Notes by the way, Memoranda of a journey across the plains from Sundee, Ill., to Olympia, W. T., May 7, to November 3, 1862

Page 19

\ ;\otr0 By the f'Vay. CAMP 70, AuG. 22 :-The road this \Yere at breakfast, 'vvhich fur a time morning vvas heavy \vith sand. Crossed rnarrecl the peace of the company, and the creek in1n1cdia.tcly after starting a.ut1 carne urar ending tragical1y. TvYO broth­~ ollowed it son1e Jistance. Ou lcuvjng ers got iu to u, \Vrangle about some triv­lt the road. led over a sccLion of i.hc des- iu1 thing, \vhcn ouc dre'vv a knife anJ ert, and again vve lYJight sny 1-lu·c'vv it at the other ; 1 t struek hin1 on "We crO!:iS the prairies a~ of old tl:(' Pilgrims Cl'O~ tiCfl the ha.ck, eutting his clothes and g raz-the ~en. , . l l . ] , ....... To make tho West ~s tht'Y the East tho l10rues~c~\d 1ng t lC ~ \.111. . -lis fu 1l purpose not be-of t.he l'rec." . . iuo· acco_u1pli.·hcd, he pjd<.ed it up and We :v1th others started 111 advance of chased hlnJ, sayi11g he vvould kill him. the tr~.1n, but foun ~1 the ':·a.1kin$ han] Some of the p~u'ty interfering all soon and t1rcson1?. A_fter a fe\v nules of bremue quiet. Such t ransactions are . sand 've agn.u1 to~lGheJ hard roads anJ hardly fit t.o 1nention; but vve are tolcl acc~~tcd then~ ·w1th ~ lcasu ~·e. .As \\·e :n:J of frequ?ut ?cc u rrence on the plains, neal cd Vvbat save CVCl y CVH1enco of a often resulting lU the death of both par .. cre?k, we quickened onr steps to taste t ief3, by the n1urdercr bcin<r either shot .of 1t~ wate_rs, bu~ on rc~cb i ng. it,. \Vh~.t or !1u ng. It is pnrt of it~ history to \vas our du3a.ppo1ntlnenlJ on f1nclmg 1t \v1nch all n1ust becorne hardened. '¥ e PonJ1Aa as d_ry as the sands over ·which arc infonneJ that in a company behind we had trod. About eighty rods fur- a 1nan vvas stabbed it vva · thouaht fa~ ther o_n W? found a good ~izcd strnan1 of tally, nncl left by his party, u. lar<~e one, P?r~ l_niJpld. \Vat_ers. .As lt run down it \Vith his \Vife ana children to th~ dread ~hm1ni shed 111 size, and finally sunk in fate of starvation, or the tender 1nercics 1ts .gravelly .bed. St~ppeJ here for ~in- of the ~avages, if they \vorc not picked ner, an~ while the untnJals \Vere gruz1ng, up by another train. 'rho blood be­sonle of the co1npany \Vcut pro ~pcctinQ". couws chilJed at tho thou O'ht of hun1an The " color" 'tl!T s r• d 1 .L • • u b . .{' .[' b • n i.l _roun )Uu 111 llllllUtC mugs SO 1Ur 10rgetting their hun1anity, particles, not sufficient to pay for \va. h- as to leave their kind exposed to such 1~g. No dou b~ but that perseverance, dangers as h ere rrtcnacc them. We can a1ded by expeneu_cc '~ou1 d lead to th} no'vv learn nothiuO' as to their fate.­? evelop~·nent of nch 1n1nc.·. 'rhis 1norn- l[crc is the the place, a.nd these the cir­Jng a rnnage appeared to the rast'vvan1. Clllnstanccs, vvhcre individuals act out It. resen1bl~~l. suo;v rn.r~ial l ~ 1nelted,. the instiuc.t of their nature, and in ,\vhat­wlt~ l -vva~e 1 t11 ouna. flus afternoon a ever fonn 1t takes. Jec1dcd unprovernent in the roads - "\V · · d Sage sparse and small. This entir . . ? ln1nginc vvhen vvc started _this plain is founded on bed-rock vvhiclc n1oinJng, \VC \vere nenr •he n1ountalns; Con1es to th f: . 1 , d 1 yet the forcuoon \VilS nettrly consun1ecl e sur ace In p a "'es a 1 · · rouo·h road is the resn1t. Ca~J ' n I a 111 reacln~lg thctn. \Ve fol1o\ved the footo of tb t . 1 p tl thcf creek untll llear thmn, 'vheu that tu rned e n1oun ~uns, ()y a cree.;. 0 · ff t th t l good vvater, but is \:vith difficult aot ? o .e ea~ 'anc \Ye to the north-e~st., at lyino- so low d d 't yb bk ln the dn·ectwn of the Canyon, lcadtn <r o ovvn' an 1 s an · s throt, o-1 tl 0 tl · 1 /j 'lteep and rocky. It is knovvn as Hjah- "o l le range. u ns s. ope were b 1 C. k . .0 n1any of 'vhat are called sarv1co berry A aic1 '- 1.0e ' ~L ,_velf·y apdpr1oprt~11atef: t111~le. of which vvo ate until .·atisfied. Th~ ave 1s near uy, ornw JY rc a 1na d ·tl t · 1 in of the surface of th . l' . . t . /jf. r oa ·wt lOU an~ nlntena ascent, cn- 3 0 t t t 0 roc\. ' 1 lS 0 t ercel. the n1ouutmns, a.ud ,ve left Ft. ... 1 .g rea ex en · H i11 1 val l cy b e ln · nd . In some parts of . CAMP7.~, AuG: 23 :-..~. disgrac?ful af- ~his Y~lley considerable grain grovvs in f::ur occun ed th1s Inormllg, svlnle \VC 1 1ts vYlld stnte, such us rye, oat~ and • .Vote~ By the TVay. 33 - ---- - ·.------------ ---·- ----------- -- wheat, as well as flax . \¥ c gathered regular in their forn !at ion, aud r i. e grad­some rye with a stalk about six feet in na.tly. A1l kind.· of grain \vould gro\v height. A weed called ,vjld locust nl"o here \VC pre~ unH~, 1 o the u tn1ost pcrfec­is found here, containir1g a st rong 1neai- · tion. Gras.· is hf~ayy and grows rapid­cal quality, in use an1oug the Aborigi- 1y. PnsseJ the H.ccl Bnttes thi~ forenoon. nees. It is a certc:d n cnre for the b1te ; They are si tuatcd n t the \VC8t of the of rnusq uitoes and g11ats. Passed over I roa~]: . ,;v e. cou1<1 sc · no peculiar feature much 1nore of the sa1ne rock as of yes- to (iistingui:-4h thelll fron1 other peaks, terdtty. It is very · porus, of a basaltic l1nore thau bejng a. clu.~ter of penl·s­or volcanic nature, aiHl xhibit~ every ·the highest of t lli. p~.rticnlar chaiu of token of having been in a foa1n in t imes 1 n1onut d_inR. 'l'hr earLh hen'}, is of a past. Made co1npnrativ 1y a .·hort Jrive ·! grayisb reJ ca:,;t , fro:11 ih i ~ fi_wt no doubt this afternoon, as an excellent cn,:npillg ean1e the nmne. ,..\.J uoon cros8ed the pl~ce was found on \vhiqh to spend the SUl l1D)i t of the J Hol l ittni ll ~ , a1Hl fouud Sabbath. We find ourselves once n1ore ourselvcF· one') UlOt ;~ on the eastern among the Rocky J\1:ountaius, crossing slope. 'l~hi~ ~idu of t ho divide the val­the divide, and 'vill soon be on the At - ley is even Juor ' rn1up t ing tltn,n the lantic slope. The range here ta.king a other. l(no,ving uo other natnc, 'vve great bend to the west, we necessarily have deno1ninatetl t ~1 i~ J>len:::mut v· alley , must cross then1 the third tin1e ere \Ve a.ud we t hink it 1nc!·; r~ t!Je l lrt! llP . The reach the country vvc arc in quest ~f. creek \Ve have c;.nnpPt1 by t his evening, We arc near Saln1on river, \Vhich takes is one of t he nu1uPruns brant;hes \vhieh its rise in the mountains to the vvcst . at Ia~'t fi nJ its \Yi.lY t.o t ltt' ]lis. ont•i river ; ln this bend of tbP nwnnt aius it takes SuNDAY, AuG. 24.-The Jutics and it s rise to u, ar at cxte 11 L The Yello\V tun~se1nents of ca1np ~i{e ~n tbe P~~ius Stone river, l1cadcl to the cast . A fe\v dunn~ Sunda~s cons1~ts 1n \va.""lll~lg, 1nore days 11111St elupse b efore \VC the mend1ng, cook1ng, bak1ng, card p1aynJ.§- t hirJ t i1ue n1oun t t he· \Yatcrs shed and and reading, vvhcn anything can be t urn our faces once 1nore to,Yard~ the found. All t~se vvere strictly adhrr(·d P acific. to to-day. Some followed tben1 frotu necessity-others fro1n choice. 'I'bc weather for son1e tin1e pa.st, has been hot and sultry through the day, a.t night cold with an occasional frost. Son1e of the party \vent hunting, but nothing was started but a porcnpine, \vhich vvus shot and brought in. UA1\1P 73, AuG. 26 :- A co1npauy of five 1nen packing through ti·o1n Deer Lodge to Salt Lake City, arrived very late last evening bringing very discouraging reports fro1n the 1nines iu that section as vve11 as Salmon riv­er. ThL' 1nakes thiugs look a lit­tle gloon1y to n1ost of our party. The CAl\·IP 72, Aua. 25 :-Started for'\\·un1 ·valley vve vYerc in at near nrid-day, coin­once 1nore this n1orning, both auinuds 1ncneed. ascending to a higher elevation. u.nd mnigrant s feeling a.ll the bet ter tor Ou tb1s table t he la11d is gravelly and the rest of a day. 'fhc valley through dry. The n1ountaius arc sit11ilur in all which we traversed--it canuot hardly be respects to those \VC have passed. They tenned a Canyon, gave such a 1na: ked are cntir ~ly innocLnt of ti1nbcr for some difference froin all of the kind '\\·e have distance on either side of the road, and seen among these n1ountains, that it is the grass on t heir ides is parched and well worthy of 1nention. The soil is dry. By the 1argc nun1ber of buffalo of a dark rich color, very fertile, the air skulls a.nd bones strewn along the way­salubrious. The lYlountain~ arP qnit.f\ . sid(\ it. iR P~H~il:· inferred that through