Geographical memoir upon upper California : in illustration of his map of Oregon and California

Page 42

I [ 23 .] The cool determination of our brave army seei_D.ed t? ?ave com­letely overawed the enemy; he first yielded his pos~twn at the ~ - 0n" near "Vegas" and fell back to a more formidable pass, hca' nh l'i es fifte·e n miles ' east of Santa Fe' . A t t h'I S p 1a ce th e roa d ~a~~ alongside of a torrent shut in closely by rugged rocks that beetle overhead; such a pass that a few bold men could there hold an army at defiance. . Armijo knowing the advantages of this place, threw up breast­works on' the crest of cliffs on both sides of the caiion, filled them with armed men who also collected piles of huge fragments of rock to hurl down up~n the heads of us heretics. He also stationed some pieces of artillery, so as to have a sweeping fire along the road, en­closing them by an" abattis" constructed of the trunks of the cedar, and often whole trees, with the ends of the limbs sharpen~d and pointed outward, offering an impenetrable barrier to a cavalry charge. As ou•r army approached Armijo retreated, "huyeron cobardmente los que juraron morir 6 veneer," and General Kearny entered Santa Fe on the 18th day of August. This joyful news made me the more anxious to hurry on to Santa Fe; but my recovery was extremely slow, as my sickness had been so prolonged. Seeing that I took an interest in the natural his­t~ y of the country, the gentlemen of the fort would daily visit my room, bringing rare plants and minerals; and I als9 succeeded in enlisting the services of several Cheyenne Indians, who were lounging about the trading post. On the 26th August, a commis­sary train of 42 wagons arrived. The teamsters refused to go be­yond this place, as their articles of agreement did not req"Rire them to go further. During the day, Mr. Nourse, of Washington, who had remained with IPe ever since I had been sick, kindly pro· cured me some ornithologicaf specimens; among these were the ki1ldeer plover, charadrius vociferous, the dove, e'ctopistes caro· linensis. The men in their leisure moments amused themselves with fishin.g. C~t fish and hickory shad are the only kinds I have ever seen m these waters; and we found them very palatable al· though they may not be compared with the white fish of Lake Superior or the :ock fish of the .Potomac. To-day, Captain Walker, so famous for h1s adventures m California, paid us a visit. He has a party encamped on the banks of the river about 8 miles north of the fort, and is there awaiting the arrival of Colonel Pric~'s regiment, for whi~h he has a supply of mules. , As the antelope and deer wer~ qutte abund~nt in the vicinity of his camp Mr. ~arcellu.s St. V ram -w:ent off With him, intending to spend a1 week m hunhng, and obtam relief from the c1ose confinement of the fort. . Thursd~y, .!lugust 27.-Anxious. to arrange all my preparatio·ns m good· b.me, I set about purchasing mules, and bought some very good lookmg ones, but they w~re not yet broken to the draught. I ~d them harnessed, and got P1lka, an old voyageur, to drive theJD. .e was on~ of th?se hardy men :who had become inured to all kmds of. difficulty m the service of the American Fur Companr, and, havmg often been placed by necessity in emergencies w:hicb 5 [ 23] called forth all the resources of his ingenuity, had acquired a fa­cility of doing well everything that he undertook. Such men know the necessity ?f discipline; are ever ready in time of danger, and never allow theu courage to be damped, or their cheerfulness clouded by the difficulties wtth which they may be surrounded. Although he had never driven before, yet he at once threw him­self into the saddle of the wheel mule and took the reins. Twice the mules ran off with the wagon, and, notwithstanding Pilka was obliged to throw himself out of the saddle, he at length succeeded in subduing them. I had now recovered my health sufficiently to walk d'own 'a flight of steps unaided, and I rejoiced with great joy to find myself gaining strength so rapidly. Mr. Hglt presented me with a beautful skin of a wild cat, (Felis rufa,) such as is found in the neighborhood. He informed me that the wild cat frequently attacks the oxen, springing upon) heir backs or chest, and wounding them terribly with its sharp claws. The wounds thus produced are extremely poisonous. Great inflamation and swelling of the injured parts ensue, and often the oxen die, although the wounds may be but skin deep. On the other hand, the wounds made by the wolves heal rapidly, although the ox may have its hams so much torn to pieces that one would think its re­covery impossible. Whenever any one· of the cattle raised at this place has wandered off, and is attacked by either of the above men­tioned beasts of prey, it bellows loudly for help, and the rest of the herd always rush to the rescue. In the winter season the wolves become extremely bold, and will attack any animal they may meet alone upon the prairies, with the exception of man. _On the 28th of August we had an arrival of from 40 to 50 com­mi~ sary wagons. The teamsters crowded into the "patio," and from thence commenced a minute scrutiny of every object around them, greatly to our annoyance, and unfavorable to their character for politeness. To ~ day "Nah-co-mense," or "Old Bark,~' a chief of the Cheyennes, and one of my last year's friends, entered my room. He appeared delighted to meet with me again, and sorry to ~ee ~e looking so emaciated. After regarding me for a short time m silence, he placed his hand upon his heart and fluttered his fi~gers rapidly to intimate that my pulse had been beating with the high excitement of fever. As ·I was glad to meet with him, I treated him to some hard bread and to some molasses and water. During the morning Captain ·Walker sent me some fine venison, · but what delighted me exceedingly was the promise I received from the hunter who brought it, that he would procure me skins of the th:ee different varieties of ground squirrels that are to be had in this part of the country; also that, of the prairie dog; for although · the last mentioned animal is well known, yet the skins are rarely to be met with in cabinets of Zoology. When shot with the rifle, the skin is too badly injured to be preserved. ' There were some men encamped near the fort who procured 5 or 6 prairie dogs by pouring water into their burrows until the ani­mal~ we~e. driven out. They soon became perfectly tame, and were earned In to the settlement by their owners a few days before I heard of the circumstance.