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Show 62 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF CHAPTER VI. We separate into six Detachments, and start out.-Trapping on Green River.-Narrow Escape from a Massacre by the Arrap-a-hos.-One Man murdered in Camp.-Retreat.-Fall in with a Detachment of our Company.-Great Joy at the- Meeting.-Return of the Detachments to the Place of Rendezvous at the " Suck." AFTER "caching" our peltry and goods by burying them in safe places, we received instructions from our general to rendezvous at the "Suck" by the first of July following. Bidding each other adieu, for we could hardly expect we should meet again, we took up our different lines of march~ Our party consisted, led by one Clements, of six, among whom was the boy Baptiste, he always insisting on remaining with his brother (as he called me). Our route was up the river-a country that none of us had ever seen before-where the foot of the white man had seldom, if ever, left its print. We were very successful in finding beaver as we progressed, and we obtained plenty of game for the wants of our small party. Wherever we hauled up a trap, we usually found a beaver, besides a considerable number we killed with the rifle. In moving up the river we came to a small stream -one of the tributaries of Green River-which we named '' Horse Creek," in honor of a wild horse we found on its banks. The Creek abounded with the objects of our search, and in a very few days we succeeded in taking over one hundred beavers, the skins of which were worth ten dollars per pound in St. Lou ... • - JAMES P. BECKWOURTH. G3 is. Sixty skins, when dried, formed a pack of one hundred pounds. After having finished our work on Horse Creek, we returned to the main river, and proceeded on, meeting with very good success, until we encountered another branch, which we subsequently named Le Brache Creek, from our comrade who was murdered by the Indians. Our success was much greater here than at any point since leaving the Sucl{, and we followed it up until we came to a deep canon, in which we encamped. The next day, while the men were variously engaged about the camp, happening to be in a more el evated position than the others, I saw a party of Indians approaching within a few yards, evidently unaware of our being in their neighborhood. I immediately shouted, "Indians! Indians! to your guns, men ! " and leveled my rifle at t~e foremost of them. They held up their hands, saying, "Bueno! bueno!" meaning that they were good or friendly; at which my companions cried out to me, "Don't fire! don't fire! thex re friendly-they speak Spanish." But we were sorry afterward we did not all shoot. Our horses had taken fright at the confusion and ran up the caiion. Baptiste and myself went in pursuit of them. When we came back with them we found sixteen Indians sitting around our camp smoking, and jabbering their own tongue, which none of us understood. They passed the night and next day with us in apparent friendship. Thinking this conduct assumed, from the fact that they rather " overdid the thing," we deemed it prudent to retrace our steps to the open prairie, where, if they did intend to commence an attack upon us, we should have a fairer chance of defending ourselves. Accordingly, we packed up and left, all the Indians following us . |
