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Show 115 [ 174 ] }ands, bordered by blnfls vorying from 50 to 500 feet in height. Iu all this region the timber is entirely confined to the strcan1 . In the eastcru half, where the soil i. a deep, rich, vegetable monld, rnteuti vc of rain anJ moisture it is of vigoron growth, and of many different kinds; and throughout the western half it con~ist Ct1tirely of various species of cottonwood, which deserves to be called the tree of the desert-growing in sandy soils, where no other tree will grow; pointing ont the e.xi tence of water, and furnishing to the traveller fuel, and loocl for his an imals. Add to this, that the western border of the plain is ocrnpied by the Sioux, A wpaho, and Cheyenne nations, and tile Pawnees and other half-civilized tribes in its eastern limits, for whom the imermecliate country is a war grouud, you will have a tolerably correct idea of the appearance and condition of the country. DescetJdiug a somewhat precipitous and rocky hill ide among the pines, which rarely appear elsewhere t1Ja11 011 the ridne, we encan1pedat its foot, where there were several springs. which you will find laid down upon the map as. one of rile extreme sources of the Smoky Hill fork of the Kansas. From this place the view exteuded over the Arkansas valley, and the Spanish peaks in the south beyond. As the greater part of the men continued sick, I encamped here for tbe c..lay, and ascertained conclusively, from experiments on mys,·lf, that their illness was cau ·ed by the meat of the buffalo bull. On the summit of the ridge, near the camp, were several rock-built forts,. which in frout were very difficult of approach, and in tile rear were protected by a precipice entirely Leyo!H.l the reach of a rifle ball. The evening the cwamasp t olerably clear, with a temperature at sunset of 63°. E levation of 7,300 feet. Tuming the next day to the south west, we reached, in the course of the morning, the wagon road to the srr tlements on the Ark<J nsas river, and encamped i11 the afternno11 on the Pontaine-qui-bouit (or Boiling Spriug) river, wh(~rc it wns 50 feet wide, wi th a swift current. I afterwards found that tl1e spri11g and river owe th eir names to the bubbling of the e/Iervescing gas iu the former, and not to the temperature of the water, which is cold . During the moming, a tall species of gilia, with a slender white flower, was characteristic; and, in the latter part of the day, another variety of esparcette, (wild clover,) having the flower white, was equally so. We had a line sunset of golden brown; aud, in the evening, a very bright moon, with the near mountains, made a beautiful scene. Thermometer, at stmscr, was 69°, and our elevation above the sea 5,800 feet. July 13.-The morning was clear, with a northwesterly breeze, and the thermometer at sunrise at 46°. There were no clouds along the mountains, and the morning sun showed very clearly their rugged character. We resumed our journey very early down the river, following an extremely good lodge trail, which issues by the head of this stream from the. bayou Salade, a high mountain valley behind Pike's peak. The soil along the road was sandy aud gra veHy, aud the river well timbered. We halted to noon under the shade of son1e fiue large cottonwoods, our animals luxUriating on rushes (equisetum ltyemal~) which, along this river, were relllarkably abundant. A variety of cactus made its appearance, and among several strange plants were numerous and beautiful clusters of a plant r~sembling mirabilis Jalapa, with a handsome convolvulus I had not.. hitherto seen, ( calystegia.) In the afternoon we passed uear the encamplnent of a hunter named l\Iaurice, who bad been out into the plains in pursuit of buffalo calves, a. number of which I saw among some domestic ca..t- |