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Show • [ 174 J 20 that we were discovered. We started together at a hand gallop, riding steadily abrra t of each other, and here tl1e i11terest o_f the chase became so engrossingly iutense, tlwt we were sensible to notlun~ else. We .were now closina upon thetn rapidly, and the front of the mnss was alte~d~ in rapid n~otion for the bills, and in a few seconds the movement a commuuicated it elf to the whole herd. A crowd of bllll~, ns nsual, brought up the rear, n nd every now and then "ome of them {~1.ccd about, and tl.JCn da~hed 011 after the b~nd .a short distaucc, and turned allU loOI\ed agam, as 1f mor? than .half lllCitned to stand alJ(J fiaht. In a few 1uoment:.:, however, dnnng whtclt \~Chad been qnickclling ~ur pace, the ront was universal~ a11d we were gotug o~er the P"roUtld like a hurricane. When at about thtrty yard,: we gave ·the nsnal ~hout, (tl1c huuter's pas de ~hm·ge,) a.11d broke J.t 1to ~h e l~crd . . ~re e nte~cd 011 the side, the mass giv111p: way w every clJrectton 111 thcu heedless cour ·e. Many of the bulls, l e~s active at~d less fl<'et ~ban the c0ws, pa~ing uo attention to tile gro11nd, atH.l occup10d ,_olcly w1th the illlnt er., wetc precipitated to the earth with great ft1rcr, roll111g o.vcr and over wtth the violence of the shork, and hardly uistingt11shal>le 111 the dust. "\;Ve separated on entering, each singling out his g.aru.c. J\1y horse wns a trained llllntcr, famous 111 the wrst. un~er the_ name of Provean, anJ, witl1 his eyes Jlasbillg, auu the foam fiy111g from hts mouth, sprang on after the CO\~ Jikc .a tige r . . In a few .mor.ueuts he. brought me · alougside of her, and, nstug 111 the sttrrups, I fited at til~ dt lance o~ a yard, the ball entering at tile termination of tile long hau, anu passlllg ncar the heart. She fell headlong at the report of the g ~tn, an~J, checktn.g my horse, I looked a round for. my .comp.:wions. At a little d.tstance, Ktt was ou the ground, euguged m tymg hts horse to the horus of a cow which he was preparing to cut up. Among the scatterc.d bauds, at S(~me distance bC'low, I caught. a ~ limpse of 1\Ia:x.well; and willie l wns.lookwg, a li()'ht wreath of white smoke em led away frotu hi~ gun, from w lllciJ I was too far to hear the rl>pnrt. Nearc'!r, and between tnL! nnd tll.e hills, towards which they were dirertiug their cn nrse, was the body .ol the herd? and, g iving my hor e the rein, we da hrd. afrer them. A thtck cloud of dust huna upon their rear which filled my month at td eyes, and nearly smothered' me. In the midst of this I could sec tJothittg, nud the bumllo were not distinr.ruishable until within thirty feet. They crowded together more de!lsely ~II as I came upon them, und rushed al•111g in , uch .a _compact body, that I could not obtain an c11tranre-the !tors~ almost lt"~p111g upon them. In a few mome11ts the ma s divided to the ngltt awl left, the ltorns clattering\\ ith a 11oise heard abo\'e every thing else, nud my h or~e darted into the opelliug. Five or ·ix bulls charged on us as we dashed alottg the line, but were left far behiud; and, ingling out a cow, T gave her my fire, but struck too bigh. She gave a tremeJH.lnns leap, and scour~d on swifter than before. I reined up my horse, and the baud s wept on hk~ a torrent, and lt·ft the place quiet and clear. Our chase had led ns wto dangetous ground. A prairie-dog village, so thicldy settled. that there were three or four holes iu every twenty yards square, occupied the wholo botto:n for nearly two miles iu length. Lool<iug around, I saw only one · of the hunters, uearly out of sight, aud the long da1k line of our caravan crawling along, three or four nliles distant. After a march of twenty-four miles, we encamped at 11ightfall, one mile and a half above the lower cntl of Brady's island. The breadth of this arm of the river was eight hun 21 [ 174 ] dred antl eighty yards, and the water nowhere two feet in depth. The island bears the name of a man killed on this pot some years ago. His party had encamped here, three in company, and one of the number went off to hunt, lea vina Brady and his companion together. These two had frcqnently qnarr ·I It'd, a11d on the bunter' return he found Brady dead, alld was tolJ that he hrtd shot him, elf accidentally. 1 Ie was buried here on the bauk · but, as usual the wolves had torn him out, and sorrte human boues that were lying on tile grou11d we supposed were hi . Troop of wolves, that were hnnging on the sl<irts of the bnil~tlo, kept up an uninterrupted howling during the night, venturing almost into camp. In the morning, they we're sitting at a short distance, barking, and impatiently waiting our departure, to fall upon the bones. .lu~y 2.-TIJC morning was cool and smoky. Our road led closer to the hill , which here iucreased in elevation, pre enting an outline of conical peal<· three hundred to five hundred feet high. . ome timber, apparently pine, grows itl the ravmcs, and streaks of clay or ,aud whiten their slopes. We crossed during the morning a numbel' of hollow.-, timbered. principally witlt box elder, (acer negundo,) poplar, and elm. B rady's island is well wooded, aud. all the river along which our road led to-day may, in general, be called tolerably well titubered. vVe passed near an encampmeut of the Oregou emigrants, where they appear to have reposed several days. A variety of hou ·ellold articles were cattered about, and they had pro!,)ably di ' burd('ned tlremselvcs here of many things not absolutely ueces ary. I had left t!Je nsnal road before the tuid-day halt, and in the afternoon, having sent several men in advance to recohnoitre, marched directly for the mouth of the South fork. On our arrival, the horsemen were sent in and scattered ubo nt tbc river to scurch the be t fording places, and the carts followed immediately. The stream i here divided by an island into two clwunels. The southern i four lmuured and fi fty feet wide, having eightceu or t weuty iuche water in the deepest place . With the exception nf a few dry bars the bed of the river is generally quicksands, in which th e .carts begun to sink rapidly so soon as the mules halted, so that it was necessary to keep them constantly in motion. The nortberu channel, two thou and two hundred and fifty feet wide, was somewhat deeper, having frequeutly three feet water in the numerous small chaunel.s, witll a bed of coar c crravcl. The who! breadth of the Nebrrl lm, immetliately below the jnnction L five thousand three hundred and fifty feet. All onr eqnipage had reached thelcft bank safely at 6 o'clock, h[tviug to-day 1nade twenty miles. \Ve enc::tmpted at the point of laud immed iately at the jtlllCtiou or the North and South forks. llet wecu the strrams is a low rich prairie, extending from their confiuencc eighteetJ mi l(', we::>Lwartl ly to the bordering hills, where it is five and a half miles wide. It is covered with a luxnriant growth of gra s, and along th~ banks i, a slight aud catter Ll fringe of cottouwood and willow. In the hulf.do traib anJ wallows, [ remarked saline ci11orescences, to whlch a rapid. evaporation in the great heat of tile sun probably contributes, as the soil is nl ttirt' l}' unprotected by timber. In tlte vicinity of the e places there was a bluish ~rass, whir·h tlte c.attle rcru ~e to eat, called by the vnyu :H'urs '' hcrbr sa/foe," (salt gra..,s.) The la.titndc of the junction is 41°04' <17", aud longitUUI~, by chrOIIOll1t!(er and lunar distances, 1()0°49'<13". The cl ,~ valion ubnve 1he s . .!,l. i.) abont two thon ... and ·even hnt1dred feet. The hunters came in with a far. cow; and, as we had labored. hard, we enjoyed |
