
 was seen suddenly to arise. 
 
 " An Indian attack !" was the startling cry on all 
 sides, and instantly we commenced huddling on our 
 clothes and bridling our horses. One by one, as fast 
 as we could get ready, we set off for what we supposed 
 to be a scene of conflict. As we neared the camping- 
 ground it became plainly evident that the prairie was 
 on fire in all directions. When within a mile of the 
 steep bluff, which cut off the prairie above from the 
 valley, the bright flames were seen flashing among the 
 dry cedars, and a dense volume of black smoke, rising 
 above all, gave a painful sublimity to the scene. 
 
 On approaching nearer we were met by some of our 
 companions, who were hurriedly seeking a passage up 
 the steep. They had heard, from those on the prairie 
 above, that the high grass had caught fire by accident, 
 and that with such velocity had it spread that several 
 of the wagons, and among them that of the commis- 
 sioners, had been consumed. This wagon contained, 
 in addition to a large number of cartridges, all the 
 trunks and valuables of the mess to which I was at- 
 tached, making me doubly anxious to gain the scene of 
 destruction and learn the worst. It afterward pro- 
 ved that the explosion of the cartridges in the wagon
 
 178 A PRAIRIE ON FIRE. 
 
 was what we had mistaken for the report of our six- 
 pounder. 
 
 With redoubled exertions we now pushed forward 
 towards the camp, but before we could reach the base 
 of the high and rugged bluff the flames were dashing 
 down its sides with frightful rapidity, leaping and flash- 
 ing across the gullies and around the hideous cliffs, and 
 roaring in the deep, yawning chasms with the wild and 
 appalling noise of a tornado. As the flames would 
 strike the dry tops of the cedars, reports, resembling 
 those of the musket, would be heard ; and in such quick 
 succession did these reports follow each other, that I 
 can compare them to nothing save the irregular dis- 
 charge of infantry a strange accompaniment to the 
 wild roar of the devouring element. 
 
 The wind was blowing fresh from the west when the 
 prairie was first ignited, carrying the flames, with a 
 speed absolutely astounding, over the very ground on 
 which we had travelled during the day. The wind 
 lulled as the sun went down behind the mountains in 
 the west, and now the fire began to spread slowly in 
 that direction. The difficult passage by which we had 
 descended was cut off by the fire, and night found our 
 party still in the valley, unable to discover any other 
 road to the table-land above. Our situation was a 
 dangerous one, too ; for had the wind sprung up and 
 veered into the east, we should have found much diffi- 
 culty in escaping, with such velocity did the flames ex- 
 tend. 
 
 If the scene had been grand previous to the going 
 down of the sun, its magnificence was increased tenfold 
 as night in vain attempted to throw its dark mantle 
 over the earth. The light from acres and acres, I 
 might say miles and miles, of inflammable and blazing
 
 A FEARFUL NIGHT. 179 
 
 cedars, illuminated earth and sky with a radiance even 
 more lustrous and dazzling than that of the noonday 
 sun. Ever and anon, as some one of our comrades 
 would approach the brow of the high bluff above us, he 
 appeared not like an inhabitant of this earth. A lurid 
 and most unnatural glow, reflected upon his counte- 
 nance from the valley of burning cedars, seemed to 
 render still more haggard and toilsome his burned and 
 blackened features. 
 
 I was fortunate enough, about nine o'clock, to meet 
 one of our men, who directed me to a passage up the 
 steep ascent. He had just left the bluff above, and 
 gave me a piteous recital of our situation. He was en- 
 deavouring to find water, after several hours of unceas- 
 ing toil, and I left him with slight hopes that his search 
 would be rewarded. By this time I was alone, not 
 one of the companions who had started with me from 
 the river being in sight or hearing. One by one they 
 had dropped off, each searching for some path by which 
 he might climb to the table-land above. 
 
 The first person I met. after reaching the prairie, was 
 Mr. Falconer, standing with the blackened remnant of a 
 blanket in his hand, and watching lest the fire should 
 break out on the western side of the camp ; for in that 
 direction the exertions of the men, aided by a strong 
 westerly wind, had prevented the devouring element 
 from spreading. Mr. F. directed me to the spot where 
 our mess was quartered. I found them sitting upon 
 such articles as had been saved from the wagon, their 
 gloomy countenances rendered more desponding by the 
 reflection from the now distant fire. I was too much 
 worn down by fatigue and deep anxiety to make many 
 inquiries as to the extent of our loss ; but hungry, and 
 almost choked with thirst, I threw myself upon the
 
 180 RUIN AND DESOLATION. 
 
 blackened ground and sought forgett'ulness in sleep. It 
 was hours, however, before sleep visited my eyelids. 
 From the spot on which I was lying, a broad sheet of 
 flame could still be seen, miles and miles in width, the 
 heavens in that direction so brilliantly lit up that they 
 resembled a sea of molten gold. In the west, a wall 
 of impenetrable blackness appeared to be thrown up 
 as the spectator suddenly turned from viewing the con- 
 flagration in the opposite direction. The subdued yet 
 deep roar of the element could still be plainly heard as 
 it sped on as with the wings of lightning across the 
 prairies, while in the valley far below, the flames were 
 flashing and leaping among the dry cedars, and shoot- 
 ing and circling about in manner closely resembling a 
 magnificent pyrotechnic display the general combina- 
 tion forming a scene of grandeur and sublimity which 
 the pen shrinks from describing, and to which the power 
 of words is wholly unequal. 
 
 Daylight the next morning disclosed a melancholy 
 scene of desolation and destruction. North, south, and 
 east, as far as the eye could reach, the rough and bro- 
 ken country was blackened by the fire, and the removal 
 of the earth's shaggy covering of cedars and tall grass 
 but laid bare, in painful distinctness, the awful chasms 
 and rents in the steep hillside before us, as well as the 
 valley spreading far and wide below. Afar off, in the 
 distance, a dense black smoke was seen rising, denoting 
 that the course of the devastating element was still on- 
 ward. Two of our wagons only had been entirely con- 
 sumed, but nearly all had suffered. A part of the bag- 
 gage in the commissioners' wagon had been saved by 
 the extraordinary exertions of some of the men, and just 
 as they had relinquished the work the explosion of car- 
 tridges, which had first alarmed the party in the valley,
 
 EXTENT OF THE DISASTER. 181 
 
 scattered the burning fragments of the wagon in every 
 direction. My friend Falconer was so disfigured that I 
 hardly knew him. His hair and eyebrows were scorch- 
 ed completely off, his face was in a perfect blister, his 
 clothes burned from his back, and, without a hat, he 
 seemed as though some insurance office had met with a 
 heavy loss. Object of pity, however, as he appeared to 
 be, I still could not help smiling at the sad and wo-be- 
 gone figure he presented. Among the few trunks saved 
 I fortunately found mine, containing nearly all my mon- 
 ey, clothing, watch, and other valuables. The loss of 
 a carpet-bag, which contained my boots and the rough 
 articles I wore upon the road, was all I had to regret 
 in the way of private property. Not so with the mess 
 to which I was attached. The remnant of coffee we 
 still had left was burned entirely too much ; our pots, 
 pans and kettles, knives and forks, were converted into 
 old iron everything was gone. We had nothing to 
 eat, however, except half rations of miserably poor beef, 
 and the necessity of falling back upon first principles, 
 or, in other words, eating with our fingers, annoyed us 
 but little. 
 
 The wagon of the commissioners contained, besides 
 our private baggage, a quantity of jewelry, blankets, 
 cartridges, rifles, muskets, &c. These were all destroy- 
 ed. The other wagon which was consumed was load- 
 ed with goods, and from this nothing was saved. At 
 one time the ammunition wagon, containing a large 
 quantity of powder, was on fire, and only saved by the 
 daring exertions of some of our men. It may appear 
 singular to some of my readers that so much damage 
 could be caused by the burning of grass alone, for on 
 the spot where the wagons were drawn up there was 
 nothing else ; but it should be remembered that this 
 
 VOL. I. Q,
 
 182 REMEDIES FOR THIRST. 
 
 grass was very high, had been killed by dry weather, 
 and flashed up and spread almost with the rapidity of a 
 train of powder on being ignited. It is very easy, when 
 a fire upon the prairies is seen coming towards a party, 
 to escape its dangers by kindling the grass immedi- 
 ately about and taking possession of the newly-burned 
 ground before the distant flames come up ; but in this 
 instance the fire commenced on the windward side, and 
 with a frightful rapidity flashed directly along our line 
 of wagons. The only wonder at the time was, how 
 anything had been saved from the furious element that 
 roared and crackled around. 
 
 We packed up and arranged our baggage as well as 
 we could, hunted up and drove in our cattle, and late 
 in the forenoon made a start. Our course was nearly 
 west, and along the level prairie that overlooked the 
 large valley upon our right. The mountains that we 
 had seen the day previous gradually opened to the view, 
 and as they became more visible, did not so well answer 
 the description Carlos had given of The Crows. But 
 few, however, felt disposed to doubt the man's words. 
 We are slow in giving credence to any story, however 
 plausible, that runs counter to our desires and hopes. 
 
 Our road was a good one this day, and we journeyed 
 on with unusual rapidity. The men suffered incredibly 
 from thirst, and were constantly seen eating the pods 
 from the mesquit-trees, drawing the little moisture they 
 possessed to relieve their parched tongues and throats. 
 A bullet has considerable virtue in relieving thirst, and 
 a piece of raw hide imparts much moisture to the 
 mouth, as I have proved by sad experience. 
 
 At night we encamped in a beautiful dell, covered 
 with the larger mesquit-trees and excellent grass. This 
 encampment appeared to be near the termination of
 
 DOUBTS AND SUSPICIONS. 183 
 
 the valley of cedars, and the face of the country on- 
 ward was now entirely changed, being broken and 
 mountainous. The only water we could find in thejri- 
 cinity of this camp, which would otherwise have been 
 one of the finest on our route, was entirely too brack- 
 ish for use. The cattle and horses were fond of it ; the 
 men, however, could not swallow it without great nau- 
 sea, and it did not in the least quench their thirst. That 
 evening Carlos left camp, in company with an Italian 
 named Brignoli, as they said, in search of water and 
 the best route for our wagons on the ensuing day. 
 Late at night they returned, Brignoli showing some 
 specimens of quicksilver he had found, which were said 
 to be very rich by those who pretended to any know- 
 ledge on the subject. He had joined the expedition as 
 a volunteer, but was known to be constantly in search 
 of precious minerals. 
 
 In the mean time every one in camp who spoke Span- 
 ish was questioning Carlos as to our position and pros- 
 pects. Those who doubted his knowledge or mistrust- 
 ed his faith did not hesitate to declare their misgivings 
 aloud. No threats were offered, but Carlos understood 
 just enough of English to know that they were talking 
 of him, and not saying anything complimentary either 
 to his knowledge of the country or his honesty. The 
 next morning early he was missing, and, on looking 
 about the camp, Brignoli, too, was found absent This 
 circumstance created the greatest excitement among 
 all ; yet Carlos had many believers and friends =and 
 they still insisted that he had only left the camp for a 
 short time, to hunt. The oxen were yoked and hitched 
 to the wagons, and every preparation made for resu- 
 ming our journey, but Carlos was yet missing. 
 
 It is impossible, either to be placed or imagined, in a
 
 184 EVASION OF CARLOS. 
 
 worse and more pitiable situation than the one in which 
 we now found ourselves. The hope that we were 
 within some sixty miles of the frontier settlements van- 
 ished with Carlos, for we knew that he would not have 
 left so long as there was a probability of his leading us 
 safely through the difficulties in which we were in- 
 volved. He had been offered inducements too strong 
 for frim thus to desert us, unless he himself was lost and 
 feared the consequences of leading us farther astray. 
 We were suffering, too, from the want of fresh water, 
 and knew full well that there was none on the road we 
 had come short of three days' march over a prairie 
 rendered desolate by the great fire. Our only hope 
 was in going ahead, and when nine o'clock came we 
 pushed on without rudder or compass, the melancholy 
 truth plainly visible in almost every face that we were 
 lost among the wilderness prairies of the West. 
 
 As we pursued our melancholy journey, there were 
 still a few among us who thought that Carlos would 
 come up and honestly account for his absence. They 
 even declared their belief that we had now arrived 
 within sight of the Angosturas, or Narrows of Red 
 River, and that if Carlos had really left us it was be- 
 cause he feared that some of the leading men in New 
 Mexico, inimical to the Texans, might blame him for 
 guiding us directly to their homesteads. About noon 
 we were fortunate enough to find a cool and delicious 
 spring of fresh water, and near it a pond large enough 
 to water all our horses and cattle. After drinking 
 deeply at the fountain-head, and fervently hoping for a 
 continuance of such good fortune, we filled our gourds 
 and canteens, and resumed our march. Whenever we 
 looked back we could see an immense smoke in the 
 east, plainly denoting that the prairie fire which had
 
 THE MISTAKE APPARENT. 185 
 
 broken out two days previous was still raging. Early 
 in the afternoon a heavy, black cloud was noticed di- 
 rectly over the spot, from which rain was descending 
 apparently in torrents ; beyond, and in fact all around 
 this cloud, the sky was clear and without a speck. 
 Here was a shower got up on the Espy principle, al- 
 though at a heavy cost to our party. 
 
 Our course was now nearly west. On our left, and 
 running in nearly a northwest and southeast direction, 
 a range of mountains was plainly visible the chain 
 which, it was now evident enough, Carlos had mistaken 
 for The Crows. I say mistaken, for up to the morning 
 of his departure I believe the fellow's intentions were 
 honest, and that he really supposed the party to be on 
 Red River. The water in the Wichita, for that the 
 river we were on undoubtedly was, resembled in every 
 way that of the former, while the country around bore 
 the same appearance ; and as Carlos had trapped on 
 both streams, probably without noticing either careful- 
 ly, and knew but little of them even as low down as 
 Coffee's Station, and was unacquainted with the Amer- 
 ican name of the river, the mistake might easily occur. 
 
 I have mentioned the appearance of the country to 
 the left ; on our right it was much broken, and evident- 
 ly impassable for wagons. A party of some thirty of 
 us, all well mounted, left the command to explore thor- 
 oughly this latter section, and our leader, Captain Cald- 
 well, declared that he would not return until he had 
 satisfactorily ascertained whether we were in the neigh- 
 bourhood of the Narrows or not. Captain C. was the 
 first man to suggest that the stream up which we had 
 been so long journeying was not the Red River, and 
 also to express doubts whether Carlos really knew as 
 much of the country as he pretended. 
 Q2
 
 186 TEN MILES FOR WATER. 
 
 After working our way through a succession of rug- 
 ged hills, cedar-brakes, and ravines, for a distance of 
 some ten miles, we at length reached the stream upon 
 our right. It had dwindled down to a small brook, and 
 the head spring was evidently somewhere in the mount- 
 ains in our vicinity.* The water was extremely salt, 
 and unfit for use. Several trails were found leading 
 along the banks, made by Indians and mustangs, and 
 in one place mule and horse tracks were seen, together 
 with the print of a white man's shoe in the sand, evi- 
 dently made either by Carlos or his companion, or by 
 one of Rowland's men. Being satisfied that we were 
 not in the neighbourhood of the Narrows, and that it 
 was impossible to take the wagons by the road we had 
 travelled, we started back for the spring we had found 
 in the morning, and arrived there at sunset, ourselves 
 and horses completely worn down with fatigue. 
 
 Captain Caldwell had shot a fat buck during the day, 
 which had been dressed, and by the side of the cool 
 spring we made a delicious meal. At dark, we re- 
 saddled our horses, and after finding the trail of the 
 wagons with some difficulty, pushed on and reached 
 the command about ten o'clock, encamped without wa- 
 ter, and extremely solicitous for our return. 
 
 Early the next morning spies were sent forward to 
 seek water and a passage through the mountains, my- 
 self, with three or four companions, going back to the 
 spring, a distance of some ten miles, for a draught of 
 water ! It may seem a long distance, ten miles, to go for 
 a draught of fresh water, but at that time I would have 
 gone fifty. After allowing our horses a rest of two or 
 
 * I have little doubt that we were now among the Wichita Mountains. 
 They have never, I believe, been laid down upon any map, but old trappers 
 and campaigners often speak of them.
 
 DEATH OP DR. BRASHEAR. 187 
 
 three hours, and doing our washing for at this time 
 every man was his own washer-woman we set off to 
 rejoin the command. It may not be amiss to say that 
 our washing was very light, consisting only of a check- 
 ed shirt and a pair of coarse stockings or socks. 
 
 Late in the afternoon we reached the camping-place 
 of the previous night, and found that the command had 
 moved forward. A brisk trot brought us up with our 
 companions at dark, encamped by a small spring and 
 creek of bitter water, strongly impregnated, to judge 
 from the taste, with copperas and magnesia. Whatever 
 the substances held in solution by this water may have 
 been, it operated as a powerful cathartic ; but the men, un- 
 able to find any other, partook of it in large quantities. 
 
 On the following morning a council of officers was 
 held, at which it was determined to send a party of fifty 
 of our best-mounted men in a northerly direction, with 
 orders not to return until they had found Red River. 
 Orders were also given to the commander of the party, 
 Captain Caldwell, to send guides back from day to day, 
 as a good wagon road could be found, in order that the 
 expedition might get on as fast as possible. 
 
 The party left on the 17th of August, and on the same 
 day Doctor Brashear, our assistant surgeon, died of a 
 liver complaint, and was buried with military honours. 
 He was a native, if I recollect right, of Kentucky, much 
 respected by all who knew him. 
 
 Another council was held after the spies had left, and 
 at this meeting it was resolved to reduce our rations of 
 beef. Where we were was problematical ; our distance 
 from the settlements no one could even calculate, and 
 as we might still be months in reaching them, it was 
 evident enough that our beef would not hold out. The 
 regular ration of three pounds a day to each man was
 
 188 A PASSAGE FOUND. 
 
 cut down to one pound and a half, and this at a time 
 when the beef had become extremely poor and destitute 
 of nutriment, and more than the former rations was re- 
 ally required to support men worn down and exhausted 
 by long and fatiguing marches, and weakened by the 
 effects of bad water and no water at all. Prudence 
 justified this reduction, however, and the men submitted 
 to it with a cheerfulness that showed they felt the neces- 
 sity of the course. In the mean time regular hunting 
 parties were detailed for the purpose of adding to our 
 scanty stock of provisions as much as possible ; yet, al- 
 though deer and antelope were far from scarce, nothing 
 like a sufficiency of meat could be procured for our 
 wants. Buffalo were seldom seen, only one being kill- 
 ed during the four days we passed at the camp of the 
 bitter waters. 
 
 Much to our joy, a guide returned on the evening of 
 the 20th, and reported that a passage had been found 
 through the mountains. Many of us were unwell and ex- 
 tremely weak from the effect of the strong purgative wa- 
 ters ; but the news that we were again to be on the move 
 was of the most welcome kind, and every preparation 
 was made for an early start the next morning. 
 
 Learning, from the guide who had returned, that there 
 was a large city or commonwealth of prairie dogs di- 
 rectly on the route the command would take, with two 
 companions I went on to visit these neighbours. We 
 were induced by a double object first, by a desire 
 to examine one of the republics about which prairie 
 travellers have said so much ; and secondly, to obtain 
 something to eat, for the flesh of these animals was said 
 to be excellent. 
 
 Our road wound up the sides of a gently-ascending 
 mountain for some six or seven miles. On arriving at
 
 PRAIRIE DOG8. 189 
 
 the summit we found a beautiful table-land spread out 
 before us, reaching miles in every direction. The soil 
 appeared to be uncommonly rich, and was covered with 
 a luxurious growth of mesquit-trees. The grass was 
 of the curly mesquit species, the sweetest and most nu- 
 tritious of all the different kinds of that grass, and it was 
 told me that the dogs seldom establish their towns and 
 cities unless on sites where this grass is found in abun- 
 dance. 
 
 We had proceeded but a short distance, after reach- 
 ing this beautiful prairie, before we came upon the out- 
 skirts of the commonwealth. A few scattering dogs 
 were seen scampering in, their short, sharp yelps giving 
 a general alarm to the whole community. 
 
 The first brief cry of danger from the outskirts was 
 soon taken up in the centre of the city, and now nothing 
 was to be heard or seen in any direction but a barking, 
 dashing, and scampering of the mercurial and excitable 
 denizens of the place, each to his burrow. Far as the 
 eye could reach the city extended, and all over it the 
 scene was the same. 
 
 We rode leisurely along until we had reached the 
 more thickly-settled portion of the place. Here we 
 halted, and after taking the bridles from our horses to 
 allow them to graze, we prepared for a regular attack 
 upon the inhabitants. The burrows were not more than 
 ten or fifteen yards apart, with well-trodden paths lead- 
 ing in different directions, and I even fancied I could 
 discover something like regularity in the laying out of 
 the streets. 
 
 We sat down upon a bank under the shade of a mes- 
 quit, and leisurely surveyed the scene before us. Our 
 approach had driven every one to his home in our im- 
 mediate vicinity, but at the distance of some hundred
 
 190 MOVEMENTS OF THE ANIMALS. 
 
 yards the small mound of earth in front of each bur- 
 row was occupied by a dog, sitting erect on his hinder 
 legs and coolly looking about for the cause of the recent 
 commotion. Every now and then some citizen, more 
 adventurous than his neighbour, would leave his lodg- 
 ings on a flying visit to a friend, apparently exchange a 
 few words, and then scamper back as fast as his legs 
 would carry him. 
 
 By-and-by, as we kept perfectly still, some of our near 
 neighbours were seen cautiously poking their heads 
 from out their holes, and looking craftily, and, at the 
 same time, inquisitively about them. Gradually a cit- 
 izen would emerge from the entrance of his domicil, 
 come out upon his observatory, perk his head cunning- 
 ly, and then commence yelping somewhat after the 
 manner of a young puppy a quick jerk of the tail ac- 
 companying each yelp. It is this short bark alone that 
 has given them the name of dogs, as they bear no more 
 resemblance to that animal, either in appearance, action, 
 or manner of living, than they do to the hyena. 
 
 We were armed, one with a double-barrelled shot-gun, 
 and another with one of Colt's repeating rifles of small 
 bore, while I had my short, heavy rifle, throwing a large 
 ball, and acknowledged by all to be the best weapon in 
 the command. It would drive a ball completely through 
 a buffalo at the distance of a hundred and fifty yards, 
 and there was no jumping off or running away by a 
 deer when struck in the right place to use a common 
 expression, " he would never know what had hurt 
 him."* Hit one of the dogs where we would, with a 
 small ball, he would almost invariably turn a peculiar 
 somerset, and get into his hole but by a ball from my 
 
 * I trust the reader has forgotten my adventure with the large drove of 
 deer, as related in the previous chapter.
 
 A TOUCHING INCIDENT. 191 
 
 rifle, the entire head of the animal would be knocked 
 off, and after this there was no escape. With the shot- 
 gun, again, we could do nothing but waste ammunition. 
 I fired it at one dog not ten steps off, having in a good 
 charge of buckshot, and thought I must cut him into 
 fragments I wounded him severely, but with perhaps 
 three or four shot through him he was still able to wrig- 
 gle and tumble into his hole. 
 
 For three hours we remained in this commonwealth, 
 watching the movements of the inhabitants, and occa- 
 sionally picking off one of the more unwary. No less 
 than nine were got by the party, and one circumstance 
 I would mention as singular in the extreme, and show- 
 ing the social relationship which exists among these an- 
 imals, as well as the kind regard they have one for 
 another. One of them had perched himself upon the 
 pile of earth in front of his pole, sitting up and exposing 
 a fair mark, while a companion's head was seen poking 
 out of the entrance, too timid, perhaps, to trust himself 
 farther. A well-directed ball from my rifle carried 
 away the entire top of the former's head, and knocked 
 him some two or three feet from his post perfectly 
 dead. While reloading, the other boldly came out, 
 seized his companion by one of his legs, and before we 
 could reach the hole had drawn him completely out of 
 sight. There was a touch of feeling in the little inci- 
 dent a something human, which raised the animals in 
 my estimation, and ever after I did not attempt to kill 
 one of them, except when driven by extreme hunger. 
 
 The prairie dog is about the size of the common wild 
 rabbit of the United States, heavier, perhaps, more com- 
 pact, and with much shorter legs. In appearance it 
 closely resembles the woodchuck, or groundhog, of the 
 Northern and Middle States, although not more than
 
 192 THE "BIG DOG" OF THE SETTLEMENT. 
 
 two thirds as large. The colour is the same, being a 
 dark, reddish brown, while the formation of the head 
 and teeth is the same as in all the different species of 
 squirrels, to which family it belongs. In their habits 
 they are clannish, social, and extremely convivial, never 
 living alone like other animals, but, on the contrary, al- 
 ways found in villages or large settlements. They are 
 a wild, frolicsome, madcap set of fellows when undis- 
 turbed, uneasy and ever on the move, and appear to 
 take especial delight in chattering away the time, and 
 visiting from hole to hole to gossip and talk over each 
 other's affairs at least so their actions would indicate. 
 When they find a good location for a village, and there 
 is no water in the immediate vicinity, old hunters say, 
 they dig a well to supply the wants of the community. 
 On several occasions I crept close to their villages, 
 without being observed, to watch their movements. 
 Directly in the centre of one of them I particularly no- 
 ticed a very large dog, sitting in front of the door or en- 
 trance to his burrow, and by his own actions and those 
 of his neighbours it really seemed as though he was the 
 president, mayor, or chief at all events, he was the " big 
 dog" of the place. For at least an hour I secretly 
 watched the operations in this community. During that 
 time the large dog I have mentioned received at least a 
 dozen visits from his fellow-dogs, which would stop and 
 chat with him a few moments, and then run off to their 
 domicils. All this while he never left his post for a 
 moment, and I thought I could discover a gravity in his 
 deportment not discernible in those by which he was 
 surrounded. Far is it from me to say that the visits he 
 received were upon business, or had anything to do with 
 the local government of the village ; but it certainly ap-
 
 aUEER CAPERS. 193 
 
 peared so. If any animal has a system of laws regu- 
 lating the body politic, it is certainly the prairie dog. 
 
 If a person is fortunate enough to gain the immediate 
 vicinity of one of their villages unobserved a very dif- 
 ficult matter, for their sentinels are always on the alert 
 he will discover the inhabitants gambolling, frisking, 
 and running about the well-trodden paths, occasionally 
 stopping a moment as if to exchange a word with a 
 neighbour, and then hurrying back to their own lodges. 
 Should he chance to discover some quiet citizen, sitting 
 gravely at his doorway, he has but to watch him for a 
 short time ere he will notice some eccentricity of con- 
 duct. His manner of entering his hole will remind the 
 spectator of the antics of Pantaloon in a pantomime ; 
 for, instead of walking quietly in, he does it with an ec- 
 centric bound and half somerset, his hind feet knock- 
 ing together as he pitches headlong into the darkness 
 below ; and before the aforesaid spectator has yet fairly 
 recovered from the half laugh caused by the drollery of 
 the movement, he will see the dog slowly thrust his 
 head from his burrow, and with a pert and impudent 
 expression of countenance peer cunningly about, as if 
 to ascertain the effect his recent antic had caused. 
 
 A singular species of owl is invariably found residing 
 in and about the dog-towns. It has a longer body and 
 smaller head than the common owl of the settlements, 
 yet possesses all the gravity of deportment and solem- 
 nity of mien which distinguish the genus. 
 
 One would suppose that a constant intercourse with 
 neighbours of such comic temperaments as the dogs 
 possess would destroy his austerity of demeanour ; yet 
 the owl of the dog-village sits upon the earthen mound 
 in front of the hole, and surveys the eccentricities of 
 his friends without a change of countenance. He joins 
 
 VOL. I. R
 
 194 INMATES OF THE BURROWS. 
 
 them not in any of their sports, yet still seems to be on 
 the best of terms ; and as he is frequently seen entering 
 and emerging from the same hole, this singular bird 
 may be looked upon as a member of the same family, 
 or at least a retainer whose services are in some way 
 necessary to the comfort and well-being of the animal 
 whose hospitality he shares. 
 
 Rattlesnakes, too, and of immense size, dwell in the 
 same lodges \vith the dogs ; but the idea that has been 
 entertained of their living upon sociable terms of com- 
 panionship is utterly without foundation. The snakes 
 I look upon as loafers, not easily shaken off by the reg- 
 ular inhabitants, and they make use of the dwellings of 
 the dogs as more comfortable quarters than they can 
 find elsewhere. We killed one a short distance from a 
 burrow, which had made a meal of a half-grown dog ; 
 and although I do not think they can master the larger 
 animals, the latter are still compelled to let them pass 
 in and out without molestation a nuisance, like many 
 in more elevated society, that cannot be got rid of. 
 
 The first town we visited was much the largest seen 
 on the entire route, being some two or three miles in 
 length by nearly a mile in width at the widest part. 
 In the vicinity were smaller villages suburbs of the 
 larger town, to all appearance. After spending some 
 three hours in the very heart of the settlements, and 
 until not an inhabitant could be seen in any direc- 
 tion, we resaddled our horses and set off in search of 
 the command. Thus ended my first visit to one of 
 the numerous prairie-dog commonwealths of the Far 
 West.
 
 PRAIRIE-DOG MEAT. 195 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 A Meal of Prairie Dogs. Arrival at another brackish Water Camp. Shower 
 at Night, with fresh Water in the Morning. Return of the Spy Company. 
 A regular " Northeaster." Report of the Spies. Disagreeable Biv- 
 ouac. Indians in Camp. Horses stolen. A bad Bargain. Daring of the 
 Indians. Fine Weather again. Once more on the Road. Dog Towns. 
 Meeting with a Party of Indians. Horse Meat far from being bad Eat- 
 ing. Wolves about. A dreary Desert. Delicious fresh-water Stream. 
 Latitude and Longitude again taken. Pleasant Prospects. Again en- 
 compassed with Difficulties. A Passage out found. Steppes. Mesquit 
 Prairie and Prairie Dogs. Mountains in the Distance. Singing Birds, and 
 Thoughts of Home. Delusive Hopes. More Horses stolen. Bed of 
 Large River crossed. Arrival at the Quintufue. Large Indian Camp 
 discovered. Caygiiason all Sides. Indian Provisions A Party sent out. 
 Farther Advance impossible. A Night without Water. Preparations 
 for taking a back Track. Exciting News. Firing of Guns heard. Lieu- 
 tenant Hull and four Men killed by Caygiias. A Chase after Indians. 
 Return to the Quintufue. Determination to divide the Command. De- 
 scription of the Caygiias. 
 
 WE had scarcely travelled three miles, after leaving 
 the large dog-town, before we descried the white tops 
 of our wagons at some distance in our rear. Finding a 
 dry mesquit, we broke off some of the larger branches, 
 kindled a fire, and cooked for each man a dog. The 
 meat we found exceedingly sweet, tender, and juicy 
 resembling that of the squirrel, only that it was much 
 fatter. Our meal over, we next wasted three or four 
 hours in vainly endeavouring to shoot a deer or ante- 
 lope. Numbers of them were seen ; but the hunting 
 parties had scoured their range, killed several of them, 
 and rendered the animals unusually shy. Late in the 
 afternoon we sought the trail of our wagons, and on 
 finding it set off at a pace which brought us up with
 
 196 RED RIVER FOUND. 
 
 the command ere nightfall, encamped near a large, 
 reddish-coloured hill or mountain, and close by a small 
 creek of brackish water a tributary, doubtless, of the 
 Wichita, or else the main stream. 
 
 Scarcely had we finished a scanty supper of poor 
 beef, and hastily rolled ourselves in our blankets, when 
 it commenced raining in torrents pouring down with- 
 out intermission for hours, and drenching us complete- 
 ly. Little did we care for this, however, as we had 
 the satisfaction in the morning of getting fresh and pure 
 water in abundance the first for a week. 
 
 After devouring the last of the prairie dogs we had 
 killed the preceding day, wringing our blankets, and 
 drying our clothes as well as we were able, we pursued 
 our joui-ney in a course nearly northwest. We had no 
 little trouble in crossing the creek before us, swollen by 
 the heavy rain of the night previous ; but in a couple of 
 hours wagons and all were safely on the opposite side. 
 
 After toiling across the soft and muddy prairie a dis- 
 tance of ten miles, we at length reached another run- 
 ning stream, the point at which our guide had left the 
 spy company. Here we halted to await the return of 
 the latter, or until another guide should be sent back. 
 During the night the wind veered round into the north- 
 e^rt, bringing with it a cold, drizzling, and extremely 
 disagreeable rain, which continued the next day. In 
 the mean time the spy company returned, reporting that 
 they had found a large stream to the north, which they 
 confidently believed to be Red River, or one of its main 
 tributaries. 
 
 Night came, the cold rain and raw wind still con- 
 tinuing. We were encamped immediately upon the 
 stream, the banks of which were high, and flanked by a 
 narrow skirting of timber. Under this bank I led my
 
 INDIAN HORSE-THIEVES. 197 
 
 horse at dusk, and tied him fast to a small tree. Here 
 he was protected from the piercing northern blasts, and 
 to afford the same shelter, Doctor Brenham led thither 
 his horse, a noble white animal of the best blood, and 
 confined him to the same tree with mine. 
 
 Several of our horses were tied under this bank, the 
 poorer animals being allowed to rough it upon the prai- 
 rie in front of our encampment, hobbled, and many of 
 them staked, to prevent the storm from driving them off 
 during the night. 
 
 On awaking in the morning, it was ascertained that 
 the horse of Doctor B. had been stolen by Indians. 
 The lariat was cut, and part of it still fast to the tree. 
 My horse was standing quietly where I had left him, his 
 colour probably preventing the daring robbers from 
 seeing him. Some half dozen horses were taken with 
 Doctor B.'s, among them Mr. Falconer's. Generally the 
 Indians selected the best horses in camp, dark as was 
 the night ; but they took themselves in in taking Mr. 
 Falconer's, for he was continually performing some un- 
 seemly antics, had frequently caused much fright among 
 our other horses, and was worth but little, even setting 
 his tricks aside. 
 
 To show how daring the Indian horse-thieves were, 
 1 have but to mention that Doctor Brenham's horse was 
 tied within six yards of the spot where we were sleep- 
 ing ; and after passing the guard, by no means an easy 
 matter, the rascals were compelled to creep within a 
 few feet of us before they could reach their prey. An 
 Indian bow was found in the vicinity of our camp, 
 which the thieves had left in their haste, and one of the 
 artillery mules was shot through with an arrow, the 
 animal probably not being able to move fast enough 
 when the Indians withdrew from our vicinity. 
 
 R 2
 
 198 SAVED BY STORMS. 
 
 As the day advanced the rain gradually ceased, and 
 before ten o'clock the sun once more appeared. A hap- 
 pier set of men were never seen, for many of us had 
 eaten, slept, and waked in wet clothes and blankets 
 through the eight-and-forty previous hours. Some lit- 
 tle time was occupied in filling up the creek with earth 
 and logs, so as to secure a safe passage for the wagons, 
 and about noon the whole expedition was once more on 
 the road, travelling in a northwest direction. During 
 the day we passed through a succession of dog-towns, 
 scattered along every half mile upon the route, as their 
 favourite grass could be procured. Large numbers of 
 the animals were killed by the men killed for their 
 meat alone. 
 
 At night we encamped in front of a small rnot or clump 
 of timber, and near a pond of fresh water. However 
 much the rain of the two previous days had annoyed us, 
 we now found that it had saved the expedition. Not a 
 drop of water, save that which had recently fallen, 
 could be found in any direction, and little doubt was 
 entertained that we must inevitably have perished had 
 it not been for the heavy storms. 
 
 A party of three hunters came in after we had en- 
 camped, and reported that they had fallen in with a 
 party of nine Indians during the day, and had held a 
 "talk" with them. The fellows spoke Spanish, although 
 badly, and were very insolent in their bearing. They 
 did not dare attack our men, however, and finally rode 
 off yelling across the prairie. They were doubtless 
 Cayguas,* and belonged to the party that had stolen our 
 horses the night before. 
 
 * Mr. Navarro, who was well acquainted with the different tribes south of 
 Red River, told me they were Caygwus, and gave the name this spelling. It 
 is pronounced Kiwaa, yet it is generally written Kioway.
 
 MUSTANG* BEEF. 199 
 
 Another party of our men shortly after came in, their 
 horses loaded down with deer, antelope, and other meat 
 which they had killed during the day. The mess to 
 which I was attached received a large ration of meat, 
 which those who sent it said was young buffalo. It was 
 fat, tender, and very juicy the most delicious meat, I 
 then thought, I had ever tasted and what with some 
 fine mushrooms we had found on the march, together 
 with broiled antelope liver, we made a sumptuous meal. 
 Not a little surprised were we afterward, when we as- 
 certained that the meat we had partaken of so heartily, 
 and praised so much, was the flesh of a mustang ! 
 
 After having tied our horses close at hand, many of 
 them to the wagons, and taken up our quarters in their 
 immediate vicinity, we stretched ourselves upon the 
 ground, and slept soundly, without a visit from Indians 
 or disturbance of any kind, until near morning, when a 
 pack of wolves, drawn to our camp by the smell of 
 fresh meat, set up a dismal howling. A heavy dew, 
 the first we had noticed since our departure from Aus- 
 tin, had fallen during the night, and the day broke with 
 difficulty through a heavy fog : but at about eight 
 o'clock the sun made his appearance, dispersing fog, 
 wolves, dew, and all. 
 
 Our course of the previous day, northwest, which 
 was considered the right one, we were still enabled to 
 keep, with an excellent road for the first five miles of 
 our morning's march. About noon we reached a sin- 
 gular tract, unlike anything we had previously seen. 
 North and south, as far as the eye could reach, nothing 
 could be seen but a sandy plain, covered with scrub- 
 oak bushes, two or three feet high, upon which were 
 found innumerable acorns of a large size. This desert, 
 although the wheels of the wagons sank several inches
 
 200 PRIVATIONS AND THEIR CONSEQUENCES. 
 
 in the sand, we were obliged to cross. Night set in be- 
 fore the passage was made horses, cattle, and drivers 
 alike tired out with the excessive fatigues of the day. 
 We were fortunate, however, in finding a cool and pure 
 stream of fresh running water just on the western edge 
 of the waste. On the opposite side, the prairie had been 
 recently burned, the fresh grass just springing up, and 
 here we encamped. 
 
 At this camp the latitude and longitude were taken 
 by Lieutenant Hull. The result of the observation, 
 which, from the instruments not being in order, could 
 not be depended upon, I inserted in my note-book, but 
 have now forgotten. Lieutenant H. said that we could 
 not be more than a hundred miles from the settlements, 
 that we could easily reach them in ten days, and ex- 
 pressed himself highly pleased with the prospect before 
 us. Little did he then anticipate the horrible fate that 
 was soon to befall himself, or the many gloomy days 
 of travel, of starvation, and of uncertainty in store for 
 those whose spirits he had elevated by anticipations of 
 soon reaching the settlements. 
 
 On starting the next morning after this observation 
 was made, and ascending a high ridge of hills in the vi- 
 cinity, the country before us was found extremely rough 
 and broken. We pushed forward, however, some one 
 way, some another buffeting, turning, and twisting 
 about, without order or system, until nearly dark. Long 
 and tiresome marches, bad water, and not half enough 
 of even the worst provisions, had combined to weaken 
 and dispirit the men, render them impatient of control, 
 and inclined to disobey all orders. The consequence 
 was, that one party would go in this direction in quest 
 of grapes or plums, another in that, hunting for game 
 or water, and nearly all discipline was lost. It is diffi-
 
 A SUDDEN TRANSITION. 201 
 
 cult, and requires a most efficient officer to keep even 
 regular soldiers under subjection, when half starved and 
 broken down by fatigue nothing can restrain volun- 
 teers under such circumstances. 
 
 After crossing and recrossing deep gullies, our prog- 
 ress in one direction impeded by steep hills, and in 
 another by yawning ravines, we finally encamped at 
 night not two miles from where we began our day's 
 march, although we had really travelled fifteen. Large 
 plum patches had been found during the day, and such 
 an inordinate craving had our men for almost any spe- 
 cies of vegetable, that the country for miles in every 
 direction was scoured, midnight coming before all the 
 different parties arrived in camp. 
 
 A passage out of our difficulties was found next 
 morning, and after winding about until noon among the 
 hills, we at length reached a beautiful table-land cover- 
 ed with mesquit-trees. 
 
 So suddenly did we leave the rough and uneven sur- 
 face of the valley, and so striking was the transition, 
 that the scenic world of the theatre and particularly 
 the change from the humble cottage of the dancing girl 
 to the Hindoo paradise in " La Bayadere" was brought 
 forcibly to the mind. 
 
 On starting in the morning, nothing was to be seen 
 but a rough and rugged succession of hills before us 
 piled one upon another, each succeeding hill rising 
 above its neighbour. At the summit of the highest of 
 these hills the beautiful and fertile plain opened sudden- 
 ly to view, giving scope to our vision and our hopes 
 that was unanticipated and thrice welcome. The coun- 
 try between the Cross Timbers and the Rocky Mount- 
 ains rises by high steppes, for the different lines of hills 
 can be called by no other name. As the traveller jour-
 
 202 SINGING BIRDS. 
 
 neys westward, he meets, at long intervals, ridges of 
 hills and mountains, running nearly north and south, 
 presenting the most serious barriers to his farther ad- 
 vance. As he ascends these, he anticipates a corre- 
 sponding descent on the opposite side ; but in a majority 
 of instances, on reaching the summits, he finds nothing 
 before him but a level and fertile prairie. 
 
 We halted an hour or two, on reaching the beautiful 
 table-land, to rest our weary cattle and give our horses 
 an opportunity to graze. Little villages of prairie 
 dogs were scattered about upon the prairie, and num- 
 bers were shot by the men, to help out their scanty 
 rations. The fat of this animal, old hunters say, is an 
 infallible remedy for the rheumatism. In the evening 
 we resumed the march, and at sundown encamped 
 upon the banks of a running stream of fresh water. 
 The blue tops of three or four high mountains were 
 discerned in the distance, which, such phases did hope 
 ascribe to them, we thought answered the description 
 Carlos had given of The Crows. 
 
 We were awakened early the next morning by the 
 warbling of innumerable singing-birds, perched among 
 the bushes along the borders of the stream. Among the 
 notes I recognised those of the robin, the lark, and the 
 blue-bird, and as it was the first time any of them had 
 been heard since the commencement of our journey, 
 thoughts of home and civilization came fresh to the 
 heart here among the western wilds. How these 
 birds ever strayed so far from their usual haunts, for 
 they are seldom found except in the immediate vicinity 
 of settlements, is more than I can imagine. There they 
 were, however, telling us of scenes to which we had 
 long been strangers, and giving us pleasing but falla- 
 cious promises of a speedy return to the abodes of at
 
 PLEASANT DREAMS. 203 
 
 least semi-civilization. In our fond imaginings they 
 typified the dove, telling us that the wilderness had 
 been passed ; but, alas ! their song, like the siren's, 
 was uttered but to deceive. 
 
 Inspiriting as was the singing of these birds, we were 
 obliged to leave them in the middle of their matinal 
 concert, and pursue our weary march. Throughout 
 the day we had an excellent road, and when night 
 came we had made something like twenty miles, still 
 in a northwest direction, which was considered our 
 true course. The mountains that had been seen the 
 day before were now plainly visible, and well answer- 
 ed the description Carlos had given of the landmarks 
 in the neighbourhood of the Narrows of Red River. 
 The opinion advanced by many, that we were ap- 
 proaching the end of our journey, spread a general joy 
 through camp ; and this opinion received fresh strength 
 upon the return of two small hunting parties after night, 
 who reported that they had seen what appeared to be 
 Mexican cart tracks upon the prairie. With thankful 
 hearts we swallowed our scanty supper that night, and 
 the burden of our dreams, after retiring to rest upon 
 the ground, was of bread and butter, potatoes, and the 
 ether substantials of life things that had long been 
 strangers to our mouths, but were fresh in our mem- 
 ories. 
 
 Early the next morning it was ascertained that sev- 
 eral horses and mules were missing, and although dili- 
 gent search was made by their owners, they were never 
 recovered. The night had been clear and bright, the 
 guard neither seeing nor hearing aught to excite their 
 suspicions ; but the animals were stolen, doubtless, by 
 a marauding party of Indians. 
 
 The march was once more resumed, several well-
 
 204 INDIANS ENCOUNTERED. 
 
 armed parties scouring the prairies in various direc- 
 tions in search of water, Indians, and our lost animals. 
 About noon, after a toilsome journey through a hilly 
 and broken country, the command crossed the bed of 
 a stream which was evidently a large river during the 
 rainy season. At this time but little water was found, 
 and that so salt that it was impossible to drink it. To- 
 wards night we came to the banks of a clear and de- 
 licious fresh-water stream, called, as we afterward as- 
 certained, the Quintufue, the waters of which were 
 bubbling along over a bed of golden sand. Running 
 nearly north and south, at the distance of some six 
 miles to our left, was the chain of hills I have mention- 
 ed, and rising above the rest were three peaks, which 
 really deserved the name of mountains. We crossed 
 the stream with our wagons, and encamped close on 
 the opposite side. 
 
 Scarcely had we unsaddled our horses and turned 
 them loose before one of our hunting parties came in 
 and reported that a large body of Indians were in our 
 immediate vicinity, and that they had driven off an im- 
 mense cavallada or drove of horses. Soon another 
 party arrived, with information that they had met a 
 small body of Indians, one of whom spoke Spanish. 
 They said that they were Caygiias, and on being inter- 
 rogated concerning the direction towards Santa Fe, 
 gave equivocal answers. They pointed to the south- 
 west, however, to what appeared a passage through 
 the hills, and said that was the direction to Chihuahua. 
 They pretended to know nothing about the Rio Colo- 
 rado or Red River. These Indians were mounted on 
 fine horses, dressed in buckskin, and armed with lances 
 and bows and arrows. 
 
 The stream upon which we were now encamped ap-
 
 AN ABANDONED CAMP. 205 
 
 peared to have its source in the long chain of hills upon 
 our left, and ran in nearly a northeast direction. A 
 short distance above us, occupying a beautiful situation 
 on the same stream, the main camp of the Indians in 
 our neighbourhood was discovered. It had apparently 
 been just deserted, the inhabitants, in their great haste 
 to drive off and secure their horses, not having time 
 even to cache* their other property. Tent-poles, skins, 
 numerous rough utensils, besides a quantity of dried 
 buffalo, mustang, and deer meat, were found precisely 
 as they had left them. The latter we appropriated to 
 our own use, and, in our half-starving condition, was 
 found extremely palatable. 
 
 Captain Strain, with a party of twenty or twenty- 
 five men, was ordered out immediately, with orders to 
 find and bring in some of the Indians, if possible, and at 
 all events to ascertain their feelings and intentions. In 
 the mean time the horses and cattle were herded close 
 within the lines, a strong guard set, and the cannon 
 placed in an advantageous position to guard against a 
 night attack. The night passed off, however, without 
 any alarm. 
 
 The journey was resumed early in the morning, our 
 course being now nearly north to avoid the chain of 
 hills on our left. By many it was thought that Red 
 River came through a pass in this chain, and it was 
 even conjectured that we should find that stream at the 
 base of the farthest mountain in the ridge, so well did 
 the region about us answer the description given by 
 Carlos, before he left us, of the country in the immedi- 
 ate vicinity of the Narrows. 
 
 * This is a term used by the Rocky Mountain trappers and Western tra- 
 ders, and is equivalent to the English word bury. Furs and other valuables, 
 when secreted in the ground, are called cached. The word is an obvious 
 derivative from the French cocker, to hide. 
 
 VOL. L S
 
 206 GLOOMY PROSPECTS. 
 
 A party of some twenty or thirty had gone forward 
 in the morning for the purpose of finding the best road, 
 while the mam body followed slowly on. While stop- 
 ping to noon, near a small hole of muddy water, the 
 last-mentioned party returned, and reported that they 
 had encountered deep and impassable ravines in a 
 northern direction impassable even for mules. A halt 
 for the night, although there was no water by this time 
 even for the men, was now called, and a party of ten 
 picked men, well mounted, sent out under Lieutenant 
 Hann to scour the country in a northeast direction, in 
 order, if possible, to find a road around the head of the 
 gullies and ravines. At the time, it was considered im- 
 possible to cross, with the wagons, the high and rugged 
 hills and mountains west of us, and our only course ap- 
 peared to be by a road to the northeast. 
 
 In the mean time night overtook us, and still no tidings 
 were received from Captain Strain, who had now been 
 out more than twenty-four hours. The bright dreams 
 of the night before vanished when we saw that our on- 
 ward course was impeded by impassable barriers, and 
 in their stead were forebodings of the gloomiest nature. 
 When the mind is harassed by uncertainty, it is singu- 
 lar how trifling a thing can raise the spirits to the high- 
 est pitch of excitement or depress them to a state bor- 
 dering on despair. 
 
 We passed another night sadly enough, yet without 
 an alarm or losing any of our horses ; but the morning 
 brought no news of Captain Strain. Our camp was in 
 a small bend, protected in the rear by a skirting of cot- 
 ton-w r ood and hackberry trees which fringed the dry 
 bed of a creek. The berries of the latter tree were ripe, 
 and the limbs were completely stripped by our men. to 
 satisfy a gnawing desire for food of a vegetable nature,
 
 AN ALARM. 207 
 
 A report was raised, early in the morning, that fresh 
 water had been discovered two miles distant, in the di- 
 rection of the mountains, and our suffering animals were 
 driven there immediately ; but at about eight o'clock 
 they returned unsuccessful in their search. To endure 
 the horrible sufferings we were experiencing seemed no 
 longer possible, and, at a consultation held among the 
 officers, it was resolved to fall back upon the stream we 
 had left the previous morning, and there await the re- 
 turn of the scouting parties which had been sent out. 
 The weather, I might here add. was insupportably hot, 
 adding much to our suffering. 
 
 Our conjectures were anything but flattering on ac- 
 count of the continued absence of Captain Strain and 
 his party, now out more than thirty-six hours. It was 
 known, however, that both he and Lieutenant Hann, as 
 well as the parties of three and five who were out hunt- 
 ing for water on their own account, could easily find 
 their way back to camp by following the trail of the 
 wagons, and immediate preparations were accordingly 
 made to retrace our steps to the old camp, or some 
 point higher up on the same stream. 
 
 The horses and mules were driven up and saddled, 
 the oxen were yoked, and the other preparatory work 
 was in progress for our departure, when suddenly a 
 young man came dashing into camp from the north- 
 ward, evidently much agitated, and announced that a 
 large body of Indians were pursuing a party of our men 
 directly towards us. Scarcely had he finished speaking 
 before a firing was heard but a few hundred yards dis- 
 tant, a slight roll of the prairie concealing the combat- 
 ants from our sight. Fast as they could mount horses, 
 a party of some fifty of our men dashed off towards the 
 scene of strife, while the wagons were drawn up in
 
 208 FIVE MEN KILLED. 
 
 square, the cattle and horses brought inside, and every 
 preparation made to resist an attack, which was now 
 considered certain. The first impression w r as, that the 
 scouting-parties had been entirely cut off, and that these 
 successes would induce the Indians to attack our main 
 body. 
 
 Just as the party of our men who had gone out to the 
 relief of their companions reached the spot, the Indians 
 retreated ; but their bloody work was done. Scattered 
 about within the circumference of a few yards were 
 the dead bodies of Lieutenant Hull and four of our men, 
 stripped, scalped, and horribly mutilated, while the ap- 
 pearance of the ground gave strong evidence that man- 
 fully and with strong hearts they had resisted the attack 
 of their adversaries. They had left camp but a short 
 time previous, probably with the hope of finding water, 
 and in returning had been thus cruelly murdered. But 
 one look at their mangled bodies was sufficient to stir 
 deep feelings of revenge in every heart, and madly did 
 our men spur their horses in pursuit, with the vain hope 
 of avenging the death of their companions. The In- 
 dians were at least four times their number, yet they 
 
 ' ' */ 
 
 retreated, and, being far better mounted, were able to 
 keep out of the way. So near, however, were our men, 
 that they could plainly see the dead bodies of several 
 of the Indians, packed upon extra horses they had with 
 them for that purpose. The prairie warriors always 
 have horses trained especially to carry off their dead 
 or wounded companions, which they take with them on 
 going into action ; and it is considered one of the great- 
 est calamities that can befall them if they are compelled 
 to leave one of their number in the hands of an enemy. 
 The pursuit of the bloodthirsty Cayguas, for such the 
 Indians proved to be, was continued by our men until
 
 A DESPERATE COMBAT. 209 
 
 it was evident that they could not be overtaken, and 
 then reluctantly given up. Several times during the 
 chase, the Indians reined up their well-trained horses on 
 the higher rolls of the prairies, and formed in line as if 
 intending to give battle ; but before our men could get 
 within gunshot they were off again, with lightning speed, 
 across the plain. On returning to the spot where our 
 men had fallen, a closer examination showed how hard 
 and desperate had been the struggle. Lieutenant Hull 
 had received no less than thirty lance and arrow wounds 
 before he fell, and the broken stock of one of Colt's 
 rifles was still retained in the grasp of a stout man, 
 named Mayby, plainly telling us that he had fought to 
 the last, and that after discharging the piece he had still 
 continued the combat. The heart of one of the men 
 was cut out, and had not the Indians been driven off the 
 other bodies would have been mutilated in the same 
 way. Two of the horses of our unfortunate comrades 
 were lanced close by the others were probably in bet- 
 ter condition and more able to run, and had been taken 
 off as spoils by the savages. It was evident enough 
 that Lieutenant Hull and his men had retreated from 
 the Indians until they had found it impossible to elude 
 them, and that they had then thrown themselves from 
 their horses in a body and sold their lives at a fearful 
 rate. The resistance they made had probably terrified 
 their adversaries, and induced them to fly when they 
 saw our party coming up, although they outnumbered 
 the Texans at least as three to one. 
 
 A party of fifty well-armed men, taking with them 
 shovels, were sent out immediately on the melancholy 
 errand of burying our murdered companions, while the 
 main body retraced their steps towards the Quintufue, 
 which is said to be a branch of the Palo Duro, or Hard 
 S 2
 
 A COUNCIL OF WAR. 
 
 Wood River. Scarcely had we started, before all were 
 rejoiced by the appearance of Captain Strain with part 
 of his men. He told us that he had scoured the prairies 
 in almost every direction, but without success, having 
 been unable to hold a parley with any of the Indians, 
 although he had seen several small parties. He also 
 reported that he had been unable to find either a road 
 or water : there was a route by which the ravines 
 might be headed in a course a little north of east, but in 
 no other direction. A part of his men had left him 
 early in the morning, having gone back to the Quintu- 
 fue for water. 
 
 About noon the main body of the command again 
 reached the river, at a point somewhat higher up than 
 the former camping-ground. Here, after drinking in- 
 credible quantities of the water, and allowing our suffer- 
 ing animals also to quench a thirst which their eyes and 
 general appearance too plainly showed had nearly driv- 
 en them mad, a strong position was chosen, and we en- 
 camped. 
 
 In the evening a general consultation of all the offi- 
 cers was held. At this meeting it was resolved to de- 
 spatch a party of one hundred chosen men, on the best 
 horses in camp, with instructions not to return until the 
 settlements of New Mexico were found. Although no 
 hopes were entertained that a passage over the mount- 
 ains could be effected by the wagons, it was still thought 
 that mounted men would be able to accomplish it. 
 
 The distance to the nearest settlements was not sup- 
 posed to be more than one hundred miles at farthest, 
 and it was accordingly determined that the party should 
 take five days' provisions, allowing but scanty rations. 
 The course to be taken was northwest, and this course 
 was to be kept, as near as circumstances would admit,
 
 A TRYING SITUATION. 211 
 
 until the party struck either the settlements near Santa 
 Fe, the Rio Grande at a point below, or the trail of the 
 St. Louis traders above. On reaching New Mexico, a 
 party was immediately to be sent back to the command 
 with guides and provisions. 
 
 However impolitic it may be considered to divide a 
 command, in this instance such a course could not be 
 avoided. We were completely lost, and without pow- 
 er of moving forward ; our provisions, which had for 
 weeks been scanty, were now almost entirely exhaust- 
 ed ; the men were enfeebled by long marches, with only 
 poor beef enough each day to support nature ;* and in 
 addition we were surrounded by a large and powerful 
 tribe of well-mounted Indians, scouring our vicinity, and 
 always on the look-out to pick off any small party that 
 might be sent out to hunt, or for other purposes. All 
 these reasons considered, it will at once be seen that but 
 two courses offered one, to destroy the wagons, and to 
 retreat hastily towards Texas ; the other, to divide the 
 command, and send one party forward with orders not 
 to return until the settlements were reached. I will not 
 say that the wiser course was adopted ; but in answer 
 to any one who may blame the leaders of the expedi- 
 tion for dividing the command, I would remark that 
 few men, under the circumstances, would have advised 
 to the contrary. 
 
 So soon as a division of the command had been de- 
 termined upon, several of the oxen were killed for the 
 use of the party to be sent onward, and preparations 
 were made to dry the meat on the ensuing morning. 
 Night came, but with it came no news of Lieutenant 
 Hann and his little party. On calling the roll it was 
 
 * It may not be amiss to state that every part of each ox killed was de- 
 voured : the blood, hide, entrails nothing was lost.
 
 212 A DIVISION RESOLVED ON. 
 
 also found that others besides those killed in the morn- 
 ing were missing, and with the full conviction that they 
 had shared the fate of Lieutenant Hull and his men, we 
 that night laid ourselves to rest. The next morning we 
 were still without tidings of our absent comrades. 
 
 The party detailed by General McLeod to march in 
 advance was placed under the command of Captain 
 Sutton, an excellent officer. It consisted of eighty- 
 seven officers and privates, with merchants, travellers, 
 and servants enough to swell the number to ninety-nine. 
 Among the officers were Captain Lewis, and Lieuten- 
 ants Lubbock, Munson, Brown, and Seavy,* the latter 
 acting as adjutant : the civilians were Colonel Cooke, 
 Dr. Brenham, Major Howard, Messrs. Van Ness, Fitz- 
 gerald, Frank Combs, and myself. We were all well 
 armed and mounted on the best horses in camp, and 
 deemed ourselves able to cut our way through any par- 
 ty of Indians that might dare to attack us. That we 
 should be molested was considered more than probable, 
 as it was impossible to leave the command without be- 
 ing perceived by the scouting parties of Cayguas con- 
 tinually hovering about our camp, who could observe 
 our every movement. In a fortified position we felt 
 confident they would not attack the command ; but now 
 that we were divided they might be imboldened to at- 
 tack the smaller party. 
 
 The Cayg'das appear to be a powerful tribe, about 
 whom, from their geographical position, little has been 
 known. Their range is south of the line of travel of 
 the Missouri traders, and north of such parts of the Ca- 
 manche country as were known to the Texans, their 
 
 * Lieutenant Seavy was educated at West Point, had seen much service 
 in Texas, and was one of the best officers connected with the Santa Fe ex- 
 pedition. He died of yellow fever at Puente Nacional, Mexico, much belov- 
 ed by his brother officers as well as the common soldiers.
 
 ACCOUNT OF THE CAYGUAS. 213 
 
 hunting-grounds probably not having been visited by 
 the whites previous to our march across them. In 
 their customs and manner of living they resemble, in 
 every way, the Camanches, and may be said to be a 
 branch of that large and powerful tribe. They lead a 
 roving life, esteem the whites as their natural enemies, 
 and never give them quarter. Like the Camanches, 
 they are expert on horseback to an extraordinary de- 
 gree, leaping from one horse to another while at full 
 speed, and performing many feats upon the prairies 
 never undertaken even by the best equestrians of the 
 circus. In their attacks upon an enemy they expose 
 but a small portion of their persons, riding along in par- 
 allel lines with their enemies, their bodies lying on the 
 opposite sides of their well-trained steeds, and in this 
 position they discharge their arrows directly under their 
 horse's necks. If they meet with an unfortunate party 
 whom they outnumber, they charge openly, despatching 
 all with their lances. While encamped, they live in 
 tents constructed of poles and buffalo hides. These can 
 be struck at a moment's warning, and the whole party 
 will move off in an incredibly short space of time. 
 They appear to be on terms of peace with the New 
 Mexicans so far as it suits their interest and conve- 
 nience no farther ; at one time trading and exchan- 
 ging their skins in amity, and almost in the same breath 
 making a descent upon the unprotected frontiers, plun- 
 dering and frequently murdering the inhabitants. When 
 we passed through their country a party of Mexican 
 traders were among them bartering meal, blankets, and 
 trinkets for buffalo and deer skins. Some of these Mex- 
 icans we afterward saw, and from them learned that 
 ten of their warriors, besides a principal chief, were kill- 
 ed by Lieutenant Hull and his brave companions before
 
 14 PREPARATIONS FOR A HAZARDOUS MARCH. 
 
 they were overpowered. The traders also gave us an 
 account of their ceremonies on returning to camp with 
 their scalps and trophies. A wild dance was executed 
 by the braves in celebration of their victory, while the 
 women tore their hair and faces, and ran naked through 
 the prickly pear and thorn bushes, in token of their grief 
 for the loss of their husbands and brothers. Whether 
 they considered our visit as hostile or not it is impossi- 
 ble to say ; they had shed blood, and we well knew they 
 would not cease murdering any of our companions they 
 might dare attack. They have but a small number of 
 rifles among them, and these are ineffective and useless 
 in their hands : the larger portion of them are armed 
 with shields, lances, and bows and arrows, weapons 
 they use with surprising dexterity. Such are the most 
 obvious features of a tribe of Indians occupying the prai- 
 ries near the head waters of the Wichita, Colorado, 
 Brazos, and Red Rivers. 
 
 The morning of August 31st was occupied in partial- 
 ly drying our meat over slow fires, and in making prep- 
 arations for our departure. Horses were shod, bullets 
 moulded, our rifles and pistols thoroughly examined, and 
 nothing neglected in the way of that precaution our un- 
 certain adventure demanded. We were placed in a posi- 
 tion demanding some extraordinary effort. The repeat- 
 ed reverses that we had met with, the hunger and fatigue 
 which we had undergone, and the impossibility of trav- 
 elling farther with the wagons in any direction that 
 would bring us nearer the settlements, formed a combi- 
 nation of evils for which a retreat or the plan determin- 
 ed upon was the only remedy. The indefatigable go- 
 a-headity which characterizes the Anglo-Saxon race, 
 no matter where or under what circumstances placed, 
 prevented the adoption of the former plan the same
 
 THE PARTING. 215 
 
 spirit induced the officers of the expedition to adopt and 
 carry out the latter. Almost every one appeared to re- 
 joice when this course was determined upon. The har- 
 assing uncertainties which now encompassed all would 
 speedily be removed, and we should soon know where 
 we were. 
 
 As the advance party were about starting, we were 
 all rejoiced by the appearance of Lieutenant Hann and 
 his men. He had met with several small parties of the 
 Indians, and endeavoured to induce them to come in 
 and hold a friendly talk ; but they were sulky and dis- 
 posed to fight, although not strong enough to engage 
 him. Up to this time he knew nothing of the murder 
 of Lieutenant Hull's party. The other men who were 
 missing, as I have since been informed, never came in, 
 but were undoubtedly killed by the Indians. 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 Departure of the Advance in search of the Settlements. Summit of the 
 Steppe gained. Level Prairie before us. A lovely Scene. Speculations 
 in relation to Red River. A Bear Chase. Bruin noosed. The March 
 continued. Sagacity of a Mule. Arrival at a singular Chasm. Impossi- 
 bility of crossing. A heavy Prairie Shower. Appearance of our Men. 
 Description of the Chasm. A Crossing found. Loneliness of the Prai- 
 ries. Scarcity of Game. Begin to suffer Hunger. Arrival at another 
 awful Abyss. Farther Difficulty in crossing. Hunger increasing. Sin- 
 gular Birds. Mustangs and Antelopes. Their exceeding Shyness. Cur- 
 lews. A Buffalo descried. Preparations for a Chase to the Death. Tom 
 Hancock and his Skill. Endurance of Jim the Butcher. Description of 
 the Chase. Poor Prospects of a Supper. 
 
 THS sun had but a short hour to run, in order to 
 finish his day's work on the 31st of August, when, in 
 double file and close order, our provisions for the march
 
 216 VIEW FROM A MOUNTAIN-TOP. 
 
 hanging at our saddle-skirts, we left our companions on 
 the Quintufue and struck across the prairie on our jour- 
 ney in search of the settlements of New Mexico, Mr. 
 Hunt, the engineer of the expedition, taking the gui- 
 dance. A brisk trot of two hours brought us, as night 
 was throwing its sable drapery over the scene, to the 
 foot of the mountains, and here, after choosing a strong 
 position, we encamped. No water could be found in 
 our vicinity, but as we had filled our gourds and can- 
 teens before we left the main body, we suffered but 
 little. Early the next morning, after travelling a mile 
 or two along the foot of the high range, we discovered 
 what seemed to be an Indian trail, the marks where the 
 tent-poles had been dragged over the ground being 
 plainly visible, leading in a zigzag course up the sides 
 of the mountains. This we followed, and towards noon 
 found ourselves at the summit of the chain. Here we 
 were again gratified by finding spread out before us a 
 perfectly level prairie, extending as far as the eye could 
 reach, and without a tree to break its complete monot- 
 ony. We halted a few minutes to rest our horses, and 
 occupied the time in surveying the calm and beautiful 
 valley lying hundreds of feet below us. 
 
 It was a lovely scene, beheld from the point where 
 we stood, and I could hardly believe that but a few 
 hours previous a horrible tragedy had been enacted 
 upon its fair surface. Softened down by the distance, 
 there was a tranquillity about it which seemed as though 
 it never had been broken. The deep green skirtings 
 of the different watercourses relieved the eye as it fell 
 upon the wide-extending plain. The silver waters of 
 the Quintufue, now reduced apparently to a mere 
 thread, were occasionally brought to view as some 
 turn of the stream threw them in line with us, and
 
 WHERE IS RED RIVER? 217 
 
 again they were lost to the sight under the rich foliage 
 of the banks. The white tops of our wagons showed 
 the present encampment of our main body, while the 
 small black spots around gave us the pleasing assurance 
 that the cattle and horses were still there, and that the 
 camp had been unmolested. In other parts of the val- 
 ley, too, small moving specks were seen mustangs, or 
 perhaps our Indian enemies prowling about but other 
 than these no living objects met our gaze. Almost the 
 whole valley was bordered by the yawning chasms that 
 had impeded the progress of our wagons, now brought 
 more plainly to view by the elevation upon which we 
 stood, and the whole scene forcibly reminded me of one 
 of Salvator Rosa's beautiful landscapes, framed with 
 rough, gnarled, and unfinished oak. 
 
 The elevated chain of hills or mountains we had as- 
 cended, if they really deserve that title, was but another 
 steppe towards the high table-land which forms the base 
 of the Rocky Mountains. Where, now, was Red River ? 
 If the large stream our guides and scouting parties had 
 seen, while in the valley below us, and in a northeast 
 direction from the spot where Lieutenant Hull was 
 killed if that stream was Red River, then its source 
 must have been near the base of the high steppe upon 
 which we now stood, and the wide and almost dry beds 
 we had crossed within the few past days were but its 
 tributaries. In springtime, when the prairie snows 
 melt away and the early rains fall, these beds are doubt- 
 less full, and when joined in one common channel form 
 the great stream which, after passing through the Cross 
 Timbers, fertilizes the valley known as the Red River 
 country. The Rocky Mountains may justly be con- 
 sidered the parents of most of the larger streams of 
 North America ; but I cannot think that they give birth 
 
 VOL. L T
 
 218 THE AUTHOR'S CONJECTURES. 
 
 to the river we had been so long seeking. On the con- 
 trary, I am bold in hazarding the opinion that the Rio 
 Colorado or Red River of the United States, the Brazos 
 de Dios, and the Rio Colorado or Red River of Texas, 
 all take their rise in the centre of the prairies, at no 
 great distance apart, and that the steppe we had now 
 reached is their extreme western limit. Their waters 
 are similar, being of a dirty, brownish red colour, and 
 of a slightly salt and bitter taste, which goes far to prove 
 their common origin. 
 
 From the hillsides, as was the case with the Palo 
 Duro and Quintufue,* small streams of fresh and limpid 
 water arise ; but both their purity of taste and virgin 
 transparency of colour are lost the moment they strike 
 the reddish clay of the lower prairies, and they become 
 adulterated by the copperas and sulphate of soda with 
 which these plains appear to be impregnated. The Red 
 River of the United States has been traced and is well 
 known to a point west of Coffee's Upper Station, a no- 
 ted Indian trading post above the mouth of the False 
 Washita ; beyond that, certainty loses itself in specula- 
 tion, and the true stream, its courses and its sources, will 
 never be known until it is explored to its fountain head 
 and this point will be found, I have little hesitation in 
 saying, some two hundred and fifty or three hundred 
 miles east- southeast of Santa Fe, and but a few miles 
 from the steppe to which I have now brought my read- 
 er. In these conjectures I am borne out by the testi- 
 mony of Albert Pike, now a well-known lawyer of Ar- 
 kansas, and a poet and writer of great distinction.f 
 
 * These names we learned from the New Mexican traders, whom we af- 
 terward met. 
 
 t His " Hymns to the Gods," published several years since in Blackwood, 
 are gems of rarest strength and beauty, and as such were highly lauded by 
 Professor Wilson himself.
 
 MR. PIKE'S OPINION. 219 
 
 This gentleman, in 1832, made a hazardous journey 
 from Santa Fe to the western settlements of Arkansas. 
 His general course, for the first three hundred miles, 
 was nearly southeast, the last two hundred taking him 
 directly across the immense plain called Llano Estacado 
 Stake Prairie by the New Mexicans. Mr. Pike had 
 now reached the head waters of the Brazos, and in 
 about the same longitude we had reached when Lieu- 
 tenant Hull and his men were killed. He then con- 
 tinued down one of the forks of the Brazos some hun- 
 dred and eighty miles, the stream running nearly south- 
 east, and a part of the country being broken into rough 
 and misshapen hills, resembling those we encountered 
 on the stream which I have put down as the ^Vichita. 
 The course of Mr. Pike was next northeast, some hun- 
 dred and forty miles, until he struck the Red River of 
 the United States. The point at which he reached this 
 stream was probably a little to the east of the Waco 
 village I have described, and below the mouth of the 
 Wichita. From the appearance of Red River the sim- 
 ilarity of its waters, both in colour and taste, to those of 
 the Brazos Mr. Pike entertains little doubt that they 
 both take their rise in the same section of country, and 
 nearly in the same longitude the former rising but a 
 short distance to the north of the latter. But I am run- 
 ning before my narrative, and after promising other 
 speculations in relation to Red River in a more befitting 
 place, will reconduct the reader to the summit of the 
 high steppe upon which we now found ourselves. 
 
 After giving our animals half an hour's rest, for they 
 were much jaded by the precipitous ascent up which 
 they had clambered, we resumed our journey in a north- 
 west direction. We had ridden but a short distance 
 before a large black bear was seen some mile or there-
 
 220 A WATER-FINDER. 
 
 about to the left of us. Major Howard immediately set 
 off with the intention of running him down, and after a 
 short race succeeded in placing himself on the opposite 
 side, so as to bring the animal directly between him and 
 our line of march. The chase was now assuming an 
 exciting character, the bear, from the lateness of the 
 season, being poor in flesh, and able to run nearly as 
 fast as our fleetest horses. Onward they came, direct- 
 ly towards us, and when within a quarter of a mile I 
 cocked a pistol and left the ranks with the intention of 
 having a first shot at the animal. When within some 
 twenty-five yards, I reined up rny horse, and while ta- 
 king deliberate aim, at not half that distance, I was sur- 
 prised to see the bear turn a species of somerset, and 
 commence kicking with his hind legs. Unseen by me, 
 one of our Mexican servants had crept up close on the 
 opposite side of my horse, and had noosed the animal 
 with a lariat just as I was pulling the trigger of my pis- 
 tol. Bruin soon loosed himself from his fastenings, and 
 while running down the line was shot by Major How- 
 ard. 
 
 The journey was again resumed, and continued at a 
 rapid pace until near the middle of the afternoon. A 
 short halt was then called to rest our horses, at a place 
 where no water was seen, but where the grass was ex- 
 cellent. The bridles were no sooner slipped from the 
 heads of our animals than an elderly and sagacious 
 mule, instead of beginning to nip the short grass, put off 
 at a deliberate trot in a southwest direction. "That 
 cunning old rascal scents water sure" said his owner, 
 and sure enough he did ; for he had not proceeded 
 three hundred yards before we saw him stoop his head 
 and commence drinking at a pond-hole which was con- 
 cealed from our sight. The discovery of this water
 
 A CANON. 221 
 
 was very opportune; for we had drunk, but little in 
 nearly twenty-four hours, and our animals had not swal- 
 lowed a drop. 
 
 As soon as we had given our horses and mules a 
 short rest, and made a light meal of our half-cured meat, 
 we resaddled and resumed our journey. We were go- 
 ing forward at a rapid pace, the prairies before us pre- 
 senting no other appearance than a slightly undulating 
 but smooth surface, when suddenly, and without pre- 
 vious sign or warning, we found ourselves upon the 
 very brink of a vast and yawning chasm, or canon, as 
 the Mexicans would call it, some two or three hundred 
 yards across, and probably eight hundred feet in depth ! 
 As the front ranks suddenly checked their onward 
 course, and diverged at right angles, the rear sections 
 were utterly at a loss to account for a movement so ir- 
 regular ; they could not see even the edge of the fear- 
 ful abyss at a distance of fifteen yards from its very 
 brink. The banks at this place were almost perpen- 
 dicular, and from the sides projected jagged and broken 
 rocks, with here and there a stunted, scrubby cedar. 
 There was some appearance of a zigzag and precipitous 
 trail down the sides of the canon at the point where we 
 first reached it, and Mr. Hunt and Dr. Brenham took it 
 with the intention of reaching the bottom if possible : 
 they continued their winding path until they seemed 
 mere pigmies, and only stopped when their progress 
 was arrested by high and perpendicular bluffs. On 
 their return, after an absence of some half an hour, they 
 said they had not advanced half way to the bottom, and 
 that to attempt crossing at this, or any other point with- 
 in sight, would be useless. We travelled a mile or two 
 along the banks, but finding it impossible to discover a 
 crossing-place, we finally encamped in a little hollow of 
 
 T 2
 
 222 FAIRLY AFLOAT. 
 
 the prairie near the edge of the ravine. Here, finding 
 that a large portion of our badly-cured meat was spoil- 
 ing, we cooked what could still be eaten, and threw 
 much of it away for the wolves and buzzards. 
 
 Young Frank Combs and myself sought a comfort- 
 able lodging in a little sandy gulley, which had been 
 formed by the washing of previous rains. A fine bed 
 it was, too, for about an hour ; but just as we commen- 
 ced dozing we were startled by a tremendous thunder 
 storm. In three minutes we were wet through, and in 
 five found that we were fairly floating, our rifles and 
 saddles, the latter of which we used for pillows, being 
 completely under water. We snatched our rifles from 
 the swift-running stream, took up our bed, and walked 
 to higher ground amid the terrible storm. We found 
 means, however, to set fire to a large dry cedar, once 
 more rolled up in our blankets, and after thinking of 
 home and its thousand comforts, fell asleep. Yet never 
 shall I forget the early part of that awful night. The 
 lightning appeared to be playing about in the chasm far 
 below us, bringing out, in wild relief, its bold and crag- 
 gy sides. Deafening peals of thunder seemed rising 
 from the very bowels of the earth, and then muttered 
 away in the distance, rejoicing, as it were, at their es- 
 cape from confinement. The yawning abyss appeared 
 to be a workshop for the manufacture of the storm, and 
 there we were at the very doors when the Ruler of the 
 elements sent forth a specimen of his grandest, his sub- 
 limest work. 
 
 When morning came, which was bright and cloud- 
 less, we crawled out from under our wet blankets, and 
 I doubt whether a more miserable, wo-begone set of 
 unfortunates, in appearance, have been since the pas- 
 sage of the Red Sea. Not a man among us who was
 
 A BEGGARLY CREW. 223 
 
 not as wet as though he had been towed astern of a 
 steamer from the Falls of St. Anthony to the Balize, 
 and without the privilege of going ashore at any of the 
 " intermediate landings." Of my own personal appear- 
 ance I can say nothing, as among our scanty stock of 
 furniture there was no such luxury as a looking-glass ; 
 but the unshaven faces of my companions resembled, to 
 use a threadbare comparison, the title-pages of so many 
 distress memorials, and I cannot flatter myself into the 
 belief that'I differed from them in any material respect. 
 Each individual hair upon our heads was sticking out 
 almost anywhere, and to suit its own convenience ; our 
 broad-brimmed hats were cocked up, lopped down, and 
 knocked into, or rather out of, all manner of shape and 
 comeliness ; our caps were mashed ; our scanty and 
 ragged vestments, full of sand and water, stuck close to 
 our persons or hung heavily and drooping downward 
 like weeping willows ; and to sum all up, I verily be- 
 lieve that we could not have " passed muster" even in 
 the ragged and renowned regiment promiscuously press- 
 ed into service by one Sir John Falstaff years before the 
 Santa Fe expedition was thought of. Wretched and 
 forlorn as we seemed, however, chilly and miserable as 
 we felt after our soaking, good-humoured jokes were 
 cracked at each other's expense, and every one was 
 offering consolation and pity to his neighbour with an 
 assumed sincerity and gravity that would have drawn 
 a horse-laugh from Werter in his most sorrowful mo- 
 ments. 
 
 Unwilling to load our horses with wet and heavy 
 blankets, we employed some two hours in spreading 
 and drying them as much as possible. In the mean 
 time, a scanty breakfast of half-cooked, half-dried beef 
 was swallowed, our rifles were discharged, cleaned, and
 
 224 A CROSSING-PLACE. 
 
 reloaded, and our powder examined to see that all was 
 right. To keep his powder dry is the first thing the 
 prairie traveller thinks of when a rain comes on, and 
 fortunately we found that ours was all in good order, 
 although it seemed almost a miracle that much of it was 
 not spoiled. 
 
 The immense chasm we were upon ran nearly north 
 and south, and by watching the current of the stream 
 far below us a furious torrent raised by the heavy 
 rain it was seen that it ran towards the former point. 
 This induced Mr. Hunt to seek a crossing to the south- 
 ward, and after saddling our horses we set off in that 
 direction. We had gone but a few miles when large 
 buffalo or Indian trails were seen, running in a south- 
 west course, and as we travelled on, others were no- 
 ticed bearing more to the west. We were obliged to 
 keep out some distance from the ravine, to avoid the 
 small gullies emptying into it, and to cut off the numer- 
 ous turns, and in this way we travelled until about noon, 
 when we struck a large trail running directly west. 
 This we followed, and on reaching the main chasm 
 found that it led to the only place where there was any 
 chance of crossing. Here, too, we found that innumer- 
 able trails centred, coming from every direction ; proof 
 conclusive that we must cross here or travel many 
 weary miles out of our way. 
 
 Dismounting from our animals, we looked at the yawn- 
 ing abyss before us, and the impression upon all was that 
 the passage was impossible. That buffalo, mustangs, and 
 very probably Indians with their horses had crossed here, 
 was evident enough, for a zigzag path had been worn 
 down the rocky and precipitous sides ; but many of our 
 horses were unused to sliding down precipices as well 
 as climbing them, and drew back repulsively on being
 
 A FEARFUL PATH. 225 
 
 led to the brink of the chasm. After many unsuccess- 
 ful attempts, a mule was started down the path, then 
 another was induced to follow, while some of the horses 
 were fairly forced, by dint of much shouting and push- 
 ing, to attempt the descent. In some places they went 
 along the very verge of rocky and crumbling ledges, 
 where a false step would have precipitated them hun- 
 dreds of feet to instant death; in others they were 
 compelled to slide down pitches nearly perpendicular. 
 Many of them were much bruised, but after an hour's 
 hard work we all gained the bottom without sustaining 
 any serious injury. Finding a small patch of grass in 
 the low and secluded dell at the bottom of the abyss, 
 we halted for an hour or two to rest our weary animals 
 and to seek the trail leading up the steep on the oppo- 
 site side. This we finally discovered, and after the 
 greatest exertions succeeded in clambering to the top, 
 where we once more found ourselves upon a smooth 
 and level prairie. I shuddered, on looking back, to see 
 the frightful chasm we had so successfully passed, and 
 at the time thought it almost a miracle that we had got 
 safely across ; but a few days afterward I was con- 
 vinced that in comparison the undertaking we had just 
 accomplished was as nothing. 
 
 After giving our animals another rest we resumed 
 our journey across the lone and dreary prairie. Not a 
 tree or bush, and hardly a weed could be seen in any 
 direction. A green carpeting of short grass, which 
 even at this season was studded with innumerable 
 strange flowers and plants, was spread over the vast 
 expanse, with naught else to relieve the eye. People 
 may talk of the solitude of our immense American for- 
 ests, but there is a company even in trees that one 
 misses upon the prairie. There is food for thought,
 
 226 LONELINESS OF THE PRAIRIE. 
 
 too, in the ocean wave, not to be found in the un- 
 changeable face of these great Western wastes, and no- 
 where else does one feel that sickly sensation of loneli- 
 ness with which he is impressed when nothing but a 
 boundless prairie is around him. There he feels as if 
 in the world, but not of it there he finds no sign or 
 trace to tell him that there is something beyond, that 
 millions of human beings are living and moving upon 
 the very earth on which he stands. Shakspeare was 
 in the woods when he found 
 
 " tongues in trees, books in the running brooks, 
 
 Sermons in stones, and good in everything." 
 
 Had he been on the immense prairie I am now speak- 
 ing about he would have found no such companion- 
 ship. 
 
 We rode briskly forward until near sundown, and 
 then encamped by the side of a small water-hole the 
 basin formed by a hollow in the prairie. Although we 
 were only two days out, the rations of many of the 
 men were nearly gone by this time, so much of the 
 meat had been spoiled from having been improperly 
 cured. Not a buffalo could be seen on the prairie, nor 
 was any fresh " sign" visible. The mustangs, too, had 
 left this part of the plain, as also the deer and antelope, 
 driven off, doubtless, by the scarcity of water. Had it 
 not been for the showers which fell while travelling 
 this dreary waste, we should all most certainly have 
 perished ; for even the immense canons had no other 
 water in them than that which had fallen after we left 
 the Quintufue. 
 
 Scarcely had we rolled ourselves up in our blankets 
 before we were again visited by a heavy shower ; but 
 this time we had chosen higher ground, and though
 
 ANOTHER CANON, 227 
 
 thoroughly drenched, we were not washed from our 
 fastenings, as on the night before. 
 
 The morning of September 3d broke bright and 
 cloudless, the sun rising from out the prairie in all his 
 majesty. Singular as it may appear, nearly every 
 shower, from the time we left Austin until we reached 
 the settlements of New Mexico, fell during the night, 
 generally commencing shortly after sundown. Again 
 we were compelled to lose some two hours in spread- 
 ing and drying our clothes and blankets, after which 
 we saddled our animals and pursued our weary jour- 
 ney. Our course, as I have already observed, was 
 northwest, and we were now enabled to keep it with- 
 out difficulty. 
 
 We had scarcely proceeded six miles, after drying 
 our blankets, when we suddenly came upon another 
 immense rent or chasm in the earth, exceeding in depth 
 the one we had so much difficulty in crossing the day 
 before. No one was aware of its existence until we 
 were immediately upon its brink, when a spectacle, ex- 
 ceeding in grandeur anything we had previously be- 
 held, came suddenly in view. Not a tree or bush, no 
 outline whatever, marked its position or course, and we 
 were all lost in amazement as one by one we left the 
 double-file ranks and rode up to the verge of the yawn- 
 ing abyss, 
 
 In depth it could not be less than eight hundred or a 
 thousand feet, was from three to five hundred yards in 
 width, and at the point where we first struck it the 
 sides were nearly perpendicular. A sickly sensation 
 of dizziness was felt by all as we looked down, as it 
 were, into the very depths of the earth. In the dark 
 and narrow valley below, an occasional spot of green 
 relieved the eye, and a small stream of water, now ri-
 
 228 ANOTHER PERILOUS DESCENT. 
 
 sing to the view, then sinking beneath some huge rock, 
 was bubbling and foaming along. Immense walls, col- 
 umns, and in some places what appeared to be arches, 
 were seen standing, modelled by the wear of the water, 
 undoubtedly, yet so perfect in form that we could with 
 difficulty be brought to believe that the hand of man 
 had not fashioned them. The rains of centuries, fall- 
 ing upon an immense prairie, had here found a reser- 
 voir, and their workings upon the different veins of 
 earth and stone had formed these strange and fanciful 
 shapes. 
 
 Before reaching the chasm we had crossed numerous 
 large trails, leading a little more to the west than we 
 were travelling ; and the experience of the previous 
 day led us to suppose that they all terminated at a com- 
 mon crossing near by. In this conjecture we were not 
 disappointed, for a trot of half an hour brought us into 
 a large road, the thoroughfare along which millions of 
 Indians, buffalo, and mustangs had evidently travelled 
 for years. Perilous as the descent appeared, we well 
 knew there was no other near. The leading mule was 
 again urged forward, the steadier and older horses 
 were next driven over the sides, and the more skittish 
 and untractable brought up the rear. Once in the nar- 
 row path, which led circuitously down the descent, 
 there was no turning back, and our half-maddened ani- 
 mals finally reached the bottom in safety. Several 
 large stones were loosened from their fastenings by our 
 men, during the frightful descent ; these would leap, 
 dash, and thunder down the precipitous sides, and strike 
 against the bottom far below us with a terrific and re- 
 verberating crash. 
 
 We found a running stream on reaching the lower 
 level of the chasm, on the opposite side of which was a
 
 ARCHITECTURE OP NATURE. 229 
 
 romantic dell covered with short grass, and a few scat- 
 tering cotton-woods. A large body of Indians had en- 
 camped on this very spot but a few days previous, the 
 wilted limbs of the trees and other " sign" showing that 
 they had made it a resting-place. We, too, halted a 
 couple of hours, to give our horses an opportunity to 
 graze and rest themselves. The trail which led up on 
 the opposite side was discovered a short distance above 
 us, to the south, winding up the steep and ragged sides 
 of the acclivity. 
 
 As we journeyed along this dell all were again struck 
 with admiration at the strange and fanciful figures made 
 by the washing of the waters during the rainy season. 
 In some places perfect walls, formed of reddish clay, 
 were seen standing, and were they anywhere else it 
 would be impossible to believe that other than the hand 
 of man had formed them. The veins of which these 
 walls were composed were of even thickness, very hard, 
 and ran perpendicularly ; and when the softer sand 
 which had surrounded them was washed away, the 
 veins still remained standing upright, in some places a 
 hundred feet high, and three or four hundred in length. 
 Columns, too, were there, and such was their appear- 
 ance of architectural order, and so much of chaste 
 grandeur was there about them, that we were lost in 
 wonder and admiration. Sometimes the breastworks, 
 as of forts, would be plainly visible ; then, again, the 
 frowning turrets of some castle of the olden time. Cum- 
 brous pillars of some mighty pile, such as is dedicated 
 to religion or royalty, were scattered about; regu- 
 larity was strangely mingled with disorder and ruin, 
 and nature had done it all. Niagara has been consid- 
 ered one of her wildest freaks, but Niagara sinks into 
 insignificance when compared with the wild grandeur 
 
 Vot, I. U
 
 AN IMMENSE PRAIRIE. 
 
 of this awful chasm this deep, abyssmal solitude, as 
 Carlyle would call it. Imagination carried us back to 
 Thebes, to Palmyra, and to ancient Athens, and we 
 could not help thinking that we were now among their 
 ruins. 
 
 Our passage out of this place was effected with the 
 greatest difficulty. We were obliged to carry our ri- 
 fles, holsters, and saddlebags in our hands, and in clam- 
 bering up a steep pitch, one of the horses, striking his 
 shoulder against a projecting rock, was precipitated 
 some fifteen or twenty feet directly upon his back. All 
 thought he must be killed by the fall ; but strangely 
 enough, he rose immediately, shook himself, and a sec- 
 ond effort in climbing proved more successful the ani- 
 mal had not received the slightest apparent injury ! 
 
 By the middle of the afternoon we were all safely 
 across, after passing five or six hours completely shut 
 out from the world. Again we found ourselves upon 
 the level prairie, and on looking back, after proceeding 
 some hundred yards, not a sign of the immense chasm 
 was visible. The plain we were then upon was at least 
 one hundred and fifty miles in width, and the two 
 chasms I have mentioned were the reservoirs of the 
 heavy body of rain which falls during the wet season, 
 and at the same time its conductors to the running 
 streams. The prairie is undoubtedly the largest in the 
 world, and the canons are in perfect keeping with the 
 size of the prairie. Whether the waters which run into 
 them sink into the earth, or find their way to the Cana- 
 dian, is a matter of uncertainty but I am inclined to 
 believe the latter to be the fact. 
 
 At sundown we halted by the side of a water-hole, 
 and encamped for the night. Many of the men were 
 now entirely out of provisions, while those who still had
 
 FLOCKS OF BIRDS. 231 
 
 a little beef left had saved it by stinting themselves on 
 the previous days. The worst of our sufferings had 
 commenced. 
 
 At an early hour on the ensuing morning our march 
 was continued, the cravings of hunger by this time be- 
 ing sensibly felt by all. Small droves of deer and ante- 
 lope were seen during the day, brought from the water- 
 courses doubtless by the recent rains, and towards night 
 a drove of mustangs was descried upon a roll of the 
 prairie half a mile ahead of us. They were all extreme- 
 ly shy, however, and although many rifles were dis- 
 charged, not a shot was successful we could not get 
 near enough to kill one of them. Flocks of small birds, 
 about the size of and in many respects resembling the 
 blackbird, travelled with us much of this day's march, 
 hovering along in front and rear of the line, and so ex- 
 ceedingly tame that they would light on our hats and 
 arms, and on the necks and heads of our horses, with- 
 out manifesting the least sign of fear. One or two of 
 these singular birds were caught and killed, and found 
 to be fat and of good flavour. That night we encamp- 
 ed near a water-hole, covering an area of some twenty 
 acres, but very shallow. Flocks of large curlews, one 
 of the finest birds that fly, were hovering and lighting 
 about on all sides. Had I been in possession of a 
 double-barrelled gun with small shot I would have had 
 at least one good meal ; but I had only a heavy rifle, 
 and went to my lodgings on the ground supperless. 
 
 About two o'clock the next morning we saddled our 
 horses and resumed the march, journeying still in a 
 northwest course by the stars. On leaving the main 
 camp on the Quintufue it was thought by all that we 
 could not be more than a hundred miles from San Mi- 
 guel we had now more than made that distance, and
 
 232 HUNGER TOO STRONG FOR ORDERS. 
 
 were still upon the immense prairie. To relieve our- 
 selves from the horrible suspense we were in, to get 
 somewhere, in short, was our eager aim, and hurriedly 
 we pressed onward, in the hope of finding relief. Our 
 horses, in the mean time, had comparatively suffered 
 less than ourselves, for the grazing on the prairie had 
 been good ; but the hurried marches and the difficult 
 crossings of the immense chasms now began to tell 
 upon them. 
 
 At sunrise we halted near a small pond of water 
 to rest the animals and allow them an hour to feed. 
 Large white cranes were standing about in the pond, 
 and flocks of ducks were swimming upon the sur- 
 face. While we were lounging on the ground, a large 
 antelope was seen slowly approaching us now stop- 
 ping, then walking a few steps nearer evidently in- 
 quisitive as to who, or rather what we were. His cu- 
 riosity finally cost him his life ; for although Captain 
 Sutton the evening before had given orders that not an- 
 other shot should be fired without his consent, one of 
 our men could not resist the temptation of bringing the 
 antelope down. The man was arrested and sent to the 
 rear for this disobedience of orders, but I have little doubt 
 the excellent meal he made more than compensated for 
 the disgrace. The order of Captain S. that no rifle 
 should be discharged, was an excellent one, as many 
 shots had been wasted on the previous day ; but the 
 best officer in existence cannot restrain a half-starved 
 man when he sees a hearty meal directly within his 
 grasp. A number of antelopes were seen in the neigh- 
 bourhood of the water-hole, but no farther attempt was 
 made to shoot them. 
 
 Shortly after this incident of killing the antelope we 
 again resumed our journey. The same dreary specta-
 
 A SLEEPING BUFFALO. 233 
 
 cle, a boundless prairie, was before us not a sign was 
 observable that we were nearing its edge. We jour- 
 neyed rapidly on until near the middle of the afternoon, 
 when a dark spot was noticed some mile or mile and a 
 half directly in advance. At first it was thought to be 
 a low bush, but as we gradually approached it had 
 more the appearance of a rock, although nothing of the 
 kind had been seen from the time of our first coming 
 upon the prairie, except at the chasms. 
 
 " A buffalo !" cried one of the men, whose keen eye 
 had penetrated the mystery : " a buffalo, lying down 
 and asleep !" 
 
 A spyglass in our possession proved the man's asser- 
 tion. Here, then, was a chance for at least as much as 
 we could all eat, and the temptation was too strong to 
 be resisted. The Leather Stocking of the party, Tom 
 Hancock, was deputed to go forward on foot with a 
 rifle, in the hope that he might at least get near enough 
 to wound the animal, while myself and three of my 
 companions, who were better mounted than the rest, 
 made every preparation for a chase to the death. 
 
 Disencumbering our animals of every pound of su- 
 perfluous weight, we tied handkerchiefs over our heads 
 and prepared for a sport rendered doubly exciting by 
 our starving condition. Each of my comrades had a 
 pair of heavy belt pistols, and in addition one of Colt's 
 revolving pistols, with a cylinder containing five shots. 
 In my holsters I had a heavy Harper's Ferry dragoon- 
 pistol, throwing a large ball with great force and accu- 
 racy, besides a bell-muzzled affair which was loaded 
 with two or three balls and some twenty-five or thirty 
 buckshot. With this I intended at least to give the 
 buffalo a broadside which would bleed him freely. To 
 complete my armament, I also had one of Colt's pistols, 
 U 2
 
 234 THE HUNT BEGUN. 
 
 which I had borrowed from one of the officers for the 
 occasion. 
 
 Beyond where the animal was quietly lying, in a 
 western direction, the prairie rose very gradually for a 
 mile farther than that we knew nothing of the nature 
 of the ground. Tom Hancock could creep closer to 
 the smooth prairie and make less show than any man in 
 the command knew all the advantages of taking the 
 wind, and was conversant with every species of strategy 
 by which to make his game certain but he still thought 
 it more prudent to give the animal a shot when within 
 a hundred and fifty yards than to run the risk of crawl- 
 ing nearer. He had desired us not to move unless the 
 buffalo started, hoping to have another shot ; we there- 
 fore sat quietly upon our horses to watch the effect of 
 his first discharge. 
 
 The buffalo, evidently struck though but slightly 
 wounded, bounded from the ground, stretched him- 
 self as does the tame bull on first rising, whisked his 
 tufted tail right and left, looked slowly and inquiringly 
 about him, and then lay down again upon the ground. 
 We did not stir, and Hancock quietly reloaded his rifle 
 without rising from the prairie. Another shot now fol- 
 lowed, and this time the huge animal again bounded up 
 and lashed his tail ; but no sooner had he turned his 
 head in our direction, and discovered his enemies, than 
 he wheeled and started off towards the west at the usual 
 heavy, lumbering gallop. He had evidently been hit 
 by the second shot as well as the first, and this time the 
 wound was probably more severe. 
 
 At an easy canter our little party now dashed off in 
 pursuit, not putting our horses to their speed at first 
 from fear of blowing them too early in a chase which 
 we determined should last to the death. We kept on
 
 PRAIRIE RIDING. 235 
 
 in company until we had neared the top of the first prai- 
 rie roll ; here, finding my horse in much the best con- 
 dition, I left my companions, and at an increased speed 
 continued the pursuit. I have said that the prairie was 
 smooth ; by this the reader, who has never seen one of 
 those immense grassy plains, must not imagine an even, 
 hard, and well-trod common, resembling the spot, may- 
 hap, where in boyhood he has kicked football or joined 
 in the many sports incidental to his earlier years ; on 
 the contrary, the smoothest of our Western prairies 
 have an uneven surface, and are filled with the holes of 
 the mole and the field-mouse. Through the slight thick- 
 ness of earth which covers these holes the feet of the 
 horse frequently sink ; and unless he has been brought 
 up and trained on the prairies, he can never be taught 
 to run upon them with that confidence which developes 
 his full powers. When pursued, the buffalo chooses the 
 roughest road he can find, and leads his pursuers down 
 break-neck precipices, or up rough and broken steeps, 
 inaccessible to other feet than his. Clumsy as he really 
 is, his headlong obstinacy frequently carries him through 
 difficulties at which even the more active and well- 
 trained steed recoils with terror, and which the latter 
 might overcome with greater ease did he but dare at- 
 tempt them. But to the chase. 
 
 On reaching the summit of the prairie roll, some 
 little distance in advance of my companions, I discov- 
 ered the buffalo still galloping heavily and clumsily 
 along, about five hundred yards before me. The de- 
 scent of the prairie was here so gradual that I could 
 see every object at least five miles distant, and the sur- 
 face was much smoother than I had anticipated. I 
 now put spurs to my horse, and dashed boldly down the 
 gentle slope. Giving one look behind, I saw that one
 
 236 THE CHASE. 
 
 of my companions at the starting-place, Major How- 
 ard, had given up the chase, or rather his horse had 
 given up. Lieutenant Lubbock and one of the men, 
 the latter mounted on a mule which, if he could not get 
 over the ground pai'ticularly fast, had at least the com- 
 mendable quality of running all day, were still in hot 
 pursuit. 
 
 The prairie, as I have said, was comparatively 
 smooth ; and although I could not spur my horse into 
 his full, free, and open stride, I was soon up with the 
 huge animal, which was now at his utmost speed. Oc- 
 casionally, as if to rest his legs on one side, he would 
 roll over on the other, changing from side to side as his 
 weight would tire him. This roll of the body must 
 have been noticed by all who have chased these ani- 
 mals, and is a peculiar gait which I believe belongs to 
 the buffalo alone. The one I was chasing was a bull 
 of the largest and most powerful frame, his bright, gla- 
 ring eyeballs peering out from his shaggy frontlet of 
 hair, showing plainly that he was maddened by his 
 wounds and the close pursuit. It was with the great- 
 est difficulty, so terrible was his aspect, that I could 
 get my horse within twenty yards of him, and when I 
 fired my first charge at that distance the ball did not 
 take effect. 
 
 As the chase continued my horse came to his work 
 more kindly, and soon appeared to take an interest in 
 the exciting race ; yet I was still unable to lay him up 
 directly alongside the buffalo. I could approach him 
 closely in the rear, but the affrighted steed sheered as 
 soon as he lapped the mountain of scraggy hair and 
 flesh. Finding it impossible to gain the position I so 
 much wished, I dropped a few yards behind ; then, by 
 dashing my spurs furiously in his sides, I was enabled
 
 THE BUFFALO WOUNDED. 237 
 
 to bring my horse to charge upon the buffalo's quarters. 
 As I neared the animal I raised my pistol, and when 
 about passing him, in a diagonal line, fired at less than 
 four yards' distance. The now infuriated buffalo shrank 
 as the ball took effect just back of the long hair on his 
 shoulders. Under such headway was I when I dis- 
 charged my pistol that I was compelled to cut across 
 directly in front of him and close to his head, and when 
 safely on the opposite or right side I reined up and once 
 more dropped behind for another charge. Again I put 
 spurs to their work, and, as I fairly flew by, gave the 
 buffalo another wound directly in his side. He was 
 now foaming with rage and pain. His eyes resembled 
 two deep-red balls of fire his tongue was out, and curl- 
 ing inwardly while his long and tufted tail was either 
 carried high aloft or lashed madly against his sides a 
 wild, and, at the same time, magnificent picture of des- 
 peration. 
 
 By this time my horse was almost completely subject 
 to my guidance. He no longer pricked his ears with 
 fear or sheered off as I approached the monster we 
 were pursuing, but ran directly up so that I could al- 
 most touch the animal with my pistol. I had still two 
 shots left in the repeater, and after discharging them I 
 intended to fall back upon the old Harper's Ferry, and, 
 by a well-directed shot, make a finish of the business. 
 
 After firing my third shot I again crossed the path 
 of the buffalo, and so near that my right foot nearly 
 touched his horns. The wound I had given caused 
 him to spring suddenly forward, thus bringing me in 
 too close a contact to be either pleasing or prudent. 
 On coming up with him a fourth time, and so near that 
 the muzzle of my pistol was not two yards from his side, 
 the barrel dropped off just as I was about to pull the
 
 238 THE CHASE CONTINUED. 
 
 trigger. As I dashed by the infuriated animal he vain- 
 ly endeavoured to gore and overthrow my horse by 
 suddenly turning his head and springing at me. 
 
 The chase was now up, so far as I was concerned, 
 for the pistol was a borrowed one, and very valuable. 
 I had checked my horse and dismounted to search for 
 it, when Lieutenant Lubbock came up. His horse was 
 completely broken down and unable to reach the buf- 
 falo in the hurry and excitement I told him to mount 
 mine immediately and continue the pursuit. Soon he 
 was up with the buffalo. By this time, so kindly had 
 the horse taken to his work, that his rider was able to 
 fire every shot without once passing the wounded ani- 
 mal. The latter stuck the horse once with his left horn, 
 but did not hurt him seriously. 
 
 The other pursuer with the mule still continued the 
 chase, and as the pace of the buffalo slackened from 
 loss of blood and weariness, the former gradually crept 
 up. I stopped to gaze upon the exciting scene. Every 
 minute or two a flash and smoke would be seen, and 
 then the sharp report of the pistol would reach the spot 
 where I stood. 
 
 In this way the chase was continued until Lieutenant 
 L. had discharged his own arms, together with my hol- 
 ster pistols. He then pulled up, and the other pursuer 
 mounted my horse and continued the chase. I could 
 not help pitying the noble animal, which had by this time 
 run at least six miles. In a very short time the new 
 pursuer was up with the buffalo, and again I could see 
 the smoke as each pistol was discharged ; but by this 
 time the space between us was too great for me to hear 
 the reports. I gazed until both the pursued and pursuer 
 were mere black specks upon the prairie, and never 
 turned my eyes until they were completely lost in the 
 distance.
 
 BUFFALO BROUGHT TO BAY. 239 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 A successful Search. The Buffalo brought to Bay. Appearance of my 
 Horse after the Chase. Prospects of another Shower. Adventure with a 
 Rattlesnake in the Dark. Fortunate Escape. The Shower upon us. 
 Buffalo found in the Morning. March resumed. Swimming our Animals. 
 Singular Method of Cooking. Wolves in our Vicinity. Encounter with 
 a Drove of Mustangs. Excitement among us. Mountains discovered 
 ahead. Leave the grand Prairie. Singular Hills. Compelled to abandon 
 our Course. Chances becoming Desperate. Suffering and Starvation. 
 Large fresh-water Stream discovered. Speculations as to its Name. 
 Mexican " Sign" seen. More Remarks in relation to Red River. Plum 
 Patches. Carlos and Brignoli seen. Their Sufferings. The Texans 
 driven to the greatest strait for Food. An Anecdote. Compelled to eat 
 broken-down Horse Flesh. A cold, raw Night. Fairly among the Rocky 
 Mountains. A beautiful Valley. A Feast of Catfish. Arrival at the 
 Angosturas. Encounter with a Party of Mexicans. Unwonted Excite- 
 ment. Matias sent back to the Command. Advance towards the Settle- 
 ments. Farther Sufferings of the Texans. Meet with an immense Herd 
 of Sheep. A Feast. Dissertation on Starvation. Mexican Shepherds 
 and their Dogs. 
 
 A SEARCH of brief duration enabled me to find the lost 
 barrel of my pistol ; and when this was accomplished I 
 went back alone to seek the main body. After travel- 
 ling a short distance, I met several of our men, who 
 had previously been concealed by a slight roll of the 
 prairie, and were now coming out, eager to learn our 
 success. The last man who had taken up the pursuit 
 of the buffalo with my horse was soon seen cantering 
 back. Half an hour brought him up, when he informed 
 us that after firing all his pistols he had brought the 
 buffalo to bay, and that he had left him with the blood 
 running from his mouth a sure sign that he had receiv- 
 ed his death wound. I gave him Lieutenant Lubbock's 
 horse, and with a small party he went back in search 
 of the wounded buffalo.
 
 240 A STARTLING ADVENTURE. 
 
 I found my own horse completely white with foam, 
 and much distressed after the long and exciting chase. 
 Without mounting I trotted him briskly to the camp, 
 distant about five miles, arrived there just at dark, and 
 immediately commenced rubbing him violently with 
 tufts of grass. Nobly had he sustained his part in our 
 attempt to procure food, and I was anxious that he 
 should not suffer after his severe, his killing race. 
 While thus engaged, the heavens became suddenly 
 overcast, and a distant roll of thunder warned me that 
 we were to have another visitation of rain. I robbed 
 myself of one of my blankets to favour the poor animal, 
 strapped it tightly upon his back, and set out to stake 
 him fast before the rain commenced. I had a lariat 
 about his neck, some twenty yards long, and attached 
 to the other end was an iron spike, which, when driven 
 its full length into the earth, could not be drawn out by 
 a horizontal pull. By this time it was pitchy dark, and 
 while I was in the act of stooping to thrust the spike into 
 the ground with my right hand, a rattlesnake, of large 
 size, judging from the sound of his rattles, struck me a 
 violent blow immediately above the elbow, but fortu- 
 nately without breaking the skin. It is needless to say 
 that I left horse and everything, and took the longest 
 kind of steps out of the neighbourhood my feelings I 
 will not pretend to describe. By the remains of a fire, 
 which had now nearly gone out, I ascertained that I had 
 received no scratch. I was dressed in a coarse Atta- 
 kapas cottonade short jacket, under which I had a red 
 flannel and a linen shirt. Through the folds of all these 
 the fangs of the serpent had not penetrated, although at 
 the time I should hardly have known it had the venom- 
 ous reptile bitten my arm half off. I can conceive of 
 nothing more startling than to find one's self suddenly in
 
 A COLD BATH. 241 
 
 contact with a rattlesnake in the dark the deadly sound 
 of their alarm-notes is terrifying to a degree that sends 
 the blood rushing to the heart, paralyzes the faculties, 
 and strikes a cold tremour through the system with the 
 suddenness of an electric shock. 
 
 The party who had gone out to look for the buffalo 
 returned after dark, unsuccessful in their search. As 
 the direction the animal had taken was well known, 
 however, it was determined to send out a party early 
 in the morning to hunt for him. We knew that he must 
 be so badly wounded as to be past running ; our hopes 
 were that he had not died in the early part of the night 
 and been devoured by wolves. 
 
 Frank Combs and myself were still bedfellows, doub- 
 ling our scanty covering on the wet, cold nights, so as 
 to render both more comfortable. I had now scarcely 
 crawled under the blankets he had spread upon the 
 ground, before the heavy drops which precede a prai- 
 rie shower began falling, and before I had well tucked 
 and nestled myself in a comfortable position a perfect 
 avalanche of rain was pouring upon me. Every one 
 of my readers who has taken a cold bath, must recol- 
 lect the hesitation, the shrugs, the shiverings and the 
 chills with which he first entered the water the diffi- 
 culty of making up his mind to essay the dreaded 
 plunge when he knows full well it is to be made : so it 
 is with a bivouac upon the prairie during a heavy thun- 
 der-shower. The unfortunate wight, who is destined 
 to undergo a soaking, at first attempts to keep himself 
 dry when his better sense teaches him that all efforts of 
 the kind must prove unavailing. As the cold stream 
 first penetrates his blanket, and trickles down his sides, 
 he screws his body inward or outward to avoid the 
 chilling current. Anon, another stream finds its way, 
 
 VOL. I. X
 
 242 THE BUFFALO FOUND. 
 
 then another, until finally he feels that farther attempts 
 to stay the flood from without are useless, and he then 
 stretches himself in as favourable a position as he can, 
 and composes himself to that sleep which tired nature 
 is sure to exact. The shower which fell, on the occa- 
 sion to which I have just alluded, was among the heav- 
 iest of the heavy. The lightning lit up the prairie in 
 every direction, and the darkness which succeeded each 
 flash appeared to me of more than common blackness 
 thick and impenetrable a wall of gloom. The wind, 
 too, howled and moaned around us, and struck a cold 
 chill through our scanty covering. Tired and faint, 
 however, from want of food and the unusual fatigues 
 of the day, wet and cold as I was, I soon fell asleep. 
 
 The next morning, while we were drying our blan- 
 kets, a party went out in search of the buffalo, and with 
 success. They found him badly wounded and unable 
 to run, and a single well-directed ball completed at 
 length our work of the previous evening. On taking 
 off his hide, it was found that more than thirty balls had 
 struck him. They were mostly small, however, and 
 not one of them had touched a vital part, although he 
 must have died during the day from the wounds. 
 Every pound of his poor and tough flesh, for he was 
 an old and lean bull, was brought into camp, and after 
 it had been equally divided among the different mess- 
 es, preparations were made for our immediate depar- 
 ture. 
 
 Our encampment was on the bank of a small ravine, 
 bordered by a flank of low hackberry and other trees. 
 It was almost the only place we had yet seen on the 
 immense upper prairie where a sufficiency of wood 
 could be found for cooking purposes, even had we been 
 in possession of anything to cook; now that we had
 
 PRAIRIE WOLVES. 243 
 
 meat we were compelled by circumstances to continue 
 the march, hungry as wolves, and with the raw mate- 
 rial for at least a full breakfast hanging at our saddle- 
 skirts. 
 
 We had scarcely proceeded a mile before we encoun- 
 tered a narrow but deep gully, running nearly north 
 and south, filled to the top with water. Having no 
 certainty of finding a fording-place near, we dashed 
 boldly in and swam safely across. The passage made, 
 the journey was resumed, and briskly we scoured 
 across the desolate prairie. We hurried rapidly on, 
 with the hope that before nightfall we might discover 
 either trees or bushes of some kind with which to cook 
 our buffalo meat, but the sun went down, and with it all 
 our prospects of having a well-dressed supper. 
 
 We gathered a few buffalo chips* excellent fuel 
 when dry, and universally used for cooking purposes by 
 all travellers upon the lone prairies but in the present 
 instance they had been made damp by the heavy night- 
 showers, and it was with the greatest difficulty that we 
 could ignite them at all. We made out, however, to 
 warm our meat a little I will not say that it was cook- 
 ed and voraciously did I swallow several pounds of 
 the tough, unsavoury food. 
 
 That night, and for the first time since we had struck 
 the grand prairie, we were serenaded by a pack of 
 wolves, which skulked and howled for hours within a 
 few yards of our outposts. The " sign" was considered 
 highly favourable, as these animals are seldom found 
 
 * This is the name given by Western traders to the immense quantity of 
 buffalo ordure found scattered over the surface of the prairie. When dry and 
 ignited it gives out a strong heat, emits little offensive smell, and answers the 
 purpose of a wood fire very well. The hunter throws his meat upon the 
 coals, or places it upon his gunstick and holds it over the fire in either case 
 it is well cooked.
 
 244 A FLAG OF TRUCE. 
 
 far from woods or settlements. An old backwoodsman 
 remarked that we should find Indians, white people, or 
 an end to the prairie, the next day. 
 
 On the following morning we made an early start, 
 the prairie before us still presenting the same lone and 
 dreary appearance. We had travelled but a few miles 
 when a drove of horses, numbering some seventy-five, 
 was discovered a short distance to our left. They were 
 near enough for us to see plainly that they were horses, 
 and if wild ones that they were uncommonly tame, while 
 many of our party asserted that they could see human 
 beings among them, resting quietly upon the ground 
 or moving about. Some even said that they could see 
 mounted men in the extreme distance, as though driving 
 in the cavallada; at all events, the different surmises 
 and assertions created an unwonted excitement among 
 us. If our neighbours were only mustangs, it was an 
 evidence that we were near the edge of the gloomy 
 prairie, for those animals are seldom seen in large num- 
 bers far from mesquits and watercourses ; if they were 
 Indians, we might obtain some information from them, 
 as they could hardly be Caygiias ; and again, if they 
 were Mexicans, and we really thought they were, then 
 our journey might almost be considered at an end we 
 could obtain information of the nearest route to the set- 
 tlements, and very likely a supply of provisions for our 
 immediate use. Our main party halted and formed, 
 while three or four of us set off with the intention of 
 taking a closer look at our neighbours. We hoisted a 
 flag of truce, and a sorry flag it was. I was the owner 
 and possessor of a handkerchief which, in its better 
 days, had been white. It was now a miserable whity 
 brown ; but at the same time it came nearer a peaceful 
 colour than anything we had, and was accordingly
 
 MOUNTAINS SEEN. 245 
 
 hoisted upon a ramrod and held aloft. As we gradual- 
 ly approached, there appeared to be no little commo- 
 tion among the animals a running hither and thither, 
 as is the custom with wild horses. We had noticed 
 three or four white spots among them, which, in the dis- 
 tance, we had taken for flags; a nearer approach con- 
 vinced some of us that these spots were young colts. 
 With this impression we returned to the main body, but 
 even up to this time I more than half believe that they 
 were tame animals, and that human beings were moving 
 among them. Had we proceeded a short half mile 
 farther towards them all doubts would have been set 
 at rest, and possibly we might have saved ourselves 
 many miles of weary travel and many hours of starva- 
 tion.* 
 
 About the middle of the day, and some ten miles from 
 the place where we had seen the horses, the deep-blue 
 tops of a range of mountains were discerned, which, as 
 we journeyed on, soon more plainly developed them- 
 selves. It may be readily conceived that this was a 
 joyful sight to all. We had now been seven days upon 
 the prairie, averaging at least thirty miles a day, and 
 many began to despair of ever getting off the dreary 
 waste. There was now a prospect of a change, and 
 any change, we then thought, would be for the better. 
 We continued on until near three o'clock, when sud- 
 denly a beautiful valley, studded here and there with a 
 clump of trees, appeared in sight. To the north, in the 
 distance, there was every appearance of a large stream 
 of water, and that, in our fond anticipations, we put 
 
 * We afterward met with a party of Mexicans who said that, while en- 
 camped, they had seen us upon the great prairie, and that from our actions 
 they thought we were about to approach them. Perhaps this was the same 
 party. 
 
 X2
 
 246 A CHANGE OF ROUTE. 
 
 down as the long-sought-for Red River. A halt was 
 called in a pleasant little grove of cotton- woods, through 
 which a small stream of fresh water was gently purl- 
 ing, and here we built a large fire of wood from a dry 
 and fallen tree, cooked what was left of our tough buf- 
 falo meat, and dried our wet blankets and clothing. 
 Two hours were spent at this comfortable camping- 
 ground, after which we mounted and pursued our un- 
 certain journey. Unable to continue our old course, 
 northwest, on account of deep and abrupt ravines to 
 the northward, we travelled west this afternoon, through 
 narrow valleys encircled by high, conical, and singular- 
 ly-formed hills. At sundown we reached a small spring 
 among these hills, where we bivouacked at once. Du- 
 ring this night there was a panic and half stampede 
 among our animals, caused, in the opinion of the guard, 
 by the appearance of a small drove of mustangs on the 
 steep hills which overlooked our encampment. 
 
 Resuming the march early on the following morning, 
 we soon became entangled among high, steep, and rug- 
 ged hills, the passage over which was almost impossi- 
 ble. Such was the nature of this singular piece of 
 country that we were compelled, although reluctantly, 
 to abandon entirely the course we had so long travel- 
 led, and seek an outlet from the hills in a direction 
 south of west. We were all anxious to visit the river 
 on our right, to note its general appearance, taste its 
 waters, and form some opinion as to the probabilities 
 of its being Red River ; but as well might we have un- 
 dertaken the task of climbing the largest cotton-wood 
 upon its banks on horseback as that of cutting our way 
 through the natural obstacles which intervened between 
 us and the stream. But go on in some direction we 
 must ; and, as there was no alternative, we set off in a
 
 TROUBLES INCREASING. 247 
 
 southwest course the nearest point we could possibly 
 make to what was considered the right one. 
 
 Even the country over which we were now compell- 
 ed to travel, much as it threw us off our course, was 
 exceedingly rough, and for the sake of our poor horses 
 at least, we wished ourselves back upon the smooth and 
 open prairie. Many of their shoes were torn off by the 
 rocks, and, unused to go without them, their feet be- 
 came so tender and sore that they could not move with- 
 out difficulty. To this should be added our own cata- 
 logue of misfortunes travelling, day after day, while 
 enduring the sharpest pangs of hunger, and in a state 
 of harassing uncertainty as to our present situation, 
 even more annoying than the starvation with all these 
 hardships to undergo, the reader can easily imagine 
 that our chances were becoming desperate. We saw 
 numbers of antelope and deer during the day, and pass- 
 ed through one or two prairie dog towns situated deep 
 in the narrow and secluded valleys ; the animals were 
 all so shy, however, that it was impossible to get a shot 
 at them. The prairie dogs, in particular, appeared to 
 shun us with more than their ordinary prudence giv- 
 ing their short yelps of alarm before we were within 
 half a mile of them, then tumbling hurriedly into their 
 holes, and not once showing their heads so long as we 
 were in sight. At night we encamped at another 
 spring among the hills, without having tasted food since 
 our scanty meal of buffalo meat on the preceding day. 
 We tightened our belts by taking up still another hole 
 a great relief when suffering from want of food and 
 then threw ourselves upon the ground to seek forget- 
 fulness in sleep. 
 
 We made another early start on the following morn- 
 ing, winding our way among rough and steep hills, and
 
 248 TOKENS OF CIVILIZATION. 
 
 slowly nearing the chain of mountains west of us. 
 About the middle of the afternoon it was the 8th of 
 September ; I can never forget the date we got clear 
 of the hills, and entered a narrow but fertile valley run- 
 ning nearly cast and west. A light fringing of trees in 
 advance convinced us that the valley was watered by 
 a stream larger than any we had recently met with, 
 and with excited feelings we pressed our jaded animals 
 forward. Our anticipations of finding a fresh-water 
 stream were more than realized we came suddenly 
 upon the banks of a beautiful river of most delicious 
 water, running over a bed of yellow sand, and so low 
 that we forded it with ease. In the vicinity we found 
 stumps of trees which had evidently been cut down by 
 Mexicans. Remnants of old cart-standards and wheels 
 were also discovered : proof conclusive that the place 
 had been visited by other than Indians. With gladden- 
 ed hearts \vc scanned these evidences of civilization, 
 and even the keen cravings of hunger were for the mo- 
 ment forgotten in the anticipation of soon reaching the 
 settlements. 
 
 All was now inquiry and speculation as to the name 
 of the stream we were upon. Some of our men, and 
 they the wisest, too, contended that we had either 
 crossed or headed Red River, and that we were now 
 upon one of the southern forks of the Canadian. Oth- 
 ers, again, said that if there was any such stream as 
 Red River above the lower or middle prairies, this 
 must be it, although its waters were entirely dissimilar 
 in all respects to what existed in our received opin- 
 ions as the general features and appearance of that 
 stream. Then there were two or three men among 
 us, old trappers and traders who had visited Santa Fe 
 by way of St. Louis, who said that we were upon the
 
 SPECULATIONS CONCERNING RED RIVER. 249 
 
 Mora, and but a few miles from San Miguel. Of course, 
 nothing certain can be known ; but the more probable 
 conjecture is, that we were now upon the waters of the 
 Arkansas, and that we had headed the Red River of 
 the United States. This cuts off some two or three 
 hundred miles from the length of the latter stream, as 
 laid down upon a majority of the maps ; but I am in- 
 clined to believe that it deserves this abbreviation. 
 
 If the Red River of the United States rises in the 
 Rocky Mountains the reader will bear in mind that I 
 say if how and where docs it make its descent, from 
 the high table-lands which form the base of those emi- 
 nences, to the prairies beneath the m.iin western steppe ? 
 The descent can hardly be gradual, but, on the contrary, 
 the stream must tumble, in some places, hundreds of 
 feet down the eminences which the traveller is obliged 
 to ascend as he journeys westward from the Cross Tim- 
 bers. These steppes grow higher and more abrupt, as 
 they extend to the south, after leaving the valleys of the 
 Canadian and Arkansas ; in fact, I do not know that 
 they extend north of the southern fork of the Canadian 
 at all. 
 
 The New Mexicans have a Red River, rising in the 
 mountains north of Santa Fe, but this is known to be 
 but a branch of the Canadian. Farther south rises the 
 Mora ; this is another stream finding its way to the 
 Canadian, and at this, although by this time the name 
 may have been changed, I have little doubt we had 
 now arrived. Its waters are as unlike those of the Red 
 River as are those of the Croton unlike the Mississippi. 
 A majority of the map-makers, by joining the Red River 
 as far as known with some one of the rivers rising in 
 the Rocky Mountains, have made a long and very 
 pretty stream, as seen upon their charts ; were they to
 
 250 THE AUTHOR'S BELIEF. 
 
 journey along the line of their imaginary river, with the 
 hope of finding the water they have traced, I am in- 
 clined to believe they would suffer much from thirst 
 before they had crossed the boundless prairie spread- 
 ing eastward from the outer spurs of the Rocky Mount- 
 ains. 
 
 Not to tire my reader much farther with speculations 
 in relation to Red River, I will here state my belief that 
 it takes its rise at the base of the high steppe I have so 
 often alluded to, and but a few miles north of the head 
 waters of the Brazos and Colorado of Texas. On its 
 southern side it receives the waters of the Quintufue 
 and Palo Duro, rising from the sides of the high steppe,* 
 with other short but wide streams, which in spring con- 
 tain much water. We crossed them during the dry 
 season, and at a time when their beds contained but lit- 
 tle, and that brackish and standing in sluggish pools. 
 Southeast of the steppe, at a distance of perhaps seven- 
 ty-five miles, rises the Wichita, which, after running a 
 course 'a little north of east, empties into the Red River 
 some fifty or seventy miles west of the Cross Timbers. 
 It may be recollected that in a previous chapter, and 
 prior to the departure of Carlos, we had noticed a large 
 stream south of the Wichita, and running nearly paral- 
 lel ; that was undoubtedly the red fork of the Brazos. 
 
 It is certainly not a little amusing to examine the Red 
 River of the different maps, and trace its most singular 
 windings. On several of the maps now before me, I see 
 that it rises north of Santa Fe, near latitude 38 north, 
 and in longitude varying from 104 to 106 west of 
 Greenwich. On one of these maps its general course, 
 
 * The Mexicans, who started with Albert Pike in his journey across the 
 prairies, spoke of this steppe, and gave the name of Las Cejas, or the Eye- 
 brows, to the singular range. Mr. P. appears to have passed to the south of 
 the steppe, his Mexican companions returning before he reached the Brazos.
 
 WILD FRtTlT, 251 
 
 for some five hundred miles, is southwest ; on another 
 it only runs some three hundred in that direction, and 
 then strikes off across the prairies north of east. The 
 most correctly-laid-down course of the stream, on any 
 of the charts I have examined, may be found on Tan- 
 ner's map of Mexico ; but there it is somewhat too long, 
 although the general eastern course he has given it is 
 in the main correct. But I must leave speculation, and 
 return to the watercourse we had by this time reached. 
 Our little party remained some half hour upon the 
 banks of the stream, considering which route to pursue. 
 The general course of the river, as I have before stated, 
 was a little north of east, and to follow it up was finally 
 decided upon. We proceeded along its northern banks, 
 as that side afforded the best travelling, until dark, when 
 we encamped in a copse of cotton-woods. A dreary, 
 rainy night, was followed by a day so cloudy that we 
 could not steer a course ; yet there was the river act- 
 ing as guide, and we followed it. At times we were 
 close in upon the narrow but fertile valley which skirt- 
 ed its borders ; at others, some long bend in the stream 
 would throw us out upon a succession of low, barren 
 sand-hills, with little other vegetation gracing their sides 
 than dwarf thorn, prickly pear, or plum bushes. The 
 latter were not more than eighteen inches high, yet they 
 appeared to thrive luxuriantly in the sand, and when we 
 were among them they were loaded with plums of the 
 largest size, and such as were ripe were of delicious 
 flavour. Ripe or unripe, however, the bushes were 
 stripped by our famished men, the fruit filling their stom- 
 achs for the time, but yielding no real nourishment. 
 Some of the half-dried plums we found in the sand 
 tasted like prunes. During the day we also found large 
 quantities of small but well-flavoured grapes, which
 
 252 CARLOS SEEN. 
 
 were devoured with an avidity that told our suffer- 
 ing. It was on this day that our runaway guide, Carlos, 
 was seen by two of our men, who were out some dis- 
 tance from the main body in search of plums. He was 
 still in company with the Italian, Brignoli, and both said 
 that they had been lost, and half starved from the 
 hour when they left us, at the same time begging ear- 
 nestly for provisions. Their worn and haggard aspect 
 told more forcibly than words that they had endured 
 suffering the most intense. As they promised to come 
 into our camp at night, our men left them without ask- 
 ing many questions, but they never came. Carlos prob- 
 ably feared that we might shoot him, and for that reason 
 kept out of our way. Had any of our horses been in 
 condition, the fugitives would probably have been pur- 
 sued, and brought in as it was, we saw no more of 
 them until after we were taken prisoners. 
 
 From after circumstances I have little doubt that Car- 
 los now knew where he was, but he was undoubtedly 
 ignorant on that point and lost at the time when he left 
 us. The fellow had trapped up and down the innumer- 
 able watercourses of the lower prairies without knowing 
 the name of one of them, else how could he direct our 
 men to plum-patches and springs a long distance in ad- 
 vance, and invariably w r ith accuracy ? On arriving at 
 the stream of fresh water which he called the Utau, ho 
 doubtless saw signs and landmarks closely resembling 
 the features of a stream called by that name which re- 
 ally exists but a few days' ride from Santa Fe. As he 
 guided us onward, in the course of some three or four 
 days he found that he had not only deceived himself, but 
 the command, and his fear of punishment induced him 
 to leave us at the earliest opportunity that offered. 
 
 On the 10th of September, the day following that on
 
 THE CROWS. 253 
 
 which our whilom guide had been seen, we found what 
 appeared to be an old cart road, and also a deserted 
 Mexican camp. The road we followed until it was 
 lost upon a sandy prairie destitute of vegetation. This 
 day, three mountains were discovered in a southwest di- 
 rection, and some fifteen miles distant, which bore the 
 strongest resemblance to the description Carlos had 
 often given us of The Crows. It seemed, too, as though 
 we could discover a passage through the chain of small- 
 er hills north of them an opening resembling the An- 
 gosturas I have often before mentioned but we had 
 been so often deceived that few of us could now anti- 
 cipate any such good fortune. 
 
 In the mean time, our men were driven nearly to des- 
 peration by hunger. Little or no order could be pre- 
 served by the officers, the volunteers scattering about 
 in every direction, hunting for plums, grapes, and such 
 game as might fall in their way. Few deer or antelope 
 were seen, and they were so shy that it was impossible 
 to shoot them ; but in place of them every tortoise and 
 snake, every living and creeping thing was seized upon 
 and swallowed by our famishing men with a rapacity 
 that nothing but the direst hunger could induce. Occa- 
 sionally a skunk or polecat would reward some one 
 more fortunate than the rest ; but seven out of every 
 ten of us were compelled to journey on without a mor- 
 sel of anything to appease our sufferings. 
 
 One amusing little anecdote I will here relate, to show, 
 in the first place, the direful straits to which our men 
 were driven, and in the second to give my readers an 
 insight into the trickery of old campaigners. We had 
 reached a camping-ground late one evening, where a 
 sufficiency of wood was found to kindle good, substan- 
 tial fires. While a knot of us were reclining around 
 
 VOL. I. Y
 
 254 STEALING A SUPPER. 
 
 one of the fires, speculating as to our prospects, a young- 
 ster brought in a spotted-backed land tortoise, alive and 
 kicking, which he had been fortunate enough to find 
 upon the prairie. Throwing it upon the ground, and 
 placing the end of his rifle upon the back of the animal 
 to prevent its crawling off, he next asked an old hunter 
 how to cook his prize. The answer was, that he must 
 open the coals and throw the tortoise in, cover it over, 
 and allow it to remain for at least half an hour in the 
 fire a longer time would only serve to make the repast 
 more savoury. 
 
 No sooner said than done ; for in less than a minute 
 the unfortunate tortoise was roasting alive beneath a 
 bushel of coals. The countenance of the young man 
 was lit with joy in anticipation of a meal, which, al- 
 though at any other time it would have been revolting, 
 he now coveted with that longing which starvation only 
 can create. But it was a meal he was not destined to 
 enjoy. The old campaigner, after telling him three or 
 four times that his supper was not cooked, finally found 
 means to withdraw the youngster's attention from the 
 coals, and then to whip the animal out with his iron 
 ramrod was but the work of a moment. Another mo- 
 ment, and the well-roasted terrapin was safe behind the 
 back of the more elderly ranger, and where the young- 
 ster could not see it. 
 
 " Don't you think he's nearly done ?" inquired the lat- 
 ter, now turning his head and looking wistfully at the 
 fast-expiring bed of coals. 
 
 " Pretty well cooked by this time you can take him 
 out," retorted the old borderer, while he quietly watch- 
 ed the first speaker as he eagerly raked open the em- 
 bers. 
 
 The movements of the youngster, as he first com
 
 THE ROCKY MOUNTAINS. 255 
 
 menced opening the coals, were slow and decided : by- 
 and-by, as he neared the bottom of the mouldering heap, 
 his action grew excited and hurried. The expression 
 of his countenance may be easier imagined than descri- 
 bed, as, after having dug to the hard ground itself, he 
 turned to the author of his misfortune, and, in utter igno- 
 rance of the trick, exclaimed, " He's gone /" 
 
 " Gone !" slowly repeated the veteran borderer : 
 " was he alive when you threw him in the fire ?" 
 
 " Certainly why ?" 
 
 Why !" 
 
 " Yes, why ?" 
 
 " Because," continued the ranger, " you must have 
 thought the terrapin mightily troubled with the simples 
 if you supposed he would stay in the fire and be roasted 
 alive, when he could easily crawl out and make tracks 
 off!" 
 
 Gloomily the youngster dragged himself to his blan- 
 ket supperless, while the old trickster quietly wended 
 his way to a neighbouring fire to pick the scanty meat 
 from his ill-got prize, and chuckle at his success in 
 " doing" the green-horn out of his supper. To return 
 to my narrative. 
 
 The road we had found and followed some distance 
 in the morning we hunted for in vain in the afternoon : 
 all the old wheel-marks had lost themselves in a barren, 
 gravelly prairie. That we must find a passage through 
 or over the mountains before us was considered cer- 
 tain, but where that passage was, no one could imagine. 
 We were far from being aware of it at the time, but 
 they proved to be outer and eastern spurs of the Rocky 
 Mountains. As the sun gradually sank behind their 
 lofty and ragged summits, a raw, chill breeze sprang up 
 from their neighbourhood. It was the first cold weath-
 
 256 A HORSE KILLED FOR FOOD. 
 
 er we had experienced, and in .our weak and exhaust- 
 ed condition the biting wind seemed to pierce directly 
 through us. 
 
 We continued our march until we reached the dry 
 bed of a mountain stream, upon the banks of which we 
 encamped for the night. A flock of wild turkeys had 
 taken shelter under the banks, running off as we ap- 
 proached their roost. Although contrary to strict or- 
 ders, nothing could restrain our men from banging and 
 blazing away at the turkeys as they sped across the prai- 
 rie fifty rifles and muskets being discharged at them 
 before they were out of sight. Two or three only were 
 killed by the volley and running fire which ensued, and 
 they were but half grown, and so extremely poor that 
 they did not furnish a meal for half a dozen men. To 
 go farther without something to eat was now deemed 
 impossible the wild and haggard expression, the sunk- 
 en eyes, and sallow, fleshless faces of the men too plain- 
 ly showed that some means of sustenance must be 
 speedily provided. A horse formerly belonging to 
 Rowland, which in the early part of the campaign had 
 been one of the best animals in the command, was now 
 found to be so poor and badly broken down that it was 
 resolved to shoot him and divide his flesh among the 
 different messes. As they led the once proud and gal- 
 lant animal to execution, the words of an old nursery 
 song came fresh to my mind one that I had neither 
 heard nor thought of for many, many years. The bur- 
 den of the ballad was, 
 
 " Poor old horse ! he must die !" 
 
 and I have only mentioned the circumstance to illus- 
 trate the well-known eccentricities of memory. A man 
 is often placed in situations and becomes a witness of
 
 COLD AND HUNGER. 257 
 
 scenes which suddenly awaken and bring back the 
 long-forgotten associations of his childhood. 
 
 But to return to the actual. The horse was killed, 
 and in less time than it takes me to tell it his hide was 
 off and his flesh distributed. I have before said that the 
 flesh of a young mustang is excellent but that of an 
 old, broken-down horse is quite another affair. It was 
 tough as India-rubber, and the more a piece of it was 
 masticated the larger it became in the mouth. Poor as 
 it was, however, and hard to swallow, I am confident 
 that many a man in the party ate four or five pounds 
 of it, half cooked and without salt I know that I de- 
 voured my share. That I lost some of the good opin- 
 ion I entertained of myself while eating this food I will 
 not pretend to deny, and even a buzzard, that sat perch- 
 ed upon a dry limb of a cotton-wood overhead, ap- 
 peared to look down upon us reproachfully as he saw 
 us appropriating food that legitimately belonged to him. 
 There was something, too, like honest indignation ex- 
 pressed in the countenance of a wolf, which sat quietly 
 watching our operations from the adjoining prairie ; but 
 at the time we were hungry enough to make a meal 
 even of him had he fallen into our hands. A man never 
 knows what he will eat until driven by a week's star- 
 vation. 
 
 Our tough and most unsavoury meal over, we spread 
 our blankets in the ravine, where we could be partially 
 protected from the biting northeast wind ; but the cut- 
 ting blasts found their way through our scanty cover- 
 ing, chilling our weakened frames to such a degree as 
 almost entirely to prevent sleep. With the ordinary 
 stock of flesh and blood we should have been far better 
 able to withstand the bitter wind ; as it was, we could 
 only shrug and shake, and pass a sleepless night. 
 
 Y2
 
 258 CROSSING THE MOUNTAINS. 
 
 Weak and unrefreshed, we arose in the morning 
 breakfastless and desponding, we mounted our horses, 
 and once more resumed our gloomy march. Our course 
 was southwest, and in the direction of what appeared to 
 be a passage through the mountains ; but after travelling 
 some six or eight miles we found our farther progress 
 cut off by high and precipitous ascents. To return was 
 our only alternative, and at noon we again found our- 
 selves near the point whence we had started in the 
 morning. 
 
 A consultation was now held as to our future course. 
 Running directly north was a high chain of mountains, 
 extending as far as the eye could reach, and many con- 
 tended that our best course would be to travel along the 
 base of this chain until we either found a passage through 
 or met with the trail of the St. Louis traders. Others, 
 again, thought our wisest and safest plan would be to 
 attempt crossing directly over the mountains where we 
 then were, laborious as was the prospect. The 'latter 
 party prevailed, and the attempt to cross was imme- 
 diately made. 
 
 After incredible fatigue to both horses and men, for 
 we were obliged to dismount and carry our arms and 
 baggage in our hands, the ascent was finally achieved. 
 Arrived at the summit, a beautiful prospect was before 
 us. Below, a peaceful and lovely valley was spread 
 out, through the centre of which the large stream we 
 had left the previous day wound along. Innumerable 
 brooks, taking their rise in the mountains around, mean- 
 dered through this valley, and finally found their way 
 to the larger stream. Their immediate borders were 
 fringed with small trees and bushes of the deepest green, 
 while the banks of the river were skirted with a narrow 
 belt of timber of larger and more luxuriant growth.
 
 A SPLENDID SUNSET. 259 
 
 The valley was hemmed in on all sides by mountains, 
 whose frowning and precipitous fronts appeared to offer 
 impassable barriers against all approach to the tranquil 
 and beautiful scene lying far below us. At another 
 time these ragged and dangerous steeps might have 
 stayed our farther advance ; but now, after allowing 
 our poor and foot-sore animals a short rest, we drove 
 them down, and in less than an hour found ourselves 
 safe in the valley. It was now discovered that two of 
 our men were missing, unable, probably, from their own 
 weakness and the jaded condition of their horses, to 
 keep up with the main body. We could only hope that 
 they might be able to follow our trail and overtake us 
 at our encampment it was impossible, so weak and 
 lame were all our horses, to go back in search of them. 
 
 On reaching the timber of the river banks we imme- 
 diately encamped, and turned our animals loose to graze 
 and rest themselves after their fatiguing mountain march. 
 The river was found to abound with catfish, and as we 
 had several hooks and lines with us, a sufficient number 
 were caught to give us all a meal. I should perhaps 
 call it a feast ; for even without salt or seasoning of any 
 kind, many of our men ate pound after pound of the 
 coarse fish with a relish which a gouty alderman might 
 covet, but could never enjoy over the best bowl of tur- 
 tle soup the ingenuity of man ever compounded. 
 
 Sunset in this secluded valley presented a scene of al- 
 most unrivalled magnificence, as well as of mild and 
 heavenly beauty. The tops of the surrounding mountains, 
 upon which the blue vault of heaven seemed to rest, 
 were gilded by the sun's last and most brilliant rays, 
 while the deep-black shadows, as some beam of sun- 
 light would dance around and kiss for the last time a 
 more towering summit, would course hurriedly down
 
 260 A PASSAGE FOUND. 
 
 the frowning mountain sides, as if to find their homes in 
 the depths below ere darkness assumed her sway. A 
 soothing, an ethereal quiet reigned throughout the valley, 
 broken only by the evening hymn of some turtle-dove, 
 vowing anew her constancy to her mate, or by the last 
 bark of the squirrel, as, with light and buoyant leaps, he 
 wended his way from the river to his nest among the 
 mountain cliffs. By-and-by a brood of wild turkeys, 
 which had been hunting for their supper at the base of 
 the rocky steeps, flew over our heads and sought their 
 roost in a large cotton-wood which overhung the river. 
 The sharp crack of a rifle soon announced the doom of 
 one of the flock, while the report, taken up by a thou- 
 sand echoes, reverberated from grot and glen, from 
 steep hillside and quiet dell, until lost to the ear in dis- 
 tance. Night had thrown her sable mantle, alike over 
 the valley and the recently-gilded mountain-tops, before 
 I could turn from the contemplation of the lovely scene. 
 
 Early the next morning, Mr. Hunt, our guide, set off, 
 in company with Captain Sutton, in search of a passage 
 through the mountains, which would lead us along the 
 river banks. They returned in two or three hours 
 with the joyful intelligence that they had discovered an 
 excellent route in a western direction, one which would 
 extricate us from our present dilemma without much 
 labour. To saddle and mount our horses was a work 
 of but few moments, and then, with hearts much light- 
 ened, we resumed the journey. 
 
 After crossing the river, and emerging from the tim- 
 ber which lined its banks, we entered a narrow but 
 open valley that had been concealed from view by a 
 projecting point of one of the mountains. Two hours' 
 ride brought us into a road which had evidently been 
 used for carts, as we found yoke-keys, standards, and
 
 THE ANGOSTURAS. 261 
 
 other trappings belonging to a Mexican vehicle, scat- 
 tered along its sides. On either hand, the frowning and 
 rocky sides of mountains rose high above us, and we 
 now knew and felt that we were in the Angosturas, or 
 Narrows of the river so often spoken of by Carlos, 
 where the stream has forced its passage through the 
 eastern spur of the Rocky Mountains. Well do these 
 mountains deserve their name, for they are nothing but 
 immense heaps of stones, irregularly piled up, while 
 but little vegetation is to be found upon their sides save 
 a few stunted pines and cedars. 
 
 For three or four miles, after first entering the An- 
 gosturas, our road was along a solid ledge of rocks, the 
 river on our right, and running nearly east and west. 
 The greatest width of the pass through which the 
 stream runs, until the traveller leaves the rocky road, 
 cannot be more than half a mile, while the towering 
 fronts of the mountains on either side are so steep that 
 even a goat would find much difficulty in climbing 
 them. On leaving the ledge of rocks the pass grows 
 gradually wider, and the road becomes sandy. We had 
 no sooner struck the latter than the tracks of mules and 
 asses were plainly visible. A little farther on, the foot- 
 prints of men were also seen, and from every appear- 
 ance they had been made but a few hours. Not a sign 
 of a human habitation had we discovered, either in the 
 beautiful valley where we had spent the previous night 
 or along the road we were now travelling, but that we 
 had at length reached an open highway and were close 
 upon a party of Mexicans was evident enough. 
 
 With feelings the most joyful we now spurred our 
 animals briskly forward. The sagacious brutes them- 
 selves seemed to know that they were near the end of 
 their long and tiresome journey, for they pricked up
 
 262 A PARTY OF MEXICANS. 
 
 their ears and willingly responded to our call upon 
 them for a faster pace. Gradually the Narrows be- 
 came wider, the road grew smoother, and just as the 
 sun was losing itself behind the western mountains we 
 came up with the Mexicans, encamped at the mouth 
 of the gorge at which the river enters the Angosturas. 
 As Carlos had always told us, the river at this point 
 turns immediately north, watering a narrow and fertile 
 valley. 
 
 Those of my readers who have ever made a long 
 sea voyage may remember how eagerly, at the ap- 
 proach of its termination, when the pilot first placed 
 his foot upon deck, they crowded around and pressed 
 him with idle questions innumerable : so with us, in 
 coming up with these strangers. Every one among 
 us, who could speak a word of Spanish, earnestly 
 showered upon the ragged, swarthy, and half-frighten- 
 ed Mexicans volumes of interrogations, without giving 
 them time to answer one of them, even had they been 
 able or willing. The fellows were just returning, with 
 a small drove of broken-down mules and donkeys, from 
 a trading trip of some two Vnonths' duration among the 
 Caygiias and Camanches. They frankly told us, as 
 soon as we gave them time to breathe and collect the 
 little scattering sense they had, that they had seen us 
 early in the morning, and that such of their compan- 
 ions as were better mounted had instantly fled, in fear 
 that we might rob them. 
 
 In answer to the question as to the state of feeling in 
 New Mexico regarding our approach, they could give 
 us no information upon this point they knew nothing. 
 They had been absent months from the settlements, 
 and were trading with the Caygiias when the unfortu- 
 nate Hull and his party were killed, although they had
 
 INDIAN SCALP-DANCE. 263 
 
 no part or lot in that massacre. They also told us 
 that they were in the main camp of the Indians when 
 the murdering party returned, bringing the dead bodies 
 of eleven of their warriors, among whom was a princi- 
 pal chief. The ceremonies and performances on the 
 occasion the wild dances of the warriors around the 
 scalps of their victims, with the painful penance of the 
 women in token of their grief for the loss of the war- 
 riors of the tribe were described by our new acquaint- 
 ances with graphic effect. The women smote and 
 cut their breasts, and ran naked through thorns and 
 prickly pear-bushes, to show the intensity of their af- 
 fection. 
 
 We next asked the Mexicans the distance to the Palo 
 Duro, or rather to the spot where our main body with 
 the wagons were encamped. They said that a good 
 mule could travel the distance easily in four days. 
 Upon our telling them the route we had taken, and that 
 we had been thirteen days on the road, they expressed 
 the greatest astonishment said it was wonderful that 
 we had been able to cross the immense chasms and 
 mountains at all. They said that if we had taken a 
 course directly west, on starting, we should have avoid- 
 ed the deep canons altogether, and had a good, smooth 
 road the whole distance. In addition, they informed 
 us that Carlos and his companion had passed them in 
 the morning, completely worn down by hunger and fa- 
 tigue. By this it would seem that the runaway guide 
 had taken a course too much to the north, and fallen 
 into the same errors which had caused us so much 
 trouble. 
 
 As regards provisions, the Mexicans were almost as 
 badly off as ourselves, their stock being nearly exhaust- 
 ed. They gave the mess to which I was attached,
 
 264 GUIDES SENT BACK. 
 
 however, a small quantity of barley meal ; just enough 
 for a taste, and that was all. They said that San Mi- 
 guel was still some seventy or eighty miles distant, but 
 before reaching it we should fall in with large herds of 
 sheep, and also the little village of Anton Chico. At 
 the latter place we could procure tortillas and atole ; 
 the former a species of thin cake in universal use 
 throughout Mexico, and the latter a thin mush, made 
 of meal and water or cow's or goat's milk, and also a 
 standing dish of the country. Anything, but more es- 
 pecially any preparation of meal or flour, would have 
 been as welcome to us as manna was to the suffering Is- 
 raelites in the wilderness. 
 
 The next morning, three of the Mexicans were hired 
 to go back to our companions, one of our Mexican ser- 
 vants, Matias, disguised completely, so that he might 
 not be suspected by any Indians they should meet on 
 the route, accompanying them. They were provided 
 with the best and least jaded mules we had, and took 
 with them a package of letters to General McLeod. 
 The purport of those letters was, that we had arrived 
 within two or three days' ride of the settlements, and 
 that the best course the command could pursue would 
 be to march immediately, under direction of the guides, 
 towards San Miguel. The Mexicans, after receiving 
 full instructions from Colonel Cooke and Doctor Bren- 
 ham, set out on their journey across the immense prai- 
 rie, and, as we afterward learned, were less than four 
 days in going a distance which had occupied us thir- 
 teen ! 
 
 Shortly after Matias and his three companions had 
 left us we resumed our march towards San Miguel. 
 Not a morsel of food did we have during the day, and 
 at night we encamped, supperless, on the banks of a
 
 A SCENE OF FEASTING. 265 
 
 small creek emptying into the Rio Mora. On this 
 stream the Mexicans, who had thus far accompanied 
 us, had their places of residence. After giving us in- 
 structions for our route towards San Miguel, they left 
 us on the ensuing morning for their homes in the mount- 
 ains. 
 
 Before we set out, our commander despatched four 
 of our best-mounted men in advance to make arrange- 
 ments for provisions, while the rest of us followed as 
 fast as our weary animals could travel. As we neared 
 the point where we knew that food could be procured 
 in abundance, not only our hunger, but our impatience 
 increased. During the day, I was fortunate enough, in 
 company with the madcap Fitzgerald, to find half a hat- 
 ful of wild parsley, and this we swallowed raw with 
 the greatest avidity. 
 
 About the middle of the afternoon, one of the four 
 who had been sent forward returned with the joyful in- 
 telligence that they had fallen in with a herd of no less 
 than seventeen thousand sheep, and had succeeded in 
 purchasing a sufficiency for the whole command. 
 Again we put spurs to our horses, and a ride of half 
 an hour brought us up with the shepherds and their 
 charge, and to a fine camping-ground on the Rio Gal- 
 linas. 
 
 Here a scene of feasting ensued which beggars de- 
 scription. We had been thirteen days upon the road, 
 with really not provisions enough for three, and now 
 that there was an abundance our starving men at once 
 abandoned themselves to eating perhaps I should rath- 
 er call it gormandizing or- stuffing. No less than twenty 
 large, fat sheep had been purchased and dressed, and 
 every ramrod, as well as every stick that could be 
 found, was soon graced with smoking ribs and shoul- 
 
 VOL. I. Z
 
 266 THOUGHTS OF STARVATION. 
 
 ders, livers and hearts. Many made themselves sick 
 by overeating ; but an attempt to restrain the appetites 
 of half-starved men, except by main force, would be 
 the very extreme of folly. Had the food been anything 
 but mutton, and had we not procured an ample supply 
 of salt from the Mexicans to season it, our men might 
 have died of the surfeit. 
 
 I have never yet seen a treatise or dissertation upon 
 starving to death I can speak feelingly of nearly every 
 stage except the last. For the first two days through 
 which a strong and healthy man is doomed to exist 
 upon nothing, his sufferings are, perhaps, more acute 
 than in the remaining stages he feels an inordinate, 
 unappeasable craving at the stomach, night and day. 
 The mind runs upon beef, bread, and other substantials ; 
 but still, in a great measure, the body retains its strength. 
 On the third and fourth days, but especially on the 
 fourth, this incessant craving gives place to a sinking 
 and weakness of the stomach, accompanied by nausea. 
 The unfortunate sufferer still desires food, but with loss 
 of strength he loses that eager craving which is felt in 
 the earlier stages. Should he chance to obtain a mor- 
 sel or two of food, as was occasionally the case with 
 us, he swallows it with a wolfish avidity ; but five 
 minutes afterward his sufferings are more intense than 
 ever. He feels as if he had swallowed a living lobster, 
 which is clawing and feeding upon the very foundation 
 of his existence. On the fifth day his cheeks suddenly 
 appear hollow and sunken, his body attenuated, his 
 colour an ashy pale, and his eye wild, glassy, cannibal- 
 ish. The different parts of the system now war with 
 each other. The stomach calls upon the legs to go 
 with it in quest of food : the legs, from very weakness, 
 refuse. The sixth day brings with it increased suffer-
 
 SHEPHERD S DOGS. 267 
 
 ing, although the pangs of hunger are lost in an over- 
 powering languor and sickness. The head becomes 
 giddy the ghosts of well-remembered dinners pass in 
 hideous procession through the mind. The seventh 
 day comes, bringing increased lassitude and farther 
 prostration of strength. The arms hang listlessly, the 
 legs drag heavily. The desire for food is still left, to a 
 degree, but it must be brought, not sought. The miser- 
 able remnant of life which still hangs to the sufferer is 
 a burden almost too grievous to be borne ; yet his in- 
 herent love of existence induces a desire still to pre- 
 serve it, if it can be saved without a tax upon bodily 
 exertion. The mind wanders. At one moment he 
 thinks his weary limbs cannot sustain him a mile the 
 next, he is endowed with unnatural strength, and if 
 there be a certainty of relief before him, dashes bravely 
 and strongly onward, wondering whence proceeds this 
 new and sudden impulse. 
 
 Farther than this my experience runneth not. The 
 reader may think I have drawn a fancy sketch that I 
 have coloured the picture too highly : now, while I sin- 
 cerely trust he may never be in a situation to test its 
 truth from actual experience, I would in all sober seri- 
 ousness say to him, that many of the sensations I have 
 just described I have myself experienced, and so did the 
 ninety-and-cight persons who were with me from the 
 time when we first entered the grand prairie until we 
 reached the flock of sheep, to which more pleasing sub- 
 ject I will now return. 
 
 There were very few men with the immense herd, but 
 in their stead were a large number of noble dogs, which 
 appeared to be peculiarly gifted with the faculty of 
 keeping them together. There was no running about, 
 no barking or biting in their system of tactics ; on the
 
 CROOKS AND THEIE USES. 
 
 contrary, they were continually walking up and down, 
 like faithful sentinels, on the outer side of the flock, and 
 should any sheep chance to stray from his fellows, the 
 dog on duty at that particular post would walk gently 
 up, take him carefully by the ear, and lead him back to 
 the fold. Not the least fear did the sheep manifest at 
 the approach of these dogs ; and there was no occasion 
 for it. They appeared to me to be of mongrel breed, 
 somewhat resembling, perhaps, a cross of the New- 
 foundland or St. Bernard species with the larger mas- 
 tiff. They possessed mild, frank, and open countenan- 
 ces, were indefatigable in protecting their charge from 
 wolves, and from what I could learn were extremely 
 sagacious. 
 
 The shepherds had crooks in their hands, instruments 
 I had often read of in poets' lays. The uses to which 
 they were put took away much of the romance I had 
 associated with crooks and gentle shepherds. One of 
 the latter, whenever a sheep has been pointed out in the 
 flock, either to be killed or for sale, thrusts the long, 
 hooked stick immediately under the throat of the victim, 
 and holds it fast until its fellows have been driven past 
 on either side. The sheep is then secured by grappling 
 its wool with the hand an operation, from first to last, 
 partaking more of the practical than of the poetic. 
 
 Now that we had found provisions in plenty, we con- 
 sidered the dangers, the fatigues, the delays, and the 
 vexations of the march as over, and bright were the an- 
 ticipations of the future. Every face was animated 
 with joy, every heart was filled with gladness. How 
 different would have been our feelings had we known 
 the sufferings and privations, the indignities, and the 
 cruel maltreatment we were yet to endure the terrible 
 fate that was awaiting us !
 
 MORE FEASTING. 260 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 Farther Feasting. Party sent to the Settlements. Author accompanies it. 
 Objects of sending the Party ahead. News respecting Howland and his 
 Companions. Encounter with Mexican Muleteers. Their Fright at our 
 Approach. Farther Information in relation to Howland. Manuel sent 
 back. Suspicious Horsemen seen. Arrival at Anton Chico. Consterna- 
 tion of the Inhabitants. Scanty Raiment of the Women. Confidence re- 
 stored. Description of Anton Chico. Scantiness of the Furniture. A 
 Dinner under Cover. Start for San Miguel. Compelled to return. A 
 Night at Anton Chico. Bad Colds, with worse Coughs to match. A sus- 
 picious Visiter. Report that we were to be arrested. Start again from 
 Anton Chico. Valuables concealed. Arrival at Cuesta. Commotion in 
 the Village. Our Party surrounded by Mexican Troops. Apparent Frank- 
 ness of their Leader, Dimasio Salezar. Our Arms taken from us. Con- 
 sultation of Salezar and his Officers. We are formed in Line and search- 
 ed. Mexican Duplicity. A trying Scene. Prompt Interference of Behil 
 in saving our Lives. We are marched towards San Miguel. Kindness of 
 the Women. Don Jesus, and his Attempt to tie us. Description of our 
 Guard. Puertecito. More of the Women. Arrival at San Miguel. 
 Meanness of the Alcalde and Kindness of the Priest. Our first Night in 
 Prison. 
 
 THE morning after our feast we made another hearty 
 meal of broiled mutton, with atole conleche, a mush com- 
 pounded of flour and goats' milk. The Mexican shep- 
 herds, finding the Texans excellent customers, and dis- 
 posed to pay the highest prices for anything in the shape 
 of bread, had sent to their rancho, or farm, during the 
 night, a distance of some twelves miles, and supplied 
 themselves abundantly with flour. 
 
 It was now determined, by our principal officers, to 
 send two men forward to the frontier town of San Mi- 
 guel, for the purpose of conferring with the authorities. 
 W. P. Lewis, captain of the artillery company, and 
 George Van Ness, secretary of the commissioners, were 
 detailed for this service. Both could speak Spanish, 
 Z2
 
 270 PARTY BENT IN ADVANCE. 
 
 and the former enjoyed in every way the confidence of 
 Colonel Cooke, who had often befriended him. In ad- 
 dition to verbal instructions, the young men were in- 
 trusted with letters to the alcalde, or principal officer of 
 San Miguel, and both the instructions and letters set 
 forth that a large trading party of Texans was now ap- 
 proaching, that their intentions were in every way pa- 
 cific, and that the leaders of the advance party were 
 anxious to purchase a large quantity of provisions to be 
 sent back to the main command. Several of General 
 Lamar's proclamations were also given to Mr. Van 
 Ness, to be distributed among the principal citizens, the 
 purport of which was that the expedition was sent for 
 the purpose of trading, and that if the inhabitants of 
 New Mexico were not disposed to join, peacefully, the 
 Texan standard, the expedition was to retire imme- 
 diately. These proclamations were printed in both 
 Spanish and English, and not a doubt existed that the 
 liberal terms offered would be at once acceded to by a 
 population living within the limits of Texas, and who 
 had long been groaning under a misrule the most ty- 
 rannical. 
 
 At the request of Colonel Cooke and Dr. Brenham, 
 two of the principal merchants, Major Howard, and Mr. 
 Fitzgerald, accompanied Lewis and Van Ness, and as I 
 was in great haste to prosecute my journey through 
 Mexico, I gathered all my effects, packed them in leather 
 panniers made for the purpose, placed them upon my 
 mule, and set off in company. This was on the 14th 
 of September, and when I parted with my friends I cer- 
 tainly did not expect to see them for the first time in the 
 April following, at the city of Mexico and in chains. 
 
 The shepherds from whom we had purchased our 
 provisions had informed us that the country was in
 
 ENCOUNTER WITH MULETEERS. 271 
 
 arms against us, that Rowland and his party were pris- 
 oners at Santa Fe, and that an American named Row- 
 land, a merchant at San Miguel, had also been impris- 
 oned and his goods confiscated by order of the governor, 
 Armijo. Yet they told these stories in so many differ- 
 ent ways, and contradicted themselves so often in the 
 telling, that but little confidence could be placed in 
 them. 
 
 After having obtained directions as to our course to- 
 wards the camino real, or principal road, for our camp 
 on the Rio Gallinas was some distance from it, we pro- 
 ceeded on our way, a Mexican servant we had hired 
 at San Antonio, named Manuel,* accompanying us. 
 After reaching the main road, we journeyed briskly for- 
 ward until nearly two o'clock. An abrupt turn now 
 brought us suddenly upon two Mexican muleteers, en- 
 joying a quiet siesta, while their mules were feeding 
 close by them. Our appearance frightened them ex- 
 ceedingly, and as they quickly caught their mules and 
 commenced putting on their packs, their extreme ner- 
 vousness was plainly visible. The colour entirely left 
 the swarthy face of one of these fellows, who, for once, 
 certainly had the appearance of a white man ; and as 
 his trembling hands were flying about from one part of 
 his mule to another, fastening the packs, the movements 
 could not have been more rapid had he been executing 
 the Battle of Prague or one of Strauss's quickest and 
 most difficult waltzes on a piano. At first he could not 
 answer a question coherently; but as he gradually found 
 that our intentions were not to eat him up alive, the col- 
 
 * Manuel was shot, a short time afterward, in mere wantonness, by a 
 drummer in Armijo's redoubtable army. His leading characteristics were 
 great good-nature, extreme idleness, and a proneness to telling the most out- 
 rageous falsehoods the two latter very common failings with his country- 
 men,
 
 372 WORD SENT BACK. 
 
 our returned to his cheeks, his tongue became loosened, 
 and he was able to give us satisfactory answers. 
 
 The fellow said that our approach was well known 
 to the inhabitants, and that the greatest stir and excite- 
 ment existed in consequence of Armijo's informing 
 them that our intentions were to burn, slay, and destroy 
 as we went. He corroborated the report that Row- 
 land* had been arrested for his supposed connexion 
 with the expedition, as well as the story that Rowland, 
 Baker, and Rosenbury were prisoners at Santa Fe, al- 
 though he asserted that they had the liberty of the town. 
 After telling us that the village of Anton Chico was 
 some two or three miles to our left, and a little off the 
 main road to San Miguel, the muleteer departed, appa- 
 rently well satisfied that we had let him off without 
 taking his scalp. 
 
 It was now deemed advisable to send word back to 
 our friends on the Gallinas of what we had heard, and 
 Manuel was accordingly despatched with a note de- 
 tailing everything. Mr. Van Ness also sent back a 
 number of letters of introduction to different individuals, 
 with which he had been furnished, and other papers, 
 fearing that he might be arrested, and that blame might 
 fall upon innocent persons if he should be searched and 
 the letters found upon his person. After this we turn- 
 ed off in the direction of Anton Chico. 
 
 A ride of half an hour brought us to a small and 
 miserable hovel upon the banks of the Rio Pecos. This 
 is a beautiful, swift-running stream of fresh water, rising 
 in the mountains in the vicinity of Santa Fe, and after 
 
 * Thomas Rowland, a brother of John Rowland. The name of the latter 
 had appeared in some of the Texan papers as a commissioner in connexion 
 with Dryden, both of whom were residents of New Mexico. The publica- 
 tion of their names, as commissioners friendly to the interests of the Teiaus, 
 was made withouf their knowledge or consent.
 
 APPROACH TO ANTON CHICO. 273 
 
 fertilizing a succession of narrow but rich valleys, is 
 supposed finally to empty into the Puercos, a tributary 
 of the Rio Grande. We rode up to the low and nar- 
 row door of the hovel, at which stood an old, gray- 
 haired man and two or three women, who were all 
 evidently intimidated at the sight of strangers. As this 
 secluded spot is entirely off the trail of the St. Louis 
 traders, these half-civilized people had probably never 
 before seen other than their own mixed race : as for 
 ourselves, it was the first human habitation having any 
 pretensions to civilization we had seen for months, and 
 was certainly a welcome object to all. We did not 
 dismount ; but, while inquiring for the most direct route 
 to Anton Chico, one of the women brought us some 
 warm tortillas from the interior of the hovel, a little 
 wooden bowl of miel a species of molasses made from 
 the stalk of the common Indian corn and three or four 
 large slices of goats' milk cheese. These, to us delica- 
 cies, they brought without money and without price 
 an earnest of the universal kindness and hospitality of 
 the women of New Mexico. We threw some silver 
 into their hands, wheeled our horses amid a shower of 
 muchas gracias and adios, caballeros,* and left them. 
 
 A ride of another half hour brought us in sight of 
 Anton Chico, a village seated upon a little hill over- 
 looking the Pecos, and probably containing some two 
 or three hundred inhabitants. As we caught a first 
 glimpse of the village, a suspicious, piratical-seeming 
 Mexican, armed with a double-barrelled gun, broad- 
 sword, and lance, and splendidly mounted upon a dash- 
 ing black horse, passed within ten yards of us. Al- 
 though he did not even nod at our approach, he still 
 eyed us closely. Had he not been confident that his 
 
 * Many thanks ; farewell, gentlemen ; God be with you.
 
 274 CONSTERNATION OF THE INHABITANTS. 
 
 horse could easily outrun our jaded animals, I doubt 
 whether he would have come within gunshot of us. At 
 a distance, on the rising slope of a hill, another man, 
 similarly armed and mounted, was seen ; and he, too, 
 was evidently watching our movements. 
 
 As we approached the little village, all was excite- 
 ment and commotion. Women and children were seen 
 running in every direction, climbing the low houses and 
 hiding behind the mud fences and walls. A large horse- 
 mill, at which the inhabitants were grinding corn-stalks 
 for the manufacture of miel, was deserted instantly, and 
 everything plainly denoted that our sudden appearance 
 had created the greatest consternation. We rode stead- 
 ily up to the first door, as though not noticing that we 
 had caused the least alarm, and asked a man of more 
 hardihood than the rest, who had the courage to show 
 his face, although not enough to conceal his trepidation, 
 whether we could purchase some fodder for our ani- 
 mals and bread for ourselves. This question, being in 
 Spanish, was understood by several of the frightened 
 inhabitants, who were peering at us through the chinks 
 of the surrounding doors, and who, finding that we did 
 not ask them to surrender their lives and property at 
 discretion, gradually gained colour and confidence, and 
 began slowly to issue from their hiding-places. In 
 three minutes we were surrounded by half a hundred 
 men, women, and children, some inviting us this way, 
 others that, and all apparently anxious to serve us, 
 either from love of money or love of life, for many, no 
 doubt, were impressed with the idea that we had come 
 on purpose to do murder. The women and girls were 
 very slightly clad, and many of the children were na- 
 ked, while the men were so concealed in their coarse 
 blankets that we really could not tell what their dress
 
 DESCRIPTION OF ANTON CHICO. 275 
 
 might be underneath, or whether they had any. On 
 the faces of many of the women and grown-up girls 
 we noticed large, deep-red spots, apparently marks 
 from their childhood, and disfiguring them greatly. I 
 afterward ascertained that these marks were not natu- 
 ral, as my readers will learn in the progress of the nar- 
 rative. 
 
 The little village of Anton Chico is built on a square, 
 the houses fronting on the inner side, although there are 
 entrances, protected by strong doors, on the outer. 
 The houses are of one story only, built of adobes, a 
 species of large, sun-dried bricks, while the tops are 
 flat. They have neither windows nor floors, and in 
 point of comfort and convenience are only one degree 
 removed from the rudest wigwam of the Indian. In 
 case of attack from the savages, continually hovering 
 and committing depredations upon the frontiers of New 
 Mexico, these little hamlets serve as forts, the Indians 
 rarely pursuing the inhabitants farther than their outer 
 walls, as they carry on their warfare entirely on horse- 
 back. This description of Anton Chico will answer 
 for a majority of the ranches and smaller towns of New 
 Mexico their buildings being all constructed of the 
 same materials and in the same manner. 
 
 We entered the largest house in the place. It had 
 but two rooms, the earthen floor and scanty furni- 
 ture of which gave them a prison-like and desolate ap- 
 pearance. Not a chair or table, knife or fork, did the 
 occupants possess, and we were given to understand 
 that we were in the house of the " first family" of An- 
 ton Chico. We called for something to eat, suggesting 
 a somewhat varied " bill of fare" to be spread before 
 us, for which we manifested our readiness to pay the 
 highest prices : our dinner consisted substantiate and
 
 276 A NIGHT UNDER COVEK. 
 
 extras all enumerated of tortillas, boiled eggs, and 
 miel, the latter somewhat resembling molasses and wa- 
 ter, the water predominating. In the mean while, our 
 animals outside were faring infinitely better than our- 
 selves, for they had an ample supply of corn and fod- 
 der good, legitimate food for them, to which they did 
 most ample justice. 
 
 The sun was about setting by the time we had fin- 
 ished our meal ; yet we determined upon travelling 
 some eight or ten miles farther towards San Miguel that 
 evening. After paying the master of the house the 
 most exorbitant prices for every article we had pro- 
 cured, and after his daughters had presented each of us 
 with a bundle of cigarritos* of their own manufacture, 
 we saddled and mounted our horses, and again proceed- 
 ed for San Miguel. 
 
 Immediately on leaving Anton Chico we were com- 
 pelled to climb a high, steep, and rocky hill or mount- 
 ain, and on reaching its summit, by which time dark- 
 ness had overtaken us, we found ourselves without a 
 road, and completely lost in a grove of stunted pines and 
 cedars. To advance was impossible, and we accord- 
 ingly retraced our steps to the village we had left but 
 a short time previous. Once more we secured our an- 
 imals to a hedge-fence, near the house where we had 
 procured our homely dinner, and after carrying our 
 saddles, bridles, and other equipments to a corner of the 
 room which had been appropriated to our use by the 
 master, we rolled ourselves up in our blankets with the 
 vain hope, as it was the first night we had passed under 
 cover for months, of enjoying a refreshing sleep. But no 
 such good luck was in store for us : there was a close- 
 
 * Small cigars, in New Mexico made of punche, a species of tobacco, 
 covered with corn-husks or shucks.
 
 A SUSPICIOUS VISITEE. 277 
 
 ness in the atmosphere to which we had long been 
 strangers, the room was occupied by some thirty men, 
 women, and children, exclusive of our own party, and 
 when all were provided with sleeping room there was 
 scarcely space enough on the hard earthen floor for a 
 hat. The beds of our neighbours were nothing but 
 sheepskins thrown upon the floor their clothing a blan- 
 ket, which they spread over themselves after lying 
 down. 
 
 Every member of the family, which consisted of a 
 grandfather and grandmother with their children and 
 their children's children, seemed to be badly affected by 
 a cold, or worse for the younger branches were all 
 evidently afflicted with the worst form of the whooping- 
 cough. The grown people appeared to have the most 
 distressing coughs to match their colds, while the chil- 
 dren seemed at times to be in perfect convulsions. Oc- 
 casionally the distressing sounds would all die away ; 
 anon, one of the children would begin coughing fright- 
 fully, another would join in the discordant din, and im- 
 mediately the whole family were in full chorus and 
 thus they barked away the hours. 
 
 Notwithstanding the horrible uproar, however, I final- 
 ly fell into a half sleep. About one o'clock in the morn- 
 ing I was awakened by some disturbance among our 
 animals, and in going out to ascertain the cause, I was 
 asked by a Mexican if I was the captain of the party. 
 As this was about all I could at that time understand, I 
 called Lewis, in the belief that the fellow had something 
 important to communicate, and in this I was not deceiv- 
 ed. He said that we were all to be taken prisoners on 
 the next day by a party who were then mustering in 
 the valley, near Cuesta. He farther stated that the in- 
 habitants of Anton Chico would fall upon us were they 
 
 VOL. I. A A
 
 278 EXCITEMENT AMONG THE INHABITANTS. 
 
 not fearful of our arms. To wind up, he informed us 
 that we should most certainly be shot, and for this pe- 
 culiarly pleasant news he asked us one dollar ! Had 
 his information extended no farther than that we were 
 to be arrested, and had this statement been gratuitous, 
 we might have paid some heed to his story ; as it was, 
 it sounded very much as though he had made up what 
 he considered a dollar's worth of bad tidings, and thought 
 us simple enough to pay him for his trouble. Enter- 
 taining this belief, of course we returned to our blankets 
 without giving the fellow even so much as the sixteenth 
 of what he charged ; yet I could not but think that there 
 might be some truth in his story. 
 
 We were up at an early hour in the morning, and 
 after swallowing a bowl of atole, sweetened with a little 
 miel, once more took the road for San Miguel. Al- 
 though the male part of the inhabitants of the village 
 we had just left had every outward appearance of 
 friendship, there was still a something suspicious in their 
 movements which convinced us that they would have 
 acted otherwise had they not been restrained by fear. 
 To show that they were not all honest, some one of 
 them stole a saddle-blanket from me. It was of little 
 value, however, and I made no mention of the circum- 
 stance to the man in whose house we had passed the 
 night. 
 
 We must have been blind, indeed, to the evidences 
 around us, not to see that the country was in a state of 
 excitement occasioned by the approach of the Texans 
 the suspicious men who had crossed our route the 
 evening before, the earnestness with which they eyed 
 our movements, and then the arrest of Rowland and his 
 companions, all tended to impress us with the belief 
 that we should at least be questioned closely as to our
 
 SECRETING VALUABLES. 279 
 
 business, and the objects which had induced us to enter 
 the country, if not detained, in case Armijo should op- 
 pose the advance of the Texans. But we never thought 
 of being disarmed or imprisoned. I had no inconsider- 
 able sum of money in gold, confined about my body in 
 a linen belt : this I thought it more prudent to conceal 
 under the buttons which graced the sides of my riding 
 pantaloons. There was not room for all the money 
 under the buttons what was left I still retained in the 
 belt, which I now placed in one of my pockets. A valu- 
 able breastpin I concealed under one of my waistband 
 buttons, two or three articles of jewelry less costly I 
 hid under the folds of my shirt bosom, and a gold watch 
 and chain I secreted as safely as was possible. In a 
 country filled, as I knew this to be, with thieves and 
 cut-throats of the worst description, I was anxious to 
 conceal the fact entirely that I had valuable property of 
 any kind with me. 
 
 On reaching the summit of the steep hill overlooking 
 Anton Chico, and emerging from the cedars in which 
 we were lost the evening before, we found a level table- 
 land spread out before us, of rare beauty. In the dis- 
 tance, to the north, that spur of the Rocky Mountains at 
 the foot of which lies the mud-built city of Santa Fe, 
 was now plainly visible. 
 
 We had travelled but two or three miles, after reach- 
 ing the table-land, before a Mexican, who had seen us 
 approaching from a small house some little distance 
 from the roadside, came out to meet us. He gratui- 
 tously informed us, without our asking the question, that 
 the nearest route to San Miguel would take us directly 
 through the little village of Cuesta, and took no incon- 
 siderable pains to give such directions as would pre- 
 clude the possibility of our missing the road. At the
 
 SALEZAR INTRODUCED. 
 
 time, we considered this an act of kindness on his part ; 
 but after circumstances made it quite certain that he 
 had been employed to draw us into a snare already set 
 for our apprehension. 
 
 After thanking the Mexican for his information, we 
 once more proceeded towards San Miguel. About 
 noon we arrived at the brow of a high, steep, and rocky 
 hill, overlooking a narrow and fertile valley through 
 which the Pecos was flowing. Immediately below us 
 was a small collection of houses ; and some distance up 
 the stream, but in plain sight, was the little village of 
 Cuesta. The road leading into the valley ran directly 
 down the rocky sides of the hill, and was so rough and 
 broken that we were compelled to dismount, and lead 
 or drive our animals. As we slowly descended, we 
 could plainly see that our approach had been discover- 
 ed, for there was commotion in all parts of the beautiful 
 valley. Several horsemen were seen emerging from 
 Cuesta, and dashing, at full speed, towards the spot 
 where we must first strike the level land. A point of 
 the hill now concealed them from our sight, and when 
 we finally reached the bottom not a single human being 
 was visible in any direction. 
 
 Van Ness, Lewis, and myself arrived in the valley 
 some ten minutes before Howard and Fitzgerald. 
 While our eyes were turned towards the hillside, wait- 
 ing their approach, we were suddenly surrounded by 
 more than a hundred roughly-dressed but well-mounted 
 soldiers, armed with lances, swords, bows and arrows, 
 and miserable escopetas, or oldfashioned carbines. The 
 leader of this band, whom I will at once introduce as 
 the notorious Dimasio Salezar, instantly rode up, and 
 addressed us as amigos, or friends, with the greatest ap- 
 parent cordiality. He asked us who we were, and
 
 HIS APPARENT FRANKNESS. 2&1 
 
 whether we were not from Texas. Lewis at once in- 
 formed him that we were, and that we had been detach- 
 ed from the main body, then some thirty miles distant 
 on the Gallinas, for the purpose of consulting with the 
 authorities, either at San Miguel or Santa Fe, and that 
 he was anxious to see the governor. To this Salezar 
 bowed, as much as to say that all was right, and we 
 fairly congratulated ourselves upon our reception. 
 There was a frankness, a plausibility about the mis- 
 creant that completely concealed his real intentions. 
 
 On the arrival of Howard and Fitzgerald we re- 
 mounted our horses, and, in company with our new ac- 
 quaintances, rode to the first house that presented itself. 
 Here Salezar called a halt, and after his men had com- 
 pletely surrounded us on every side, as if to hear any 
 conversation that might ensue, but with no other inten- 
 tions, their leader remarked, with the utmost blandness, 
 that we must be aware we could not enter their territo- 
 ry with arms in our hands that it was contrary to the 
 laws and usages of civilized nations and that he hoped 
 we would have no objections to placing our rifles and 
 pistols in his keeping, each labelled so that its owner 
 might know it again, until the business we had with the 
 authorities should be arranged. He appeared deeply to 
 regret that his duty compelled him to make this request 
 of persons evidently gentlemen, and whose objects, he 
 doubted not, were of the most friendly nature ; he had 
 been ordered by his superiors, he said, to request us to 
 deliver up our arms, and sincerely hoped we would ex- 
 cuse him. 
 
 Finding themselves surrounded by a force at least 
 twenty times their number, without the remotest chance 
 to escape by flight even if they felt disposed, and com- 
 pletely imposed upon by the apparent fairness and open- 
 A A2
 
 282 INDUCED TO GIVE UP OUR ARMS. 
 
 ness of Salezar's conduct, my companions gave up their 
 arms. It was now necessary for me to inform Salezar 
 as to my position and intentions. Through Van Ness 
 I told him that I was a citizen of the United States, that 
 I was merely a traveller, on a journey through the in- 
 terior of Mexico, and that I had a passport from the 
 Mexican consul at New-Orleans, which I took from my 
 pocket and handed him. Not a word could the fellow 
 read, but, placing the document in the hands of his sec- 
 ond in command, Don Jesus,* who only wanted natu- 
 ral talents to make him even a greater villain than his 
 master, Salezar told him to examine it. After reading 
 the passport from first to last, the worthy lieutenant 
 and secretary returned it to his captain, who remarked 
 that he presumed all was right, but he was reluctantly 
 compelled to demand my arms and retain them until I 
 had seen the governor. With even more reluctance I 
 gave my rifle and pistols into the possession of the mis- 
 creant, although my companions openly expressed their 
 confidence that they would be returned in good faith. 
 Now that he had our weapons in his power, I thought 
 I could discover a gleam of satisfaction lighting up Sa- 
 lezar's countenance, yet his feelings did not openly be- 
 tray him. It was afterward evident enough that he 
 had used dissimulation, and adopted a courteous tone 
 foreign to his nature even with his myrmidons around 
 him, the cowardly man did not dare peremptorily to 
 demand our rifles and pistols. 
 
 * I have given this name the Spanish spelling, although it is pronounced 
 Hesoos. Among the women of both Mexico and Spain Jesusa is a very com- 
 mon, and considered a very pretty name. By the same rule of pronuncia- 
 tion it is called Hesoosa. As is remarked above, I have given these names, 
 singular and irreverent as they may appear to an American, their Spanish 
 orthography. Were a Mexican to see Hesoos in print he would not know it, 
 even were it his own name.
 
 THE PRISONERS SEARCHED. 283 
 
 Having distributed all our weapons among his prin- 
 cipal men, Salezar next drew his officers into the little 
 house in front of which the scene had taken place. In 
 the mean time we were left outside, under no apparent 
 restraint. I led my horse, the faithful old " Jim the 
 Butcher," as he was called, to an irrigating canal close 
 by, and after allowing him to drink his fill of the cool 
 and excellent water, walked back with him to my pack- 
 mule, opened one of the leathern panniers, and com- 
 menced feeding him on bread which I had purchased 
 that morning at Anton Chico. While at that village, 
 so great was my craving for bread after being without 
 it for months, I had purchased all that was offered for 
 sale, really thinking that I should eat it all, although I 
 had at least a month's supply. A moment's reflec- 
 tion now taught me that I was in a country where 
 I could have it fresh every day, and as my appetite by 
 this time was somewhat appeased, I began to feed my 
 horse upon the stores I had provided for my own use. 
 A crowd of men and half-naked women and girls press- 
 ed around me, apparently astonished that I should give 
 my horse what was really one of their greatest luxu- 
 ries, and it was while I was thus engaged that Salezar 
 and his officers stepped from the house and a second 
 time approached us. 
 
 His first request was that we should form in a line. 
 He then said he was obliged to take from us any pa- 
 pers or articles we might have about our persons such 
 were his orders from the governor. There was even 
 an approach to delicacy in this command, for the scoun- 
 drel had not as yet shown his real colours ; and as we 
 were weaponless, and completely in his power, we sub- 
 mitted to the degrading operation of having our pockets 
 turned inside out and our persons searched by a com-
 
 284 ESCAPE OF THE GOLD. 
 
 mittee of his officers. During this process, very fortu- 
 nately for me, neither my gold pieces nor my other 
 valuables were discovered ; but all my papers, note- 
 book, penknife, with such other articles as I happened 
 to have hi my pockets, were taken from me. At one 
 time, one of the fellows had his hands upon the end of 
 the old linen belt in which I had carried my gold, and 
 which still contained nearly a hundred dollars ; its rag- 
 ged appearance alone saved it, for, thinking it but a 
 worthless piece of worn-out cloth, he permitted me to 
 retain it in my possession. Had Salezar got hold of 
 this belt he would at once have seen the places from 
 which I had but recently cut a number of doubloons, as 
 well as found such of the gold as was still left ; and so 
 great was the scoundrel's avarice that I believe he 
 would have boiled me could he have found no other 
 means to extract my treasures. 
 
 Up to this time, the conduct of Salezar, with the ar- 
 guments he used to sustain him in arresting us and ta- 
 king our papers and other articles, was to a certain de- 
 gree honourable, and it was impossible to suspect the 
 deep treachery and atrocious designs lying under an 
 exterior so apparently fair ; we were now to read a 
 new chapter in his character, one that broke upon us 
 with all that suddenness and startling effect which fic- 
 tion-writers strive to attain in their scenes of most thrill- 
 ing, blood-freezing horror. 
 
 Our papers and effects had been tied hi a handker- 
 chief and removed, and we were waiting the next move- 
 ment of our captors with some little impatience, when 
 Salezar suddenly ordered twelve of his men, all armed 
 with old muskets or carbines, to march up in front of 
 us. The movement appeared strange, more particular- 
 ly when we noticed that the men, now paraded directly
 
 DOOM PRONOUNCED. 285 
 
 before us and within three yards, were pale, and fairly 
 trembling as with fright ; but still we could not suspect 
 the horrible design of their leader. Our suspense was 
 of short duration, however ; for no sooner had he ar- 
 ranged the twelve men in front of us than it became but 
 too evident his intentions were to shoot us on the spot ! 
 Fitzgerald was the first to speak. The brave but ec- 
 centric Irishman had seen much service in Spain, un- 
 derstood not only the language, but the treacherous and 
 suspicious character of the Mexicans, and now fathom- 
 ed the intentions of Salezar. Prefacing his short speech 
 with a strong oath, the excited man, with fists clenched, 
 and a rich brogue, exclaimed, " They're going to shoot 
 us, boys ; let's pitch into 'em arid die in hot blood ; it's 
 much asier !" At the same moment I cast my eyes 
 around, and noticed that the crowd in the rear were 
 falling back in two straight lines, as if to escape the 
 balls in their passage, while the women and girls were 
 wringing their hands and flying from point to point, ap- 
 parently in deep despair. 
 
 That we were to be immediately shot was now ter- 
 ribly manifest. We exchanged glances with each oth- 
 er, and those glances plainly told that each of my com- 
 panions, in obedience to Fitzgerald's emphatic call, was 
 prepared to rush upon the cowardly and faithless mis- 
 creants the moment they were in the act of levelling their 
 guns, to wrest their weapons from them, and then to sell 
 his life at as dear a rate as possible. I will give Lewis 
 vhe credit of acting, in that moment of extreme peril, as 
 became a man. My station happened to be on the ex- 
 treme left of my companions, the position bringing me 
 within a yard of a young Mexican whom I afterward 
 ascertained to be a son of the Alcalde of San Miguel. 
 Tied loosely around his waist was a coarse cotton hand-
 
 286 THE CRISIS. 
 
 kerchief, in which he had stuck two of Colt's i evolving 
 pistols taken from one of my friends. These I instantly 
 determined to seize upon in the melee, while each of my 
 companions had singled out his man to spring upon at 
 the signal. 
 
 A man lives almost an age in a single moment of im- 
 minent danger his thoughts crowd upon each other 
 with such lightning rapidity, that his past life, its prom- 
 ises and hopes, are reviewed at a glance. I thought 
 of home, relations, friends, in the fleeting moment which 
 passed after Salezar had manifested his inhuman inten- 
 tions ; but the thoughts that came uppermost with all of 
 us were of deep regret that we had given up our arms 
 to such cowardly assassins, mingled with the bitter con- 
 sciousness that we were to be shot down like dogs, 
 without a possible chance that our friends could ever 
 know the place or manner of our death. But our 
 thoughts were suddenly checked by a motion from Sa- 
 lezar, as if to give the word of command for our execu- 
 tion. I cast hurried glances at Fitzgerald and my com- 
 rades for a signal to make a dash ; but at this junc- 
 ture an altercation ensued between Dimasio and a Mex- 
 ican named Vigil. Not a word could I understand, but 
 from my companions I learned that the latter was inter- 
 fering for our lives. He contended that we had entered 
 the settlements openly and peacefully, and that we had 
 asked to see and hold converse with Governor Armijo. 
 With him rested the power of life and death, and before 
 him we must be taken. Vigil prevailed over the blood- 
 thirsty captain, and thus were our lives spared ; but in 
 the few moments which had passed since we were first 
 drawn up, we had lived a common lifetime of excite- 
 ment. 
 
 Foiled in his murderous intentions by the prompt aid
 
 FIRST MARCH AS CAPTIVES. 287 
 
 of Don Gregorio Vigil, whom we afterward saw and 
 thanked for his timely interference, Salezar now or- 
 dered Don Jesus to march us immediately to San Mi- 
 guel, where it was thought Armijo had arrived with a 
 large body of troops. With regret we saw our friend 
 Vigil leave us. He was the owner of an estate near 
 San Miguel, a man of good heart and correct princi- 
 ples, and had no little influence with the Mexicans hi 
 that quarter. 
 
 Under an escort of some half a dozen men, and fol- 
 lowed by a rabble of men, women, and children, we 
 now set off on foot for San Miguel, leaving our well- 
 tried animals in the hands of the miscreants who had 
 captured us. Arrived at the little village of Cuesta, we 
 were marched into the house of the alcalde, where, 
 after placing two sentinels over us, Don Jesus left us to 
 make some arrangement for the march. While in this 
 house we were visited by every woman and child in 
 the place, the former giving us bread, cheese, and 
 stewed pumpkins, and appearing deeply to compassion- 
 ate us in our unfortunate condition. They undoubtedly 
 thought we should be executed immediately on meet- 
 ing with the governor, who they took every means to in- 
 form us was a brutal and unfeeling tyrant, delighting in 
 every act of cruelty which might impress his subjects 
 with fear, and ever anxious to show off his great influ- 
 ence and power by acts of the most atrocious persecu- 
 tion. 
 
 In half an hour Don Jesus returned, and ordered us 
 to prepare for instant departure. We were destitute 
 of every article of clothing except what we had on, and 
 as the nights among the mountains were at this season 
 of the year raw and chilly, we asked him to return at 
 least one of our blankets to each of us. Without appa-
 
 888 MORE DEGRADATION. 
 
 rently heeding this request, he turned to one of his men 
 and ordered him to bring three or four lariats, or ropes, 
 with which to tie us, intending, as he said, to take us be- 
 fore the governor in that degrading condition. Our 
 friend Vigil was now out of the way, Salezar had taken 
 the road towards Anton Chico with the main body of 
 his men, and thinking that the heartless villain who now 
 had charge of us might have adopted this plan to place 
 us completely in his power, and then butcher us under 
 orders from his superior, we peremptorily refused to be 
 tied. He still insisted ; but on our informing him that 
 we would walk peaceably to San Miguel, he finally gave 
 up his purpose. Forming us in front of the house, he 
 then placed two of the guard in advance with bows 
 and arrows and heavy clubs, two more in the rear 
 armed in the same manner, and all of them barefoot, 
 while he himself mounted a mule, and took his place at 
 the side of our party. He had an American rifle rest- 
 ing before him on the pommel of his saddle, and draw- 
 ing an old rusty sword, he started us off, simply inform- 
 ing us that the first one who left his place would be re- 
 warded by the loss of his head. 
 
 There was something supremely ridiculous, not only 
 in his threat, but in the appearance of our guard, and 
 gloomy as our situation was, we could not help laugh- 
 ing. We could easily have fallen upon the miserable 
 apologies for men who were guarding us and disarmed 
 them in a twinkling ; but we had no means of getting 
 clear, and rejoining our men afterward ; and as recap- 
 ture would have been death, thoughts of an escape were 
 not entertained. 
 
 A rapid march of an hour, along the valley of the 
 Pecos, brought us to the little village of Puertecito, the 
 residence of both Salezar and the fellow who now had
 
 PAIN, FATIGUE, AND HUNGER. 289 
 
 charge of us. Here we were halted for a short time, 
 to give the inhabitants an opportunity of gazing at five 
 unfortunate prisoners, and to convince them of the great 
 prowess of the redoubtable Dimasio Salezar, and his 
 equally valiant second in command, who had boldly con- 
 ceived and successfully carried into execution a daring 
 plan for our capture. That the women all pitied us 
 was evident; for the commiserating exclamation of 
 pobrecitos !* as they gave us bread, cheese, and such 
 food as they had at hand, fell from their tongues in soft- 
 est and most feeling tones. They knew their husbands 
 and brothers, and knowing them, felt that little of mercy 
 or kindness could we expect at their hands. 
 
 A short distance above Puertecito we were obliged 
 to ford the Rio Pecos. The water was not more than 
 two feet in depth ; but as my lame and weak ankle had 
 now begun to swell from the active and unwonted ex- 
 ercise, I was deterred from taking off my boots by a 
 fear that I could not get them on again. To soak my 
 feet thoroughly, and to continue the march in this dis- 
 agreeable plight, was therefore my only alternative. 
 
 The distance from Cuesta to San Miguel was four- 
 teen or fifteen miles ; and it was nearly sundown before 
 the spire of the little church at the latter appeared in 
 sight. Weary and faint from the unusual exercise, and 
 extremely unwell from the great change which had re- 
 cently taken place in our diet, we were escorted through 
 the principal square or plaza, and taken to a little hole 
 which was dignified with the name of a room. A crowd 
 followed us to our prison doors, and continued to gaze 
 at us until the last minute. 
 
 * Poor fellows ! I believe, is a literal translation, although it means much 
 more. Nothing can be more touchingly sweet than the pronunciation of 
 this word by a Spanish or Mexican woman. The tones come fresh and 
 warm from the heart when an object worthy of compassion presents itself. 
 
 VOL. I. B B
 
 290 FIRST NIGHT OF CAPTIVITY, 
 
 The alcalde, a gruff, bad-countenanced man, sent us 
 in a miserable meal of tortillas and weak mutton broth, 
 while the priest of the place, more liberal, sent his ser 
 vant with a generous bowl of hot coffee for each of us. 
 Our scanty supper over, our thoughts were next turned 
 towards sleep ; but the earthen floor of our quarters 
 was without a single blanket to relieve its hardness, and 
 the chilling blast that came down from the adjoining 
 mountains as the shades of evening drew nigh, told us, 
 more plainly than words, that we need expect neither 
 comfort nor sleep that night. We sent word to the al- 
 calde of our unfortunate plight : he answered our peti- 
 tion by saying that he could do nothing for us. A kind- 
 hearted woman living close by, however, sent us a buf- 
 falo skin and a single blanket, and another blanket I pur- 
 chased of a man in the crowd, for which I gave him an 
 English sovereign. With these we made up a bed for 
 five persons. I suffered more than any of my compan- 
 ions, the bread I had eaten giving me a severe attack 
 of colic ; and I crawled from the ground in the morn- 
 ing weak and unrefreshed. 
 
 Thus did we spend our first night in prison.
 
 MARCH RESUMED. 291 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 Ordered to march towards Santa Fe. Departure from San Miguel. Gloomy 
 Anticipations. Our Guard increased. A Present from a Woman. Meet 
 with a Party of Mexican Troops. Brutality of their Leader. Lewis, Van 
 Ness, and Fitzgerald tied with Cords. Description of Don Jesus. Large 
 Bodies of Troops passed. Their miserable Appointments. Our first In- 
 terview with Governor Armijo. His Reception. Conduct of Lewis. 
 We are ordered back to San Miguel. Armijo's last Command. Carlos 
 seen. First Appearance upon a Donkey. Antics of the Animal. A heavy 
 night Shower. Once more at San Miguel. Barbarous Execution of one 
 of our Comrades. We are ordered before the Governor. An exciting 
 Trial. Rowland condemned to Die. Cruel Mode of Execution. Noble 
 Conduct of Howland. Kindness of a young Priest. Reflections upon our 
 Situation. Departure of Mexican Troops for Anton Chico. News of Col- 
 onel Cooke and his Men. Plans of Armijo. Particulars of the Capture 
 of Howland. Description of Manuel Pino. News of the Capture of our 
 Friends at Anton Chico. Great Rejoicings at San Miguel. 
 
 WE had no sooner risen than Don Jesus told us that 
 the governor had not yet arrived, and that he should 
 march with us directly towards Santa Fe. distant some 
 sixty miles, in the hope of meeting him upon the road. 
 Before starting, we sent out and purchased an entire 
 sheep, an officious fellow, named Tomas Bustamente, 
 whose countenance appeared to indicate that he had 
 some honesty, acting as our agent in the transaction. 
 A part of this sheep Tomas cooked for our breakfast, 
 the priest again sending us a large pitcher of coffee. 
 
 It was nearly nine o'clock before everything was in 
 readiness for our departure. Although we were anxious 
 to see the governor and learn the worst, it may be ima- 
 gined that our anticipations were not of a very pleasant 
 nature. Had we been prisoners in the hands of any 
 other people under the sun our feelings would have
 
 292 ESCAPE HOPELESS. 
 
 been far different ; but we were now in the power of men 
 who possessed all the vices of savage life without one 
 of the virtues that civilization teaches. We felt that al- 
 though our lives had been spared the previous day, it 
 was but a reprieve ; that we were still in the hands of 
 a semi-civilized enemy cruel, relentless, and treacher- 
 ous who looked upon us as heretics, and the common 
 enemies of their religion and race ; and we had fearful 
 reason to believe that the appearance of Armijo would 
 be the signal for our immediate execution. Surely, the 
 emotions of that hour, when the future was looming up 
 so close and dark upon us, are not to be appreciated by 
 the reader. 
 
 Our guard, which on the previous day had only con- 
 sisted of four, was now increased to eight men, four 
 members of the country militia, armed with bows and 
 arrows, and mounted upon asses, being stationed, two 
 on either side, while Don Jesus on his mule hovered 
 around, as if to guard the weaker points in the order of 
 march. This addition to our escort had been provided 
 by the old alcalde of San Miguel, with the view, proba- 
 bly, of rendering our escape a matter of positive impos- 
 sibility ; yet, enfeebled as we were from our many pri- 
 vations, and the long, weary pilgrimage across the prai- 
 ries, we still felt certain that we could, at any time, 
 capture Don Jesus and all his men with the greatest 
 ease. A determined rush, accompanied by a true An- 
 glo-Saxon shout of defiance, would have brought every 
 one of the cowardly wretches to his knees begging for 
 mercy ; yet we should not have been able successfully 
 to run the gauntlet of well-mounted men stationed at all 
 the passes between us and our friends. 
 
 After parading us in front of our miserable quarters, 
 and arranging his guard around us with much pomp
 
 KINDNESS OF THE WOMEN. 293 
 
 and show, Don Jesus ordered us to march. The plaza 
 was again crowded with the women, children, and old 
 men of San Miguel as we hurriedly marched through 
 it, many of the boys following and gazing at us until we 
 reached the extremities of the town. We had not trav- 
 elled more than a couple of miles before a tolerably 
 well-dressed woman came running towards us from a 
 small house, bringing a bottle of the country whiskey, 
 and saying that it was for our use. This we drank 
 upon the spot, and as we thanked the good-hearted 
 creature for her kindness she appeared to feel deeply 
 for us in our misfortunes. Even after we had been hur- 
 ried off by our inhuman guard, the woman still remain- 
 ed to gaze upon us, looking her last at the pobrecitos, 
 whom she really thought the sun would not set upon 
 alive. The almost universal brutality and cold-heart- 
 edness of the men of New Mexico are in strange con- 
 trast with the kind dispositions and tender sympathies 
 exhibited by all classes of the women. 
 
 A brisk walk of another mile brought us in contact 
 with a party of some two hundred half-dressed and mis- 
 erably-armed Mexicans, on their march towards San 
 Miguel. Their commander was a brutal, piratical-vis- 
 aged scoundrel, who, after ordering Don Jesus to halt, 
 cursed us with every opprobrious epithet, said we should 
 have been shot when first taken, and then asked why 
 we were not tied. While Don Jesus was stammering 
 forth some excuse, the fellow ordered his trumpeter to 
 sound an advance, and in three minutes a turn of the 
 road concealed this extremely valiant party and their 
 doughty captain from our sight. Before they depart- 
 ed, however, we learned that they were to act against 
 Colonel Cooke, Captain Sutton, and their men, and we 
 were also informed that Armijo had left Santa Fe in the 
 B B 2
 
 294 THE CAPTIVES BOUND. 
 
 morning with several hundred men, and that we should 
 meet him before nightfall. 
 
 The miscreant who had charge of us now stated 
 that his imperative duty made it necessary to tie us. 
 With a mock sensibility he pretended that it was 
 against his wish to do this, but as a superior officer had 
 ordered him he must comply, simply for form's sake. 
 After a little hesitation on the part of Van Ness and 
 Fitzgerald they consented to be tied, and a lariat was 
 accordingly fastened around their wrists, while the 
 other end was held by one of the guard. Lewis was 
 also tied and led along like a dog ; but as Major How- 
 ard was suffering from an old wound received in an 
 Indian fight, and as I was also lame, and, as Don Jesus 
 well knew, had slept none the night before, he allowed 
 us to continue the march without being confined. He 
 ordered us, however, whenever we met with any of 
 the different parties of troops we were now constantly 
 passing, to fold our hands upon our breasts as a token 
 of submission ! Never shall I forget this Don Jesus. 
 He had a coarse, dark, hang-dog face, a black but vi- 
 cious eye, a head which I am phrenologist enough to 
 know was as destitute of the organs of benevolence 
 and the better attributes of our nature as outer dark- 
 ness is of light, and if he had a heart at all, it legiti- 
 mately belonged to a hyena or a prairie wolf. 
 
 He pushed, or rather drove us rapidly onward until 
 past the middle of the afternoon, during which time we 
 must have passed nearly a thousand troops, the larger 
 portion of them armed with bows and arrows or old 
 and worn-out muskets. The sun had hidden himself 
 behind a range of mountains which divides the valley 
 of the Pecos at this point from that of the Rio Grande, 
 and we were approaching an old and ruined mission,
 
 GOVERNOR ARMIJO. 295 
 
 which, in former times, had served the double purpose 
 of a church and fortress, when suddenly the sharp and 
 discordant blast of a trumpet announced the approach 
 of General Manuel Armijo, governor of New Mexico. 
 An abrupt turn in the ro-.J. nad at first concealed his 
 ragged but numerous cavalcade from our sight, but a 
 few steps brought us in full view of all the pomp, cir- 
 cumstance and chivalry, bows and arrows, sycophants 
 and rascals, with which the governor is usually sur- 
 rounded. When I say that our guard had been enter- 
 taining us during the day with stories of Armijo's cru- 
 elty and barbarity, and that they freely gave it as their 
 opinion that we should be ordered to execution on sight, 
 I need not add that the present moment was exciting 
 to a painful degree. 
 
 The governor himself, a fine, portly man, was mount- 
 ed on a mule of immense size, and gayly as well as 
 richly caparisoned. Don Jesus had formed us into 
 line by the roadside, there to await the advance of Ar- 
 mijo. The moment the quick eye of the latter caught 
 a glance of us he rode directly up to the spot where 
 we were standing, and, without dismounting, addressed 
 us with no little politeness, shook each of us by the 
 hand with much apparent cordiality, called us amigos, 
 or friends, and after saying that he had heard of our 
 capture, asked us who we were. Lewis immediately 
 answered and here the spirit of the craven caitiff first 
 manifested itself that we were merchants from the 
 United States. Van Ness interrupted him at once by 
 saying that, with the exception of myself, we were all 
 Texans ; but, without heeding him, Armijo grasped 
 Lewis by the collar of his dragoon jacket, dragged 
 him up alongside of his mule, and, pointing to the but-
 
 296 THE AUTHOR'S PASSPORT. 
 
 tons, upon which were a single star and the word " Tex- 
 as," he sternly said, 
 
 "What does this mean? I can read Texas!" at 
 the same time pointing to the latter word and pronoun- 
 cing it emphatically. Lewis quailed under his iron 
 grasp, but without heeding him the governor continu- 
 ed, " You need not think to deceive me : no merchant 
 from the United States ever travels with a Texan mili- 
 tary jacket." 
 
 After asking several questions, to which Lewis re- 
 turned stammering answers, Armijo finally spoke of 
 our main party, and inquired its number and the inten- 
 tions of the commissioners. He was answered by Van 
 Ness and Howard that it was a mercantile expedition 
 from Texas, and that the intentions of the leaders were 
 pacific. Mr. Van Ness then told him that I did not be- 
 long to the party any farther than that I accompanied it 
 for the protection it afforded against Indians, and added 
 that I had a passport from the Mexican consul in New- 
 Orleans. This passport, with all my papers, was in the 
 hands of Don Jesus, who immediately gave it to Armi- 
 jo. After reading it aloud in presence of all of us, he 
 gave it back into the hands of the captain of our guard, 
 at the same time remarking that the passport was a 
 good one, but that, as I was found in company with the 
 enemies of New Mexico, he should detain me until he 
 could learn farther of my intentions. My companions 
 had invariably assured me that I should be released im- 
 mediately on having an interview with the governor ; 
 but by this time I had seen enough of the people of 
 New Mexico, and heard enough of Armijo, to convince 
 me that I need not look for justice at his hands, and 
 was therefore but little disappointed at the disposition 
 he made of my case. After what we had heard of the
 
 ARMIJo's ACCOUNT OF HIMSELF. 297 
 
 fellow, and his cruel barbarities, we felt in a measure 
 satisfied on ascertaining that we were not to be shot 
 upon the spot, and without a hearing. 
 
 After disposing of my case and passport thus sum- 
 marily, Armijo gratuitously informed us that he was an 
 honourable man and not an assassin, and, what was 
 more, that he was a great warrior. Whatever doubts 
 we might have entertained on this point, we did not 
 see fit to express any at the time, and the fellow may 
 have taken our silence for a tacit acknowledgment of 
 our belief in his magnanimity and bravery. He next 
 asked us which of our little party best understood the 
 Spanish language, as he wanted one of us to accom- 
 pany him as interpreter. At this question Lewis ea- 
 gerly pressed forward, and after asserting that he could 
 speak the language more fluently than any of his com- 
 panions, at once proffered his services. He really was 
 more fluent with Spanish than any of us, having resided 
 many years in Chihuahua and other parts of Mexico. 
 Armijo immediately ordered a mule for him to ride, and 
 after his hands were untied he mounted the animal and 
 rode in among his new associates. That up to this 
 time he had acted in perfect good faith towards Colonel 
 Cooke and the expedition, I have not the least doubt ; 
 but he now saw that he was completely in the power 
 of men whom he understood thoroughly, and from 
 whom he well knew he could expect neither mercy nor 
 justice ; he saw, too, that by betraying his former asso- 
 ciates, those who had often befriended him, he might 
 gain life and liberty, and for this he at once sundered 
 all the holy ties of religion, honour, companionship, and 
 patriotism. Not one of us suspected him at the time of 
 other than honourable intentions, but after circumstan- 
 ces rendered his base treachery unquestionable.
 
 298 A SANGUINARY ORDER. 
 
 Armijo now turned to Don Jesus, and in a pompous 
 and bombastic tone ordered him to guard us' safely 
 back to San Miguel that night, as he wished to hold 
 a conversation with us early on the ensuing morning. 
 
 " But they have already walked ten leagues to-day, 
 your excellency, and are hardly able to walk all the 
 way back to-night,"* was the answer of the fellow, 
 who was thinking of his own personal convenience and 
 comfort all the while. 
 
 " They are able to walk ten leagues more," retorted 
 Armijo, with a stately wave of his hand. " The Tex- 
 ans are active and untiring people I know them," he 
 continued ; " if one of them pretends to be sick or tired 
 on the road, shoot him down and bring me his ears ! 
 Go !" 
 
 " Yes, your excellency," was the obsequious answer 
 of the cringing Don Jesus, and with a flourish of trum- 
 pets the great General Armijo and his motley army 
 now left us. As they filed by, in helter-skelter order, 
 we noticed our former guide, the runaway Carlos, in 
 the crowd. He was seated upon a mule, his arms and 
 breast bandaged, and we afterward learned that he had 
 been stabbed and severely wounded by a nephew of 
 Armijo, for his supposed connexion with the Texan ex- 
 pedition. 
 
 The sun had ceased to tinge the highest tops of the 
 eastern mountains ere the last stragglers and camp-fol- 
 lowers of Armijo had trotted past us, and we were ex- 
 tremely tired and faint after our weary march of nearly 
 thirty miles ; yet this fellow, who in one breath told us 
 he was " an honourable man," almost in the next order- 
 ed us back over the same rough and broken road with- 
 
 * The Spanish league lacks but a small fraction of being equal to three 
 English miles.
 
 FREAKS OF A DONKEY. 29d 
 
 oul food or sleep ! The penalty of failure was death, 
 and to be certain that his orders had been strictly ful- 
 filled, or perhaps to gratify his curiosity, he wished to 
 see the ears of such of us as might fall by the roadside, 
 unable to endure the excessive fatigue. 
 
 As if fearful of not having an opportunity to fulfil Ar- 
 mijo's last command, Don Jesus now rushed us back 
 over the same ground at a more rapid pace than ever. 
 I was not only weary and unwell by this time, but my 
 lame ankle was so swollen and stiff, from the unusual 
 exercise, that I could hardly drag it along ; yet, deter- 
 mined that the honourable governor should see some- 
 thing of me in the morning besides my ears, I hired the 
 privilege, at an exorbitant rate, of a seat on the donkey 
 of one of the Mexicans, the ow r ner to ride behind me. 
 The poor, scraggy animal could not be more than eight 
 hands high, and appeared hardly able to bear up under 
 one full-grown man ; yet the Mexican told me he was 
 strong enough to carry two, and hurriedly helped me 
 to mount a miserable apology for a saddle strapped 
 loosely to the back of the donkey. Possessing all the 
 perverseness and obstinacy, and up to all the tricks of 
 his race, he still allowed a perfect stranger, not only to 
 him but his kind, to mount in quietness. Not so when 
 his owner undertook the task of bestriding him ; for no 
 sooner had he placed his hands on the donkey's hip 
 joints, in the act of springing to his perch behind me, 
 than the animal kicked violently up landing him sev- 
 eral yards in the rear, flat upon his back, while the 
 same movement hoisted me skyward in a line as 
 straight as a rocket. Although extremely poor in flesh, 
 I still had specific gravity enough to bring me down ; 
 and while in the act of descending directly upon the 
 haunches of the ass, another kick-up gave me another
 
 300 RETURN TO SAN MIGUEL. 
 
 hoist in the air. I fortunately made the ground in my 
 second descent, without sustaining the least personal 
 injury. Gloomy as were our prospects, my compan- 
 ions could not resist the temptation to laugh heartily 
 at my ludicrous exhibition of ground and lofty tumbling, 
 and I even took a part myself in the merry outbreak 
 when I ascertained that I was unhurt. 
 
 The road between Santa Fe and San Miguel is rough 
 and uneven, running over hills, and crossing deep gul- 
 lies.* Bad as it was, however, and faint and tired as 
 we were, we reached a small prairie within six miles 
 of the latter place about midnight. The heavens now 
 became suddenly overcast, and a dark thunder cloud 
 soon rendered it impossible for even our guard to see 
 the way any farther. Just as the shower commenced 
 falling a halt was called, and lying upon the ground 
 without blankets, and in the midst of a tremendous rain, 
 we slept sound till morning. 
 
 A walk, or rather a hobble of two hours, for we were 
 so stiff and foot-sore that we could not walk, brought us 
 once more to the plaza or public square of San Miguel. 
 The place was now literally filled with armed men a 
 few regular troops being stationed immediately about 
 the person of Armijo, while more than nine tenths of the 
 so-called soldiers were miserably deficient in every 
 military appointment. A sergeant's guard of the regu- 
 lar troops was immediately detailed to take charge of 
 our little party, and after bidding adieu to Don Jesus, 
 as we hoped forever, we were marched to a small room 
 adjoining the soldiers' quartel. This room fronted on 
 the plaza, and had a small window looking out in that 
 
 * This road, I believe, was made at the expense of the St. Louis traders, 
 and is the only part of the long route between Independence and Santa Fe 
 upon which any work has been done or money expended.
 
 AN EXECUTION. 301 
 
 direction ; but the only entrance was from a door on 
 the side. Sentinels were immediately placed at the lit- 
 tle window and door, leading us to suppose that this was 
 to be our regular prison-house ; but we had scarcely 
 been there ten minutes before a young priest entered 
 at the door, and said that one of our party was to be 
 immediately shot ! While gazing at each other with 
 looks of eager inquiry, wondering that one was to be 
 shot and not all, and while each one of us was earnest- 
 ly and painfully speculating on the question which of 
 his fellows Armijo had singled out for a victim, the 
 young priest raised himself on tiptoe, and looking over 
 our heads, pointed through the windows of our close 
 and narrow prison. We hurriedly turned our eyes in 
 that direction, and were shocked at seeing one of our 
 men, his hands tied behind his back, while a bandage 
 covered his eyes, led across the plaza by a small guard 
 of soldiers. Who the man was we could not ascertain 
 at the time, but that he was one of the Texans was evi- 
 dent enough from his dress. The priest said that he 
 had first been taken prisoner, that while attempting to 
 escape he had been retaken, and was now to suffer 
 death. A horrible death it was, too ! His cowardly 
 executioners led him to a house near the same corner 
 of the square we were in, not twenty yards from us, and 
 after heartlessly pushing him upon his knees, with his 
 head against the wall, six of the guard stepped back 
 about three paces, and at the order of the corporal shot 
 the poor fellow in the lack ! Even at that distance the 
 executioners but half did their barbarous work ; for the 
 man was only wounded, and lay writhing upon the 
 ground in great agony. The corporal stepped up, and 
 with a pistol ended his sufferings by shooting him 
 through the heart. So close was the pistol that the 
 VOL. I. C c
 
 302 CAPTIVES INSPECTED. 
 
 man's shirt was set on fire, and continued to burn until 
 it was extinguished by his blood ! 
 
 Scarcely was this horrible scene over before we were 
 taken by a strong guard from our prison. Without even 
 being able to divine their intentions, we were marched 
 directly by our late companion, conducted through two 
 or three streets, and finally paraded in front of a small 
 and gloomy hovel having a single window. The move- 
 ment was conducted silently, and there was a mysteri- 
 ous solemnity about it which, added to the late barba- 
 rous murder of one of our party, overwhelmed us with 
 sensations of doubt and alarm, even more insupportable 
 than would have been an order for our instant execution. 
 
 Immediately in front of the little window, and at a 
 distance of twelve steps, we were next formed in line 
 by our guard, and ordered not to leave our position or 
 move in the least. All was mystery, uncertainty, anx- 
 iety. Soon Armijo, dressed in a blue military jacket, 
 with a sword at his side, was seen to approach the win- 
 dow. One by one he pointed us out to some person be- 
 hind him, of whom we could not obtain even a glimpse, 
 and as he pointed he asked the concealed individual 
 who and what the person was to whom his finger was 
 now directed, his name, business, and the relation in 
 which he stood with the Texan expedition. These 
 questions were asked in a loud tone of voice, and were 
 distinctly heard by all of us, but the answers did not 
 reach our ears, although we listened with an earnest- 
 ness and intensity that were almost painful. It seemed 
 to us that we were undergoing an arbitrary trial for our 
 lives a trial in which we could have no friendly coun- 
 sel, could bring no witnesses, offer no proofs or argu- 
 ments to the bloodthirsty and lawless wretch who alone 
 constituted the tribunal. But this torturing suspense
 
 A RESPITE. 303 
 
 was of short duration, for, after having questioned his 
 concealed agent as to each of us separately, Armijo is- 
 sued from the little house on an opposite side from the 
 window, and with a pompous dignity of manner slowly 
 approached the spot where we were standing, awaiting, 
 with deep anxiety, a sentence from which we knew 
 there was no appeal. 
 
 " Gentlemen," commenced the governor, stopping in 
 front of us, " gentlemen, you told me the truth yester- 
 day Don Samuel has corroborated your statements 
 I save your lives. I have ordered Don Samuel to be 
 shot he will be shot in five minutes. He ran away 
 from Santa Fe, and, in attempting to reach Colonel 
 Cooke's party, has been retaken. You now see the pen- 
 alty of trying to escape. His fate will be yours if you 
 attempt it. Sergeant of the guard, conduct these gen- 
 tlemen back to prison." This was delivered in a loud, 
 military voice. 
 
 While congratulating ourselves upon this most unex- 
 pected termination of a trial of such harrowing interest, 
 and wondering who the Don Samuel was whose testi- 
 mony had thus evidently saved our lives, our old friend 
 and guide, Howland, was led forth from the little room. 
 The truth now flashed upon us we knew that his 
 name was Samuel, that he had been acquainted in for- 
 mer years with Armijo, and that the Mexicans seldom 
 use other than the Christian appellative when address- 
 ing or speaking of a man. Howland's hands were tied 
 closely behind him, and as he approached us we could 
 plainly see that his left ear and cheek had been cut en- 
 tirely off, and that his left arm was also much hacked, 
 apparently by a sword. The guard conducted their 
 doomed prisoner directly by us on the left, and when 
 within three yards of us the appearance of his scarred
 
 304 ANOTHER MURDEROUS EXECUTION. 
 
 cheek was ghastly ; but as he turned his head to speak, 
 a placid smile, as of heroic resignation to his fate, lit 
 up the other side of his face, forming a contrast almost 
 unearthly. We eagerly stepped forward to address 
 him, but the miscreants who had charge of us pushed 
 us back with their muskets, refusing even the small 
 boon of exchanging a few w r ords with an old compan- 
 ion now about to suffer an ignominious death. How- 
 land saw and felt the movement on our part. He turn- 
 ed upon us another look, a look full of brave resolution 
 as well as resignation, and, in a low but distinct tone, 
 uttered, " Good-by, boys ; I've got to suffer. You 
 must " But the rest of the sentence died on his lips, 
 for he was now some yards in the rear of us, and out of 
 hearing. 
 
 The guard who had charge of us now wheeled us 
 round, and marched us in the same route taken by our 
 unfortunate guide, and within ten yards of him. A 
 more gloomy procession cannot be imagined. With 
 Howland in advance, we were now conducted to the 
 plaza, and halted close by the spot where, in plain 
 sight, lay the body of our recently-murdered compan- 
 ion. A bandage was placed over the eyes of the new 
 victim, but not until he had seen the corpse of his dead 
 comrade. Worlds would we have given could we be 
 permitted to exchange one word with our unoffending 
 friend to receive his last, dying request yet even this 
 poor privilege was denied us. After the cords which 
 confined his arms had been tightened, and the bandage 
 pulled down so as to conceal the greater part of his 
 face, Howland was again ordered to march. With a 
 firm, undaunted step he walked up to the place of exe- 
 cution, and there, by the side of his companion, was 
 compelled to fall upon his knees with his face towards
 
 DEATH OP HOWLAJfD. 305 
 
 the wall. Six of the guard then stepped back a yard 
 or two, took deliberate aim at his back, and before the 
 report of their muskets died away poor Rowland was 
 in eternity ! Thus fell as noble, as generous, and as 
 brave a man as ever walked the earth. He was a na- 
 tive of New-Bedford, Massachusetts, of a good family, 
 and by his gentlemanly and affable deportment had en- 
 deared himself to every member of the expedition. In 
 a daring attempt to escape, and reach Colonel Cooke's 
 party, in order to give him important information, he 
 had been retaken after a desperate struggle, and the 
 life he could not lose in the heat of that struggle was 
 taken from him in this base and cowardly manner. 
 
 Our feelings, while looking upon this brutal tragedy, 
 it is impossible to describe. A fearful, a terrible thing 
 it is to see a man shot one who deserves his fate 
 even when he is allowed to stand bravely up and die 
 facing his executioners : for much as every human be- 
 ing may dread the king of terrors, there is hardly one 
 so base as not to wish, when death makes his last inex- 
 orable call, to meet him face to face. How much more 
 terrible, then, to see a brave and honourable being like 
 Rowland, full of manhood and capable of no base or 
 craven deed, led out and shot in a manner so cowardly, 
 and to see this, too, without the power to act in his behalf! 
 Tumultuous feelings did the scene call up feelings of 
 indignation and deep hatred for his worse than savage 
 murderers ; and for him, between whom and us the 
 common ties of friendship had become strengthened 
 and drawn into more than fraternal closeness by our 
 long intercourse in the wilderness, were mixed emo- 
 tions of regret, pity, love, and admiration at a fate so 
 horrible so heroically met. 
 
 The barbarous execution was no sooner over than 
 C c 2
 
 306 A FRIENDLY PRIEST. 
 
 we were conducted to the portales in front of the sol- 
 diers' quartel, and again placed under a strong guard of 
 the regular troops. The sergeant appeared to have 
 more kindness of heart than his fellows, as he gave one 
 of my companions a blanket to spread upon the hard 
 earthen floor which was chosen as our sleeping-place 
 for the ensuing night. The young priest, who had 
 called upon us in the morning, shortly made us a second 
 visit, telling us that we need be under no alarm, as the 
 governor had determined upon saving our lives unless 
 we made an attempt to escape. There appeared to be 
 an exceeding degree of delicacy, not only in the visits, 
 but in the conversation of this young man, which deno- 
 ted that he possessed finer feelings than either his mas- 
 ter or the herd by whom he was surrounded. He was 
 evidently a man of education, acquainted with the usa- 
 ges of the world ; and his actions showed that he was 
 anxious to impress us with a belief in our own personal 
 security while scenes of the most sanguinary nature 
 were going on around us. Often, on that eventful day, 
 did recollections of the French Revolution pass through 
 my mind. Armijo I could not look upon but as a sec- 
 ond Robespierre, only requiring a field of equal extent 
 to make him equally an assassin, a murderer, a blood- 
 thirsty tyrant. His power, I knew, had been purchased 
 by blood I saw that it was sustained by blood. Hu- 
 man life he regarded not, so that his base ends were at- 
 tained ; and he would not shrink from sacrificing one 
 man on the altar of his sanguinary ambition, if by so 
 doing he could impress another with a due sense of his 
 boundless authority and power to do whatever might 
 seem meet unto him. The young priest was well aware 
 that we knew the man Armijo, and hence his benevo- 
 lent desire to quiet any apprehensions that might arise
 
 A VALIANT GOVERNOR. 307 
 
 of our personal safety. It was this feeling which brought 
 him to our prison before the first of our comrades was 
 killed the same humane motives actuated him in call- 
 ing upon us after the murder of Rowland. But to re- 
 turn to my narrative. 
 
 From the time of our first arrival in San Miguel that 
 morning, to the death of Howland, the plaza had been 
 nearly filled with armed men. Two pieces of artillery, 
 badly mounted and every way ineffective, were stand- 
 ing immediately in front of our quarters, in the porch. 
 These cannon were drawn by oxen, the animals yoked 
 and hitched, but lying down after a hard march from 
 Santa Fe and quietly ruminating within ten yards of us. 
 Immediately after the execution of Howland, detach- 
 ment after detachment of mounted men left the plaza 
 for Anton Chico, where we now learned that Captain 
 Sutton and Colonel Cooke, with their men, were en- 
 camped. Next the two pieces of cannon were dragged 
 off in the same direction, surrounded and followed by 
 a motley collection of Indians and badly-armed, half- 
 naked, wretched Mexicans, whom Armijo dignified 
 with the title of rural militia. By the middle of the 
 day the town was completely deserted, except by the 
 women and children and some two hundred of the 
 chosen troops and friends of the governor ; for, great 
 warrior as he was, he contrived to keep the prudent dis- 
 tance of some thirty miles between himself and the Tex- 
 ans so long as they had arms in their hands. The 
 plans of the very valiant and most puissant Armijo 
 were laid with consummate skill so far as his own per- 
 sonal safety and that of his property were concerned. 
 He had now surrounded Colonel Cooke with at least 
 a thousand of his men, while there were but ninety- 
 four Texans in all. In case the latter defeated the
 
 308 STORY OP HOWLAND. 
 
 Mexicans and Armijo trembled and feared lest they 
 should his plan was to retreat to his residence at Al- 
 buquerque as fast as picked horses would carry him, 
 and then, after gathering all his money and valuables, 
 make his escape into the interior of Mexico. With 
 these intentions he remained behind at San Miguel, and 
 there anxiously awaited the news from the little frontier 
 town of Anton Chico. 
 
 The command of the troops, acting against Colonel 
 Cooke, Armijo had assigned to his few personal friends 
 toadies and sycophants whom he always has about 
 him, and for whose adherence he pays a good round 
 sum. He well knew that nine tenths of his people inly 
 hated and despised him, and were also inclined for an 
 immediate annexation to Texas ; he knew, too, that they 
 feared him, and that nothing but their extreme ignorance 
 and timidity had prevented them, years before, from 
 throwing off his yoke. So long as they were com- 
 manded by officers in his pay he felt confident that he 
 could make a show if not a fight with them, and he felt 
 equally confident that if parade, fair promises, and 
 treachery could induce the Texans to lay down their 
 arms, he could still retain his ascendency. Such was 
 his policy, such were his plans, and fate decreed that 
 they should prove successful. 
 
 From some of the soldiers of our guard we gathered, 
 during the day, full particulars of Rowland and his unfor- 
 tunate companions. They had reached the settlements 
 some three weeks before us, when Armijo, suspecting 
 their intentions and the object of their mission, had them 
 arrested at San Miguel and sent to Santa Fe. From 
 this place they effected their escape three or four days 
 before we were arrested. Until their recapture they 
 had been secreted in the mountains between the two
 
 A NOBLE SPIRIT. 309 
 
 places, travelling by night only, and using every exer- 
 tion to reach Colonel Cooke, of whose approach they 
 had heard from their guard at Santa Fe. 
 
 Armijo immediately sent out large parties to retake 
 them, being extremely anxious that they should not 
 reach the Texans and give information of his plans. 
 On the morning of September the 17th they were fallen 
 in with on the side of a mountain, near San Miguel, by 
 a company of Mexicans ten times their number. Al- 
 though armed only with pistols and swords, which they 
 had taken from their guard when they effected their 
 escape, they still made a brave and vigorous resistance. 
 Rosenbury was killed on the spot, and Rowland and 
 Baker were not taken until severely wounded and weak 
 from loss of blood. The latter was the man we saw 
 shot a short time before Rowland, the bandage over his 
 face preventing us from recognising him. He could 
 not speak Spanish, and the tyrant Armijo ordered him 
 to death without even saying a word to him. How- 
 land, on the contrary, was well known in New Mexico, 
 having lived in Santa Fe several years before. The 
 governor offered him his life and liberty the same 
 terms Lewis accepted if he would betray his compan- 
 ions and assist him in capturing them. The brave and 
 noble-spirited man rejected the offer with scorn, and 
 notwithstanding the disgraceful mode of his execution, 
 his death was an honourable one. Grecian or Roman 
 history, or the heroic deeds of later days, can hardly 
 furnish a parallel to that of Rowland to that of one 
 who fearlessly met the most terrible death conceivable 
 rather than betray his friends. 
 
 The bodies of the murdered men were allowed to re- 
 main where they had fallen until near night, a large 
 pack of dogs congregating around them, licking their
 
 310 A MEXICAN BRAGGART. 
 
 blood and tearing their clothes. They were then taken 
 to a prairie near the town, denied a burial, and were 
 finally devoured by wolves ! 
 
 Several Mexican officers called at our quarters during 
 this eventful afternoon, among them a pursy, bloated, 
 sallow-faced wretch, named Manuel Pino. He rode a 
 beautiful and spirited black horse, of which he was so 
 proud that he was continually galloping and fretting him 
 about the square, and spurring him to the execution of 
 such curvettings as would most induce a rattling of his 
 sword, spurs, holsters, and the other jingling appointments 
 of a Mexican horseman. Ever and anon he would dash 
 up to our quarters, throw himself heavily from his truly 
 gallant animal, and recount some exploit which he vain- 
 ly hoped might excite our admiration. He said that he 
 had not only begged, but prayed Armijo to allow him to 
 lead a charge against our friends at Anton Chico, but 
 that the governor would not consent that so brave a 
 man should leave his side for a moment. In short, this 
 fellow took such particular pains, on all occasions, to 
 impress us with a belief in his prowess and bravery, 
 that we finally became thoroughly convinced of his being 
 an arrant coward ; and after circumstances fully justi- 
 fied our opinions. 
 
 Not only Pino, but the other Mexican officers attach- 
 ed to the personal staff of Armijo, informed us that a 
 nephew of the latter, in company with Lewis, had de- 
 parted for Anton Chico with the hope of bringing the 
 Texans to terms. They also said that our friends were 
 surrounded by more than a thousand of the best troops 
 in New Mexico, and that re-enforcements were hourly 
 reaching the spot ; and they even went so far as to as- 
 sure us that, if they did not surrender quietly, our own 
 lives would be sacrificed bv a lawless and unrestraina-
 
 MORE TEXAN CAPTIVES. 311 
 
 ble mob anything but a consoling assurance to men 
 who were perfectly confident that our friends would 
 never surrender without a desperate struggle. That 
 they did not come to the country to make war upon the 
 inhabitants we well knew ; we were equally well con- 
 vinced that such men as Colonel Cooke, Dr. Brenham, 
 Captain Sutton, and the brave spirits under their com- 
 mand, would not tamely submit to be deprived of their 
 arms and made prisoners, intrenched, as we had been 
 informed they were, in a ravine, and so fortified that 
 they could easily defeat ten or even twenty times their 
 number of such cowardly and badly-appointed men as 
 they would have to contend with. 
 
 The hours flew swiftly by, couriers constantly depart- 
 ing to, and arriving from, Anton Chico. At one time it 
 was represented to us that a dreadful battle was raging 
 then, that the parties would come to terms. At sun- 
 down, a Mexican came riding into the square with the 
 intelligence that the Texans had all surrendered. In- 
 stantly the air was filled with vivas, and in ten minutes 
 we received a visit from the governor's secretary and 
 the brute Manuel Pino, corroborating the news. They 
 said the terms were an unconditional surrender ; but 
 this we could not believe. Even at this time it was 
 suggested by one of our little party that if Colonel 
 Cooke had surrendered without a terrible fight, treach- 
 ery had done the work, and that Lewis was the instru- 
 ment ; but such was our confidence in the man that a 
 majority of us could not believe he had turned traitor. 
 
 It was but too apparent, however, that our comrades 
 had been taken. Nothing was heard, in any quarter, 
 but rejoicings and congratulation. Shouts of " Long 
 live the Mexican Republic '." " Long live the brave Gen- 
 eral Armijo !" " Long live the laws !" and " Death to the
 
 312 GREAT REJOICINGS. 
 
 Texans!" were heard on every side, and these were 
 followed by discharges of musketry, ringing of bells, 
 blowing of trumpets, and such music as may be produ- 
 ced by cracked mandolins and rickety fiddles when 
 execrably played upon. A Te Deum was in the mean 
 while sung in the church, a short distance from the plaza, 
 and the guardian saint of the place, San Miguel, with 
 all his finery, feathers, and wings, was dragged from 
 his resting-place to take part in the show. Fandangoes 
 were got up in the different houses on the plaza, a 
 drunken poet was staggering about singing his own 
 hastily-made-up verses in praise of Armijo, taking his 
 pay, probably, in liquor all went perfectly mad, and 
 spent the night in revel, riot, and rejoicing. A grim, 
 swarthy sentinel, with a face hideously ugly, was sta- 
 tioned directly in front of the little porch where we had 
 cast our weary limbs. As if to add to the general din, 
 he howled forth the dismal "Centinelaalerta /"* every 
 ten minutes during the night, and his cry appeared .to be 
 the signal for some six or eight others, stationed in dif- 
 ferent parts of the plaza, to join in the doleful chorus. 
 This startling watchword I thought the most discordant, 
 grating, and hideous sound that had ever greeted my 
 ears. Drawled out to a distressing length by a voice 
 hoarse, cracked, and scarcely human, and then caught 
 up in different parts of the square by men who appear- 
 ed emulous of making a still more doleful and wo-be- 
 gone noise, and I, all the while, ignorant of its import 
 what with all these hellish orgies and cabalistic sounds 
 in our ears, and with all the startling and horrible inci- 
 dents of the day in our minds, it may be imagined that 
 we slept but little that night. 
 
 The shouting, firing, ringing, dancing and carousing 
 
 * Sentinel, be on the look-out, or alert.
 
 CHANGE OF QUARTERS. 313 
 
 were kept up until morning ; and why ? Because some 
 fifteen hundred or two thousand cowardly wretches had 
 succeeded in capturing ninety-four half-starved Texans 
 not by the intervention of battle or military strategy, 
 but by the blackest piece of treachery to be found on 
 record. 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 New Quarters. Our Party taken before Armijo. Reception by that Func- 
 tionary. His bombastic Account of the Soldiers of New Mexico. Again 
 taken to Prison. Appearance of Armijo. Description of our Prison. 
 Overrun with Chinches, The Family next Door. The Zapatero's Wife. 
 A singular Custom. The Senora Francisca abandons her Paint. Dress 
 of the Females of New Mexico. Its Scantiness. Freaks of Fashion. 
 Description of the Reboso and Mantilla. Beauties of the Women of Mex- 
 ico. Kindness of the Girls of San Miguel. Colonel Cooke's Men march- 
 ed through San Miguel. Lieutenant Lubbock's Account of the Surren- 
 der. Agency of Lewis in the Affair. Change of Quarters. Prison Occu- 
 pations. Manner of passing our Time. Chances of an Escape canvassed. 
 Arrival of Caravans from the United States. We are not permitted 
 Conversation with our Countrymen. A seasonable Supply of Luxuries. 
 The Author assured of his personal Release. A Mexican Loafer. Tomas 
 Bustamente Employ him as our principal Agent. Thomas Rowland 
 His Release from Arrest. Bustamente sent on a Mission to Lewis. Its 
 unsuccessful Result. Thoughts upon Pipes. Bustamente's Trickery 
 found out. Confidence lost in the Man. Come to the Conclusion that 
 the Mexicans will bear watching. 
 
 ON the morning which followed the night described 
 in the last chapter, we were taken to new quarters in 
 another part of the town, where a small room was pro- 
 vided for our prison. We had barely time to examine 
 our new quarters before the governor sent a guard to 
 escort us to his lodgings at the priest's house. On be- 
 ing brought before him we found the great man sur- 
 rounded by his principal officers, both military and 
 
 VOL. I. D D
 
 314 INTERVIEW WITH ARMIJO. 
 
 civil, and from their obsequious manner it was evident 
 enough that Armijo's power was supreme. 
 
 The governor did not rise as we entered his room, 
 but still waved his hand with great natural dignity and 
 politeness, and bade us good-morning with a frankness 
 and cordiality which he well knew how to assume. 
 Remarking that he was aware, from our appearance 
 and Howland's declarations, of our being caballeros, or 
 gentlemen, in our own country, he ordered his officers 
 to make room for us on the different boxes and trunks 
 scattered about the room. He then asked several ques- 
 tions in relation to General McLcod and his party, said 
 that he was going immediately with all his force to 
 meet him, and that if the Texans resisted every one of 
 them would be killed. He next spoke of the strength 
 of New Mexico, its great resources, the prowess and 
 daring bravery of himself and the resistless soldiers 
 under his command, and drew such a ludicrous picture, 
 and relieved it with such a tissue of bombastic fanfaro- 
 nade, that we could hardly maintain our gravity. If 
 we had not met and seen the brave soldiers of whom 
 he spoke, his words might have gone for something ; 
 but the whole of them had passed in review before us, 
 and 
 
 " Such a tattered host of mounted scarecrows, 
 So bare, so withered, famished in the march, 
 That their executors, the greedy crows, 
 Flew hovering o'er their heads, impatient for 
 Their lean inheritance !" 
 
 In short, such a motley, half-naked, ill-appointed set of 
 ragamuffins constituted his army, that we could with 
 difficulty believe that the great Armijo was not quizzing 
 us in his grandiloquent description. 
 
 After a little commonplace conversation, Armijo 
 next gave special directions to the old alcalde of San
 
 ARMIJO'S COSTUME. 315 
 
 Miguel that we should be well treated, that all our 
 wants should be provided for, and that no one could 
 insult or impose upon us without incurring his most 
 fierce and vindictive wrath. He then dismissed us, re- 
 marking, as we were leaving the room, that if one of 
 us attempted to escape during his absence life should 
 be the forfeit. 
 
 We were then marched back to our new quarters, 
 and a very small guard placed over us a guard we 
 could at any time have seized upon, tied neck and heels, 
 and locked in our own prison. Scarcely had we re- 
 turned to our carcel before a blast from one of Armijo's 
 trumpets announced his immediate departure ; and ere 
 the sounds had died away, the great man and his fol- 
 lowers dashed past us, evidently going some hundred 
 yards out of his way for no other purpose than to give 
 us one more opportunity of seeing him. His appear- 
 ance was certainly imposing, even unto magnificence. 
 On this occasion he was mounted on a richly-caparison- 
 ed mule, of immense size and of a beautiful dun colour. 
 In stature Armijo is over six feet, stout and well built, 
 and with an air decidedly military. Over his uniform 
 he now wore a poncho of the finest blue broadcloth, in- 
 wrought with various devices in gold and silver, and 
 through the hole in the centre peered the head to which 
 the inhabitants of New Mexico are compelled to bow 
 in fear and much trembling. Armijo is certainly one 
 of the best-appearing men I met in the country, and 
 were he not such a cowardly braggart, and so utterly 
 destitute of all moral principle, is not wanting in the 
 other qualities of a good governor. 
 
 On his departure, San Miguel, which ordinarily con- 
 tained some two or three hundred able-bodied men, 
 was left with scarcely a dozen, he having dragged
 
 316 A WHIMSICAL ORNAMENT. 
 
 away with him every one old and active enough to 
 carry a lance or bow and arrow, in the direction of 
 the great prairie, to meet the force under General 
 McLeod. 
 
 The room assigned us as a prison was immediately 
 adjoining the little adobe church of San Miguel, with its 
 small belfry and clear-sounding bell, and its rude turret 
 surmounted by a large wooden cross. Had this room 
 not been completely overrun with chinches, which, 
 when night came, issued from every crack and crevice 
 in the walls in myriads, it would have been very com- 
 fortable. Our guard was soon on the most sociable 
 terms with us, allowing us to sit in front of our door, 
 and kindly doing any little errand which might add to 
 our limited stock of comforts. In the room adjoining 
 ours, the two doors not being four yards apart, lived a 
 Mexican family, the head of which was a zapatero, or 
 shoemaker. His wife was a young, chatty, well-form- 
 ed woman, and had not one side of her face been mark- 
 ed by a large, ugly red spot, would have been exceed- 
 ingly comely. Two thirds, at least, of the women we 
 had seen were more or less disfigured by these deep- 
 red marks ; and we could not but think that nature, in 
 this mountain climate, had dealt unkindly with them. 
 Not for one moment did it occur to us that these red 
 blotches, which frequently gave the countenance an ex- 
 pression absolutely hideous, had been placed there by 
 other than the partial fingers of nature. I knew that 
 fancy frequently led the votaries of fashion to strange 
 and most unseemly lengths, but I could not believe that 
 in her wildest caprice she had instituted such revolting 
 adornments for " the human face divine." 
 
 On the following morning, it appeared to us that the 
 mark on the face of our female neighbour had changed
 
 BEAUTY UNADORNED. 317 
 
 its position. Not a little did we marvel at this ; for all 
 were sure the spot had been on the opposite cheek the 
 day before, and still we could not believe that it was 
 other than a mark she had carried from her birth. 
 Early on the third morning she appeared before us with 
 a face not only fair, but very pretty not a spot or 
 blemish to be discovered. At first we did not recog- 
 nise her, but on inquiring, we found that all the spots 
 which had so much disfigured her had been placed 
 there by herself, the juice of some red berry being used 
 for the purpose. We told the Senora Francisca that 
 she looked much better plain, and without those extra- 
 neous ornaments, and after this she beautified herself no 
 more. The custom is universal among the females of 
 New Mexico, and when there is no weed or berry that 
 furnishes a deep-red tint, they use vermilion, or even a 
 reddish clay. How they can imagine that these vile 
 marks improve their appearance it is difficult to con- 
 ceive, and the fact can only be accounted for upon the 
 principle that there is no accounting for taste. The 
 belles of New Mexico appear to be ignorant of the 
 aphorism that " beauty when unadorned is adorned the 
 most." 
 
 The dress worn by the females of Northern Mexico, 
 in fact all over the country, is a cotton or linen che- 
 mise and a blue or red short woollen petticoat fre- 
 quently, among the more wealthy, the latter is made of 
 a gaudy, figured merino, imported expressly for the 
 purpose. These simple articles of raiment are usually 
 made with no little degree of neatness, the chemise, in par- 
 ticular, being in many cases elaborately worked with 
 flowers and different conceits, while the edges are taste- 
 fully decorated with ruffles or laces, if it lies within the 
 power of the wearer to procure them. On first entering 
 D D 2
 
 318 SCANTY WARDROBES. 
 
 the country, the Anglo-Saxon traveller, who has been 
 used to see the gentler sex of his native land in more full, 
 and perhaps I should say more becoming costume, feels 
 not a little astonished at the Eve-like and scanty garments 
 of the females he meets ; he thinks that they are but 
 half dressed, and wonders how they can have the in- 
 delicacy, or, as he would deem it at home, brazen im- 
 pudence, to appear before him in dishabille so immodest. 
 But he soon learns that it is the custom and fashion of 
 the country that, to use a common Yankee expres- 
 sion, the women " don't know any better." He soon 
 looks, with an eye of some leniency, at such little defi- 
 ciencies of dress as the absence of a gown, and is not 
 long in coming to the honest conclusion, as the eye be- 
 comes more weaned from the fastidiousness of early 
 habit and association, that a pretty girl is quite as pretty 
 without as with that garment. By-and-by, he is even 
 led to think that the dress of the women, among whom 
 fate, business, or a desire to see the world may have 
 thrown him, is really graceful, easy ay, becoming: 
 he next wonders how the females of his native land can 
 press and confine, can twist and contort themselves 
 out of all proportion, causing the most gracefully-cur- 
 ving lines of beauty to become straight and rigid, the 
 exquisite undulations of the natural form to become flat 
 or angular, or conical, or jutting, and all in homage to 
 a fickle and capricious goddess a heathen goddess, 
 whose worshippers are Christians ! He looks around 
 him, he compares, he deliberates the result is altogeth- 
 er in favour of his new-found friends. 
 
 Among the Mexican women, young and old, corsets 
 are unknown, and, by a majority of them, probably un- 
 heard of. I travelled nearly seven hundred miles 
 through the country, without seeing a single gown all
 
 PROGRESS OF FASHION. 319 
 
 the females were dressed in the same style, wrth the 
 same abandon. The consequence any one may read- 
 ily imagine : the forms of the gentler sex obtain a round- 
 ness, a fulness, which the divinity of tight lacing never 
 allows her votaries. The Mexican belles certainly have 
 studied, too, their personal comfort in the costume they 
 have adopted, and it is impossible to see the prettier of 
 the dark-eyed senoras of the northern departments with- 
 out acknowledging that their personal appearance and 
 attractions are materially enhanced by the neglige style. 
 Moore's beautiful lines to Nora Creina appear to apply 
 especially to the Mexican girls, for their dress certainly 
 leaves 
 
 " ^ every beauty free 
 To sink or swell as Heaven pleases." 
 
 But by all this the reader must not understand that the 
 traveller sees no full-dressed ladies in Mexico. In the 
 great city of the Montezumas, in fact in all the larger 
 towns where foreigners and French milliners have set- 
 tled, he sees them habited after the fashion of his own 
 land, although he cannot but notice that a large portion 
 of those so attired feel constrained and ill at ease under 
 the infliction. I have seen, in one of the larger cities, a 
 lady with the body and sleeves of a fashionable frock 
 hanging dangling at her back, without even attempting 
 to conceal what many would call a gross departure 
 from all rules and reasons.* 
 
 * Since my return to the United States I have been informed, by traders 
 who have visited Santa Fe, that many of the women of that place have adopt- 
 ed the tunica, or gown. The fashion was first introduced, as is almost inva- 
 riably the case, by a French woman. Her name was Madame Tule, or Tou- 
 louse, or something of the kind. How she happened to stray so far from 
 comfort and civilization as Santa Fe, or by what road she reached it, is a 
 matter of which I arn ignorant ; I only know that she visited the place, open- 
 ed a monte, or gambling-house, and set the fashion of dress to the belles. 
 The traders, as a matter of policy, favoured the introduction, as it afforded 
 them a more ready market for the sale of silks, satins, and calicoes. By 
 nearly the same means the fashion has spread as far as Chihuahua.
 
 320 THE MANTILLA AND REBOSO. 
 
 Bonnets are never worn, either by rich or poor, high 
 or low ; but in their stead the mantilla and reboso, more 
 especially the latter, are in general use among all class- 
 es. The latter is a species of long, narrow scarf, made 
 of cotton, and in a majority of cases figured with two 
 colours only, blue and white. These indispensable 
 articles in the toilet of the Mexican female serve not 
 only the uses of parasol and bonnet, but also of shawl, 
 veil, and workbag. The manner of wearing them is 
 extremely graceful sometimes upon the head, at oth- 
 ers over the shoulders, and again round the waist, with 
 the ends hanging across the arms ; in the streets they 
 are worn almost invariably over the head, and so arch- 
 ly and coquettishly does the fair Mexican draw the re- 
 boso around her face, that the inquisitive beholder is 
 frequently repaid with no other than the sight of a dark 
 and lustrous eye peering out from amid its folds. 
 
 The ends of the reboso are frequently used as an 
 apron, to carry any little articles that cannot be held in 
 the hands, and seldom is a female seen without one of 
 them, from the extreme north of Mexico to its southern- 
 most boundaries. From childhood it is worn, and long 
 habit has so accustomed them to its use that it is not 
 laid aside when engaged in common household labour. 
 
 It is really surprising with what facility the Mexican 
 females perform their household duties encumbered by 
 this garment. An American lady would as easily man- 
 age her affairs with her hands tied behind her back as 
 w r ith the reboso about her, yet it is never in the way of 
 the Mexican. The mantilla resembles it in many re- 
 spects, but is made of finer material, rather wider, and 
 worn more among the fashionables in the larger cities. 
 An extremely beautiful ornament it is. too, when worn 
 with that peculiar grace which no other than the lady 
 of Spanish origin can affect.
 
 HOSPITABLE VISITERS. 321 
 
 The more striking beauties of the women of Northern 
 Mexico are their small feet, finely-turned ankles, well- 
 developed busts, small and classically formed hands, 
 dark and lustrous eyes, teeth of beautiful shape and daz- 
 zling whiteness, and hair of that rich and jetty blackness 
 peculiar to the Creole girls of Louisiana, and some of 
 the West India islands. Generally their complexions 
 are far from good, the mixture of Spanish and Indian 
 blood giving a sallow, clayish hue to their skin ; neither 
 are their features comely, although frequently a face may 
 be met with which might serve as a perfect model of 
 beauty. But then they are joyous, sociable, kind-hearted 
 creatures almost universally, liberal to a fault, easy and 
 naturally graceful in their manners, and really appear 
 to have more understanding than the men. Had we 
 fallen into the hands of the women instead of the men, 
 our treatment would have been far different while in 
 New Mexico. 
 
 During our tedious and annoying confinement at 
 San Miguel, we were visited by every girl in the 
 town, and from the ranches in the vicinity. Each time 
 they brought us some little delicacy to eat ; and if ever 
 men came near being killed with kindness, we were 
 the victims. One party would arrive with a dish of 
 chile guisado, an olla podrida, or hash of stewed mut- 
 ton, strongly seasoned with red pepper, and really ex- 
 cellent when well made. Scarcely would this party 
 leave us before another would come in, bringing atole 
 and miel ; others milk, eggs, tortillas, or bread. Of all 
 these different dishes we were obliged to partake, or 
 wound the feelings of our kind-hearted friends ; and the 
 consequence was, that we were frequently compelled 
 to swallow a dozen meals a day for the first week or 
 two of our imprisonment. That we did fair justice to
 
 322 SURRENDER OP THE TEXANS. 
 
 the hospitality of the women, I am frank to confess, for 
 our previous long starvation had given us most excel- 
 lent and not easily appeased appetites ; but if " enough 
 is as good as a feast" and an old adage says that it is 
 I can argue from experience that too much is worse 
 even than a brief famine, when personal comfort is ta- 
 ken into consideration. No slight can be greater than 
 the rejection of any eatable proffered by a Mexican 
 girl; and so numerously attended were our levees at 
 San Miguel, that we were frequently employed half 
 the day in paying due honour to our presentations. 
 
 It was on the afternoon of the 17th of September 
 that Colonel Cooke and his men surrendered themselves 
 at Anton Chico. On the morning of the 20th these be- 
 trayed and unfortunate men passed through the edge 
 of San Miguel on their long and gloomy march towards 
 the city of Mexico. We were not permitted to see 
 them, but were informed by the women who visited us, 
 that they had been stripped of nearly everything, and 
 were badly treated in every way. 
 
 At this point of my narrative for I cannot find a 
 more fitting place I will give my readers an account 
 of the agency Lewis had in inducing our companions 
 to surrender their arms at Anton Chico. To show 
 him in his true colours, I will make a few extracts from 
 a statement of the particulars of the surrender made by 
 Lieutenant Lubbock, one of Captain Sutton's officers. 
 Lieutenant L. was taken to the city of Mexico with the 
 rest of the party, but while confined in the convent of 
 Santiago, made a daring escape by leaping from a bal- 
 cony in the second story, and afterward succeeded in 
 reaching Texas in safety. 
 
 It seems that the day after the small party which I ac- 
 companied, consisting of Howard, Fitzgerald, Van Ness,
 
 LIEUTENANT LUBBOCK's ACCOUNT. 323 
 
 and Lewis, left the large sheepfold on the Gallinas, the 
 main body of the Texans took up the line of march, and 
 travelled as far as Anton Chico. They did not enter 
 the town, but encamped on the edge of a ravine within 
 some two hundred yards, a strong position in case of 
 attack, with an abundance of water running almost at 
 the very feet of the men. Three or four of the Tex- 
 ans, who crossed the river, and entered the small town 
 to purchase provisions, were arrested by Dimasio Sale- 
 zar, who was then encamped at the place with several 
 hundred men. Salezar immediately sent one of them 
 back to Colonel Cooke and Dr. Brenham, with a request 
 that they would come over to the village and hold a con- 
 sultation with him. These officers very properly sent 
 back word to him that if he wished to see them he must 
 come to their camp. He came over, and the conference 
 resulted in the liberation of the men. Colonel Cooke 
 then asked Salezar what had become of Van Ness, 
 Lewis, Howard, Fitzgerald, and myself. He answered 
 that he had met us, was satisfied with the objects of the 
 mission as we had explained them, had treated us as 
 friends, and sent us on to the governor. That night, 
 according to Lieutenant L., Salezar was re-enforced by 
 a hundred and fifty men, but the rest of his account of 
 the surrender I will give in his own words. 
 
 " About ten o'clock on the morning of the 17th of Sep- 
 tember, it was determined to take up the line of march, 
 when a message was received from Captain Salezar, 
 stating that Governor Armijo would arrive in a few 
 hours, and that, as an evidence of his friendly disposi- 
 tion, he would cross the river that intervened between 
 our encampments, and encamp near us. As he took 
 up the line of march, our men were formed to receive 
 him en militaire, and in a proper manner. He march-
 
 324 TREACHKRY OF LEWIS. 
 
 ed, however, entirely around our line, and took his po- 
 sition within two hundred yards of us, having received 
 farther re-enforcements, and now numbering about four 
 hundred men. We were then dismissed, but with or- 
 ders to be ready to seize our arms at a moment's no- 
 tice. In about fifteen minutes we perceived a party of 
 about a hundred and fifty or two hundred men, advan- 
 cing to our right and rear. This gave cause for a sus- 
 picion of danger, and Colonel Cooke immediately or- 
 dered Captain Sutton to form the men for action. In 
 five minutes battle to the death would have been com- 
 menced but some one exclaimed that Captain Lewis 
 was at the head of the party. The order was there- 
 fore given to stand at ease, the advancing party uni- 
 ting, in the mean while, with the party in our front. We 
 then perceived Captain Lewis advancing towards us, 
 with another, whom we afterward ascertained to be the 
 nephew of the governor. Lewis told us that the peo- 
 ple were exasperated at our coming, and were in arms ; 
 that, in addition to the six hundred troops before us, he 
 himself had seen four thousand of the best-equipped 
 men he had ever met with ; that they were on the 
 march, and would be on the ground in a few hours. 
 He farther stated that five thousand men were march- 
 ing from Chihuahua, and were expected daily, but that 
 the governor had commissioned him to offer, if we 
 would give up our arms, permission to come in and 
 trade, and that at the end of eight days they would be 
 returned to us, together with our recruited horses. He 
 farther stated that he knew this to be the custom of the 
 St. Louis traders visiting Santa Fe, that no possible 
 harm would result from such a course, and for the truth 
 of these statements Lewis pledged his honour. It was 
 observed, during the conference, that Lewis, in his Ian-
 
 FALSEHOOD AND VILLANY. 325 
 
 guage, disconnected himself from us, using continually 
 the pronoun you instead of we. This aroused the sus- 
 picions of one of the officers, who proposed that we 
 should return to our companions as we came ; and if 
 we could not do better, walk, and live upon the horses 
 we had left. The nephew of the governor replied that 
 such a course would never do ; that his uncle knew 
 Americans were gentlemen, and that such inhumanity 
 could not be permitted towards them ; and again urged 
 us to accept the proposition, and comply with the re- 
 quisitions made upon all traders visiting Santa Fe. 
 They then started for their camp. While our officers 
 were in consultation, one of them reminded Colonel 
 Cooke of the peculiarity he had observed in Lewis's 
 conversation, and told him that his suspicions were 
 aroused, for the very countenance of the man forebo- 
 ded evil. Colonel Cooke went after Lewis, and held a 
 private conversation with him. On returning, he said 
 that the officer must be wrong, for Lewis had pledged 
 to him his masonic faith for the correctness of his state- 
 ments. That day our arms and equipments were taken 
 from us ! 
 
 " We were among strangers destitute of the very 
 necessaries of life broken down physically, and well- 
 nigh mentally two hundred and fifty miles from our 
 companions, and there were no means on the route of 
 supporting nature in an effort to reach them ; added to 
 all these, we had the assurance of one of our compan- 
 ions, who had ever been considered a man of honour 
 we had his plighted faith, that we were among friends, 
 and would be treated accordingly. Could we, would 
 any one have done otherwise than capitulate upon the 
 terms offered ? It is painful to denounce one with whom 
 I have associated as a brother officer and fellow-soldier, 
 
 VOL. I. E E
 
 326 TREATMENT OP THE PRISONERS. 
 
 upon a dangerous expedition, one whom I have looked 
 upon as a man, as a Texan ; it is painful, I say, to de- 
 nounce any one thus situated as a villain and traitor ; but 
 the facts are too conclusive William P. Lewis betrayed 
 his associates to a cruel and inhuman enemy. He has 
 the mark upon his forehead ; and will yet be found, rec- 
 ognised, and punished as the Judas of the nineteenth 
 century. 
 
 " Just before dark we were ordered to form, and then 
 Mexican faith began to show itself. While we were 
 forming, however, the treachery of Lewis becoming 
 apparent, Colonel Cooke called to him, and in the hear- 
 ing of his betrayed, as well as of his newly -found associ- 
 ates, denounced him in language which, if he had any 
 soul at all, must have reached it. He reminded him of 
 his pledged honour, which had been forgotten of his 
 plighted masonic faith, which had been broken and 
 declared that but for him his former associates would 
 have died in the ditch. 
 
 " After we were formed, our knives, watches, and in- 
 deed every article of personal property were taken from 
 us, together with all our baggage except one blanket 
 each. We were then formed double file, marched 
 nearer the rancho, or town, and then encamped for the 
 night with our guards all around us." 
 
 Such is Lieutenant Lubbock's account of the agency 
 of Lewis in inducing the surrender of his former friends 
 and companions. The same officer then goes on to 
 speak of the arrival of Armijo on the day after the sur- 
 render, saying that the petty tyrant was much exasper- 
 ated on seeing that the betrayed prisoners were not tied. 
 By his orders they were then bound four, six, or eight 
 together, as many as the different lariats would confine. 
 The cries among the more open friends of Armijo, du-
 
 EVENINGS IN PRISON. 327 
 
 ring this operation, were, " Kill them ! kill them ! Death 
 to the Americans /" After nightfall a consultation was 
 held by the officers more immediately in the interest of 
 Armijo, and directly within hearing of the Texans, as 
 to the propriety of either executing them all upon the 
 spot or sending them forthwith to the city of Mexico 
 as trophies of the valour of the New Mexicans. The 
 party in favour of the latter course prevailed by a ma- 
 jority of only one vote ! 
 
 The day following that on which Colonel Cooke and 
 his comrades were marched through San Miguel, we 
 petitioned the old alcalde for a change of quarters, the 
 room we were then occupying, although comfortable in 
 every other respect, being so completely overrun with 
 chinches and other vermin, that it was impossible to 
 sleep at night. After we had waited with great impa- 
 tience two days, and passed two more sleepless nights, 
 the old fellow finally procured us a clean and comfort- 
 able room directly on the plaza. A hint from Van 
 Ness, to the effect that Armijo should be made acquaint- 
 ed with the kind of room the old alcalde had furnished 
 us, probably induced that functionary to hasten our re- 
 moval. When once established in our new quarters, 
 our time passed more agreeably. Our only occupa- 
 tions were eating, drinking, sleeping, chatting with the 
 girls who made us daily visits, and speculating upon 
 our past reverses, our present position, and future pros- 
 pects. At dark we would build a fire, for the evenings 
 were now cool among the mountains, and then proba- 
 bly spend half the night in song and story. Each one 
 of our little party had a checkered experience to re- 
 late, and the recital of some ludicrous adventure would 
 bring forth a peal of uproarious laughter, much to the 
 astonishment of the little knot of Mexicans congregated
 
 328 INEFFICIENCY OF THE GUARD. 
 
 among us, who could not conceive how prisoners, in 
 the power of such a man as Armijo, could indulge in 
 such boisterous mirth. For myself. I must say that I 
 have never laughed more heartily than while confined 
 in that little prison-house on the plaza of San Miguel ; 
 and could our anxious friends have been spirited into 
 that wild and romantic land, and permitted to eaves- 
 drop under the walls of our carcel on some of those 
 evenings, they could hardly have deemed us other than 
 a party of merry fellows holding a jolly carousal. 
 
 But with all this hilarity, thoughts of an escape fre- 
 quently entered our minds. The members of our 
 guard, who manifested the greatest astonishment at 
 our indifference to imprisonment, we could at any time 
 have captured and tied, and with their bows and ar- 
 rows, and a German double-barrelled gun in their pos- 
 session, we could next have taken the town of San Mi- 
 guel with the greatest ease. On several occasions, so 
 careless was the guard, we made trials of skill with 
 them with the bow and arrow, Major Howard beating 
 the best of them at a game which may be considered 
 their own ; but, even with their arms in our possession, 
 where were we to go? Had we known then, what 
 we afterward ascertained, that so many dreary months 
 of toil and captivity were in store for us ; had we been 
 aware that by forced marches we could have reached 
 Bent's Fort in three or four days, we might have made 
 the attempt. There was no one, however, to give us 
 advice, no friend without to aid us in an undertaking of 
 the kind, we knew nothing of the country, and thus 
 were we compelled to give up all thoughts of an escape 
 at a time when the chances of its successful result were 
 altogether in our favour. With the knowledge we have 
 since gained, I doubt whether the same party could be
 
 A SUCCESSION OP VISITERS. 329 
 
 safely kept another month in San Miguel, at least with 
 so weak a guard, under like circumstances. 
 
 We had been but a week in our new quarters before 
 a caravan arrived direct from St. Louis, owned by one 
 of the Chavez family, a rich and powerful connexion in 
 New Mexico. Chavez himself, in a neat buggy wag- 
 on, accompanied his men. I could not help reflecting, 
 while gazing at him in the plaza, upon the difference of 
 treatment he had experienced in the United States from 
 that I had met with in his country, knowing, as I did, 
 that my feelings and intentions on entering the latter 
 were precisely the same as his on first setting his foot 
 on that soil where I claimed citizenship. I would cheer- 
 fully have endured a month's extra imprisonment for an 
 opportunity of making known my reflections and feel- 
 ings to Chavez ; but this might not be he did not come 
 within speaking distance. 
 
 Three or four days after Chavez passed through San 
 Miguel, another caravan, made up of Americans on 
 their way to California, arrived from St. Louis, and 
 after resting themselves for one day, again took their de- 
 parture for their new homes west of the Rocky Mount- 
 ains. Anxious as we were to converse with these men, 
 and gather news of the world without from which we 
 had now been cut off more than four months, we were 
 forbidden the privilege. The alcalde undoubtedly had 
 his orders not to allow any intercourse, and scrupulous- 
 ly did he obey them. 
 
 Following close upon the heels of this party of 
 Americans, or but three or four days later, came still 
 another caravan, belonging to Mr. Samuel Magoffin a 
 native of the United States, but at this time a merchant 
 of Chihuahua, who was now on his way to that city 
 with more than forty wagons heavily laden with goods.- 
 E E2
 
 330 PRISON LUXURIES, 
 
 Mr. Magoffin sent us word, through a Mexican, that 
 he had had an interview with Armijo, who had granted 
 him permission to visit us ; but as he had not brought a 
 written order to that effect, the old alcalde would not 
 allow him even to approach within a hundred yards of 
 our prison-house. By the same messenger we were 
 informed that we need not be under the least apprehen- 
 sion for our lives ; and in addition, he brought the posi- 
 tive assurance that I was shortly to be liberated, the 
 governor not having any charges against me, and not 
 wishing to detain me after the termination of his expe- 
 dition against the party of Texans now approaching 
 under General McLeod. This was good news ; too 
 good, as I then justly thought, to be true, although at 
 that time, I have little doubt, Armijo intended to give 
 me my liberty, and would have done so had it not been 
 for Lewis. 
 
 From Mr. Magoffin we received a generous supply 
 of coffee and tobacco, luxuries more welcome than any- 
 thing he could have sent us. The old alcalde furnished 
 us regularly with tortillas, atole, and occasionally with 
 an earthen pot of boiled mutton ; but as we had saved 
 our money, we had the means to purchase occasionally 
 a fat sheep, eggs, good bread, and any little necessary 
 we might wish for ; and now that we had coffee and 
 tobacco, and had no employment save the dressing and 
 cooking of our meals, we fared most sumptuously. We 
 contrived to manufacture excellent pipes of corn-cobs ; 
 for stems we were indebted to a monkey-faced Mexi- 
 can named Juan Sandobal, who brought us some 
 branches from a small bush growing upon the river 
 bank, the pith of which could be easily extracted. This 
 fellow Sandobal was a regular loafer in and about our 
 premises, ready at any time to mend our shoes, run on
 
 A SERVICEABLE FRIEND. 331 
 
 errands, wash our handkerchiefs, or play us a rude air 
 on a cracked mandolin of which he was the proprietor, 
 and all " for a consideration." He invariably contrived 
 to cheat us in every transaction we had with him, and 
 we as invariably made it a point to tell him that we 
 considered him an arrant knave ; yet the fellow had 
 made one trip with the traders to St. Louis, spoke some 
 half dozen words of English, and as he had associated 
 on the road with Americans in- the capacity of servant, 
 made bold to call us his amigos, or particular friends. 
 There was no such thing as getting rid of his importu- 
 nities : hints he would not understand, and kicks he ap- 
 peared to look upon as little innocent familiarities be- 
 tween intimates. Our principal out-door agent, when 
 his time was not otherwise occupied, was Tomas Bus- 
 tamente, the same personage who purchased the sheep 
 for us on the morning after our first arrival at San Mi- 
 guel. Don Tomas, as we called him, was always 
 bringing us information of all the movements of Armijo, 
 and was ready at any time to make up a story in case 
 nothing had occurred that might in any way interest us. 
 For us he always manifested the greatest friendship; 
 and as he was a specious, honest-seeming, and open- 
 countenanced fellow, accommodating to a fault, and 
 with far more integrity than Sandobal even pretended 
 to, to him we always intrusted our important commis- 
 sions. All our little purchases were made by him ; and 
 with such scrupulous exactness did he give us the price 
 of every little article bought, and so honestly did he re- 
 turn us our change for the money we placed in his 
 hands, that for a long time we gave him credit for being 
 a perfect rara avis among the lower classes in New 
 Mexico an honest man. But an unfortunate accident
 
 332 A SLIPPERY MESSENGER. 
 
 unfortunate, at least, for Don Tomas completely 
 overthrew our good opinions of him. 
 
 I have before mentioned that an American merchant 
 of San Miguel, Mr. Thomas Rowland, had been arrest- 
 ed by Armijo about the time when Rowland was first 
 taken, and that his goods and effects had been confisca- 
 ted. We had been confined but a couple of weeks be- 
 fore Rowland was released, his effects were given up 
 to him, and he had once more opened his store. Some 
 half dozen times a day our countryman passed within a 
 few yards of our prison, yet was not allowed to com- 
 municate with us by word, or even gesture. We knew 
 the circumstances of his arrest, and the constraints un- 
 der which he laboured; yet I am confident we were 
 indebted to Rowland for many little favours, and I have 
 little doubt that he sent us many luxuries which never 
 reached us, all through the rascality of Tomas Busta- 
 mente. The little circumstance, which brought this 
 fellow out in his true colours, I will here relate. 
 
 Hearing that our former companion, Lewis, was at a 
 rancho but a few leagues distant, and not knowing at 
 this time of his traitorous conduct. Van Ness and How- 
 ard despatched Bustamente to see him, in the hope that 
 we might gain news, or at least obtain a change of 
 linen, our entire wardrobe now consisting simply of 
 what we had upon our backs. As a token that Van 
 Ness had sent this fellow, he placed a ring upon his 
 finger which Lewis well knew, and which would con- 
 vince him that there was no deceit in the transaction. 
 This was early in the morning. At night our agent 
 returned unsuccessful from his mission, saying that he 
 had been unable to find Lewis or obtain our much-need- 
 ed supply. While we were regretting the unsuccessful 
 termination of an attempt which we had fondly hoped
 
 THE VIRTUES OF A PIPE. 
 
 would give each of us a clean shirt, if nothing more, 
 Don Tomas casually remarked that the Senora Row- 
 land had accidentally seen the ring sent by Van Ness, 
 and had taken a great fancy to it, at the same time de- 
 siring him to ask whether it could be disposed of, and 
 the price. So plausible was this story, that not one of 
 us suspected fraud ; and as it was impossible to sell the 
 ring, valuable as it was, to one who had constantly been 
 sending us many little delicacies, it was at once de- 
 spatched to her as a present, accompanied by the usual 
 ceremonious compliments. This little incident over, 
 nothing more was thought of the ring, and we filled our 
 pipes and began smoking and talking over the unfortu- 
 nate result of our mission to Lewis. 
 
 Than our pipe our homely, oblivious pipe we found 
 no greater solace during the many hours of affliction. 
 Far be it from me to say that any pipe is preferable to 
 a cool, finely-flavoured Havana, or that I esteem it un- 
 der ordinary circumstances ; but in a time of adversity 
 and trial, when the mind has no employment but to 
 brood over unavoidable misfortunes, there is more real 
 comfort, more forgetfulness of the present, to be drawn 
 from even a cob pipe, well filled with Virginia tobacco, 
 than from any cigar that has ever been twisted since 
 the day when Sir Walter Raleigh was supposed by his 
 servant to be on fire, and deluged with a flood of cold 
 water. If any of my readers do not credit this asser- 
 tion, let them ask old campaigners, those who have had 
 abundant experience, and from whose judgment there 
 is no appeal in the woods. I know that I have drawn 
 much solid comfort from a pipe, and puffed away many 
 weary hours of captivity. 
 
 The evening following the return of Don Tomas from 
 his unsuccessful trip, one of our female visitors remarked
 
 334 THE ROGUE DETECTED. 
 
 that the ring Sefiora Bustamente had received from Van 
 Ness was a beautiful present, and that she was so ex- 
 tremely proud of it that she was showing it about among 
 all her acquaintances ! Here was a discovery, and it 
 is almost unnecessary to say that after this Don Tomas 
 fell most essentially in our esteem. We did not let him 
 know, however, that we had detected him in his little 
 swindling operation. He was useful in doing errands, 
 and probably took as little toll out of our money as any 
 of the natives would have done. His delinquency, too, 
 taught us all a useful lesson it proved to us that the 
 most specious and honest-seeming among this class of 
 Mexicans had their tricks and failings, and that the best 
 men among them were worthy of close watching. 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 \rrival of a Party of our Companions as Prisoners. Great Excitement in 
 San Miguel. Recognition of our Friends, and their Departure. Don An- 
 tonio Baca. Attachment of one of his Daughters for a Texan Prisoner. 
 " Old Paint" Caldwell and Nine of his Men brought in Prisoners. Still 
 greater Excitement in San Miguel. The Patron Saint brought from his 
 Niche in the Church. A Mexican Procession. A funny Figure. Pro- 
 gramme of the Procession. An old Priest with queer Spectacles. A Pair 
 of Musicians. More of San Miguel, the Patron Saint. End of the Pro- 
 cession. Startling Information. Bustamente informs us that all our Com- 
 rades have been taken Prisoners. Great Rejoicing in San Miguel. Gen- 
 eral McLeod and other Texans brought into the Plaza. Mr. Falconer. 
 Arrival of all the Prisoners. Dreadful Appearance of the Texans. Lewis 
 arrives. News that the Author is to be liberated. Division of the Spoils. 
 Agency of Lewis in the Transaction. A Visit from Lewis. More of 
 his Treachery and Rascality. His Departure for Santa Fe. A veritable 
 History of Don Manuel Armijo, from his Youth upward, being a short but 
 faithful Narrative of his thieving, gambling, assassinating, and other base 
 Acts and Propensities. 
 
 WE had now whiled away some eighteen or twenty 
 days in our prison-house at San Miguel, and were anx- 
 iously awaiting news of General McLeod's party and
 
 FELLOW-CAPTIVES. 335 
 
 of Armijo's success with this second band of Texans, 
 when Bustamente came hurriedly into our apartment, 
 just as we had finished a late breakfast, and informed 
 us that three or four of our companions had been taken, 
 and were then coming into the town. A crowd of 
 women, girls, and boys, congregated upon the neigh- 
 bouring housetops and around the door of the alcalde 
 on the opposite side of the plaza, soon convinced us that 
 something had occurred to disturb the ordinary quiet 
 which reigned in San Miguel. 
 
 We hurried through the door of our room to a little 
 porch, which was our prison limits, anxiously eyeing 
 every figure within view to see if we could discover 
 an acquaintance. Soon a small cavalcade of ragged 
 Mexicans, guarding two mules, upon each of which a 
 couple of men were packed, were seen turning the cor- 
 ner of a street leading into the plaza the same street 
 by which we had first entered the town. At first we 
 were not near enough to distinguish the faces of the pris- 
 oners, but after they had been halted at the door of the 
 alcalde we made them out to be Lieutenants Scott and 
 Burgess, young John Howard, a brother of the major 
 who was a prisoner with us, and the Mexican servant 
 named Matias, whom Colonel Cooke had sent back to 
 the prairies, from the Angosturas, with the guide to 
 conduct General McLeod to the settlements. We 
 bowed to our friends, and made signs and gestures that 
 we knew and would like to converse with them ; they 
 returned our distant salutations in kind, but farther in- 
 tercourse than this was not allowed by our guards. 
 After remaining a short time at the alcalde's, our friends 
 were sent to a rancho some three miles from San Mi- 
 guel, and there quartered in the family of a kind-heart- 
 ed old Mexican, named Don Antonio Baca, a man who
 
 336 MEXICAN LADY IN LOVE. 
 
 had frequently visited us during our imprisonment, and 
 who had never called without bringing us eggs or 
 some little delicacy. Although we had been denied 
 the satisfaction of conversing with our friends, and 
 learning something of their own movements and the 
 position and prospects of the main party, it was still a 
 source of congratulation to know that excellent quar- 
 ters had been provided for them. Don Antonio had 
 two or three daughters, pretty, and accomplished too, 
 for that country ; we afterward learned that one of 
 them formed an ardent attachment fell in love, in 
 more common parlance with one of our young friends, 
 and was affected even to tears and hysterics when he 
 was ordered to the city of Mexico. It is said that no 
 attachment can be stronger, no love more enduring, 
 than that of the better-informed Mexican doncella, 
 when once her heart is touched by the blue eyes, light 
 hair, and fair complexion of some roving Anglo-Saxon. 
 She may not " live and love forever," as did a certain 
 maid mentioned by some poet ; but she loves as long 
 as she lives, and that is long enough in all reason. 
 
 A day or two after the party of Texans I have just 
 referred to were conducted through the town, another 
 party, numbering ten, also arrived. They were prison- 
 ers, and had the good fortune to be quartered at the 
 house of our old friend Vigil, the man who had saved 
 our lives when we were first captured by Salezar. We 
 did not see this party, but from descriptions given us of 
 their leader by our guard and the girls who visited us, 
 we felt confident he could be no other than " Old Paint" 
 Caldwell, the well-known leader of our spy company, 
 and in this conjecture we were not wrong. Bustamen- 
 te informed us that they had been taken prisoners by a 
 large party of Mexicans south of the Angosturas, and
 
 A SAINT IN MASaUERADE. 337 
 
 that the main body of the Texans was rapidly approach- 
 ing. We at once came to the conclusion that the two 
 small parties of our friends, now in prison near us, had 
 been sent on in advance, and, as in our case, had been 
 overpowered by numbers, and forced to give up their 
 arms. 
 
 A most unwonted excitement was now created in 
 San Miguel. The rumours rife among the people were, 
 that the much-dreaded Texans, whom Armijo had taught 
 them to look upon as so many bloodthirsty cannibals, 
 were advancing in countless numbers, threatening the 
 country with fire, devastation, and the sword. The 
 wax figure of the patron saint of the place, San Miguel, 
 or St. Michael as it is rendered in the English, was 
 dragged from his niche in the little church, mounted 
 upon a large platform, and carried about in procession. 
 A more comical figure than this same San Miguel it 
 would be difficult either to imagine or discover. I can- 
 not say that his saintship had ever been tarred, but he 
 had certainly been feathered from head to foot. From 
 his shoulders hung listlessly a pair of huge, ill-constructed 
 wings, his face was that of a large doll, while his head, 
 to complete the ludicrous tout ensemble, was covered 
 with a lace cap of the fashion of our grandmothers. 
 Another figure, intended to represent the Virgin, but 
 nothing more than a doll of the largest size, was carried 
 in state upon the same platform, and over all was a can- 
 opy of faded yellow and pink satin, trimmed with fringe, 
 spangles, and tassels. The platform rested upon a litter 
 formed of two long poles, upon which were nailed cross- 
 pieces, and into these cross-pieces were inserted four 
 loose, rickety legs, hardly firm enough to sustain the 
 wax and feathers, satin and spangles, which reclined 
 above them. Whenever the procession was about to 
 
 VCL. I. F F
 
 338 AN ODD PROCESSION. 
 
 move, the entire fabric would be lifted from the ground, 
 and the ends of the poles placed upon the shoulders of 
 four men. 
 
 I will endeavour to give my readers a programme of 
 this singular procession. First came an old, baldhead- 
 ed priest, a coarse, dirty blanket tied about him with a 
 piece of rope, an open prayer-book in his hand, a rude 
 wooden cross hanging from his neck, and a pair of 
 spectacles on his nose which my companions at first 
 insisted were leather, but which afterward proved to 
 be of glass, about the size of common teacups, and set 
 in wide rims of buifalo horn. Following close at the 
 heels of this odd figure came our particular friend, Juan 
 Sandobal, strumming his crazy mandolin, and digging 
 from it the only tune within his musical scope. By 
 hit side walked a brother artist, zealously sawing away 
 upon a rusty violin, the softest tone from which would 
 have set Ole Bull or Wallace raving mad. As each 
 of these performers knew but one tune, and as both 
 were playing at the same time, the reader who may 
 have an ear to detect a crack in a piece of china by the 
 ring can easily imagine the effect produced by such a 
 mixture of anything but sweet sounds. On either side 
 of the musicians, as flankers, walked half a score of 
 ragged, dirty-faced urchins ; then came the four men 
 bearing the car, the patron saint in a sitting posture in 
 front, and his head, either from being hung on a pivot 
 or from having become loose in some way, bowing and 
 bobbing to the multitude like the figures of Chinese 
 mandarins in some of the tea-shops. Nothing could be 
 more grotesque and laughable than this comical head 
 of St. Michael, enveloped in an oldfashioned lady's 
 cap, and rising and falling with every motion of the car 
 upon which it was borne. On the same platform, and
 
 TRIALS OP GRAVITY. 339 
 
 immediately behind the figure I have just described, 
 stood the Virgin, dressed in pink satin and spangles, as 
 stiff and inanimate as wood and wax could make lier. 
 In the rear of the car followed the women, children, 
 and rabble generally of the town, the faces of a major- 
 ity of the girls stained, either with vermilion or the 
 juice of some red berry, and many of them presenting 
 an appearance truly hideous. 
 
 At different points of the plaza the procession would 
 halt, the bearers of the car would set down their bur- 
 den, and all would kneel and cross themselves while 
 the old priest read a sentence from the open book be- 
 fore him. One of the principal stopping-places appear- 
 ed to be directly in front of our little window, and sol- 
 emn as the affair was intended to be, it was impossible 
 for us to retain our gravity with two such figures as 
 the old priest and the patron saint staring us in the 
 face. Those huge spectacles of the former alone would 
 have drawn a smile from the gloomiest misanthrope 
 that ever lived ; and then the comical aspect of the 
 droll figure of San Miguel waggish in more ways 
 than one, for while it wagged its head it also had a 
 quaint and knowing leer about its eyes whenever 
 this counterfeit presentment of the saint was brought 
 fairly in sight, we lost our gravity entirely, and were 
 compelled to turn aside to conceal our laughter. 
 
 After the procession had knelt in front of our prison, 
 the old priest would call upon every saint in the calen- 
 dar in general, and San Miguel in particular, to aid the 
 populace against, and protect them from, the vile horde 
 of heretics and barbarians marching against their coun- 
 try. All would then respond by crossing themselves 
 and giving utterance to groans, the band would next 
 strike up, and the procession then move slowly to some
 
 340 MORE REJOICINGS. 
 
 other point, there to repeat the same ceremony. In 
 this way the time passed, from the day on which the ten 
 prisoners alluded to a few pages back arrived at San 
 Miguel, to the 9th of October. 
 
 At an early hour on the morning of the 9th, our 
 guard gave us the startling information that all the 
 Texans had been captured in the vicinity of the Lagu- 
 na Colorada, or Red Lake, a body of water some thirty 
 or forty miles south of the Angosturas. At first we 
 could not believe this news, but it was soon confirmed 
 by the ringing of bells, general congratulations and re- 
 joicings, and by a grand procession in honour of the 
 victory. Again was the patron saint of the town 
 mounted on the car, accompanied by the ever-attend- 
 ant Virgin, and borne about in triumph through the 
 plaza and all the principal streets. Nothing could ex- 
 ceed the joy and enthusiasm of the inhabitants. The 
 only gun in the place the double-barrelled German af- 
 fair I have already mentioned, and which had been 
 used to guard and terrify us was now brought into re- 
 quisition to give greater spirit to the rejoicing. The 
 fellow who had charge of this piece followed in the 
 rear of the ragged rabble which formed the procession, 
 and, as fast as he could load and fire, kept up an inces- 
 sant cracking and banging, much to the delight, in par- 
 ticular, of a troop of graceless urchins, who hovered 
 about him on the march. At each of the four corners, 
 and at each of the four sides of the plaza, did the pro- 
 cession stop, kneel down, and publicly thank San Mi- 
 guel for thus keeping his charge out of the hands of 
 heretics, and all this while the comical image, now ar- 
 rayed with an extra load of furbelows, feathers, and 
 finery, bowed his acknowledgments to the crowd of
 
 MORE PRISONERS. 341 
 
 ragged worshippers in a style which would have done 
 credit to any merry-andrew. 
 
 Scarcely were these nonsensical mummeries over, 
 before General McLeod and Mr. Navarro, with some 
 ten or fifteen Texan officers and servants, were escort- 
 ed under a strong guard into the plaza, and placed for 
 safe-keeping in the old quartel we had occupied on the 
 day when Rowland and his comrades were shot. Mr. 
 Falconer was seen in this little party by all of us, and 
 although grieved to see him in plight so gloomy, I 
 was still rejoiced to notice that he was in good health. 
 Some of the members of this small party of prisoners 
 were continually passing and repassing our room, with- 
 in twenty yards of us, on their way to the river for 
 water ; they recognised and bowed to us as they pass- 
 ed, but we were not allowed to communicate with 
 them in any way, and were consequently kept in igno- 
 rance of the terms of their surrender, and the disposi- 
 tion that was to be made of them. 
 
 On the 12th of October, two days after, the rest of 
 the Texan prisoners, more than a hundred and fifty in 
 number, were marched into the plaza. Worn down 
 and emaciated by hunger and fatigue, their pale and 
 haggard countenances showed but too plainly that they 
 had suffered dreadfully after we left them on the Palo 
 Duro. The clothing of many of these poor fellows 
 consisted of but a shirt and pair of pantaloons, and the 
 single blanket which had been left them by the brave 
 and " honourable" Armijo was the poorest they were 
 the possessors of at the time of their capture. They 
 were all taken to a room on the opposite side of the 
 square, and then huddled in like so many sheep in a 
 butcher's pen ! 
 
 Scarcely were these unfortunate men driven into 
 F F2
 
 342 ASSURANCES OF FREEDOM. 
 
 their close and uncomfortable quarters before Lewis, 
 well mounted and extremely well dressed, rode up to 
 our quarters, and took lodgings in the same house in 
 which we were confined, although in a different room. 
 He bowed to us as he passed our window, said that 
 " all was right," and remarked that he would call and 
 see us in a short time. The day wore away, however, 
 without his fulfilling his promise, although he passed 
 within a few yards of us several times. There appear- 
 ed to be a sneaking and uneasy expression about the 
 fellow, which we all remarked ; yet we could hardly 
 believe that he had been playing a traitorous or unman- 
 ly game. 
 
 After dark, on the same day, Bustamente came into 
 our room, and declared, positively, that I was to be 
 released by Armijo so soon as all the prisoners had 
 been sent off to the city of Mexico, that being their 
 destination. This information he had from the princi- 
 pal priest of San Miguel, who has the reputation, among 
 the Americans, of being an honest and worthy man. 
 From what Bustamente could learn, by listening to the 
 conversations of the officers attached to the staff of the 
 governor, he was of opinion that Howard, Van Ness, 
 and Fitzgerald, my three companions, would be taken 
 by Armijo to Santa Fe, and shortly liberated. The 
 same story was told by several Mexicans who visited 
 us during the evening that I was to be liberated was 
 certain. 
 
 On the following morning the wagons the same 
 wagons with which we had set out, more than four 
 months before, from Austin were drawn up in line in 
 the plaza of San Miguel, and immediate preparations 
 were made for dividing the goods of the Texan mer- 
 chants. As the merchandise was unloaded, Lewis was
 
 THE TRAITOR LEWIS. 343 
 
 seen by all of us standing by the side of Armijo, and 
 frequently pointing out a box or bale of goods, which 
 was placed in a large pile, apparently for him. All the 
 while he appeared to be on excellent and most sociable 
 terms with the governor and the Mexican officers, and 
 was plainly seen and heard laughing and joking with 
 them. How the abandoned man could carry out his 
 villany, and act thus in the very faces, as it were, of 
 his betrayed associates, is a mystery to me. 
 
 The distribution of the goods continued nearly the 
 whole of the day, each company of the valorous war- 
 riors of Armijo receiving a share of the plunder in pro- 
 portion to the time they had been in service against 
 the Texans. In the mean time, four of our men, a gun- 
 smith, a blacksmith, a musician, and the hospital stew- 
 ard of the expedition, were liberated by Armijo, and 
 from our window we could see them walking about at 
 liberty. They were not allowed to communicate with 
 us, however, in any way. The governor wanted the 
 services of these men his only reason for giving them 
 their liberty. 
 
 Lewis frequently passed our window on the 14th and 
 15th of the month, but not once did he offer to speak to 
 us, although he always bowed as he went by. That 
 the man had been acting badly we had now little doubt, 
 but the extent of his treachery was far from being sus- 
 pected. After dusk of the last-mentioned day a nephew 
 of Armijo called in to see us. He spoke of my release 
 as a measure fully determined on by his uncle, and also 
 gave it as his opinion that my three companions would 
 be set free. 
 
 At an early hour on the following morning, and for 
 the first and only time, Lewis entered our room. There 
 was a hang-dog expression, if I ma f so call it, about
 
 344 HIS PLAUSIBILITY. 
 
 him, which denoted that he had committed some , <. in- 
 action, and it seemed as if he could not look one of us 
 in the face. He, however, tried to convince us that he 
 was glad at having an opportunity, at last, of calling to 
 bid us good-by, assuming an openness and frankness of 
 demeanour which but ill became him. Howard asked 
 him how it happened that the two main parties of Tex- 
 ans had surrendered without firing a single shot, to 
 which Lewis gave an evasive and stammering reply. 
 He was then asked by what means he had been fortu- 
 nate enough to obtain his liberty : a question he an- 
 swered by saying that the governor, for some reason 
 unknown to him, had given him his release without his 
 even asking for it. He then added that I was to be 
 set free on the following morning ; and, after telling my 
 companions that he had already made every endeavour 
 to procure their release, and that he would have one 
 more interview with Armijo upon the subject, he hur- 
 riedly shook hands with each of us and departed. Five 
 minutes afterward, as we learned from several visitors, 
 he was on his way to Santa Fe, without having gone 
 near the governor. 
 
 It may appear singular to many of my readers, that 
 we did not at once suspect Lewis of having played a 
 treacherous game, especially with the evidence that the 
 party under Colonel Cooke had not made even a show 
 of resistance ; but they should recollect that we were 
 entirely cut off from all direct communication, and also 
 that Lewis bore an excellent reputation, and was uni- 
 versally esteemed by all. Under these circumstances 
 they will feel that we must have been slow to harbour 
 suspicion against him. It is hard to suspect one with 
 whom we have long associated on terms of intimacy, 
 whose life has been unstained by a single bad act, of the 
 blackest crime in the catalogue.
 
 HIS UTTEE WORTHLESSNESS. 345 
 
 On the night before Lewis's departure for Santa Fe, 
 a young Mexican called at our room and inquired the 
 value of several gold pieces in his possession, among 
 them English sovereigns, French twenty-franc pieces, 
 and different American coins. He spoke broken Eng- 
 lish, and we afterward ascertained that Lewis had rec- 
 ommended him to some of ouf poor prisoners as a trust- 
 worthy fellow. They had given him this money, a pit- 
 tance they had contrived to secrete when they were 
 searched and robbed by Armijo, on his promising that 
 he would procure them small silver change for it. The 
 young scoundrel, with all this money in his pockets, left 
 for Santa Fe the next morning in company with Lewis 
 par nobile fratrwn. 
 
 Another circumstance has been related to me by the 
 sufferers themselves, which goes to show that to treach- 
 ery Lewis added the most pitiful swindling. Two mem- 
 bers of the expedition, one of them named Farley, and 
 belonging to the company of which Lewis was captain, 
 the other a Mr. Houghtaling, a merchant, had succeed- 
 ed, during the search made at the time of the surrender, 
 in secreting their watches, both of them valuable. With 
 this fact Lewis became acquainted, and just before start- 
 ing for Santa Fe he called upon his quondam friends, 
 and said that he would take their watches and sell them 
 for a heavy sum. He said they would need the money 
 on the road, and that it would be impossible for them to 
 dispose of the watches after leaving San Miguel, but 
 that, on the contrary, they would lose them if the Mex- 
 icans should by chance discover them about their per- 
 sons. Farley was an intimate friend of the scoundrel, 
 and gave him his watch with little hesitation. Hough- 
 taling did the same. That was the last they saw of 
 their property.
 
 346 HISTORY OF AEMIJO. 
 
 One other circumstance illustrative of his character, 
 and I have done with Lewis for the present. While 
 at Chihuahua, on our march to the city of Mexico, I saw 
 a copy of La Luna, a small paper published there. It 
 contained a letter from Armijo to Garcia Conde, gov- 
 ernor of Chihuahua, in which, after stating that he had 
 been successful in capturing all the Texans, he added : 
 " In consideration of the great service rendered by Cap- 
 tain W. P. Lewis, in assisting me to capture these Tex- 
 ans, I have given him his liberty and his goods, and 
 earnestly recommend him to the notice of the Central 
 Government." When it is known that all the goods 
 Lewis had with him he could carry in his hat, it is more 
 than probable that the governor hired him to claim a 
 large portion of the merchandise, which he afterward 
 divided with him, and thus defrauded the government, 
 to which he was obliged to render an account of all the 
 spoils taken. 
 
 The history of this petty, yet most absolute and des- 
 potic monarch, Armijo, is singular, and as I happen to 
 have the materials at hand, no matter to him how ob- 
 tained, I will here present my readers with a brief yet 
 truthful sketch of his career, from his boyhood upward. 
 However much he may be amazed at seeing his own 
 history in veritable print, he cannot but acknowledge 
 that I have done him ample justice that his portrait is 
 drawn with strict fidelity in every particular. 
 
 Manuel Armijo, the subject of the present memoir, as 
 the story-books commence, was born of low and dis- 
 reputable parents at or near Albuquerque, a town of no 
 inconsiderable importance some sixty miles south of 
 Santa Fe. From his earliest childhood his habits were 
 bad. He commenced his career by petty pilfering, and 
 as he advanced in years extended his operations until
 
 A SHEEP-STEALER. 
 
 they grew into important larcenies. While yet a youth, 
 he carried on an extensive business in sheep-stealing, 
 admitted, I believe, to be the lowest species of robbery ; 
 yet so lucrative did the young Armijo find the business, 
 that in his own neighbourhood he gave it a tone of re- 
 spectability, A wealthy haciendero, or large plantation 
 owner, in the vicinity of Albuquerque, named Francisco 
 Chavez, suffered not a little from the exceedingly liberal 
 system of helping himself adopted by the embryo gov- 
 ernor. Chavez possessed his thousands and tens of 
 thousands of sheep, large numbers of which he yearly 
 drove to the southern cities of Mexico, and there dispo- 
 sed of for ready cash. At home, his business was io 
 purchase at reduced prices all the sheep offered by his 
 poorer neighbours, and so numerous were his flocks that 
 he could not mark, much less recognise, one tenth of 
 what he possessed. Yet he always employed shepherds 
 to watch his flocks, and used every precaution in his 
 power to prevent his sheep from straying or being stolen. 
 But to guard against a person of young Armijo's tact 
 and perseverance was impossible. The scape-grace 
 would enter his flocks while the shepherds were asleep, 
 or suborn them if awake, and by much shrewd artifice 
 contrived to levy a continual and profitable tax upon 
 the substance of the elderly haciendero. The animals 
 thus stolen, in good time would be sold for cash to their 
 rightful but unsuspecting owner, and thus it sometimes 
 happened that Armijo would re-steal and re-sell, time 
 after time, the same identical sheep. Up to this day, 
 when among his intimate friends, General Manuel Ar- 
 mijo boastingly relates the exploit of having sold to 
 " Old Chavez" the same ewe fourteen different times, 
 and of having stolen her from him even in the first in- 
 stance. By this means, and by having what is termed
 
 348 LEADER OF AN INSURRECTION. 
 
 a good run of luck at dealing monte, he amassed no in- 
 considerable fortune, and as his ambition now led him 
 to learn to read and write, the foundation of his future 
 influence and greatness among his timid and ignorant 
 countrymen was substantially laid. 
 
 As it would fill a volume to trace all Armijo's steps> 
 I will at once jump from the sheep-folds of Chavez and 
 the monte table, and take him up again after he had 
 been appointed Administrator de Rentas, or principal 
 custom-house officer at Santa Fe, in the year 1837. It 
 is proper to mention that, during this hiatus, somewhere 
 between the years 1825 and 1830, he had been, by a 
 federal appointment under the old territorial laws, cloth- 
 ed with the executive authority in New Mexico, and 
 that his short administration was signalized by acts of 
 cruelty and reckless injustice. In consequence of some 
 misdemeanor, he was soon deposed from his place at 
 the head of the customs by the then governor, Don Al- 
 bino Perez, and another person was appointed in his 
 stead. 
 
 The effects of the central form of government were 
 now just beginning to be felt in this isolated department 
 of Mexico, and the people were beginning to manifest 
 no inconsiderable discontent at the new order of things, 
 Armijo, perceiving that there was now a chance, not 
 only to signalize himself, but to reap a rich harvest of 
 revenge against his enemies then in power, took advan- 
 tage of this feeling by secretly fomenting a conspiracy. 
 An insurrection was soon in agitation, and early in Au- 
 gust, 1837, a heterogeneous force, numbering more than 
 one thousand men, among whom were a large number 
 of pueblos, or town Indians, assembled at La Canada, a 
 village about twenty-five miles north of the capital. 
 Governor Perez conducted a small force against the in-
 
 A DISAPPOINTMENT. 349 
 
 surgents ; but a majority of his men went over at the 
 outset, leaving him with only twenty-five personal 
 friends to contend with odds the most fearful. A slight 
 skirmish told the story : one of his men was killed, two 
 were wounded, while the rest fled precipitately towards 
 Santa Fe. The insurgents pursued them to the city, 
 from which they were obliged to flee ; but they were 
 captured the next day, and fourteen of them, including 
 all the officers of state, were most inhumanly put to 
 death. Among the slain were three brothers named 
 Abreu : Governor Perez was also butchered in the sub- 
 urbs of Santa Fe, his head cut off, and kicked about the 
 streets by the populace. His body remained where it 
 had fallen, a prey to the vultures and wolves, no friend 
 daring to offer it sepulture ! 
 
 Shrewdly conjecturing, now that he had raised a 
 whirlwind, that he might easily direct the storm to his 
 own personal advancement, Armijo, after the manner 
 of his great prototype, Santa Anna, suddenly left his 
 hacienda and made his appearance at Santa Fe. There 
 he found everything in a state of frightful anarchy the 
 place in the hands of an ignorant mob, and the Ameri- 
 can and other foreign merchants in hourly expectation 
 that their houses and stores would be sacked, and even 
 their lives taken. The rabble dispersed, however, com- 
 mitting no other outrage than electing one of their own 
 leaders, an ignorant and unlettered fellow named Jose 
 Gonzalez, governor of New Mexico. They paid no at- 
 tention to the claim set up by Armijo, the fomenter, as 
 he had exposed himself in no way to the anticipated 
 hard blows and knocks which had given them the as- 
 cendancy. 
 
 Foiled in his ambition, Armijo once more retired to 
 his hacienda, a fine estate he had purchased at Albu- 
 
 VOL. I. G G
 
 850 ANOTHER REVOLUTION. 
 
 querque with the proceeds of his cheating, stealing, and 
 gambling transactions. But an active and ambitious 
 mind like his could not long remain inert. Through 
 secret intrigues, he managed, after the lapse of three or 
 four months, to organize a counter-revolution, and col- 
 lecting a numerous force, he declared in favour of Fed- 
 eralism, and marched towards Santa Fe. He took 
 quiet possession of this place, as Governor Gonzalez, 
 finding himself without an army, had fled to the north. 
 The latter was soon enabled, however, to rally around 
 him no inconsiderable mob ; but Armijo, in the mean 
 time, had received heavy re-enforcements from the 
 south, and succeeded in routing Gonzalez without loss, 
 taking him and many of his principal men prisoners. 
 The unfortunate governor was immediately shot, and 
 four of his chief officers met with the same fate by order 
 of Armijo. The latter were put out of the way more, 
 it is said, to prevent disclosures than for any crime they 
 had committed ; for they had been Armijo's confidential 
 emissaries in the formation of his original plot. 
 
 The ambitious tyrant, now that his enemies were ei- 
 ther murdered or dispersed, reigned supreme in New 
 Mexico. One of his first steps was to bribe the army 
 to proclaim him governor and commander-in-chief ; his 
 next, to send off" a highly-coloured account of his own 
 exploits in favour of Federalism to the city of Mexico, 
 and no officer can more adroitly adopt the high-sound- 
 ing fanfaronade style in wording a despatch or an ad- 
 dress than Manuel Armijo. Such disinterested patriot- 
 ism, such love of the confederacy, and such daring 
 bravery as he had manifested could not go unreward- 
 ed, and a return of post from Mexico brought docu- 
 ments confirming him in his station of governor, with
 
 ARMIJO AS GOVERNOR. 351 
 
 the additional title of colonel of cavalry. The sheep- 
 thief is now rising in the world ! 
 
 The year 1838 passed off without any event of great 
 importance Armijo still governor, and ruling his vas- 
 sals with a rod of iron. In the early part of 1839, 
 without a shadow of law or authority, he deposed all 
 the custom-house officers and appointed his own brother 
 and his other creatures in their stead, in order that he 
 might have the exclusive control and management of 
 the customs in his own hands. He next, without re- 
 gard to the federal tariff, established an arbitrary duty 
 upon all merchandise entering from the United States 
 $500 upon each wagon-load, without reference to 
 the quality of the goods it might contain, or their value. 
 To some of the traders, whose wagons happen to be 
 heavily laden with the finer kinds of merchandise, this 
 singular imposition is exceedingly favourable ; while to 
 others, with light or not valuable loading, it is equally 
 oppressive. 
 
 From the material which I have at hand, I could 
 give a connected detail of weekly acts of cruel injustice 
 and most glaring partiality. Fenelon's graphic picture 
 of a bad ruler has a living and faithful counterpart in 
 the present governor of New Mexico. Foreigners are 
 the especial objects of his hatred ; and acts and decis- 
 ions affecting the well-being of his whole province are 
 as often founded upon a feeling of hatred towards a 
 small class, or, perhaps, some luckless individual who 
 has excited his jealousy or fallen under the ban of his 
 most unaccountable caprice, as upon a sentiment of 
 justice and necessity. Still oftener do his acts of pub- 
 lic administration have their source in some private ad- 
 vantage to which he has a single eye it may be in the 
 furthering of some libertine and lustful scheme that
 
 352 IMPUNITY FOR MURDEK. 
 
 would disgrace the veriest roue in Christendom. Still, 
 there is not that overt demonstration of malice towards 
 foreigners that he daily makes towards his own crin- 
 ging and servile countrymen. He is afraid of Anglo- 
 Saxon blood, and he seeks to spill it by protecting the 
 knife of the secret assassin, or by influencing, to most 
 outrageous decisions, his farcical courts of law. Not 
 unfrequently do his own lusty sinews find congenial 
 employment, in the open streets of Santa Fe, in wielding 
 the cane and cudgel about the ears of his native sub- 
 jects, and never yet has one been found bold enough to 
 strike back. He raps them over the sconce with more 
 impunity, because with vastly less sentiment, than did 
 Hamlet the grinning scull of " poor Yorick." 
 
 Out of a multiplicity I will record two anecdotes, in 
 order to illustrate his system of righting wrongs. The 
 first came near resulting in a serious quarrel between 
 the American residents and the governor, and the diffi- 
 culty was only avoided by the latter abandoning his 
 objectionable ground. An American named Daley was 
 wantonly murdered at the gold mines near Santa Fe, 
 by two ruffians engaged in robbing a store which he 
 was keeping at that place. The murderers, through 
 the energy of foreigners, were soon apprehended, and 
 fully convicted of the crime ; but as they were Mexi- 
 cans, and had only shed the blood of a heretic, were 
 permitted to go un whipped of justice. In July, 1839, 
 these murderers were again arrested through the inter- 
 position of the Americans, and a second time brought 
 to Santa Fe for trial. The friends of the murdered 
 man now drew up a petition to the governor, in the 
 most decorous language, praying him to mete out full 
 justice to the assassins. Armijo, although he knew full 
 well the justice of their prayer, affected to believe it a
 
 ARMIJO COWED. 353 
 
 threat against his authority and government a con- 
 spiracy ! Upon this pretence he immediately collected 
 all the militia he could raise, and made preparations for 
 one of his bravado demonstrations. The Americans, 
 convinced that no justice could be expected from a ty- 
 rant so unprincipled, and fully understanding the " bluff- 
 ing game" he had resorted to, at once, with character- 
 istic spirit, prepared to defend themselves. Their firm- 
 ness and cool determination frightened the cowardly 
 governor and induced him to send them an apologeti- 
 cal communication, in which he protested that he had 
 entirely misconstrued the petition, and that their just 
 request should have due attention. 
 
 In the year 1840, 1 think on the first day of January, 
 two most respectable foreigners had the misfortune to 
 kill a Mexican lad by the accidental discharge of one 
 of their guns. They were returning to Santa Fe from 
 the gold mines when the unfortunate accident occurred, 
 and brought the body of the boy into town and at once 
 reported the circumstance to the authorities. The 
 principal alcalde consulted with Armijo as to the steps 
 he should take, and the decision was, without form of 
 trial, that the unfortunate foreigners should be put in 
 prison and held responsible for murder, unless they 
 could prove themselves innocent ! This is a very com- 
 mon instance of the manner in which the potentate ad- 
 ministers justice. But there was something in this case 
 so palpably unjust, in the eyes of those who knew the 
 men and the facts, as once more to call out such mani- 
 festations of public disapprobation as induced him to 
 retract so outrageous a sentence. 
 
 In the early part of February, 1840, a concurrence 
 of two or three acts of most wanton injustice, conceived 
 in cupidity and lust, came near resulting in revolution. 
 Gc2
 
 854 HIS GRASPING AVARICE. 
 
 Armijo is an extensive merchant, and it becomes a part 
 of his policy to pay off the public dues in his own mer- 
 chandise at most enormous profits. When it is remem- 
 bered that he is at once governor, commander-in-chief, 
 legislator, custom-house officer, auditor, treasurer, and 
 judge, the practicability of this policy becomes apparent. 
 Public creditors can get no money from the treasury 
 because it is always bankrupt, or at least so represent- 
 ed, notwithstanding the custom-house receipts on im- 
 portations are more than enough to pay the army, to 
 which purpose they are especially set apart On the 
 occasion alluded to, some twenty regular soldiers, sta- 
 tioned at Santa Fe, were thrown into prison and loaded 
 with irons as malecontents for refusing to receive their 
 wages in corn from Armijo's granary at four dollars a 
 fanega a measure containing about two bushels 
 when they could purchase in market for cash at one 
 third of the price. This outrageous act of tyranny 
 created an unwonted excitement against its author, so 
 much so, that he found it necessary to resort to a spe- 
 cious kind of trickery, a display of disinterestedness, to 
 allay the popular clamour. He advertised a contract to 
 the lowest bidder, to furnish the soldiers with corn. But 
 this Mexican display of honesty neither deceived nor 
 satisfied even his stupid countrymen ; for they at once 
 declared that no one but Armijo could take the contract 
 at any price, as the insolvent government never paid 
 any creditor but him. Thus the matter remained just 
 as it had begun, and just as this most patriotic governor 
 intended it should, with this exception the manifesta- 
 tions of discontent became more open and threatening. 
 Two young officers of the army, in particular, had fallen 
 under the ban of the governor's displeasure before, and 
 were now suspected of having used their influence in
 
 AEMIJO A LIBERTINE. 355 
 
 fomenting the disaffection that seemed universal among 
 the soldiers. His hatred of these young and meritori- 
 ous officers had its origin in an affaire cfamour, which, 
 as it exhibits a new phase in the multiplex character of 
 Armijo multiplex in all that is corrupt and debasing 
 I will here relate. 
 
 Don Santiago Abreu,* a minister in the administra- 
 tion of Governor Perez, and massacred Jn the former 
 revolution, left a handsome, and, in such advantages as 
 her country afforded, an accomplished daughter, Dona 
 Soledad Abreu ; a maiden whom fifteen summers had 
 ripened into early womanhood. After Armijo's eleva- 
 tion, he insidiously beset the fair doncella with libertine 
 intentions ; but she proudly and scornfully resisted all 
 his advances, fortified not more, perhaps, by a sentiment 
 of intrinsic virtue than by the inveterate hatred she en- 
 tertained for the governor. She knew that he had been 
 the mortal enemy of her father the undoubted instiga- 
 tor of his assassination such a misci'eant could find 
 little favour with the pretty Soledad. But this great man 
 was not to be so easily foiled, and attempted by intrigue 
 what he had failed to accomplish in a direct way. He 
 influenced a match between Dona Soledad and Esqui- 
 pulas Caballero, one of his ensigns, and in the plenitude 
 of his good-nature honoured their nuptials by officiating 
 as sponsor at the ceremony. 
 
 He now renewed his vile importunities, and, as he sup- 
 posed, with better prospect of success. He held, in a 
 manner, the destiny of the young officer in his hands ; 
 but in every attempt to accomplish his unholy object he 
 was most signally baffled. The maiden and the wife 
 proved alike invulnerable to his solicitations and his 
 
 * 1 believe that this man was governor of New Mexico about the year 
 1832.
 
 356 A REVOLT ATTEMPTED. 
 
 threats. At last, convinced of the impregnable virtue 
 of Soledad, he gave up the pursuit, and began making 
 good the deep oaths of vengeance he had often sworn. 
 Her he could not reach directly, but he found means to 
 degrade her unoffending husband and her favourite un- 
 cle, who was also a young ensign in his army, named 
 Ramon Baca. Ordering a grand review of the troops, 
 with no other intention than to humble these young ca- 
 dets, he publicly promoted to a rank above them several 
 officers of inferior grade a most galling slight in the 
 eyes of a young military aspirant, and a kind of ven- 
 geance worthy only of the great Armijo. He even 
 promoted, from the rank of common soldier to a grade 
 above them, a fellow who had been an agent and pander 
 in many of his licentious transactions. The young offi- 
 cers, who were the most deserving and meritorious in 
 the whole corps, now finding themselves at the tail of 
 the army, presented a respectful petition to his excel- 
 lency, praying to be reinstated. This so irritated the 
 tyrant, that he threatened them with instant death if they 
 ever ventured to molest him again with similar impor- 
 tunities, and Caballero, the husband of the pretty Sole- 
 dad, upon affected suspicion of favouring the disaffected 
 soldiers, was cast into prison with them and heavily 
 ironed ! 
 
 Baca, upon some frivolous charge, was ordered out 
 of the country. The 9th of February was the day 
 fixed by the governor for his banishment ; but when 
 the time came the young man declared to his friends 
 that he would not depart, but would raise an insurrec- 
 tion and sacrifice his and their oppressor, or perish in 
 the attempt. With a sword at his side he promenaded 
 the streets of Santa Fe during the forenoon, with great 
 boldness walked directly under Armijo's windows and
 
 ITS FAILURE. 357 
 
 held conferences with the soldiers. Without a friend to 
 inform him of the young officer's intention, Armijo re- 
 mained in utter ignorance of the plot ; yet the inhab- 
 itants were all aware of the intended revolution, and 
 anxiously awaited an outbreak they deemed inevitable. 
 But the good fortune of the despot did not desert him in 
 this extremity. Had a single blow been struck, his 
 power and his oppressions would have ended ; for, 
 whenever the star of his destiny tends downward, it 
 will gravitate with a velocity vastly accelerated by the 
 universal hatred in which he is held by his subjects ; 
 but when called upon by the heroic Baca the soldiers at 
 first hesitated, and then declared that they would ren- 
 der him no assistance. They had promised to aid, to join 
 him ; but either from lack of confidence in him as a 
 leader, or from craven fear of Armijo, they were de- 
 terred from an open demonstration. Thus was this em- 
 bryo revolution, which gave such excellent promise, 
 crushed through the timidity of a handful of soldiers. 
 
 In the afternoon, young Baca mounted his horse, and 
 riding to the barracks, made a short speech to his breth- 
 ren in arms. It was a farewell address, couched in 
 decorous terms, and at its conclusion the really gallant 
 officer departed on his exile. But by this time Armijo 
 had obtained information of the contemplated revolt, 
 and immediately sent off a detachment of dragoons 
 with orders to bring back the young officer, dead or 
 alive. He was overtaken, and thinking himself betray- 
 ed by the soldiery, quietly gave up his arms, was 
 guarded back to Santa Fe, and thrust into the same 
 dungeon with his friend Caballero. At first it was 
 thought that Armijo would order them to immediate ex- 
 ecution ; but fearing the populace, among whom they 
 had so many friends, he finally sent them off to the city
 
 358 ARMIJO AFFECTS ROYAL HONOURS. 
 
 of Mexico to be tried for treason, himself to furnish all 
 the proof. The father of young Caballero, a brave and 
 meritorious officer, but broken down by age and dissi- 
 pation, was carried to the door of Armijo to intercede 
 for his son; but the tyrant denied him an audience. 
 The shock was too much for the old man : he was 
 borne to his home only to be carried thence to his 
 grave, and his loss was much lamented by both foreign- 
 ers and natives. 
 
 The young officers were released on reaching Chi- 
 huahua, and afterward visited the city of Mexico with 
 the hope of obtaining redress. They were unable to 
 effect anything, however, for by the time they were al- 
 lowed a hearing the Texan expedition to New Mexico 
 began to be agitated, and the aspect of affairs at Santa 
 Fe was now too critical for the General Government to 
 think of tampering with her tyrannical governor. 
 
 In his rude palacio at Santa Fe he is more the des- 
 pot than anywhere else, maintaining himself proudly, 
 and enforcing all the regal homage and courtly cere- 
 monial exacted by the veriest tyrant. A guard, mus- 
 ket on shoulder, marches before the entrance to his 
 door, denying entrance to all unless they have first ob- 
 tained the royal permission. Should his excellency 
 feel in the humour of walking out, the cry from the cen- 
 tinela is, " The governor and commander-in-chief ap- 
 pears !" and this is echoed and re-echoed from every 
 guard in and about the barracks. When his majesty is 
 in the street, each dutiful subject takes off whatever 
 apology for a hat he may have on his head. Should 
 the governor's wife, a gross, brazen-faced woman, issue 
 from the building, the form is even more ridiculous, for 
 then the cry of " La gobernadora /" or " La comman- 
 dante generala /" resounds on every side. This woman
 
 HIS DEPRAVITY. 359 
 
 is contaminated with every depraved habit known to 
 human nature ; and as her husband is a debauchee by 
 " special prerogative," she does not scruple to act as his 
 alcahueta in all his amours. In the mean time she is not 
 without her own lovers a worthy couple, truly ! 
 
 It is strange how this man has been able to maintain 
 his despotic and arbitrary sway among a people ac- 
 knowledging no law but that of force. The inhabitants 
 are far more dissatisfied with his administration than 
 they were with that of Perez and his cabinet of Abreus ; 
 yet so far they have dared to do no more than plot rev- 
 olutions against their oppressor. He continues to hold 
 sway in a country where he has not a real friend upon 
 whom he can depend ; even his sycophantic favourites 
 would prove his bitterest enemies were he once in ad- 
 versity. Could the Texans have entered New Mexicd 
 in a body, with plenty of provisions, Armijo would have 
 fled with his ill-gotten wealth, and the new-comers 
 would have been hailed by all parties as deliverers. 
 
 I might diversify this hasty biography of Don Manuel 
 Armijo, from the abundant material which I have yet by 
 me unused, with stories of his atrocious acts that would 
 bring a blush upon the brow of tyranny. I might de- 
 tail many horrible murders which he has committed. 
 I could relate many a thrilling story of his abuse of the 
 rights of women, that would make Saxon hearts burn 
 with indignant fire ; for Saxon hearts enshrine the 
 mothers of men as objects sacred and apart. I might 
 speak of his conniving with the Apache Indians, in 
 their robberies of his neighbours of the State of Chihua- 
 hua, by furnishing this hardy mountain tribe with pow- 
 der and balls and guns, knowing that with them they 
 would fall, like the eagle, from their fastnesses, upon his 
 own countrymen, I could give a catalogue of men's
 
 360 HIS COWARDICE. 
 
 names whom he has banished- from their own families 
 and homes, for no reason but because they were in his 
 way. Assassinations, robberies, violent debauchery, 
 extortions, and innumerable acts of broken faith are 
 themes upon which I am armed with abundant and 
 most veritable detail ; but my readers would sicken, 
 and my narrative leads me another way. A few re- 
 marks and I have done with him. 
 
 The mien and deportment of Armijo are not ill cal- 
 culated to strike a timorous people with awe ; for, as I 
 have before remarked, he is a large, portly man, of 
 stern countenance and blustering manner. Not one 
 jot or tittle of personal bravery does he possess, but is 
 known to be a most arrant coward. In all the revolu- 
 tions that have taken place since he first courted power, 
 Tiis own person has never been exposed, if we except 
 one instance. In a skirmish with some Indians he re- 
 ceived a wound in the leg, from which he still limps ; 
 but the action was not of his own seeking, and his con- 
 duct on this occasion was that of a man engaged in a 
 business anything but to his liking. He has made great 
 capital, however, of his crippled leg, and, like his great 
 exemplar, Santa Anna, is determined that his subjects 
 shall never forget that he received it while encounter- 
 ing their enemy. But the master-stroke of this great 
 man was the capturing the Texan Santa Fe Expedition. 
 These small squads of tattered soldiers, taken piece- 
 meal, in his grandiloquent bulletin he multiplied into a 
 legion of Buckramites for which act of most heroic 
 daring he was, all in good time, knighted by Santa An- 
 na. He knows his people thoroughly, having studied 
 their character with a most acute discernment. A 
 common remark of his is, " Vale mas estar tornado por 
 valiente que serlo" it is better to be thought brave
 
 UNREALIZED HOPES. 361 
 
 than really to be so and thus, by blustering and swag- 
 gering, he keeps the timid natives in subjection. 
 
 It may be thought singular that no attention is paid 
 to Armijo's tyranny by the general government ; but 
 his policy is only part of that which has obtained in 
 many of the departments. In our own confederacy, 
 we regard intelligence as the great bond of union ; the 
 reverse is the case in Mexico a sufficient test to 
 prove that the so-called Republic is no Republic at 
 all. To General Manuel Armijo I will now bid adieu; 
 but I cannot do it without again saying, that, how- 
 ever much he may be astonished at seeing his portrait 
 thus taken, he cannot urge a single syllable against its 
 fidelity. 
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 Unrealized Hopes. A Brood of unhatched Chickens. We are quartered 
 with our Companions. Arrival of " Old Paint." Joy at seeing the Vet- 
 eran. Another Meeting with Friends. Stories of Suffering. Liberated 
 Prisoners again confined. Armijo and Lewis. Departure for the City of 
 Mexico. A long and gloomy March before us. The Brute Salezar in 
 Command. Bustamente and the Women of San Miguel. Causes of the 
 Failure of the Santa Fe Expedition. Arrival at a deserted Mission. 
 Sufferings of the Prisoners from Cold. More of Salezar's Brutalities. 
 The dreary March continued. Arrival at Pino's Rancho. Farther Suf- 
 ferings. A cold Camping-ground. Hard Fare. Frostbitten Feet. Hor- 
 rible Threat of Salezar. San Domingo. Kindness of the Women. San 
 Felipe. First Sight of the Rio Grande. Algodones. A Second "Black 
 Hole of Calcutta." Arrival at. the Indian Village of Sandia. A singu- 
 lar Rite. Description of the Inhabitants. Alameda. Scene in an Oven. 
 Misery makes us acquainted with strange Bedfellows. Sufferings on 
 the Increase. Bottoms of the Rio Grande; their Fertility. Albuquerque 
 in Sight. Herons and Wild Geese. A dashing Mexican Horseman. 
 Lieutenant Hornsby abducted. Arrival at Albuquerque. The Family of 
 Armijo. Farther Kindness of the Women. General Pike's Journal. The 
 Pretty Girl of Albuquerque. 
 
 I AWOKE on the morning of the 17th of October with 
 full confidence that I had passed my last night in prison. 
 VOL. I H H
 
 362 UNMATCHED CHICKENS. 
 
 Neither myself nor my companions thought it could be 
 otherwise. I had received assurance after assurance, 
 from every quarter, that as soon as the Texans were on 
 the march an order for my release would be made out 
 and issued by Armijo ; and so sanguine were my illu- 
 sory hopes that such would be the case, that the even- 
 ing previous I had spent in speculations as to my future 
 movements. On leaving New-Orleans, in the prece- 
 ding May, I had fondly anticipated reaching Santa Fe 
 by the 1 st of August, at farthest, and the city of Mex- 
 ico by the 1st of October, after having seen all the 
 " sights" between the two points. It was now the mid- 
 dle of the latter month, a period so late in the season 
 as to render my returning to the United States, by 
 way of Bent's Fort and Independence, impracticable, 
 so that I should be forced, as I then thought, to go as 
 far as Chihuahua, at least, into the interior of Mexico. 
 From that point I determined, if it would facilitate my 
 journey home, to leave the main route to Mexico and 
 travel directly to Matamoros. I even made my calcu- 
 lations, in case Armijo would not give up my horse, to 
 purchase him of his present owner if possible ; or if I 
 was disappointed in once more obtaining possession of 
 this tried and faithful steed, I at least determined upon 
 purchasing a large and untiring mule which had belong- 
 ed to Van Ness. 
 
 A larger brood of unhatched chickens has probably 
 never been counted. When the sun had appeared 
 above the eastern summits of the mountains which en- 
 viron San Miguel, I was ordered to march, with my 
 three companions, to the quarters occupied by the main 
 body of Texan prisoners. Our meeting was an occa- 
 sion of strong and diverse emotions joy once more to 
 shake the hands of those with whom we had shared the
 
 ARRIVAL OF " OLD PAINT." 363 
 
 perils and hardships of the prairies, gloom to see those 
 friends in plight so miserable. 
 
 But a few minutes elapsed ere " Old Paint" Caldwell, 
 with his nine comrades, was escorted from the house 
 of our friend Vigil and placed in line with the other 
 prisoners. A low but cordial shout of welcome arose 
 on the still morning air as the men saw the veteran ap- 
 proach, and warm were the greetings as he shook 
 hands with the eager crowd that pressed around him. 
 Question followed question in such quick succession 
 that no time was given to answer ; stories of suffering 
 and of wrong were broken off half finished, in such 
 haste was each man to unbosom his rapid-crowding 
 thoughts. The burden of the stories on every side was 
 of starvation, murdered friends and broken Mexican 
 faith, mixed with deep curses upon the head of Lewis, 
 whose perfidy was by this time generally known. 
 
 Before these first greetings were over, Lieutenants 
 Scott and Burgess, with young Howard, were escorted 
 in from the rancho of old Antonio Baca. Here was 
 another meeting of deep joy alloyed with melancholy ; 
 the latter had a brother among us, and all had warm 
 friends. My friend Falconer, too, reduced in flesh, but 
 still preserving the full measure of his buoyant spirits, 
 we found in the crowd. 
 
 Even up to this period I had not lost all hope of being 
 liberated : Armijo had released four of the Texans, then 
 why not me ? He had all my papers in his possession 
 documents proving incontestably that I had no part 
 or lot with the expedition he had been fortunate enough 
 to capture and with such proofs in his hands, upon 
 what grounds could he detain me longer ? He had none 
 other than his arbitrary will the supreme law of New 
 Mexico. But whatever hopes I might have entertain-
 
 364 SALEZAR AGAIN. 
 
 ed, up to this time, of being released, they were now 
 banished on seeing the four Texans, who had for sev- 
 eral days enjoyed unconditional liberty, marched in 
 among us. They knew not the cause, could divine no 
 motive which might have induced Armijo to this singu- 
 lar step, unless Lewis was at the bottom of it. At one 
 moment the governor had liberated these men, and as- 
 signed them all lucrative situations : they had scarcely 
 tasted the sweets of freedom before they were again 
 arrested, brought in, and penned with their imprisoned 
 comrades. Not a doubt exists that to Lewis these four 
 men, as well as myself, were indebted for months of 
 suffering, peril, and imprisonment : the traitor probably 
 thought that we had found out and would make his 
 treachery known to the Americans at Santa Fe, and 
 thus render the place too hot for his comfort or safety. 
 He had a certain influence with Armijo, which he might 
 have used for the melioration of our lot ; but the same 
 cowardly impulse -which urged him, by base means, to 
 save himself from the Mexicans, now caused him, in a 
 more traitorous way, to save himself from his own coun- 
 trymen. 
 
 After we had been paraded in the plaza of San Mi- 
 guel, and the ceremony of counting us had been gone 
 through, it was ascertained that the notorious Salezar 
 the greatest brute among Armijo's officers was to have 
 charge of us. This was considered unfortunate by all, 
 and even our old and tricky friend Bustamente, who 
 came up to bid us farewell, privately took occasion to 
 manifest his regret that such a cold-blooded wretch 
 was to have charge of us. The \vomen, too, who had 
 been so kind to myself and companions while in San 
 Miguel, now came up and shook our hands for the last 
 time, many of the girls affected even to tears at the
 
 WHY THE EXPEDITION FAILED. 365 
 
 gloomy prospect before us, and openly warning us to 
 beware crossing Salezar in any of his demands or wish- 
 es. The beginning of a cold and disagreeable winter 
 was at hand, as we set off on foot upon a journey of 
 over two thousand miles we were in the hands of a 
 brute whose only delight was in cruelty and blood 
 should we be fortunate enough to withstand the fa- 
 tigues attendant upon the journey, an uncertain fate 
 awaited us at its termination ; thus, with hope lending 
 hardly a gleam of sunshine to the dark clouds before 
 us, the reader can easily imagine that our condition was 
 gloomy in the extreme. 
 
 And what mistake had brought this sorrowful issue 
 to our enterprise ? In as few words as possible I will 
 answer the question. In the first place, the expedition 
 began its march too late in the season by at least six 
 weeks. Had it left Austin on the 1st of May, the grass 
 would have been much better, and we should have had 
 little difficulty in finding good water both for ourselves 
 and cattle. In the second place, we were disappointed 
 in obtaining a party of the Lipan Indians as guides, and 
 were consequently obliged to take a route some three 
 hundred miles out of the way, and in many places ex- 
 tremely difficult of travel. Thirdly, the government of 
 Texas did not furnish wagons and oxen enough to trans- 
 port the goods of the merchants, and this, as a matter of 
 course, caused tedious delays. Fourthly, cattle enough 
 on the hoof were not provided, even with the second 
 supply sent for by the commissioners from Little River. 
 Again, the distance was vastly greater than we had an- 
 ticipated in our widest and wildest calculations, owing 
 to which circumstance, and an improvident waste of 
 provisions while in the buffalo range, we found ourselves 
 upon half allowance in the very middle of our long jour-
 
 366 WHAT MIGHT HAVE BEEN. 
 
 ney a privation which weakened, dispirited, and ren- 
 dered the men unfit for duty. The Indians also annoy- 
 ed us much, by their harassing and continual attempts 
 to cut off our small parties and steal our horses. Fi- 
 nally, the character of the governor of New Mexico 
 was far from being understood, and his power was un- 
 derrated by all. General Lamar's estimate of the views 
 and feelings of the people of Santa Fe and the vicinity 
 was perfectly correct ; not a doubt can exist that they 
 all were and are anxious to throw off the oppressive 
 yoke of Armijo, and come under the liberal institutions 
 of Texas ; but the governor found us divided into small 
 parties, broken down by long marches and want of food, 
 discovered a traitor among us, too, and taking advan- 
 tage of these circumstances, his course was plain and 
 his conquest easy. 
 
 Far different would have been the result had the ex- 
 pedition reached the confines of New Mexico a month 
 earlier, and in a body. Then, with fresh horses, and a 
 sufficiency of provisions for the men, the feelings of the 
 inhabitants could have been ascertained ; the proclama- 
 tions of General Lamar would have been distributed 
 among them ; the people would have had an opportu- 
 nity to come over to Texas without fear, and the feeble 
 opposition Armijo could have made, and I doubt wheth- 
 er he would have made any against the Texans in a 
 body, could have been put down with ease. Had it 
 been evident that a majority of the inhabitants were sat- 
 isfied under their present government, and unfriendly to 
 a union with Texas, then the goods would have been 
 sold, and the force withdrawn at least, such was the 
 tenour of the proclamations. No attack would have 
 been made upon the inhabitants that was expressly 
 understood ; but had Armijo seen fit to commence hos-
 
 GENERAL MCLEOD S PARTY. 367 
 
 tilities, his power in New Mexico would have been at 
 an end. Fate decreed otherwise, and by a series of un- 
 foreseen and unfortunate circumstances the expedition 
 was thrown into his hands. 
 
 To return to our present gloomy situation. A guard 
 numbering nearly two hundred men, mounted upon 
 horses, mules, and asses, and miserably armed with 
 bows and arrows, lances, or worthless muskets, rode 
 upon either side of us, single file, as we trudged along 
 on foot We had questions innumerable to ask each 
 other, and during the day I learned from Mr. Falconer 
 and others the particulars of their journey across the 
 Grand Prairie,* and of their capture. The story was 
 one of great hardship and suffering. The implacable 
 Caygiias had harassed them continually, killed several 
 of their men, and at one time rode directly through the 
 camp, and succeeded in stampeding no less than eighty- 
 seven horses, which were never recovered. When we 
 left them, on the 31st of August, it was thought that they 
 would hear from us at farthest by the 10th of Septem- 
 ber, but the 15th of that month came, and still no tidings. 
 On that day a council of officers was held, at which it 
 was determined to wait five days longer, and then, if 
 no news should be received of Colonel Cooke's party, 
 it was resolved to burn the wagons and goods, and make 
 the best of their way back to Texas by forced marches, 
 living upon their horses and mules, after the beef should 
 have been exhausted, until they could reach the buffalo 
 and hunting range. Unfortunately the guides sent back 
 by us, after we had passed the Angosturas, reached 
 General McLeod's encampment on the 17th of Septem- 
 
 * By this name I designate the immense prairie we crossed after ascend- 
 ing the steppe, or chain of high hills, west of the Palo Dura It is the Llano 
 Estacado of the New Mexicans.
 
 368 EXTREMITY OF HUNGER. 
 
 her, when immediate orders were given to resume the 
 march towards Santa Fe. 
 
 To show how unfortunate had been our choice of 
 route, after leaving the main party on the Palo Duro, it 
 is sufficient to say that the guides we sent back trav- 
 ersed the distance in three days and a half whereas it 
 had taken us fourteen. The distance must have been, 
 by their route, nearly two hundred miles ; yet by trav- 
 elling night and day they were enabled to make their 
 journey in the short time mentioned. The guides, too, 
 were enabled to find, what we had supposed impracti- 
 cable, a road for the wagons up the high and precipitous 
 steppe, and when once on the summit, instead of taking 
 the northwest course which had brought us directly 
 upon the deep chasms and other obstructions, they gui- 
 ded the command in a due west direction, finding a 
 smooth road, and heading the chasms entirely. Had 
 Colonel Cooke known this route on leaving the main 
 body, the fate of the expedition might have been different. 
 
 But even on gaining the Grand Prairie, and with the 
 bright hopes of soon reaching the settlements, and a 
 sufficiency of food before them, the sufferings of the 
 men composing the main party were still intolerable. 
 The Caygiias pursued them some distance, hovering 
 upon their flanks and rear, and cutting off several small 
 parties who had been driven by hunger to seek for 
 grapes, plums, or game. The men were out of salt, 
 their daily allowance was only one pound and a half 
 of starved and sickly beef, which was probably two 
 thirds bone, and their wants had caused great debility 
 and disease among them. It is only necessary to meti- 
 tion, in order to show the great sufferings they endured, 
 that every dog in camp and several of the Indian curs 
 had followed us was killed and greedily devoured.
 
 SURRENDER OP GENERAL MCLEOD. 369 
 
 Snakes, lizards, tortoises, polecats in short, almost 
 every living and creeping thing upon the face of the 
 prairie, were eaten with avidity, so ravenous was their 
 hunger. Not a vestige, save the horns, hoofs, and lar- 
 ger bones of the beeves, was left the wolves and buz- 
 zards were even cheated of their just allowance, the 
 hide and entrails, for all was devoured. 
 
 On arriving at the Laguna Colorada, a small sheet 
 of reddish water south of the Angosturas, the advance 
 of General McLeod was opposed by the Mexicans un- 
 der Colonel Archulete. Out of more than two hun- 
 dred men, it was now found that the Texans could 
 muster but about ninety who were really fit for active 
 service, and these would have been obliged to act on 
 foot entirely, as their horses had been either run off in 
 the stampede on the Palo Duro, or kept so closely within 
 the lines that they could not obtain grass enough to 
 sustain their strength. Many of the men who had lost 
 their horses, weak and dispirited from long marches 
 and want of food, had secretly thrown away their arms 
 to lighten themselves upon the road, and, in the mean 
 time, that subordination, without which all efforts are 
 useless, was in a measure lost. In this desperate con- 
 dition, unable to hear a word concerning the fate of 
 either Colonel Cooke or of two small parties they had 
 sent out, and with the promise of good treatment and 
 that their personal effects would be returned to them, a 
 surrender was made. Many of the men, as well as of- 
 ficers, were ready and willing to bide the issue of an 
 action in case their advance was opposed ; but they 
 were overruled by the majority, and thus was the fate 
 of the expedition sealed. The men had no sooner laid 
 down their arms than they were searched, robbed, tied, 
 and most grossly insulted, and then, with hardly pro-
 
 370 SANTA FE. 
 
 visions enough to sustain nature, marched hurriedly to 
 San Miguel. Of their arrival in that place I have al- 
 ready made mention. I will now continue the journey 
 towards the city of Mexico. 
 
 The 17th of October, the day on which we started 
 from San Miguel, was warm and showery. Our route 
 lay towards Santa Fe, and over the same ground my- 
 self and companions had travelled the day on which 
 we first met Armijo. About sundown, foot-sore and 
 completely exhausted after a hurried march of thirty 
 miles over a rough and hilly road, we reached the old 
 ruin of Pecos in former times a mission and a fortress, 
 but now uninhabitable, and fast crumbling to decay. 
 Salezar drove us into an enclosure amid the ruins, and 
 there herded us for the night in quarters not fit even 
 for brutes, and without giving us a morsel of food ! 
 
 Immediately to the north of Pecos, and within a few 
 miles, rose a lofty mountain whose summit was now 
 covered with snow. On the other side of this mount- 
 ain, and immediately at. its base, lies the little mud-built 
 city of Santa Fe, a place towards which we had been 
 journeying for months, but which we were not destined 
 to see.* As I have before remarked, the day had been 
 hot and sultry, with a shower in the afternoon sufficient 
 to moisten the ground. The only baggage in posses- 
 sion of the prisoners, besides the slight and ragged 
 clothing upon their backs, was a single blanket for each 
 man. In this each immediately rolled himself, and then 
 
 * General Zebulon M. Pike, in the narrative of his imprisonment in New 
 Mexico, says that Santa Fe, from the mountain's sides, has the appearance 
 of an immense fleet of flat-boats on the Mississippi, while Albert Pike, in his 
 interesting sketches, likens its general features to those of an extensive brick- 
 kiln, or rather a succession of brick-kilns. Either comparison is doubtless 
 correct, for such certainly is the appearance of all the towns in Northern 
 Mexico through which I travelled.
 
 COLD AND HTJNGER. 371 
 
 stretched his weary limbs upon the cold, damp earth, 
 vainly hoping that he might obtain rest and forgetful- 
 ness in sleep but no such good fortune awaited us. 
 
 As if to increase our sufferings, a chill, biting wind 
 sprang up, at dusk, fresh from the snow-clad mountain 
 north of us, and in less than an hour it was so bitterly 
 cold That to sleep was impossible. In vain did we 
 crowd close to each other, in vain did we nestle in the 
 little hollows formed in the uneven ground ; the pier- 
 cing wind penetrated our scanty covering and benumb- 
 ed our every energy. I tried to rise, as did many of 
 the unfortunate prisoners ; but the cold wind had so 
 stiffened our limbs, rendered in the first place heated 
 and sore by the long mountain march, that we could 
 scarcely move or turn over without enduring tortures 
 the most excruciating. In this way, and without an 
 hour's sleep, we passed our first night on the long road 
 to Mexico, 
 
 Early in the morning we were ordered to continue 
 the march, and without food. Salezar did, previous to 
 starting, distribute some fifty small cakes among one 
 hundred and eighty-seven half-starved men ; and the 
 manner of this distribution showed the brutal nature of 
 the wretch. Calling the prisoners around him, each 
 with the hope that he was to receive something to allay 
 the sharp cravings of hunger, he would toss one of these 
 cakes high in the air, and then, with a glee absolutely 
 demoniacal, watch the scramble that ensued as it fell 
 among the suffering throng. It was a game of the 
 strong against the weak, this struggle for the few mouth- 
 fuls of food which Salezar threw among them. The 
 better attributes of our nature, the kind sympathies and 
 generous forbearance which lift man above the brutes, 
 were for a time overwhelmed, in a majority of the pris-
 
 372 SALEZAR'S BRUTALITY. 
 
 oners, by long starvation and great bodily suffering ; 
 and now, as the savage who had charge of them tossed 
 the miserable pittance in the air, it was a study to watch 
 their eager faces as it descended, to see with what wolf- 
 like ferocity they would rush to secure the prize, and 
 the terrible struggle which was sure to ensue ere some 
 one, stronger than his fellows, could secure it. Salezar 
 was accompanied by our old acquaintance, Don Jesus, 
 in this distribution ; and the satisfaction with which they 
 watched the" fierce conflicts marked a new leaf in the 
 dreadful chapter of human depravity. 
 
 This revolting scene was scarcely over before we 
 were ordered to commence the day's march. Sore and 
 stiff in every bone and joint, we started, many of the 
 men being hardly able to hobble and halt along over 
 the rough and rocky hills which now intervened be- 
 tween Pecos and the valley of the Rio Grande ; but as 
 the sun gradually dispersed the morning mists, and ex- 
 ercise warmed our limbs and reduced the stiffness in 
 our joints, we were enabled to move with less pain. 
 Our course was now nearly south. The road forks 
 near Pecos, the right-hand branch leading directly to- 
 wards Santa Fe, while the left, which we were now to 
 take, is the regular thoroughfare towards Albuquerque 
 and the other towns on the Rio Grande. 
 
 After a march of some thirty miles, during which the 
 men suffered incredibly from hunger, thirst, and extreme 
 lameness, night overtook us at the small rancho of a 
 man named Pino, a brother of the brute of that name 
 mentioned in a former chapter. Before reaching it, my 
 feet were so badly swollen and blistered that I was 
 obliged to draw off my boots, and finish the march with 
 no other protection against tho short and prickly grass 
 than my stockings ; yet many of my fellow-prisoners
 
 A GENEROUS MEXICAN. 373 
 
 were unfortunately worse off than myself, their feet 
 bleeding at every step. 
 
 We were driven, one by one, into a cow-pen or yard, 
 and there encamped for the night, Salezar distributing 
 a pint cup of meal to each man after having satisfied 
 himself that none of us were missing. Even in his mode 
 of counting us he exhibited his characteristic brutality ; 
 for just as they drive sheep or cattle into pens in New 
 Mexico, with the intention of enumerating them, so had 
 he driven us ! 
 
 A fence, which enclosed our pen, here partially pro- 
 tected us from the biting north wind, and in the early 
 part of the night we were enabled to catch a little sleep. 
 Towards morning, however, the weather changed to 
 such a degree of coldness that farther repose was im- 
 possible it was so cold that the frost was plainly visi- 
 ble on our thin blankets. So stiff and benumbed were 
 the men by this time, from cold, want of sleep, and the 
 excessive fatigue they had undergone, that even an or- 
 der to rise at daybreak and continue the march was re- 
 ceived with joy by all it would at least enable us to 
 obtain warmth, and lessen the acute pains we felt in 
 every bone. 
 
 From Pino we learned that General McLeod, Mr. 
 Navarro, Dr. Whittaker, Captains Houghton and Hud- 
 son, with two or three other officers, had passed the 
 previous night at his rancho, and were provided with 
 comfortable quarters. They had been sent forward 
 one day in advance of the main body, on horseback, and 
 as they were fortunate enough to fall into the hands of 
 an officer of humane feeling, were well treated. The 
 name of this officer, if I remember aright, was Quintana, 
 and our friends who were under his charge always 
 spoke of him as a kind-hearted, gentlemanly man. 
 
 VOL. I. 1 1
 
 S74 PEDAL SUFFERINGS. 
 
 A walk of two or three hours, after leaving the ran- 
 cho, relieved our limbs of the torturing pains felt during 
 the latter part of the night, but our frostbitten feet now 
 began swelling and paining us severely. The road of 
 the two previous days had led over mountains and rug- 
 ged hills ; we now struck upon the valley of a small 
 stream running into the Rio Grande a short distance to 
 our right. After a long and toilsome march, our men 
 suffering at every step, we encamped upon the borders 
 of the little stream for the night. Here we experienced 
 great relief from bathing our inflamed and swollen feet 
 in its cold waters. 
 
 After issuing to each man a miserable pittance of 
 barley-bread, so hard that it was impossible to eat it 
 without much boiling, Salezar told us that his orders 
 from Armijo were to tie us every night ; but, as we 
 were very tired, his humanity prevented him from car- 
 rying out the orders ! He placed a strong guard around 
 us, however, and coolly remarked that if a single man 
 was missing in the morning the whole party would be 
 instantly shot ! The heartless wretch took especial 
 good care that none should make an attempt of this 
 kind, by working the men so hard during the day that 
 they willingly sank upon the ground at night with hard- 
 ly the power of moving. 
 
 A biting, chilly evening was followed by a heavy 
 frost towards morning. Sleep was out of the question 
 we could only curl up, and by nestling close to each 
 other upon the cold ground, keep from freezing. At 
 daylight we were ordered to be ready to march, and 
 before sunrise were again upon the road, with nothing 
 to eat. To let my readers know the horrible condition 
 of our feet, I will here state, that, for the next ten days 
 after this, I was unable to pull off my stockings without
 
 KIND-HEARTED WOMEN. 375 
 
 bringing the skin with them. The large blisters would 
 break during the day, and the exudation, as it dried, 
 adhere firmly to my stockings, so that I was obliged to 
 keep them on although full of gravel, and torturing me 
 at every step. Many of my companions suffered much 
 more from frostbitten feet than myself, their toe-nails 
 coming off, in consequence, before we got through our 
 journey. 
 
 At a brisk pace we were hurried forward, reaching 
 the little village of Santo Domingo before it was yet 
 noon, a distance of eighteen miles from our camping- 
 ground of the previous night. At this village our men 
 first had cause to thank the women for their kindness. 
 The latter came running out of the mud houses in every 
 direction, bringing tortillas, baked pumpkins, and dry 
 ears of corn, and fairly shedding tears at our forlorn 
 and miserable appearance. The corn was our princi- 
 pal food, and was swallowed after simply roasting the 
 ears a short time before the fire, although many of the 
 more hungry among our men ate it raw. 
 
 A little farther on, we entered the village of San 
 Felipe, the banks of the Rio Grande now seen to the 
 right. Our course was nearly south, occasionally ap- 
 proaching the banks of the river, and then leaving it as 
 the turns threw us off. The women of San Felipe 
 were in every way as charitable as those of San to Do- 
 mingo. Many of them openly reproached Armijo as a 
 brute unfit to live, and even the men took every oppor- 
 tunity to manifest their sorrow that we had fallen into 
 his hands. 
 
 Towards night we reached Algodnes, a small vil- 
 lage near the Rio Grande, and here we encamped. 
 That the night would be unusually cold we were well 
 aware, and Mr. Van Ness was requested by the men
 
 376 SUFFOCATION. 
 
 to ask Salezar if he could possibly procure shelter. 
 Two small rooms, with a door leading from one to the 
 other, and together hardly large enough for twenty 
 men, were provided, and into these over one hundred 
 and eighty of us were driven like so many sheep, and 
 the heavy wooden door locked upon us. To lie down, 
 or even sit down, was out of the question, and a scene 
 of misery and desperation soon ensued which beggars 
 description. 
 
 In the rear room there was no window, or other 
 opening for a circulation of the air, except the door 
 which opened into the front room, and this was block- 
 ed up by the mass who had crowded towards it. In 
 the front room was a single open window, two feet 
 in height, perhaps, by eighteen inches in width, and 
 through this small aperture came all the fresh air that 
 was to be inhaled by nearly two hundred persons ! In 
 this room, and within three yards of the window, I 
 stood firmly wedged and jammed by human flesh, un- 
 able to move either forward or backward, to the right 
 or to the left ; yet even at this short distance from the 
 window I soon felt sensations of suffocation what, 
 then, must have been the feelings of those in the farther 
 room? 
 
 Soon outcries arose from those in the rear. Half 
 stifled, they shouted aloud to those in front to break 
 open or tear down the door, and madly pressed for- 
 ward as if to assist in accomplishing the object of their 
 wishes. In the mean time, those nearest the window, 
 who could speak Spanish, begged the guard to open 
 the door and allow at least a part to leave the house ; 
 but the latter either could not hear their entreaties 
 above the din, or heeded them not. Half suffocated, 
 and with sensations of sickness and giddiness, thoughts
 
 BLACK HOLE OF CALCUTTA. 377 
 
 of the Black Hole of Calcutta, with its attendant train 
 of horrors, now came over us ; and I am confident that 
 an order for instant execution would have been prefer- 
 red, by many, to passing the night in that dismal, dark, 
 and horrible place. An attempt to open the door in- 
 wardly was now made, but so great was the press in 
 that direction that it was found impossible to effect this 
 desirable object ; a battering-ram of human flesh was 
 next brought to bear upon it, and with all the energy 
 which desperation lends did our men endeavour to 
 burst lock or hinges but it gave not away. In the 
 midst of cries, imprecations, and half-smothered anath- 
 emas, we now heard a key turning in the clumsy and 
 ponderous lock Salezar had consented to pass fifty of 
 us out, but no more. 
 
 Being near the door, as the guard without opened 
 it, I was carried out in the current among the first. 
 How grateful, how instantaneous was the relief ! Cold 
 as was the northern blast, it was pure we could now 
 breathe. The guard escorted us to a cow-yard, and 
 there herded us for the night. I crawled under the lee 
 of a low mud wall, still reeking with the perspiration 
 which had issued from every pore while undergoing 
 the tortures of heat and suffocation the cold wind 
 penetrated my blanket and chilled me through, yet I 
 was content. So piercing was the blast, that even our 
 guard left their posts, and sought the friendly shelter 
 of the neighbouring houses, yet we had neither the 
 power nor inclination to attempt an escape. Huddled 
 together under the walls, shivering with the cold and 
 without a minute's sleep, we passed the hours until 
 morning came ; yet even for this poor boon we felt 
 thankful felt rejoiced that we had escaped the horrid 
 tortures of suffocation.
 
 378 MEXICAN INDIANS. 
 
 On the 21st of October, Salezar giving us no other 
 rations before starting than an ear of dry, hard corn to 
 each man, we reached the large Indian village of San 
 Dias. The pueblos, or town Indians of New Mexico, 
 are by far the better part of the population are frugal, 
 industrious, and honest cultivate the land, and are very 
 kind-hearted and hospitable to all strangers. Their reli- 
 gion is Roman Catholic, mixed up with many of their 
 own superstitious rites and ceremonies, and the same 
 may be said of nearly all the inhabitants of New Mex- 
 ico. The Indians certainly retain, to the present day, 
 many of their original rituals, feasts, and ceremonies, 
 having ingrafted such of the Romish rites only as were 
 calculated to strike the eye by their imposing pageant- 
 ry. Stories of their strange ceremonies I myself heard, 
 while at Sandia and other towns upon our march, 
 but one that was told General Pike is more singular 
 than all. If this tale be true, it would seem that once 
 a year there is a great feast, prepared for three succes- 
 sive days, which time is spent in eating, drinking, and 
 dancing. Near this scene of amusement is a dismal, 
 gloomy cave, into which not a glimpse of light can pen- 
 etrate, and where places of repose are provided for the 
 revellers. To this cave, after dark, repair grown per- 
 sons, of every age and sex, who pass the night in in- 
 dulgences of the most gross and sensual description. 
 Such is the account given of one of their ceremonies, 
 cloaking, under a religious guise, an indiscriminate 
 commerce, which bears strong resemblance to some of 
 the mystic revels of the ancients. 
 
 At Sandia the population came out in a body to 
 see us, and during a short halt the women gave to 
 each of our men a watermelon, besides apples, cakes, 
 and, in fact, everything they could spare. A gray-
 
 THEIR DRESS AND CHARACTER. 379 
 
 headed old man, who had been in St. Louis several 
 times, and who spoke a little English, told us that the 
 people were in our favour, and that Armijo was 
 universally hated and despised. He would have said 
 more, but our guard hurried us from the place. The 
 dress of these people varies but little from that of the 
 Mexicans ; that of the men being a coarse cotton shirt 
 and loose and flowing drawers of the same material, 
 over which they draw a pair of leather or cloth panta- 
 loons, open from the knee downward, and flapping 
 about whenever they are in motion. The women 
 and, for Indian women, many of them had strong pre- 
 tensions to beauty were, attired simply in a chemise 
 and blue woollen petticoat. 
 
 The inhabitants cultivate the soil, live principally 
 upon corn and pumpkins, and appear to be a simple, 
 mild, and inoffensive people not having the spirit to 
 rise upon their cowardly oppressors. Their complex- 
 ion is a light, clear brown, or copper ; their limbs are 
 symmetrical, and denoting great activity and strength, 
 while their eyes are dark and piercing, yet possessing 
 a singular mildness and an expression of resignation. 
 
 We should have remained a night at Sandia ; but 
 the policy of Salezar being to tire and worry us down 
 to such a degree that there would be no possibility of 
 our attempting an escape, we were barely allowed to 
 pass some five minutes in the place. After a long and 
 tedious march in the afternoon, many of our men nearly 
 ready to drop from pain and exhaustion, we finally reach- 
 ed a little village called Alameda. Here we were penned 
 in a large yard, without any protection from the cold. 
 In the early part of the night I made out to catch a lit- 
 tle sleep, but before midnight it was so cold that I rose, 
 to find, if possible, a warmer location. I tried to crawl
 
 380 A DASHING RIDER. 
 
 into a large oven standing in the yard, but found it 
 already occupied by two or three of my companions. 
 Surely, misery not only makes us acquainted with 
 strange bedfellows, but also with strange beds. 
 
 In the morning, and after we had each received our 
 day's ration a hard ear of corn the tiresome march 
 was continued. Passing through the fertile bottoms of 
 the Rio Grande, the land on either side of the road cov- 
 ered with cornstalks from which the ears had but re- 
 cently been plucked, about ten o'clock the still distant 
 church of Albuquerque appeared in view. The land in 
 the vicinity of this city appears to be under a higher 
 degree of cultivation than in any other part of New 
 Mexico. The inhabitants do not depend upon rain in 
 making their crops, but, on the contrary, the entire val- 
 ley appears intersected by irrigating canals, from which 
 the waters drawn from the broad but shallow Rio 
 Grande can at any time be let upon the earth. Among 
 the stubble, on either side of the road, we noticed im- 
 mense flocks of blue and white herons and wild geese, 
 so exceedingly tame that we could approach within a 
 few yards of them. The Mexicans seldom kill them, 
 and hence their tameness. 
 
 We were yet some two or three miles distant from 
 Albuquerque, journeying along at a rapid pace, when a 
 single horseman was seen speeding across the fields and 
 making directly towards us at a sweeping gallop. Soon 
 he was up with the rear of the party, when checking 
 his horse into a prancing canter, he politely raised his 
 hat and with great cordiality addressed the prisoners as 
 gentlemen while riding up the line towards the head. 
 His horse was a beautiful black, of glossy skin, clean 
 and well-made limbs, spirited eye, expanded nostrils, 
 and proud and gallant action the rider, a gay, dash-
 
 SINGULAR ADVENTURE. 381 
 
 ing, and handsome Mexican, dressed in a pair of green 
 velvet trousers, slashed at the sides, and with a profu- 
 sion of bell, buttons, while his close, neatly-fitting jacket, 
 although now somewhat faded and worn, showed him 
 a fashionable blade among his countrymen, and alto- 
 gether a different personage from the ragged rabble by 
 whom we were surrounded. There was a flashing, 
 dare-devil expression in his eye, too, and a jaunty set 
 to his hat and then he sat so fearlessly in his saddle 
 while his proud steed curvetted and caracoled along, 
 as if impatient of the slow pace at which he was com- 
 pelled to amble, that we could not but look with admi- 
 ration at both horse and rider, so gallant was their 
 bearing. 
 
 The horseman rode twice up and down the line of 
 prisoners, nodding gracefully as he passed, and eyeing 
 the crowd as if in search of a friend. By-and-by his 
 eye fell upon one of our officers, Lieutenant Hornsby, 
 who happened to be the best-dressed man in the party. 
 His well-wadded and full-buttoned Texan dragoon- 
 jacket was new, or nearly new, his cap and military 
 trousers had seen but little service, while his blanket 
 was of that fiery and showy red which could not fail to 
 attract in a country where gaudy and glaring colours 
 are so much sought after and admired. 
 
 The Mexican cavalier at once checked his steed on 
 seeing Hornsby, and immediately asked him if he was 
 tired. This was a question he could not but answer in 
 the affirmative. The horseman then asked H. to jump 
 up behind him his horse, he said, could easily carry 
 double, and a short ride would rest the weary limbs of 
 el prisionero. Instantly Hornsby was comfortably seat- 
 ed behind his new friend. The Mexican told him to 
 place one arm around his waist, and then to hold fast :
 
 382 AN ABDUCTION. 
 
 Hornsby did so. The next moment the horseman sud- 
 denly wheeled his steed in an opposite direction from 
 that we were pursuing, plunged his heavy Mexican spurs 
 in the animal's sides, and dashed off at a speed which 
 was truly astonishing considering the heavy weight his 
 steed was obliged to carry. He did not pursue the road 
 over which we had just travelled, but leaving it a little 
 to the right, struck off diagonally across fields and pas- 
 tures. Here was an abduction, and we could not help 
 congratulating our friend upon his good fortune. When- 
 ever the party came to an irrigating ditch the horse 
 would stop, brace himself, settle firmly upon his haunch- 
 es, and then at a bound carry both his riders safely 
 across. In the mean time we continued our journey 
 towards Albuquerque, yet we could not but turn our 
 eyes, ever and anon, to gaze at our rapidly-receding 
 comrade. We watched him until naught could be seen 
 but his red blanket rising and falling gently in the dis- 
 tance from the motion of the horse, and when we final- 
 ly turned from gazing it was with the firm belief that 
 we were not soon to look upon him again. 
 
 About noon we entered Albuquerque, somewhat 
 famed for the beauty of its women, besides being the 
 largest place in the province of New Mexico, and the 
 residence of Armijo a part of the year.* His family 
 
 * General Pike, in his Narrative, speaks of having met with numbers of 
 beautiful women at this place during a couple of days he spent there, in the 
 winter of 1807, while on his journey from Santa Fe to Chihuahua, a prison- 
 er. The following I quote from his journal : " We were received, at Albu- 
 querque, by Father Ambrosio Guerra in a very flattering manner, and led into 
 his hall. From thence, after taking some refreshment, into an inner apart- 
 ment, where he ordered his adopted children, of the female sex, to appear, 
 when they came in by turns, Indians of various nations, Spanish, French, 
 and finally, two young girls, whom, from their complexion, I conceived to be 
 English : on perceiving I noticed them, he ordered the rest to retire, many 
 of whom were beautiful, and directed those to sit down on the sofa beside 
 me ; thus situated, he told me they had been taken to the east by the Te-
 
 A RUSTIC BEAUTY. 383 
 
 were living here when we passed through, and treated 
 Van Ness, who was allowed many liberties by Salezar, 
 with much respect and consideration loading him with 
 excellent bread and other luxuries on his departure. 
 As we were marched directly through the principal 
 streets the inhabitants were gathered on either side to 
 gaze at the estrangeros, as we were called. The wom- 
 en, with all kindness of heart, gave our men corn, pump- 
 kins, bread, and everything they could spare from their 
 scanty store as we passed, and had Salezar allowed us 
 to remain but an hour, all our immediate wants would 
 have been supplied ; but the hard-hearted wretch ap- 
 peared to delight in acts of cruelty, and drove us through 
 with scarcely a halt of ten minutes. 
 
 It was at Albuquerque that I saw a perfect speci- 
 men of female loveliness. The girl was poor, being 
 dressed only in a chemise and coarse woollen petticoat ; 
 yet there was an air of grace, a charm about her, that 
 neither birth nor fortune can bestow. She was stand- 
 ing upon a mud-wall, the taper fingers of her right hand 
 supporting a large pumpkin upon her head, while her 
 left was gracefully resting upon her hip. Her dark, 
 full, and lustrous eyes, overarched with brows of pen- 
 cilled regularity, and fringed with lashes of long and 
 
 taus, passed from one nation to another until he purchased them, at that 
 time infants, but they could recollect neither their names nor language ; but 
 concluding they were my countrywomen, he ordered them to embrace me as 
 a mark of friendship, to which they appeared nothing loath. We then sat 
 down to dinner, which consisted of various dishes, excellent wines, and to 
 crown all, we were waited on by half a dozen of those beautiful girls, who, 
 like Hebe at the feast of the gods, converted our wine into nectar, and with 
 their ambrosial breath shed incense on our cups." Now, I neither saw as 
 much nor enjoyed myself as well while a prisoner at Albuquerque, as did 
 General Pike when he passed through there under circumstances somewhat 
 similar ; still, I saw enough to convince me that the race of pretty girls has 
 not altogether degenerated, a fact of which my reader will be acquainted by 
 reading the two following pages.
 
 384 BEAUTY UNADORNED. 
 
 silken texture, beamed upon us full of tenderness and 
 pity, while an unbidden tear of sorrow at our misfor- 
 tunes was coursing down a cheek of the purest and 
 richest olive. Her beautifully-curved lips, half opened 
 as if in pity and astonishment at a scene so uncommon, 
 disclosed teeth of pearly, dazzling whiteness. Innocence 
 and the best feelings of our nature were playing in ev- 
 ery lineament of that lovely face, and ever and anon, 
 as some one of us more unfortunate than the rest would 
 limp halting by, again her tears would gush from their 
 fountains and illumine a countenance of purity. If 
 
 " Crystal tears from pity's eye 
 Are the stars in heaven high," 
 
 some of them fell that day from the poor village girl, 
 drawn from their firmament to lighten the sorrows of 
 those upon whom misfortune had laid her heavy hand. 
 She could not be more than fifteen ; yet her loose and 
 flowing dress, but half concealing a bust of surpassing 
 beauty and loveliness, plainly disclosed that she was 
 just entering womanhood. Her figure was faultless, 
 and even the chisel of Praxiteles himself never modelled 
 ankles of such pure and classic elegance. 
 
 As the long and straggling line of prisoners passed 
 the spot upon which this lovely form was standing, sore 
 and worn down by long marches, and want of food and 
 sleep, her rare beauty drew the eyes of all towards her, 
 and exclamations of wonder were upon every lip. She 
 understood not our language, and in the artless simpli- 
 city of her nature knew not that her singular loveliness, 
 combined with the display of charms her unstudied yet 
 graceful attitude and scanty dress had given, was the 
 theme of almost universal admiration. 
 
 She beckoned to a youth among the prisoners, a Ger- 
 man lad but little older than herself, and presented him
 
 THE TWO LOVELIEST. 385 
 
 the pumpkin with infinite delicacy and grace ; and as 
 she did it, the exclamation pobrecito was heard gently 
 falling from her lips in tones of softest pity. The fair- 
 est flowers are oftenest found in obscurity, and I trust 
 my readers will not doubt my sincerity when I assert 
 that the prettiest girl I ever saw was selling woollen 
 stockings at twenty-five cents a pair at Holmes's Hole, 
 Massachusetts her twin-sister in beauty was standing 
 in her bare feet upon a mud- wall at Albuquerque, New 
 Mexico, with a pumpkin on her head ! 
 
 I lingered to take a last look at the beautiful girl, and 
 when I turned from the spot I could not but regret that 
 the lot of one so kind-hearted and so fair had been cast 
 in such a place. There are faces we see in our journey 
 through life surpassingly beautiful, faces that leave a 
 deep and lasting impression on the beholders, and hers 
 was one of them. Among the crowds of beauty her 
 image will stand out in bold relief, and not one of those 
 who saw her on the day we passed through Albuquer- 
 que will ever forget her. 
 
 VOL. I. K K
 
 386 SALEZAR'S NOTIONS OF EATING. 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 Los Placeres. Another dark Leaf in Salezar's Character. Wom^n and 
 Watermelons. Reappearance of Lieutenant Hornsby. His singular 
 Story of Adventure. The dashing Horseman and his gentle and generous 
 Wife. Arrival at Valencia. Farther Sufferings of the Prisoners. Kind- 
 ness of an old Woman. Death of Ernest. An American Traveller. Cru- 
 el Murder of McAllister. Its Effect upon the Prisoners. Casa Colorada. 
 A comfortable Camp. Appearance of the Valley of the Rio Grande. 
 Uses of the Cotton-wood. Salezar and the Alcaldes. The Mexican But- 
 ton Market. Straits to which the Prisoners were driven. A Story of 
 Stump. Magoffin's Wagons passed. American Drivers. Not allowed to 
 hold Converse with them. Arrival at Joya. A Fandango. Salezar Drunk. 
 Conduct of the American Drivers on the Occasion. Parrida. Crossing 
 the Rio Grande. Arrival at Socorro. A short Rest allowed. Character 
 of the Inhabitants. A Party of Apaches. Anecdote of the Priest of Socor- 
 ro. Head Chief of the Apaches. His dignified Bearing. Obsequiousness 
 of Salezar. Bosque de los Apaches. Recrossing the Rio Grande. The 
 Camp of Fray Cristobal. A Snow-storm at Night. Appearance of the 
 Prisoners by Daylight. Colds and Coughs. 
 
 AFTER leaving Albuquerque, we continued our march 
 through a succession of cultivated fields and pastures 
 until we reached a small rancho called Los Placeres, 
 and here we were encamped for the night. Nothing 
 was given us to eat, and on complaining to Salezar that 
 we were very hungry, he pointed to the spot where his 
 mules and horses were feeding, and said that the gra- 
 zing was excellent ! Because many of the prisoners 
 swallowed the corn given them by the women raw, the 
 fellow called them wolves and hogs. 
 
 At this place we were visited by a family of Mexican 
 women of no inconsiderable wealth, who lived at a ran- 
 cho some little distance from our road. It consisted of 
 a mother and her two daughters, and I will venture the 
 assertion that either of the latter weighed more than
 
 RETURN OP HORNSBY. 387 
 
 two hundred pounds, and will also declare positively 
 that neither of them was very prepossessing in appear- 
 ance. They had brought two large watermelons as a 
 present, and while one of the girls bestowed a melon 
 upon one of my companions, her sister made choice of 
 me as the recipient of the other. I gave the girl the 
 customary mil gracias, or thousand thanks, as I re- 
 ceived the melon ; had the pretty one of Albuquerque 
 given me that pumpkin I should have been far better 
 satisfied. 
 
 Not a little astonished were we, when, towards even- 
 ing, our absent comrade, Hornsby, with a chopfallen 
 countenance and a half- worn jacket a world too small 
 for him. was seen approaching, his Mexican friend, the 
 dashing horseman, setting him down near our quarters 
 and then galloping off in the direction of his home. A 
 singular story did the lieutenant tell of his adventure, 
 the substance of which was as follows : 
 
 On first mounting behind the Mexican, he supposed 
 that the fellow simply intended carrying him a mile or 
 two on the route perhaps to Albuquerque, which was 
 then in sight ; but to his astonishment the man wheeled 
 his horse suddenly round, and struck off across the 
 fields at a tremendous pace. Hornsby had employ- 
 ment enough in hanging on to his new friend, to avoid 
 being thrown off as the gallant horse leaped the irriga- 
 ting canals, so that, to use his own words, he had no 
 time to speculate upon the singularity of his adventure, 
 or upon the intentions of the wild horseman who was 
 giving him such a race. A hard ride of three or four 
 miles brought them to a house of neater construction 
 and finish than were possessed by the generality of 
 Mexican dwellings. It was a solitary house, and ap- 
 peared to be about half a mile from the road he had
 
 388 AN UNEXPECTED FEAST. 
 
 walked over but a short time previous. Once at the 
 door, the Mexican threw himself lightly from his ani- 
 mal, and, after assisting Hornsby to dismount, politely 
 asked him to enter his dwelling. There was an air of 
 neatness and comfort within, and the furniture betoken- 
 ed a style of living which formed a singular contrast 
 with the destitution apparent in even the better class 
 of houses upon the road. 
 
 His strange host led the way into a room in which 
 the furniture and appointments were absolutely luxuri- 
 ous. Over the fireplace was a large mirror ; two or 
 three scriptural paintings, one of them a well-executed 
 portrait of the Virgin, adorned the walls ; while upon 
 a sideboard was neatly arranged a set of decanters 
 and tumblers, all of cut glass, and of admirable work- 
 manship. Here the Mexican left him for a moment, 
 but soon returned with a massive silver pitcher filled 
 with cool water. 
 
 Unfortunately, Hornsby could speak but little Span- 
 ish, and was, consequently, unable to carry on a regu- 
 lar conversation with his host ; but when the latter 
 pointed to a tumbler, and then to a decanter of brandy, 
 our lieutenant understood him perfectly, and manifested 
 his knowledge of signs by helping himself to a bounti- 
 ful allowance. At this juncture the wife of the gay 
 cavalier, a mild-eyed, pretty woman, entered the apart- 
 ment, and, exchanging a few words with her husband, 
 led the way to a table in another room, which was 
 fairly groaning under the weight of a hot and sumptu- 
 ous breakfast Hornsby, now more astonished than 
 ever, and wondering how this adventure was to termi- 
 nate, took a seat at the table in silence, and ate a hearti- 
 er meal than he had done for months. Both the hus- 
 band and wife were assiduous in their attentions, and
 
 EXCHANGE A ROBBERY. 3S9 
 
 pressed dish after dish upon him with a most zealous 
 courtesy. 
 
 Breakfast over, the wife brought in a package of ci- 
 garritos, or shuck cigars, and after the husband had lit 
 one of them by means of the flint and steel which every 
 Mexican carries in his pocket, and had politely asked 
 his guest to join him in a smoke, he opened the business 
 which had induced him to invite Hornsby to his dwell- 
 ing. By words, and more particularly by signs, he in- 
 formed his guest that he had taken a great fancy to his 
 military jacket, and that he must exchange with him. 
 Hornsby responded, with an equal amount of his own 
 vernacular and a corresponding quantity of signs, to 
 the effect that the jacket of his host was much too siriall 
 for him, and that he was not disposed to trade. The 
 gentle and pretty wife, who had been all the while 
 watching either party, now interfered, her actions plain- 
 ly denoting that she was anxiously entreating her hus- 
 band not to entertain their guest thus rudely and un- 
 charitably. Paying no heed to her entreaties, the hus- 
 band again intimated to Hornsby that he must doff his 
 jacket he had no money to offer him in exchange, but 
 then he had given him a ride, a drink, and a breakfast, 
 and, as a return for these civilities, only wished to ex- 
 change jackets. He stripped off his own, notwithstand- 
 ing his wife's opposition, and now commenced assisting 
 his guest in taking off the much-desired garment. It 
 was a forced transfer, contrary to the laws of Mexico ; 
 but our comrade was driven into the transaction. 
 
 The Mexican next brought* a coarse, thick, and heavy 
 blanket, which he wished to exchange for the scarlet 
 affair belonging to Hornsby. As there was no such 
 thing as avoiding a trade when his host had determined 
 that it must be, our comrade, with a sorry grace, sub- 
 K K 2
 
 390 A CONSCIENTIOUS WIFE. 
 
 mitted to his demands : yet this time he really got the 
 best of the bargain, for the blanket he received was 
 much warmer and of infinitely more service than the 
 one forced from him. The Mexican now pointed to 
 his horse, which was still tied in front of the dwelling, 
 and uttered the well-known bamanos.* It was now 
 Hornsby's turn to take a liberty. Heretofore his host 
 had made himself exceedingly free on a very limited 
 acquaintance, as Hornsby dryly expressed it : the latter 
 now bethought him that he would pay off a small por- 
 tion of the debt in kind. He therefore walked delib- 
 erately to the sideboard, poured himself out a stiff glass 
 of brandy, and bowing very respectfully to his host, 
 tossed it off. He then expressed his readiness to de- 
 part, and walking out of the house, was soon seated be- 
 hind his singular host. The wife now made her ap- 
 pearance with the new blanket, in which she had tied 
 a large quantity of dried beef. Watching an oppor- 
 tunity while the eyes of her husband were turned away, 
 she stealthily slipped a quarter of a dollar into the 
 hands of Hornsby probably her little all. A tear 
 stood in her eye as she murmured " Adios Senor," for 
 the kind-hearted creature felt deeply mortified at the in- 
 hospitable manner in which her husband had treated a 
 guest. Another moment, and Hornsby was on his way 
 to rejoin his comrades, the Mexican apparently anxious 
 to escape the reproachful looks of his gentle wife ; and 
 ere it was yet dark he had discharged his burden 
 within a few yards of our camping-ground. Such was 
 the story told of the gay 'cavalier, who, by his dashing 
 and fearless riding, had excited our warmest admira- 
 tion in the morning. Was ever such an ingenious trick 
 
 * Come, let us be moving a word we heard forty times a day, and the 
 import of which we soon understood.
 
 DEATH OF A CAPTIVE. 391 
 
 to effect an exchange of clothing ? Salezar was prob- 
 ably privy to the whole transaction, else he would have 
 never permitted his brother Mexican to carry off one 
 of the prisoners in such a manner. The self-esteem of 
 the highwayman would not allow him openly to rob 
 our comrade he thought that the cloak of hospitality 
 which he threw over his act more than covered its ras- 
 cality. But I must return to my narrative of more im- 
 portant events. 
 
 Late on the evening of the 24th of October, and after 
 a march of uncommon length, we reached the little town 
 of Valencia. Here a pint of flour was distributed to 
 each of the prisoners ; but many of the men were so 
 tired, faint, and sore, from the long and continued 
 marches, and from cold and want of sleep at night, 
 that they had neither the will nor strength to cook even 
 this scanty ration. On the contrary, they sank imme- 
 diately upon the cold ground, and vainly endeavoured 
 to smother their pains and sorrows in sleep. Fitzgerald 
 and myself had better quarters, or rather a better bed, 
 that night, than our fellows. We were about lying 
 down, immediately in front of a small house, when an 
 old woman threw us out a couple of sheepskins with the 
 wool still on. With these between us and the cold 
 ground we really passed a comfortable night. 
 
 Not so one of our unfortunate companions. On 
 rising in the morning, it was found that a man named 
 Ernest had died during the night died from hunger, 
 cold, and fatigue, and without even the knowledge of 
 the man sleeping by his side ! The long march of the 
 previous day had so weakened the poor Texan that on 
 reaching camp he had sunk to the ground exhausted. 
 He soon fell asleep, and with him it proved to be the 
 sleep which knows no waking ! Not a murmur, not a
 
 392 THE LAST INDIGNITY. 
 
 groan did he utter ; but when his companion shook him 
 in the morning, with the intention of arousing him to 
 the fatigues and sufferings of another day, the lamp of 
 his existence had burned out, or rather had been rudely 
 smothered he was stiff and cold ! Salezar immedi- 
 ately ordered one of his men to cut off and preserve the 
 dead man's ears, as a token that he had not escaped, 
 and by the orders of the same brute the body was 
 thrown into a neighbouring ditch. An American with 
 two or three wagons, who was on his way from the 
 United States to either Monterey or Saltillo with ma- 
 chinery, was within two hundred yards of us all the 
 while, and saw the whole transaction. Salezar would 
 not allow us to hold any conversation or communicate 
 with this man ; but we afterward learned that he had 
 been an overseer on some plantation near New-Orleans, 
 and that the machinery he had with him was a sugar- 
 mill on a large scale, which he had been employed to 
 set in operation in Mexico. I heard the man's name, 
 but have forgotten it. 
 
 Scarcely had the events occurred, of which I have 
 given a brief recital, ere we were ordered to form in 
 line and be counted before resuming the march : even 
 before we could finish the cooking of our scanty supply 
 of meal into thin mush we were compelled to move. 
 Just as we were starting, a man named John McAllis- 
 ter, a native of Tennessee and of excellent family, com- 
 plained that one of his ankles was badly sprained, and 
 that it was utterly impossible for him to walk. The 
 unfortunate man was naturally lame in the other ankle, 
 and could never walk but with difficulty and with a 
 limp. On starting, he was now allowed to enter a rude 
 Mexican cart, which had been procured by the Alcalde 
 of Valencia for the purpose of transporting some of the
 
 MURDER OF MCALLISTER. 393 
 
 ick and lame prisoners ; but before it had proceeded a 
 mile upon the road it either broke down or was found 
 to be too heavily loaded. At all events, McAllister 
 was ordered by Salezar to hobble along as best he 
 might, and to overtake the main body of prisoners, now 
 some quarter of a mile in advance. The wretch had 
 frequently told those who, from inability or weakness, 
 had fallen behind, that he would shoot them rather than 
 have the march delayed ; not that there was any ne- 
 cessity for the hot haste with which we were driven, but 
 to gratify his brutal disposition did he make these threats. 
 Although he had struck, and in several cases severely 
 beaten, many of the sick and lame prisoners, we could 
 not believe that he was so utterly destitute of feeling, so 
 brutal, as to murder a man in cold blood whose only 
 fault was that he was crippled and unable to walk. He 
 could easily have procured transportation for all if he 
 had wished, and that he would do so rather than shoot 
 down any of the more unfortunate we felt confident : 
 how much we mistook the man ! 
 
 On being driven from the cart, McAllister declared 
 his inability to proceed on foot. Salezar drew his 
 sword and peremptorily ordered him to hurry on, and 
 this when he had half a dozen led mules, upon either of 
 which he could have placed the unfortunate man. 
 Again McAllister, pointing to his swollen and inflamed 
 ankle, declared himself unable to walk. Some half a 
 dozen of his comrades were standing around him, with 
 feelings painfully wrought up, waiting the denouement 
 of an affair which, from the angry appearance of Sale- 
 zar, they now feared would be tragical. Once more 
 the bloodthirsty savage, pointing to the main body of 
 prisoners, ordered the cripple to hurry forward and 
 overtake them he could not ! " Forward !" said Sale-
 
 394 SAFETY IN WEAKNESS. 
 
 zar, now wrought up to a pitch of phrensy. " Forward, 
 or I'll shoot you on the spot !" " Then shoot !" replied 
 McAllister, throwing off his blanket and exposing his 
 manly breast, " and the quicker the better !" Salezar 
 took him at his word, and a single ball sent as brave a 
 man as ever trod the earth to eternity ! His ears were 
 then cut off, his shirt and pantaloons stripped from him, 
 and his body thrown by the roadside as food for 
 wolves ! 
 
 A thrill of horror ran through the crowd of prisoners 
 as the news spread that one of our men had been de- 
 liberately shot down in cold blood, and deep but whis- 
 pered threats of vengeance for this most unnatural mur- 
 der were heard upon every lip. In our present condi- 
 tion we could do nothing. It would have been an easy 
 matter for us to rise and overpower the guard ; but 
 their arms were worthless, and it would have been im- 
 possible, unacquainted as we were with the country, to 
 cut our way through to Texas without provisions. And 
 then, as I once before remarked, it was part of Salezar's 
 policy to drive us along and tire us down by marches 
 of almost incredible length, and so to weaken us by 
 scanty food, that escape would be next to impossible. 
 Weak as we were, however, had our guard been well 
 armed with rifles or muskets, and with plenty of ammu- 
 nition, we never should have been marched to the Paso 
 del Norte ; but those who had charge of us were strong 
 in their very weakness. Thus wretchedly we were 
 compelled to journey forward in dreary hope of fall- 
 ing into more humane hands on reaching the State of 
 Chihuahua. 
 
 Late in the afternoon of the day on which McAllister 
 was murdered we reached the Casa Colorada, or Red 
 House, a large hacienda and trading establishment be-
 
 VALLEY OF THE RIO GRANDE. 395 
 
 longing, I believe, to one of the Chavez family. Pass- 
 ing the little collection of houses, we entered a grove 
 of cotton-woods near the Rio Grande, and there en- 
 camped for the night. From the time when we first 
 struck the valley of this stream, after leaving the mount- 
 ains in the neighbourhood of Santa Fe, to that when we 
 reached the Paso del Norte, but little timber was seen, 
 and that was composed exclusively of cotton-woods. 
 The inhabitants are very saving of this timber, although 
 it is exceedingly soft and brittle ; yet, as they can ob- 
 tain no other for the construction of their rude carts, 
 ploughs, and other implements, its uses to them are in- 
 valuable. Sometimes we would journey for days, 
 hardly seeing a tree to each mile we travelled. The 
 few fences, like the houses, are constructed of adobes, t* 
 or sun-dried bricks, square instead of oblong, and per- 
 haps four times the size of ordinary bricks. Of this ma- 
 terial nearly all the dwellings of the lower classes in 
 Mexico are constructed. The valley of the Rio Grande, 
 above El Paso, is of unequal width, varying from a 
 mile and a half to four or five miles, and in some places 
 perhaps more. On either side of the valley rises a 
 chain of hills some of them may deserve the name of 
 mountains which for the most part appeared sterile and 
 destitute of vegetation. The valley itself is generally 
 fertile, well adapted to the growth of corn, wheat, beans, 
 and pumpkins ; not a potato, either sweet or Irish, did 
 we see, although the latter, in particular, would un- 
 doubtedly attain great perfection. Under Anglo-Sax- 
 on cultivation, this region might support five times the 
 population it now contains ; still, the want of timber and 
 the immense distance to a market, will always present 
 obstacles to emigration in that direction. 
 
 The custom had been, on nearing the camp each aS-
 
 396 SALEZAR'S CUPIDITY. 
 
 ternoon, for the prisoners to pick up every little chip 
 and twig by the roadside, wherewith to cook their 
 scanty rations of dry corn or meal ; for the first time, 
 since we had entered the valley, we now found a suf- 
 ficiency of wood, but a majority of us had nothing 
 to cook. On leaving San Miguel, Armijo had given 
 Salezar eighteen head of cattle, some of the oxen taken 
 from the Texans, and had ordered him to kill them for 
 our use. I will even give the governor credit by be- 
 lieving that he placed a quantity of the goods taken 
 from the Texans in the hands of Salezar, for the pur- 
 pose of trading them for breadstuff on the road, to be 
 appropriated to our use ; yet, up to this time, the scoun- 
 drel had neither killed one of the oxen nor disposed of 
 a single article of merchandise for anything but money, 
 all of which he placed in his own pockets. Our suffer- 
 ings were plainly a gratification to him, and to sustain 
 life he compelled us to depend alone upon the charities 
 of the women, or upon the small supply of corn and 
 meal he wrung, by threats and violence, from the dif- 
 ferent alcaldes of the villages through which we pass- 
 ed. In the mean time, to still the inordinate cravings 
 of hunger and to procure an occasional ride upon the 
 animals of our guard, the prisoners had disposed of 
 every little article of clothing they could possibly spare, 
 frequently exchanging a pair of their own woollen pan- 
 taloons for the ragged breeches of the Mexicans, to 
 purchase a ride of a few miles. The buttons, too, from 
 their clothing, they had bartered either for meal or 
 rides ; and as by this time they were nearly all expend- 
 ed, the sufferings of the majority may be said to have 
 fairly commenced.* 
 
 * Buttons commanded a high price, for even an ordinary iron or horn ar- 
 ticle, such as might be easily purchased for six cents per dozen at any shop
 
 HEALING A CRIPPLE. 89*3 
 
 I cannot leave our encampment among the cotton 
 woods near the Casa Colorada without relating an amu 
 sing story told that evening by " Old Paint" Caldwell. 
 The time appeared ill-assorted with merriment and 
 laughter, yet laugh we did, and heartily too, at the re- 
 cital of the old captain's anecdote. 
 
 Among the passengers in the cart with poor McAl- 
 lister were the narrator and a man who went by the 
 soubriquet of " Stump ;" there may have been others, 
 but if there were I have now forgotten their names. 
 In the morning, before starting, Stump had declared 
 that he could not walk a mile to save his life, even 
 and so positive was he upon this point, that a place was 
 provided for him in the cart. When this vehicle met 
 with the accident, of course Stump was thrown upon 
 his feet with the rest. While the few words were 
 passing between McAllister and Salezar, and previous 
 to the inhuman murder of the former, Stump was hob- 
 bling about, apparently unable to walk at all : his feet 
 were sore, his knees were stiff, and not a bone was 
 there in his body that did not pain him at every move- 
 ment he was curled up, the picture of despair ; but 
 no sooner did he see his comrade fall, and feel the cer- 
 tainty that he, too, would meet with a similar fate un- 
 less he put his powers of locomotion in immediate ac- 
 tion, than, to use the old captain's own words, Stump 
 straightened up and started at a pace that would have 
 staggered Captain Barclay, Ellworth, or the greatest 
 
 in the United States, in New Mexico would procure for one of our prisoners 
 a ride of several miles, or bread enough to last him a day. Needles, too, 
 were in great demand ; one of our men, a tailor, who had been fortunate 
 enough to save two or three papers, was enabled to procure an ample supply 
 of food, and also to have a mule when his necessities required. This infor- 
 mation may be useful to some itinerant pedler of small " notions," although 
 cannot conscientiously advise him to visit New Mexico for a market. 
 
 VOL. I. L L
 
 398 MEETING WITH COUNTRYMEN. 
 
 pedestrian mentioned in the annals of " tall walking." 
 Stump went by, first one, then another of his compan- 
 ions, and never abated his stride until he was in the 
 lead of the whole party of prisoners : a position he per- 
 tinaciously kept through the remainder of the day, and, 
 in fact, during the march. In the morning he could not 
 walk a mile ; he afterward did walk something like 
 eighteen hundred, and without flagging. This story of 
 the old captain's through, we cast our weary limbs upon 
 the earth, and as the grove of trees in which we were 
 encamped materially deadened the force of the wind, 
 we were enabled to pass a more comfortable night than 
 any since we left San Miguel. 
 
 On the following day we passed the long train of 
 wagons belonging to Mr. Magoffin, of Chihuahua 
 the same that had arrived at San Miguel from St. 
 Louis while we were there. The drivers were all 
 Americans brown, healthy-looking men ; and although 
 strict orders were given by Salezar that no communi- 
 cation should be held, we still exchanged a few words 
 with them as we passed. It brought back old times 
 and old recollections to see these men, fresh from my 
 own country, and anxiously did I wish that I might ob- 
 tain an hour's conversation with them, an opportunity to 
 learn the news from the United States, if nothing more ; 
 I could only wish, as Salezar took especial care that 
 my desires should not be gratified. 
 
 A little before sundown we reached the village of 
 Joya, and here our men were allowed a shelter for the 
 night in two or three old and abandoned rooms. A 
 fandango was got up during the evening in the town, 
 at which Howard, Van Ness, and two or three of our 
 officers were allowed to be present. Here they met 
 several of the Americans we had passed during the
 
 A WELCOME RELIEF. 399 
 
 day, their encampment being in the skirts of the village 
 close by. Salezar became much intoxicated during 
 the evening, and with the fumes of whiskey in his head 
 grew insolent and overbearing towards the drivers. 
 Fortunately, they came well provided with bowie- 
 knives, thinking they might possibly be insulted; and 
 no sooner had Salezar commenced his insolence than 
 he. was driven I believe kicked from the room, the 
 cowardly wretch not daring even to open his mouth 
 after their weapons were drawn. 
 
 By making an early start on the following morning, 
 we were enabled to reach Parrida, a small town im- 
 mediately on the banks of the Rio Grande, by the mid- 
 dle of the afternoon. Here, in the plaza, we stopped 
 for the night ; and here, after an allowance of a pint of 
 meal had been measured out to each man by the al- 
 calde and Salezar, we were permitted to make and eat 
 our poor mush in peace and quietness. At Parrida I 
 was also fortunate in purchasing a pair of heavy and 
 substantial shoes, after walking several days in a pair 
 of soleless moccasins, which let in the gravel at every 
 step upon the numerous blisters that covered my feet. 
 I had not a little difficulty in making change with the 
 zapatero of whom I purchased, for the piece of gold I 
 tendered him in payment I was anxious to keep from 
 the eyes of Salezar. The brute knew that I had a 
 small sum of money about me some few dollars. 
 Had he suspected the large amount in gold and jewel- 
 ry I had concealed in those ragged and dirty vestments 
 of mine, he would soon have found a pretext for send- 
 ing me to keep company with the murdered McAllister. 
 
 After a hasty breakfast of mush, on the following 
 morning, we were once more upon our journey. A 
 short walk brought us to the banks of the Rio Grande,
 
 400 APACHE INDIANS. 
 
 here some three or four hundred yards in width. The 
 water was cold and waist deep to our men, yet we 
 were obliged to ford it, and when once safely upon the 
 opposite side, we had entered Mexican territory for the 
 first time. I say for the first time, because Texas 
 claims to the Rio Grande, and, sooner or later, this will 
 be her boundary line. 
 
 An hour's brisk march along the river banks brought 
 us to Socorro, the last settlement before reaching El 
 Paso. What the exact distance between the iwo 
 places is I have now forgotten, but it cannot be far 
 from two hundred miles. As Salezar had to make a 
 demand on the alcalde for corn and meal enough to 
 sustain us across the long and dreary waste yet to 
 travel, we were permitted to remain at Socorro until 
 the following day. That the inhabitants of this frontier 
 town were a pack of thieving, cheating, swindling 
 scoundrels, we ascertained beyond doubt before we 
 had been in the place two hours. I remember, per- 
 fectly well, that a small party of us paid for a supper 
 twice at this place, and that, because we would not pay 
 for it a third time, the master of the house became very 
 much incensed. 
 
 When we were at Socorro, a party of Indians, belong- 
 ing to the large and powerful tribe of Apaches, were 
 encamped in the vicinity. They live, for the most part, 
 in a rough and mountainous country, yet, like the Ca- 
 manches and Pawnees, are ever on horseback, and are 
 daring and skilful riders. With the inhabitants of the 
 States of Chihuahua and Durango they are at continual 
 and open war, murdering and robbing the inhabitants 
 whenever opportunity offers ; yet with the people of 
 New Mexico they are at peace, and the plunder they 
 obtain in their incursions into the former states is sold to
 
 VISIT FROM A CHIEF. 401 
 
 the citizens of the latter, who are ever found ready pur- 
 chasers ! A pretty state of things, truly, but so it is. I 
 was told that many of the horses of New Mexico really 
 belonged to persons in the former states, and that the 
 purchasers bought them with powder and lead, know- 
 ing that it was to be used against their neighbours and 
 brethren ! Armijo and some of his principal officers 
 probably know more about this singular and most un- 
 righteous compact, and of the profits arising from the 
 trade^ with these Indian banditti, than any other persons 
 in Mexico. 
 
 While at Socorro, one of the prisoners, who was a 
 Catholic, obtained permission to visit the priest of the 
 place. The real object of the man was, to obtain some- 
 thing in the way of solid assistance something to eat 
 upon the road temporal rather than spiritual aid and 
 consolation. The priest gave him absolution and a 
 small bundle of shuck cigars ! I do not mention this 
 circumstance to stigmatize the holy fathers generally of 
 Mexico, for we found a majority of them liberal and 
 enlightened men, and disposed to assist us as far as was 
 in their power. 
 
 On the morning of the 29th of October we left Socor- 
 ro without regret ; for although its name signifies suc- 
 cour or assistance, we found none within its inhospitable 
 gates. We had travelled but a short distance before 
 the head or principal chief of the Apaches, with a small 
 retinue of his warriors, was seen rapidly dashing over 
 a hill, having ridden out especially to see los Americanos, 
 as they called us, who had surrendered their arms to 
 the New Mexicans. At one time the inhabitants of 
 Chihuahua had employed a number of American adven- 
 turers in different expeditions against the Apaches, and 
 in every engagement the former were able to bring 
 L L2
 
 402 A DIGNIFIED SAVAGE. 
 
 about, the Indians were defeated with no little loss. 
 The rifles of the Americans told with signal advantage 
 against the bows and arrows, lances, and ineffective 
 Spanish carbines of their adversaries, fought they ever 
 so bravely ; and now that one of the principal chiefs 
 of the latter had an opportunity of seeing some of the 
 countrymen of their much-dreaded enemies, he did not 
 miss the opportunity. 
 
 A more dignified savage in appearance than this 
 chief I have never seen. He was about the mjddle 
 height, strong, and well built, some sixty-five or seven- 
 ty years of age, and with hair as white as snow. He 
 was dressed in an oldfashioned blue military coat and 
 blue pantaloons ; a huge pair of gold epaulettes graced 
 his shoulders, while his head was covered with a Conti- 
 nental tri-cocked hat, such as was worn by our grand- 
 fathers in the days of the Revolution. His countenance 
 was stern, strongly marked, and very expressive, and 
 he was mounted upon a large and powerful gray char- 
 ger of fine action, and apparently of good blood. 
 
 He rode up to the head of the line, in company with 
 Salezar. As we passed in review before him, a ragged, 
 beggared, and emaciated throng, the old man examined 
 us with the eye of an eagle his thoughts could not be 
 divined. Salezar appeared polite even to obsequious- 
 ness in presence of this man, and it was intimated at the 
 time that he stood in much fear lest the old chief might 
 take it into his head to rescue us from his hands, a 
 matter he might easily have accomplished. What 
 would have been our fate had he done so whether he 
 would have sacrificed us on the spot in revenge for the 
 losses he had sustained at the hands of our countrymen, 
 or taken us to the mountains, is a question I am unable 
 to answer. One thing I do know had he called for
 
 THE DEAD MAN*8 JOURNEY. 403 
 
 volunteers to act against any part of Mexico, and prom- 
 ised to arm all that came, he might have got them to 
 the full extent of our number. After the last stragglers 
 had passed him, the old chief turned his horse and rode 
 over the hills in the direction whence he came. His 
 followers were dressed much in the general Indian cos- 
 tume buckskin shirts, leggins, and the usual quantity 
 of feathers and finery. I also noticed, while in Socorro, 
 that the Apaches have the besetting sin of all the abo- 
 rigines of America : several of them were seen reeling 
 about upon their horses, so drunk that they could with 
 difficulty keep their seats. 
 
 After a walk of unusual length across a bend of the 
 Rio Grande I say unusual, for it was nearly forty 
 miles we reached, just at dark, a large grove of cotton- 
 woods close upon the river bank. This grove was call- 
 ed the Bosque de los Apaches, or Wood of the Apaches, 
 and afforded us one of the best camping-grounds on the 
 journey. We recrossed the river at an early hour on 
 the following morning, and another long and tiresome 
 march brought us to Fray Cristobal, the last camping- 
 ground before entering the noted Dead Man's Journey ! 
 This is a well-known stretch of ninety miles, across a 
 large bend of the river.* To avoid many weary miles, 
 a road has been worn directly through the centre of 
 this bend by the travel of years. It is a level, sterile, 
 and desolate plain a desert with no vegetation save 
 here and there a few stunted thorns, different species 
 of the cactus of dwarf-like proportions, and clumps of 
 one of the smaller kinds of palm, growing to the height 
 of some six or seven feet, with long, coarse leaves 
 
 * The Mexicans call this noted stretch La Jornada del Muerto, or The 
 Journey of the Dead Man our men gave it the name of the Dead Man's 
 Journey, and by that title I designate it.
 
 404 A SNOW STORM. 
 
 branching up from the roots, and forming a very mat 
 from the closeness with which they grow together. 
 These clumps were called bear grass by our men, and 
 at a little distance they resembled long and slender 
 bundles of coarse straw. Near the centre of the desert 
 is the Dead Man's Lake,* which, during the spring and 
 early summer, is filled with water ; but when we cross- 
 ed its bed was perfectly dry. 
 
 Immediately on our arrival at the camping-ground of 
 Fray Cristobal, a bleak, sandy point of land formed by a 
 slight curve in the Rio Grande, Salezar ordered that 
 the poorest and most travel-worn of the eighteen oxen 
 given him at San Miguel by Armijo should be killed for 
 the prisoners, taking most especial care, however, that 
 all the better portions everything really fit to eat 
 should be reserved for himself and his friends. Poor 
 and tough as was this meat, our men swallowed it with 
 an avidity absolutely wolfish. The scanty meal over, 
 they rolled themselves in their blankets and once more 
 sought such rest as the cold ground might afford them. 
 
 During the earlier part of the evening the wind was 
 biting and chilly, but at midnight the weather moder- 
 ated, and then commenced a violent fall of snow. I 
 drew my blanket entirely over my head, thought of 
 home and its comforts, and while thinking of them fell 
 asleep ; for the snow, as it lodged upon my scanty cov- 
 ering, imparted a warmth to which I had long been 
 stranger. 
 
 When morning light came I raised my head and sur- 
 veyed the scene. Far as the eye could reach the face 
 of nature was clothed in white, the snow having fallen 
 to the depth of five or six inches. My companions 
 were lying thick around me, their heads and all con- 
 
 * Called by the Mexicans, LagunadelMuerto, or Lake of the Dead Man. 
 
 THE LIBRARY 
 
 UNIVEivS/i Y OF CALIFORNIA
 
 LIVING MOUNDS. 405 
 
 cealed, and more resembled logs imbedded in snow 
 than anything else to which I can compare them. No 
 one would have supposed that animated beings were 
 under those little mounds were it not that from many 
 of them a hollow, hacking, and half-suppressed cough 
 proceeded. The two or three nights we had passed 
 within doors, huddled some thirty or forty in rooms 
 scarcely capacious enough for three or four, had given 
 nearly all extremely bad colds colds they were unable 
 either to guard against or cure. 
 
 END OP VOL. I.
 
 1MGELES 
 
 MAY .* 5 
 
 tCEfVED 
 
 1975
 
 A 001413322 7