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Show [ 174 J 126 our way, and clear a roau i.n the d~rlmess; the surface being much broken. and the progress of .the carnages belllg greatly obstru~ted by the artemisia, which Jwd a luxunant growth of fonr to SIX feet m betght. \Ve had scmmbletl along this gully for several hours, during which we had knocked ofJ' the carriaO'e lamp , broken a thcnnometer and several small articles wlleu fe~u·ing to lose something of more importance, I halted for the ni<rhi at lO ~'clock. Our a~1imals were turned down towards the riv~r, that tl~er might pick up what IJtt~e grass they ~onld fine! ; and after a.lttt.le search) some water was found m a small ravme, and 11nproved by dtgging. We lighted up the raviue with fires of artemisia, and about n_1idnight sat down to a snppcr which we were llullgry enoocrh to .find clcltghtfnl-although the bufrato meat \Vas crusted with sand, aud tllc coffee was bitter with the wormwood taste of the artemisia leaves. A succe sful day's hunt had kept onr hunters occnpied uutillate, and they slept out, but rejoined ns at daybreak, wh?n, finding ourselves only about a mile Crom the river, we followed the ra.vme down, and camped in a cotlouwood grove on a beautifnl gras y bottom, where our animaL iudcmnifiC'U them elves for the sc::u1ty nHe of the past night. It was quitr a prettr and pleasaut place; ~ narrow strip of prairie ab~ut five ~n.ndretl y:uds long terminated at the ra.vme where we entered by btgh prectpttous lulls closing in upou the river, a11d at the upper c11d by a ridge of low rolling hills. In the precipitous biitfls were displayed a succession of strata containing fo~ it vegetable remaills, and several beds of coal. In some of the beds the coal did 110t appear to be perfectly miucralizcd; and in some of the scams, it was compact and remarkably lustrons. In these latter places there wero also thin layers of a very fine white salts, in powder. As we had a large supply of meat iu the camp, which it was necessary to dry, and the sur. rounding country appeared to be well stocked with buflalo, which it was probable, after a day or two, we would not see again until our reltlrn to the Mississippi water~, I determined to make here a provision of dried meat, which would be necessary for our subsistence in the rcO'ion we were about entering, which was said to be ncar) y destitute of game. cal folds were accorditwly soon erected, fires made, and the meat cnt into thin slices to be drie<.I; alld all were busily occupied, when the camp was thrown into a sudden tumult, by a charge from about 70 monuted Indians, ovP.r the low hills at the upper end of the little botton1. Fortunately, the gnard, who wa.s between them and our animals, had caught a glimpse of au Indian's head, as he raised himself in his stirrups to look over the hill, a moment before lie made the charge; and succeeded in turnino- the band into the camp, as the Indians charged into the bottom with th~ usual yell. Before they reached us, the gi'Ove on the vero·e of the little bottom was occupied ~y ?Ur people, and the Indians brouO'ht to a sudden halt, which they made In tLme to save themselves from a howitzer shot, which would undoubtedly h::nre ~een very efl'ective iu such a compact body; and further proceedings were interrupted by their signs for peace. They proved to be a war party of At·apaho and Cheyenne Indians, and i11formed us that they had charged upon the camp under the belief that we were hostile Indians and had dis· covered their mistake only at the moment of the attack-an ~xcu e which policf reqnired us to receive a~ true, though under the fnll conviction that tlle u.1splay of onr little howitzer, and our favorable position in the grove, ~rlat~lly saved our horses, and probably ourselves, from their marauding ll1leutwns. They had been on a war party, and had been defeated, and 127 [ 174 J were cous eqllel1tl 1v in the stutc of mind which aggra vales 1t heir· innat.er h'. ·t {or pluuder and blootl. Their excu 'C, however, was ta cen .m goou t 11 ~ . 1c1 I he usual evidence, of frie11dship interchaugcd. The I?'Pe went f,~~~~tl,u ))'ovi ·iou:s were spread, and L~1e tobacco and good~ funushed th.e 'a 1 cu~1onr 1.1v 111·e".., 'euls ' whicl1. .t hey look lor even from traders, (.tnd much mote from Govemrncut autltont1e . . . . , . . Tl 'Y were retnn1i110' fro1n an cxpcdltLOn agarnst the. ho llonce Jndw.ns, one~~ whose village· ~hey had surpri etl, at Bridg 'r's fort, on ~lam's fork f G ·cc11 river ( i11 the absence of tlte men, who were engaged lll an at~te- l0o e Ls mronnd,' ) and succcede<l 1. 11 carry11. 1g o fl' t It el.l ' I~ orses ~11c I ta IW 1 o0 SepV Ci..t l 1 ,s c··~"• lll''-' '· !News of the attack reached t·h e Snakes tnm] lC· dm1 tel·y : w.h o ur.sned ami overtook tllem, a11d recovered their hor 'S; ar.H , Ill t 101 unmng h lit wllich ensued, the Arapalw~ had Io 't several '!le11 killed, ~tu.l a numb~ r wo 1mdetl, who were coming 011 more slowly With a party 111 the r~ar. Nearly all llw horses th.e~ !tad u~onght orr were the property~~ th'e .\~hlte. at the fort. After rcmauung ~lllttl .nearly .sun~ot tl1ey toc~k,th. 11 dcp.~ltt~re aud tlte excitement which thcu· arnval had af1ord 'tl ::-;ub Hlecl 111to om n. ual quiet a little enlivc11ed by the vigilance render d n cessary by the ne;O'hborh~ od of om nnccrtaiu visitors. At noon tllC thermometer was at 7 5 , at su11sct 70o aut! the evening cll'tt r. Elcvo Lion abov' the sea 6, 20 feet ; latitutle --tl0 3G' 00"; lot~gitudc 107° 22' 27". . . Jlua·ust G.-At sumisc the thermometer was 46°, the mornitiO' hcmg clear ~LH.l cal rn. W c travelled to-day over at! extrclll~l ~ nwgt!d country, burrell anJ unilltcrestillg-nothing to uc sccu bn~ artemisia bu~he , · and,.m the cvCtliiJCY Cuuud a <"russy spot among the lulls, kept green by seve1 al sprino-s, wi~~I'(J we etlC~unped late. Within a r w hundred yard~ \~HS'~'v?r~ pretty little stream of clear cool water, who e grcc1~ bank looked I?fic:shmo amotirr 1bc dry rocky hills. The hunters brought lll a fat monntam sheep, (ouis montana.) . Om road the next day was throngh a coutmued and tlen e fi.eld of artemisia, whiclt now e11tirely covered the couutry in such a l11x~mant ~rowth that i1 wa~ dimcult and laborious for a man on foo~ to for~~ Ills \~ay through, anJ nearly i1npracLicabJc for Ol. r light carrwrr S. . l.he reg10~1 tl1rourrh which we were travcllinrr was a hi0rrh plateau, coustitUtlllg the dt-vidingo ridge bctwee11 tlw watersi :>o f the Atlantic an d J> act' (j~ c oce<~n , an d extending to a considerable distance ~011 th warc.l, from the nctgh bor hood of the Table rock, at the 50uthcrn sitle of the South Pa · . TI.wugh brol~cn up iuto ru<med and rocky hills of a dry and barren nature, ~~ has notlung of a monn~aiuon. character; tlw small strcarn: which occ~. wnally occur belonging neither to tlw PJatte nor the olorado., hut l~smg them elves either in th~..: saud or in small lakes. From au emmenee, 111 tiJe afternoon, a mountaiuous range became visible in the uorth, in which wcr~ reeog~ niscd some rocl<y peaks belonging to the range of the Sweet Wa~CI valier, aud, determining to abaJJdon ally further attempt to .struggle t~ll ough t~us almost impracticable country, we tumed ~ur course directly 1101 th, tow~1ds a pass in the valley of the Sweet Water nvcr. J: shaft of the guu ca~nagc was broken uuring the afternoon, causing a cons1(1er~blc dc.lay ;, and_ 1t wa~ late in an uupleasant evenillg before we succe~ded 111 findmg a VCIY poo1 encampmeut, where there was a little water tu a deep trench of ~ cree~, aud some scanty orass amoug the shrubs. All the game here conststed lll a fow straO'o-liiJO' buflalo bulls and tlurin0c:r the day there had been but very ob b ' |