diff options
| -rw-r--r-- | .gitattributes | 3 | ||||
| -rw-r--r-- | 38351-h.zip | bin | 0 -> 68270 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 38351-h/38351-h.htm | 2398 | ||||
| -rw-r--r-- | 38351-h/images/portrait.jpg | bin | 0 -> 43376 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 38351.txt | 2032 | ||||
| -rw-r--r-- | 38351.zip | bin | 0 -> 39800 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | LICENSE.txt | 11 | ||||
| -rw-r--r-- | README.md | 2 |
8 files changed, 4446 insertions, 0 deletions
diff --git a/.gitattributes b/.gitattributes new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6833f05 --- /dev/null +++ b/.gitattributes @@ -0,0 +1,3 @@ +* text=auto +*.txt text +*.md text diff --git a/38351-h.zip b/38351-h.zip Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..515b5df --- /dev/null +++ b/38351-h.zip diff --git a/38351-h/38351-h.htm b/38351-h/38351-h.htm new file mode 100644 index 0000000..7a3183e --- /dev/null +++ b/38351-h/38351-h.htm @@ -0,0 +1,2398 @@ +<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Strict//EN" + "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-strict.dtd"> +<html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"> +<head> +<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=ISO-8859-1" /> +<title>The Project Gutenberg eBook of A Trip to California in 1853, by Washington Bailey</title> + <style type="text/css"> + +body { + margin-left: 10%; + margin-right: 10%; +} + + h1,h2,h3,h4,h5,h6 { + text-align: center; /* all headings centered */ + clear: both; +} + +p { + margin-top: .75em; + text-align: justify; + margin-bottom: .75em; +} + +hr { + width: 33%; + margin-top: 2em; + margin-bottom: 2em; + margin-left: auto; + margin-right: auto; + clear: both; + visibility: hidden; +} + +.pagenum { /* uncomment the next line for invisible page numbers */ + /* visibility: hidden; */ + display: inline; + position: absolute; + left: 92%; + font-size: smaller; + text-align: right; + color: #808080; +} /* page numbers */ + +.center {text-align: center;} +.smcap {font-variant: small-caps;} +.u {text-decoration: underline;} +.caption {font-weight: bold;} +.margin-top {margin-top: 2em;} + +/* Images */ +.figcenter { + margin: 3em auto; + text-align: center; +} + +ins.tn { text-decoration: none; border-bottom: 1px dashed #add8e6; } +ins.errata { text-decoration: none; border-bottom: 1px dashed green; } + +#tnote { width: 26em; + border: 1px dashed #808080; + background-color: #f6f6f6; + text-align: justify; + padding: 0em 0.75em; + margin: 120px auto 120px auto; +} + + hr.full { width: 100%; + margin-top: 3em; + margin-bottom: 0em; + margin-left: auto; + margin-right: auto; + height: 4px; + border-width: 4px 0 0 0; /* remove all borders except the top one */ + border-style: solid; + border-color: #000000; + visibility: visible; + clear: both; } + pre {font-size: 85%;} + </style> +</head> +<body> +<h1>The Project Gutenberg eBook, A Trip to California in 1853, by Washington +Bailey</h1> +<pre> +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at <a href = "http://www.gutenberg.org">www.gutenberg.org</a></pre> +<p>Title: A Trip to California in 1853</p> +<p> Recollections of a Gold Seeking Trip by Ox Train across the Plains and Mountains by an Old Illinois Pioneer</p> +<p>Author: Washington Bailey</p> +<p>Release Date: December 20, 2011 [eBook #38351]</p> +<p>Language: English</p> +<p>Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1</p> +<p>***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK A TRIP TO CALIFORNIA IN 1853***</p> +<p> </p> +<h4>E-text prepared by Karin Praetorius<br /> + and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team<br /> + (<a href="http://www.pgdp.net">http://www.pgdp.net</a>)<br /> + from page images generously made available by<br /> + Internet Archive/American Libraries<br /> + (<a href="http://www.archive.org/details/americana">http://www.archive.org/details/americana</a>)</h4> +<p> </p> +<table border="0" style="background-color: #ccccff;margin: 0 auto;" cellpadding="10"> + <tr> + <td valign="top"> + Note: + </td> + <td> + Images of the original pages are available through + Internet Archive/American Libraries. See + <a href="http://www.archive.org/details/triptocalifornia00bail"> + http://www.archive.org/details/triptocalifornia00bail</a> + </td> + </tr> +</table> +<div id="tnote"> +<p class="center"><b>Transcriber's Note:</b></p> +<p>The original spelling has been retained.</p> +<p>A few typographical errors have been corrected. These are indicated by a faint +dotted underscore under the <ins class="tn" title="original text">corrected +text.</ins> Hover the cursor over the underscored text and the original text +should be displayed. The corrections are also listed +<a href="#tn">at the end of the book</a>.</p> +<p>Errors listed in the <a href="#ERRATA">Errata</a> have been corrected and +marked <ins class="errata" title="original text">with a bolder dotted underscore.</ins></p> +<p>The table of contents was generated for the reader's convenience. +The original does not contain a table of contents.</p> +</div> +<p> +<a href="#Brief_Biography_Of_The_Author">Brief Biography Of The Author</a><br /> +<a href="#CHAPTER_I">CHAPTER I, Uncle Joshua's Visit And Our Preparations For +The West</a><br /> +<a href="#CHAPTER_II">CHAPTER II, On The Western Plains—Some Of Our Experiences</a><br /> +<a href="#CHAPTER_III">CHAPTER III, Among The Foot Hills And Troublesome Indians</a><br /> +<a href="#CHAPTER_IV">CHAPTER IV, Over The Mountains Into California</a><br /> +<a href="#CHAPTER_V">CHAPTER V, Prospecting For Gold—Some Hard Experiences</a><br /> +<a href="#ERRATA">ERRATA</a><br /> +<a href="#APPENDIX">APPENDIX</a><br /> +</p> +<p> </p> +<hr class="full" /> + + +<div class="figcenter" style="width: 259px;"> +<img src="images/portrait.jpg" width="259" height="405" alt="Image: Washington Bailey" title="" /> +</div> + + +<h1> A TRIP TO<br/> + CALIFORNIA IN 1853</h1> + +<h4> BY WASHINGTON BAILEY</h4> + +<p class="center"> Recollections of a gold seeking trip + by ox train<br/> across the plains and + mountains by an old Illinois pioneer</p> +<p> </p> +<p> </p> +<p> </p> + + +<p class="center margin-top"> LeRoy Journal Printing Company</p> + +<p class="center"> 1915</p> + + + + +<p class="margin-top"> <i>Mr. Bailey was induced by some +of his friends to put in writing his +recollections of an overland trip +made by "prairie schooner" to California, +over sixty years ago. These +recollections were published in the +LeRoy Journal in series, and later +collected and reprinted herewith +in book form on the solicitation of +his friends who desired a permanent +record</i>.</p> + + + +<hr style="width: 65%;" /> +<div><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_1" id="Page_1">[Pg 1]</a></span></div> +<h2><a name="Brief_Biography_Of_The_Author" id="Brief_Biography_Of_The_Author"></a><span class="smcap">Brief Biography Of The Author</span></h2> + +<p>Washington Bailey, the author of this narrative of a trip +to California in 1853, was born October, 1831, in Adams +County, Ohio. Afterwards he, with his parents, came to +Fountain County, Indiana, from which place he went to California, +returning in 1856 to Cheney's Grove, now Saybrook, +Illinois.</p> + +<p>While in California, he sent money back to his father, +who bought for him, fifty acres of land, where Bellflower +village now stands, paying $5.00 per acre. This he sold in +1856, getting $6.00 per acre. He then bought 85 acres north +of Saybrook, adding to it later 40 acres, at a total cost of +$1,400. This was sold in 1864 for $1,875. The next year he +purchased 141 acres in DeWitt County, Ill., where Mike +Walden now lives, paying $22.00 per acre. He purchased +more land bordering this farm until 1891, when he moved to +LeRoy, where he has since resided in a commodious home +south of the city park.</p> + +<p>This farm of 261 acres was divided up among his children +and afterwards sold. Mr. Bailey later invested in 160 acres +in DeWitt County, which he now owns conjointly with his +wife, having deeded 80 acres to her. Besides his residence, +he owns another residence property in LeRoy.</p> + +<p>Mr. Bailey was married to Julian Brittin, March 19, 1857, +and they are parents of three boys and three girls, all living. +They are: A. G. Bailey, who was serving his second +term as mayor of LeRoy, when this volume was published; +Henry Bailey, of Normal; Lincoln Bailey and Mrs. Nancy +Van Deventer, of LeRoy; Mrs. Sarah Brown, of Maroa, and +Mrs. Emma Vance, of Farmer City.</p> + +<p>Mr. Bailey has served several terms as justice of the<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_2" id="Page_2">[Pg 2]</a></span> +peace and school director. He has been a loyal member of +the Methodist church since boyhood. He has a remarkable +memory and has always took a lively interest in politics. His +mind is a store-house of dates and facts concerning political +affairs. He is a staunch foe of the liquor traffic, and holds +to the Republican doctrine of McKinley and Roosevelt. He +is a man of deep convictions and is always ready to advocate +them on all occasions.</p> + +<p>Although about 84 years of age as this book goes to press, +Mr. Bailey is enjoying good health and goes up town every +day to greet old friends and acquaintances. Loved by all his +children, respected by the whole community, still enjoying +the companionship of his good wife, there are no clouds in +the western horizon, and the sundown of his life is radiant +with worthy motives and deeds of a three-quarters of a +century.</p> + + + +<hr style="width: 65%;" /> +<div><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_3" id="Page_3">[Pg 3]</a></span></div> +<h2><a name="CHAPTER_I" id="CHAPTER_I"></a>CHAPTER I</h2> + +<p class="center">UNCLE JOSHUA'S VISIT AND OUR PREPARATIONS FOR +THE WEST</p> + + +<p>In the spring of 1853, my uncle, Joshua Bailey, came from +California to Ohio to see his mother and his brothers, +uncle John Bailey, and my father, Eben Bailey. But my +father had moved to Fountain County, Indiana, so uncle Joshua +came through Indiana to see us.</p> + +<p>Joshua Bailey had gone to California in 1849, across the +plains and had made over one hundred thousand dollars in +gold. He hired my brother-in-law, William Reighley, to come +out with him from Adams County, Ohio, to Indiana, to buy +stock to take across the plains to California. My uncle had +bought a span of mules in Ohio. Three of my cousins, William +McNeal, Joel Bailey, George Bailey, and a man by the +name of Bart Robins, brought the mules and some harness +through to Indiana, so William Reighley, uncle Joshua and my +cousins, were all together at my father's. My brother, Crawford +Bailey, and my self, concluded to go along with them.</p> + +<p>Uncle Joshua Bailey had gone to the lead mines when he +was a young man, had married and raised his family there. +It was from there he had gone to the gold mines. I was +twenty-one year old at the time of uncle's visit to our house +in Indiana, and it was the first time I had ever seen him.</p> + +<p>My uncle poured out a pile of gold coins from a carpet +sachel that was lined inside with buck skin and counted out +several thousand dollars, enough to buy 250 head of cattle, +1,500 head of sheep and some horses and gave it to William +Reighley, to go to Illinois to buy this stock and it did not +look like you could hardly miss it out of the pile of gold coins<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_4" id="Page_4">[Pg 4]</a></span> +on the table. He gave him more money than would be necessary +to buy the stock and my brother, Crawford Bailey and +cousin, William McNeal were to take what was left and pay +the expense of feeding the stock and their lodging through +to Indian Territory, where we were to start across the plains, +and what was left, turn it over to uncle.</p> + +<p>Wm. Reighley, for his labor buying the cattle and covering +his expenses, kept out $50. He had traveled over 800 +miles in coming to Illinois and traveling over Piatt, Macon, +DeWitt, Logan, Tazwell and Peoria counties, picking up the +stock. When the stock was finally delivered to uncle Joshua, +he was well pleased with the judgment William used in +the buying.</p> + +<p>After uncle had made arrangements for the purchase of +the stock, he went back to Wisconsin to his family and +made preparations to move to California to make his home. +After William Reighley had bought the stock in Illinois, he +went with the boys as far as the Illinois River and then returned +to Ohio. While the stock was being bought, I, with +two other young men, were making preparations to go and +overtake them. We had rented some land and had to dispose +of that and sell some grain and some horses before starting.</p> + +<p>We were to meet the advance party at Independence, Mo., +but when we were ready to start, heavy rains had set in and +we were much delayed by swollen streams. At many places +we had to swim our horses as there were but few bridges. +We had to go out of the way ten miles at Danville, in order +to get across the Vermillion River. When we got to Peoria, +we learned that the roads were so bad that we took passage +on a steam boat down the Illinois River to St. Louis. There +we took passage up the Missouri River to Independence, Mo., +where we expected to find the men with the stock.</p> + +<p>After reaching Independence and waiting several days, we +were not able to hear anything of uncle or of the drove +which he was driving through from Wisconsin. We learned +that there were other places from which the overland trains<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_5" id="Page_5">[Pg 5]</a></span> +started for the West. One was St. Joe, about eighty miles +up the river, and two of my party went to St. Joe, while I +remained at Independence. By watching at St. Joe and Independence, +we expected to meet the train as we knew that we +must be ahead of them. The men at St. Joe happened to run +across uncle, who had been in St. Louis to buy supplies for +the trip. They wrote me and I left for St. Joe.</p> + +<p>We told uncle that he had instructed the men who were +driving stock through from Illinois, to go to Independence, +but he did not understand it that way. He had instructed his +family and the men who were bringing the stock from Wisconsin, +to go to Cainsville, Iowa, which was twenty-five miles +above Council Bluffs on the Missouri River, and about 150 +miles from St. Joe. Uncle bought a yoke of oxen and a +wagon at St. Joe and he and I started for Cainsville.</p> + +<p>After we were in Cainsville for several days, the family +and party, with the horses, wagons and cattle, came from +Wisconsin. In the party, were <ins class="errata" title="Peter House">Peter Hughs</ins>, his brother-in-law +and family, William Nailer, Thomas Roberts, <ins class="errata" title="John Feril">John Teril</ins>, +Allen Gilber, Horace Failling, Thomas Brooks, John Brooks +and James Creek.</p> + +<p>We remained there for two or three weeks, hoping to hear +from the drove from Illinois. Uncle finally came to the conclusion +that he had told them to go to Independence, Mo., +and he sent Jobe Spray to St. Joe to see if he could find +trace of them. He was given money to buy a horse and saddle, +and in case they had crossed the river at St. Joe, he was +to follow and overtake them, in order to get the two parties +together. When he reached St. Joe, he found that they had +crossed there and later learned that when crossing the Missouri, +that they had stopped to shear the sheep, and on finding +that Independence was south of the direct line, they had +made directly for St. Joe and had crossed the river before +Jobe had arrived. On account of the misunderstanding, +uncle, with his party, was above Council Bluff on the east +side of the Missouri, and the Illinois party was somewhere<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_6" id="Page_6">[Pg 6]</a></span> +on the west side of the river in what is now Kansas.</p> + +<p>I was with the party at Cainsville, when an incident +happened which I never will forget. We were waiting for +word from Jobe Spray, and uncle and all the party except +one other man and myself had left the camp and gone to +Cainsville. We were left to herd the cattle. While in the +town, uncle met a man who owned a farm near the camp. +They rode out as far as the camp together, and as uncle's +horse was a little thin, having been ridden through from +Wisconsin, and the farm was but a short distance away, he +picketed out the horse, took off the saddle and threw it +away far enough so that the horse could not reach it. He +proceeded on foot to the man's farm.</p> + +<p>From where I was herding, I could see the horse and went +down, thinking that some of the party had come back from +Cainsville, and that I would be able to get something to +eat as I was very hungry. When I got to the camp, I saw +that it was uncle's horse, but could not see anything of uncle. +I started back to the cattle when I discovered the saddle in +the grass with a two-bushel sack tied to the horn of the +saddle. I was interested to know what was in the sack, +thinking it might be crackers, so I gave the sack a kick +with the toe of my boot. There was a jingling sound as if +there were ox shoes and nails in it. So to satisfy my curiosity, +I untied the sack from the saddle, ran my hand into +it and took out, to my great surprise, a handful of gold. +Tying up the sack, I looked in all directions for uncle, but +could not see him. I called out for him as loud as I could, +three or four time, but received no answer.</p> + +<p>After waiting for quite awhile, I took the sack and hid it +under some clothing and bedding in the bottom of one of the +covered wagons. I then went to a high point near the cattle +where I could watch both, the cattle and the wagon.</p> + +<p>Along in the afternoon, the folks returned from Cainsville, +and my mind was relieved, as I knew there was no +further danger of prowlers. My helper and myself, gathered<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_7" id="Page_7">[Pg 7]</a></span> +up the stock, and when we got into camp, it was dark and +I was hungrier than I had ever been before in my life.</p> + +<p>"Come to supper," was a welcome shout and the thought +of the gold had vanished. While eating, I heard uncle call +out to some of the men:</p> + +<p>"Did you see anything of a sack on my saddle horn?"</p> + +<p>Several of the men answered, "No," before I could get +my mouth emptied and when my vocal canal was free from +congestion, I holloed,</p> + +<p>"I saw a sack on the horn of your saddle," and he answered +back,</p> + +<p>"All right Wash," and I told him to wait until I had my +supper and I would be over and get it for him.</p> + +<p>I went to the camp fire where the men were huddled +<ins class="tn" title="and and asked uncle">and asked uncle</ins> where he had been and he said that he had +walked to the farm across the fields. I asked him how much +was in the sack and replied, "Thirty-six thousand Dollars."</p> + +<p>I went to the wagon and got the sack. Uncle was badly +scared and remarked that it was the most careless trick that +he had ever done. There were some Mormons camped a short +distance away and he said that if they had found the sack, +that he would have been ruined.</p> + +<p>While waiting at Cainsville, we finally received word +from Jobe Spray that the Illinois party had crossed the +river at St. Joe and had proceeded on west and that he +would follow them, they having crossed the river two weeks +before he got there. He had followed day and night and +overtaken them about half way between St. Joe and Fort +Kearney, which would be about 150 miles from St. Joe. +After receiving the letter, we began to make arrangements to +cross the Missouri River. The steam ferry boat had gone up +the river after furs, so we had no way to get our stock and +wagons across.</p> + +<p>While waiting, a fur boat came down the river with +three men. This boat was strictly a home made affair. It <span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_8" id="Page_8">[Pg 8]</a></span>was built of rough sawed lumber and the bottom and sides +were nailed onto the frame with several thicknesses of +boards and caulked up with buffalo tallow to keep it from +leaking too badly. We secured this boat to get us across.</p> + +<p>The process of getting that old boat across the river was +a difficult one and as it only could take sixteen cattle at a +time, many trips had to be made. A round trip across the +river, meant much labor, and was as follows:</p> + +<p>After the cargo was put in the boat, it had to be hauled +by ropes and pushed by pike poles up the river along the +bank, until we were above an island which was in the middle +of the river. Then we would cast off from the shore and by +means of the oars, pulled for the opposite shore. The current, +however, would take the boat in a diagonal direction +so <ins class="tn" title="be">we</ins> would strike the lower end of the island. Then we +would pull and push the old ark to the upper end of the +island and again cast loose and finally reach the shore at a +point much lower, being carried along with the current. In +order to get back, we would drag the boat along the west +shore to above the island again and cast off, reaching the +lower end of the island. Dragging the boat along the shore +to the upper end of the island and crossing, finally reach the +east side below the camp. After two weeks of hard work, we +managed to ferry all the stock and camp outfit across without +serious accident.</p> + + + +<hr style="width: 65%;" /> +<div><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_9" id="Page_9">[Pg 9]</a></span></div> +<h2><a name="CHAPTER_II" id="CHAPTER_II"></a>CHAPTER II</h2> + +<p class="center">ON THE WESTERN PLAINS—SOME OF OUR EXPERIENCES</p> + + +<p>When we reached the other side, we were in Indian territory, +or what is now known as Nebraska, and a short distance +north from where Omaha now is. At this place, uncle +Joshua impressed on our minds the danger of an attack by +the Indians and told us to make plenty of bullets and have +our guns well loaded to protect ourselves. Up to this time, +I had seen only two Indians. One of them was a squaw +named Gripteth, on this side of the Wabash River in Warren +County, Indiana. The other one I came upon lying in the +grass south of Cainsville, wrapped up in a red blanket. The +way uncle talked I thought that we would have to fight our +way through. The imagination pictured out every bunch of +grass or object in the distance as Indians, but coming closer, +we found that we were always unnecessarily alarmed. The +scare over meeting Indians gradually wore off, and when we +came to the Indians, or rather, when they came to us, I was +not as afraid of them as I was of the wolves.</p> + +<p>We followed the Indian trail until we came to the Elkhorn +River and there we crossed on a willow brush bridge. These +bridges lay flat on the water and I did not find out how +they were fastened to the banks. Before we reached California, +we had crossed over several of them.</p> + +<p>We kept a southwest course, following the trail and reached +the Platte River, which we followed on the north side. +We had traveled about 200 miles in Nebraska. We heard +cannons firing and we knew that we were near Fort Kearney +and that they were celebrating the Fourth of July.</p> + +<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_10" id="Page_10">[Pg 10]</a></span>Uncle Joshua, on a fine bay blooded mare which he had +brought from Wisconsin, forded the river after a life and +death struggle with the treacherous quick sands along the +banks, and managed, by wading and swimming the horse, to +get across the river.</p> + +<p>After arriving on the opposite bank, he waved his hat in +token of his success and started for the fort. He carried +with him a seven shot Colts rifle and a five caliber Colts +revolver. When uncle reached Fort Kearney, as we afterwards +learned, he found that the Illinois train had passed +through there two weeks before. Uncle took up the trail +and after following for ten days, he overtook them on the +south side of the North Platte, a short distance on this side +of Fort Laramie near the Wyoming-Nebraska line, at a place +called Ash Hollow. The river was forded and the cattle, +sheep and horses were now on the right bank of the river.</p> + +<p>The night after uncle had left the camp, we were camped +near the river on some ground which was level and smooth. +Aunt and her two children, Henry and Ellen, were with her +in one of the tents. During the night there was a heavy +rain or water spout. I was lying on the ground with my +boots and coat under my head, and I was awakened by the +water which had partly covered my body. I heard aunt +crying and calling: "Where is Henry? I can't find Henry."</p> + +<p>I started to go to her and got into deeper water and realized +the water was raising very fast. I reached aunt, who +was holding the little girl in her arms and she was hysterical +about the boy. I heard a splash and following the direction +of the sound in the darkness, I got my hand on his head and +lifted him out of the water. I took aunt and the children to +a covered wagon, where we stayed until morning. The +water had raised until it was two and one-half feet deep, +when it began to go down and by morning it was all gone. +We were not able to understand where so much water came +from so quickly or where it had gone, as the river was about +a mile from the camp.</p> + +<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_11" id="Page_11">[Pg 11]</a></span> +We broke camp and trailed on westward on the north +side of the river, and after several days, we met uncle, who +was returning from overtaking the Illinois train. He had +halted them at Ash Hollow, near Fort Laramie. We finally +reached their camp and for the first time after about a thousand +miles' travel, the two trains were united.</p> + +<p>It will be remembered that the junction place was to be +Independence, Missouri, but the meeting place turned out to +be in the borders of Wyoming. The two herds made 1500 +sheep and 500 cattle and we were on the borders of the rough +and tumble freaks of nature near the foot hills of the great +Rockies.</p> + +<p>After we had passed Fort Kearney in the month of July, +we saw great herds of Buffalo going north. At times as we +looked across the Platte River, we could see countless numbers +of them and the earth would be black with them for +miles. The droves would travel in "V" shape, with the +leaders at the point. When a drove would cross the river +toward us, it was necessary to use the utmost care in order +that our cattle would not stampede. We would herd our +cattle up close and get out with our guns and by shooting +and holloing, we were able to turn the buffalo in a direction +away from our cattle.</p> + +<p>We came to high grounds, once, where there was excellent +grazing and we stopped there for the day, to let the cattle +and stock take advantage of the good grass. While we were +eating our dinner, two Indians came riding up, with two of +the finest spotted ponies I had ever seen. They got off and +were holding them with a sort of a lariat, as they had no +bridles, when Bart Robins, one of the men with us, made the +Indians understand by signs, that he wanted to ride one of +the ponies.</p> + +<p>He mounted one of them and rode away to round some +of the cattle which were straying. When Bart first started +off, they did not care, but when they saw him circle away +from the main herd, they evidently thought that he was run<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_12" id="Page_12">[Pg 12]</a></span>ning +away with it, and one of them jumped on the other +pony, fixed an arrow to his bow and started in pursuit. By +yelling as loud as we could, we attracted the attention of +Bart and motioned for him to circle back to camp. By keeping +a circle, he kept out of shooting distance of the bow, and +arrived in camp safe, but somewhat frightened over his +experience. The Indians got on their ponies and left.</p> + +<p>Two or three days after this incident, a chief and about +twenty of his tribe, came to us and after a pow-wow, they +sat down in a row and uncle understanding the maneuver, +had as many of the men sit down facing them, as there were +Indians. The chief lit his tomahock pipe, took a puff, passed +it to uncle, who did the same. The order pursued, was that +the chief would hand it to one of the Indians; the pipe would +be returned to him, and he would hand it to uncle, who +would give it to one of the men, who would return it to uncle, +and uncle would give it back to the chief. The order was +maintained until all the men and Indians had a puff at the +pipe. When the program was over, the chief arose and +said, "How!" and he and the Indians took their departure. +This was the "<ins class="tn" title="pipe of of peace">pipe of peace</ins>" and meant that they would +do us no harm, and we were not to harm them. Evidently +this visit was to clear up the misunderstanding concerning the +pony incident.</p> + +<p>A rule had been made and understood by the men that +there was to be no quarreling or fighting in the camp. It +is unfortunate in camp life, especially on a trail far west, +to have enmity in the camp. Tom Brooks, who was one of +the cooks, was a crabbed fellow. James Greek was an orphan +boy, who had made his home with uncle for several years, +and who one day killed a big buffalo.</p> + +<p>In order to preserve the meat, it was put through a process +of jerking, which was to cut it into strips to be dried +by the sun or by heating. We had made a scaffold by putting +forked sticks in the ground and by laying sticks across +in them, had made a platform about the fire. After the<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_13" id="Page_13">[Pg 13]</a></span> +fire became a bed of charcoal, the meat was laid on the cross +sticks to roast and dry.</p> + +<p>James, who was a good natured chap of eighteen years +of age, and having killed the buffalo, helped himself to a +piece of the meat. Tom Brooks ordered him to put the meat +back, which he refused to do, Tom jumping onto him and +beat him, until his face was black with the beating. The +sympathy of the camp was with Jim and Tom lost the respect +of the camp by his bullying disposition. Uncle was +restrained from taking a hand in the matter, as he could +not afford to lose any of his helpers.</p> + +<p>One day when uncle and aunt rode ahead to pick out a +camping place, he had instructed us to drive the cattle to +the left side of the trail as we were nearing alkali water, +which was unfit for the stock to drink. He had given us +wrong instructions, for instead of driving them away from +the danger, we drove them to where they drank the injurious +water. As a result, we lost, with what we had killed for +beef, about 250 head of cattle. If the sheep drank any of +the water, they were not affected.</p> + +<p>In the herd of cattle we had left, were forty or fifty milk +cows, some of them fresh and we had plenty of milk. The +boys all milked except Wm. Nailor, who could not, but had +made arrangements with the other boys to take his place +and he would do some of <ins class="tn" title="thier">their</ins> work in exchange.</p> + +<p>One day, Nailor, who was in the rear of the train, came +in late for dinner. It was customary for every one to have +a cup of milk for dinner, and he held out his cup to Tom, +the cook, for his milk. Tom, after the others had eaten, +poured the milk out on the ground and said to Nailor, "No +man who wont milk, can drink milk."</p> + +<p>Nailor replied that he had made arrangement for others +to milk in his place and that it was none of Tom's business. +Angry words followed and Tom took a run at Nailor, butting +him in the stomach. Nailor was knocked down, and in +falling, his head struck the wheel of a wagon, cutting a<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_14" id="Page_14">[Pg 14]</a></span> +gash in his scalp. This ended the fight and Tom, after this, +was meaner than ever, as he had whipped Nailor, who had +some reputation as a fighter.</p> + +<p>It has been over sixty years since these events took place, +but I distinctly remember another of the mean tricks of the +cook. Tom had a way of cutting out of a side of bacon, the +best part, leaving the balance for the family. My aunt +spoke to him about it and with an oath, he told my aunt to +attend to her own business. Such insolence was endured for +the time being, but later Tom paid the penalty, the story of +which will be told later.</p> + +<p>I remember at one place where we camped late at night, +that when we awoke the next morning, we discovered two +graves side by side. Near the graves was an endgate of a +wagon on which was cut with a knife, the words, "Do not +camp here."</p> + +<p>Evidently it was a dangerous place to camp on account +of the Indians and the graves were mute testimony of that +fact. The graves were lined with large rocks or bowlders, +and over the top there were also rocks to protect the bodies +from wolves. However, the wolves had dug down on one +side deeper than the graves and dislodged some of the +rocks and got the bodies. Some of the human bones were on +the ground where the wolves left them after picking off the +flesh.</p> + +<p>We followed the headwaters of the North Platte, which +flowed to the east, and leaving this river, we soon arrived at +the headwaters of the Sweet River, whose waters flow westward +into the Green River and on through the Columbia +River to the Pacific. If you will take your atlas and find +Fort Laramie on the Platte River, and follow it until you +come to Casper, and then skirt the <ins class="tn" title="Rattlsnake">Rattlesnake</ins> hills on the +north, you will reach the Sweet Water River near what is +now called Independence Rock and Slit Rock.</p> + +<p>The Sweet River Mountains will be on your south and +the Wind Mountains on the north, as you cross between,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_15" id="Page_15">[Pg 15]</a></span> +through South Pass along the banks of the beautiful river +Sweet Water. We saw the Chimney Rock which stood out +by itself like a chimney after the house had burned. I think +that it must be what is now called Independence Rock, +which name is very appropriate. Also there was the Court +House Rock, called that because of the rooms in it as if +someone had cut rooms into the soft rock. There was the +Devil's Gate, which was a massive ridge of rock, through +which the river, some time in the dim past, had apparently +drilled, and through the ages, disposed of the rock above, +until a deep and straight-faced canyon greeted the "Path +Finder" of other centuries.</p> + +<p>We camped here for a day and others of the camp discovered +a beautiful pool of water jutting out from the river. +The water was clear as crystal and we could see in the water +the most beautiful fish that I had ever seen. They were +spotted or speckled and all about the same size—about twenty +inches long. They were the speckled trout so much prized +by the anglers of today.</p> + +<p>We took one of uncle's wagon covers, tied a log chain to +one side along the edge; tied a rope on the other side; got +some tent poles and tied them to the end of the cover. We +were going to seine this pool of water, when uncle came +down to where we were and wanted to know what we were +doing. We told him that we were going to seine the pool +and catch some of those fine fish.</p> + +<p>He said, "You can't catch fish with a wagon cover. You +will only tear my cover to pieces and catch no fish. I don't +want my cover torn up. I will need it."</p> + +<p>We told him we would not hurt his wagon cover, but he +forbade us using it. We told him that we had it fixed and +we were going to make one haul any how, and show him we +could catch fish with a wagon cover. Uncle got out of +humor, but we did that once as we pleased. We went in +with our seine at the upper end of the pool and dragged +down to the lower end, where there was a nice gravel riffle,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_16" id="Page_16">[Pg 16]</a></span> +a nice place to pull out on the <ins class="tn" title="side (period missing)">side.</ins> We boys had seined +with uncle John's wagon cover in Elkrun in Ohio, and we +understood the business. In the first haul, we had a lot +of the finest kind of fish and uncle's wagon cover was not +damaged.</p> + +<p>Uncle was so surprised to see such a lot at one drag, that +he told the men to unyoke the oxen, and that they could +dress and fry fish the rest of the day. We caught all the +fish they all wanted and as many as they wanted to take +along.</p> + + + +<hr style="width: 65%;" /> +<div><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_17" id="Page_17">[Pg 17]</a></span></div> +<h2><a name="CHAPTER_III" id="CHAPTER_III"></a>CHAPTER III</h2> + +<p class="center">AMONG THE FOOT HILLS AND TROUBLESOME INDIANS</p> + + +<p>If you will take your atlas, and look on the map of +Wyoming, at the base of the Wind Mountains, the most rugged +group of the Rockies, you will find South Pass, with +the headwaters of the Sweetwater River, cutting a canyon +through <ins class="tn" title="it (period missing)">it.</ins> Going westward from this point and following +the Sweetwater River, we came to the headwater, which was +called Atlantic Springs. A few hundred yards beyond, we +came to the Pacific Springs. This small strip of land is the +water shed or dividing point between the two oceans. The +water which bubbles up from the Atlantic Springs, races eastward +through the rocky canyon of the Sweetwater and to the +Platte and from the Platte to the Missouri, thence the Mississippi, +uniting with the waters of the Ohio, Illinois, Tennesse +and Cumberland, the Monongahela, of the Allegheny +Mountains, finally reaching Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic +Ocean.</p> + +<p>But should you follow the course of the sparkling water +that gushes from the Pacific Springs, you would course along +the Big Sandy to the Green River, which cuts its way +through the sand and rocks of that rough and tumble country +of northern Utah and northwestern Colorado. Launch your +boat on the turbulent waters and drift, if you were not capsized, +in southern Utah, you would come to Colorado River +and then soon in the shadows of the most wonderful canyons +which scar Mother Earth, the Cataract, Marble and Grand +Canyons, of world <ins class="tn" title="renoun">renown</ins>. These livid seething waters +find rest in the bosom of the great Pacific.</p> + +<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_18" id="Page_18">[Pg 18]</a></span>We trailed westward across the Pacific Springs <ins class="errata" title="on">toward</ins> the +Bear River which flowed south to Bear Lake in the northern +part of Utah. We were on what was called Fremont and +Carson route. This lead southwest to Salt Lake City. When +<ins class="errata" title="north">northeast</ins> of Salt Lake City, we came to what was called the +Truckey route. This route left Salt Lake City to our left. +We were behind all the other trains and it had been reported +that the Mormons had killed a whole train of men, +women and children, for plunder and had laid it onto the +Indians. Old Brigham Young had sent what he called his +"Destroying Angels" and had murdered all of them and took +all the stock and wagons. We decided to take the Truckey +route and keep away from Brigham Young and his "destroying +angels."</p> + +<p>Perhaps one of the most interesting things I saw while +traveling through the Bear River country in southern Utah, +was a lava bed, about fifty or sixty feet high and I judge +about two hundred feet wide at the base. At the crest, the +lava was bubbling out as clear as water and running down +the side of the mound, it would cool and turn into rock, +forming a rocky mound. I saw three such mounds of lava +or rock, which had been formed this way. The soil in the +Bear River bottom was rich, black soil, and I thought what +a pity it was that it should be covered with these mounds of +lava.</p> + +<p>There was a grave at the foot of this mound with a head +board, on which we were informed that the deceased had +drunk of the lava water and had died in a few minutes and +that the water was poison.</p> + +<p>We came across what was called Soda Springs and the +water was as fine as any I had ever drank, and it came out +of the ground foaming, a veritable natural soda water fountain. +We also saw the Steam Boat Springs, which gushed +from a hole in the basin of rock. The water was boiling +hot and it bubbled and sizzled like boiling water on a stove. +It would boil for a short time and then the steam would<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_19" id="Page_19">[Pg 19]</a></span> +shoot up about fifteen feet high. Below this spring and +near the river, was a strip of rocks about twenty feet wide, +that seemed to be in motion with heat. The water in the +river was so hot we could not hold our hands in it for two +or three rods along the banks.</p> + +<p>Down the river and off to one side, we came to Bear Rock. +This rock was cut up with great crevices and if a man or +beast had fallen into one of them, they would have disappeared +from view in the bowels of the earth. I threw a +rock into one of them and heard it rattling down into the +depths until the sound gradually died away in what appeared +to be bottomless. This serrated rock appeared to be +about three miles across and it was the most dangerous place +we had encountered. It had to be crossed as it was the path +of the trail. A road had been made by wedging rock in the +crevices and by means of picks, the way had been smoothed +down so we were able to get across without serious accident.</p> + +<p>While near Bear River, James Bailey and <ins class="errata" title="John Ferril">John Teril</ins> +were driving a cow whose feet were so worn that she could +not keep up with the rest of the drove. The boys would +drive her along slowly and arrive late in the evening at the +camp. She was a big red cow and uncle hated to lose her, +but one evening she laid down and the boys could not whip +her up and they had to come to camp without her. The next +morning uncle sent Jim and I after her. As we came in +sight of her, an awful sight came to our view. A pack of +wolves were around her, snarling and gnashing on all sides. +The cow was making a desperate struggle to keep off the +ravenous wolves. When we saw the condition, we rode as +fast as we could and the wolves took to the tall grass. We +found the hind quarter of the cow bleeding and in some +places the flesh was stripped off to the bone. There was +nothing to do but to put her out of her misery, which I did +with a shot from my gun.</p> + +<p>Jim held my horse and I went near enough to the grass +to shoot at them as they ventured out of the grass. I could<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_20" id="Page_20">[Pg 20]</a></span> +not tell whether I killed any of them or not as they would +leap back in the grass. I had in mind to go nearer to the +grass to see the result of my shots, when Jim called to me +and said, "Wash, come quick. Get on your horse, the grass +is alive with them."</p> + +<p>When I got on my horse, I could see on both sides of +the trail the grass all in motion with the cat like movements +of the wolves. We could not see them, but the waving grass +showed that it was full of them. We put spurs to our horses +and when we got to a safe distance, we stopped and looked +back. The wolves had come out of the grass and were pilled +upon the cow, resembling a small hay stack.</p> + +<p>One day soon after this, when we had made a noon stop, +an Indian chief, who could talk our language, told us that +his men, while hunting, had found a white man who was +nearly starved to death, and that he had carried him to his +lodge. Uncle and some more of the men went with him to +see if he was strong enough to be taken along. They found +him too weak to be moved. After a council between uncle +and the chief, it was decided to leave him there and the +chief promised to look after him and when he was strong +enough, that he would put him on a pony and send him to +Salt Lake City. I believe the man was left in good hands +and that the chief was a man of his word.</p> + +<p>We were now coming to the desert country of Nevada +and our cattle had been without water for a day, when we +came to what is known as Poison Water. To get across this +little stream, we put the cattle in bunches of twelve and +whipped them across, not letting them stop to drink. We +got all of our stock across without being poisoned. After +we got across, on the side of the hill, we saw the awful effects +of the poison water, as there were hundreds of dead cattle +and rods at a time, we could step on dead cattle without +stepping on the ground.</p> + +<p>After we got back on the Freemont and Carson route and +were making for the headwaters of the Humbolt River, we<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_21" id="Page_21">[Pg 21]</a></span> +found some fair grass land for the stock. We followed the +Humbolt River for many miles until we came to the Humbolt +Sink. At first it was as smooth as a rock for some distance, +but later we dropped off into sand and it was the worst +travelling I ever saw. The sand was so light and fine, that +one foot would go down until I would set the other foot on +top of the sand and pull that foot out, before I could step +one foot ahead of the other. It was about the same sort of +motion and as slow as treading water. We were three days +and nights crossing that desert.</p> + +<p>After getting across this desert stretch, we came to the +banks of the Carson River, which we were to follow for +many miles to the borders of California. When we reached +Carson River, we came to a trader's pound, constructed of +wagon tires and log chains. It was about the size of an +ordinary city lot. There were tires lengthwise and crosswise, +hind wheel tires, front wheel tires and log chains, bound +together in all kinds of shapes. There were tons of steel +in that fence. We came across another pound on the Carson +River, near the Sierra Nevada Mountains, built of logs. The +logs were 100 feet or over in length and had notches cut in +them. These logs were placed in two rows and were crossed +by small logs resting in the notches. It was built high +enough so that stock could not jump over.</p> + +<p>One night when we were afraid the Indians would come +in on us, a double guard was put on duty. Four men stood +guard in the fore part of the night and four in the after +part. The eight men to do duty were all the men in my +mess. Uncle said that the bacon was getting low and that he +wanted some one of our mess, to get up early and help kill a +beef. I told him to have some of the men in the other mess to +help, as we would be on guard duty all night. Uncle said, +"All right."</p> + +<p>The men of my mess had killed all the beeves and mutton +up to that time. We did not care, nor did we think much<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_22" id="Page_22">[Pg 22]</a></span> +about it, as one of our men was a butcher. The next morning +uncle called for some one to get up and help him kill a +beef. He called the second and third time, and no one got +up and he said, "If no one will get up and help, you will +do without meat."</p> + +<p>Two of the men in my mess said, "If the other fellows +will not help, we will."</p> + +<p>I did not help as I was willing to do without meat rather +than help after being on guard about all night. When I got +up, I went over to the other camp to see what was the +matter and why they would not help to kill the beef. They +had all gone to look after the stock except John and Tom +Brooks. Tom, the cook, did not have to help with the other +work. I asked, "John, why did not you fellows get up this +morning and help uncle?"</p> + +<p>He looked at me, wrinkled up his face, swore and said as +hateful as he could, "You will be a good deal prettier than +you are, before I will help kill a beef."</p> + +<p>"Johnny," I replied, "If you don't propose to do your +part, you might get a dose you would not like so well."</p> + +<p>I thought I would go back to my camp and say nothing +more about it. I started off and had gone about a rod, when +John said, "Now you go off to your own camp, or I will put +Tom at you."</p> + +<p>I turned around and looked at him and remarked, "You +low lived insignificant scoundrel, you will put Tom at me?"</p> + +<p>"Yes, and if you don't go to your own home, I will get +at you," Tom cut in.</p> + +<p>"You big necked, nigerfied, curly-headed villian, you will +get at me?" I replied.</p> + +<p>At that he came running toward me and as he came near, +he ducked his head to butt me in the stomach. When I +saw that, I ran backwards a little to kill the shock and I +reached down and caught him in the cheek, gave him a jerk, +and he fell on his back. He fell near the hind wheel of a<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_23" id="Page_23">[Pg 23]</a></span> +wagon. He pulled himself up by holding to the wheel and +I got him by the throat and pushed him back between the +wheel and the bed, and beat his face and head like he did +poor Jim Greek and gave him some for Nailor and some for +abusing aunt, and some for jumping on to me. When I got +through, he had a plenty and the great fighter was badly +whipped and he had not given me a scratch.</p> + +<p>This was the first fight I had ever had and I found out +afterwards that he had told the boys, that if any of his mess +helped kill the beef, they would have had him to whip first. +Aunt saw the commotion and called for me to come to their +camp fire and get my breakfast. She said, "I am going to +give you the best breakfast you ever had on the plains, for +whipping that low lived, good for nothing, Tom Brooks."</p> + +<p>I ate breakfast with aunt—was the best meal on the +plains and the only time I had eaten with her. Tom Brooks +behaved after that.</p> + +<p>One morning we missed a cow out of the herd. Several +of us went to find her. We hunted for quite a while and +finally all came back to camp with the exception of my +brother, Crawford Bailey and Wint Crumley. There was a +willow thicket along the river and they got out of sight of +us. They had found the trail of the cow and followed it. +The camp had moved on down the trail while George Bailey +had taken his gun and went on foot to kill an antelope. +While hunting on the side of the trail, he was surprised to +see Crawford and Wint running their horses around a bend +in the river. He made for the trail just in time to catch +one of the horses by the tail and by that means, kept up +with the fleeing men. The Indians who were after them, +tried to cut them off, but when they came in sight of the +camp, they gave up the chase and disappeared. The two boys +had followed the track of the cow into a willow thicket and +they came across the Indians with a cow's hide stretched across +poles, scrapping it ready for tanning. The Indians +saw them and gave chase, but the fleetness of the horses and<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_24" id="Page_24">[Pg 24]</a></span> +George's lucky hold on the tail of the horse, saved their +scalps.</p> + +<p>A few nights after this incident, we had to drive late to +get to where there was a good place to camp. It was dusk +when we camped. We had to turn off to the right of the +main trail and the river bent off to the north and I think it +was a quarter of a mile from the main trail to where we +camped. We had built our fires and were just ready to +commence getting supper, when we heard the Indians begin +holloing, "Show shony, show shony, humbugen, humbugen oss +cawaw cawaw, cawowaw cawowaw cawowaw cawaw cawaw."</p> + +<p>The first time they holloed this, uncle Joshua Bailey said, +"There! We are going to be attacked. That is the war +whoop. Put out the fires and corral the wagons."</p> + +<p>The wagons were placed in a circle, running the tongues +under each other so we could get inside and protect ourselves +from their arrows as much as possible. When we got that +done, which was in short order, he said, "All hands load +your guns and your revolvers and have your knives ready."</p> + +<p>We had been so long on the road that everybody had become +careless. Some of the guns had not been used for a +long time and were rusty and others had no bullets. Some +had to prepare their guns, while others tried to run bullets. +We had what we called ladles to melt lead in. They were +made of wooden pieces split out of oak or some other kind of +hard timber, four square, with one end hewed round for the +handle, the other end, that is, the square end, had a hole cut +down in with the corner of the ax. We would put lead in +this ladle and put coals of fire in on the lead and blow the +coals with our breath, and which would not make much light.</p> + +<p>Joel Bailey, my cousin, had run off from home when a +small boy, got on a steam boat at Ripley, Ohio, worked his +passage as dish washer, and had gone to Wisconsin, where +my three uncles were. While there, Joel got acquainted with +the Indians and their ways more than I did, but I had got<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_25" id="Page_25">[Pg 25]</a></span> +pretty well acquainted by this time myself.</p> + +<p>Aunt Susan Bailey was crying and talking to uncle and +saying, "O, Bailey, why did you bring us all out here to be +killed by the Indians."</p> + +<p>"We had treaties and I did not think they would bother +us," replied uncle.</p> + +<p>Bellry Bailey, their eldest daughter, was of age, and +Rachel Ann, the next daughter, was nearly of age, together +with Aunt Susan and the rest of the little boys and girls of +the camp were crying, and there in the utter darkness, it was +hard to tell who were or were not crying.</p> + +<p>Joel Bailey, I knew, was a coward when he was sober, +but when under the influence of liquor, he was not afraid of +anything. All at once he holloed out, "If any other man +will go with me, we will go out and see what those fellows +want."</p> + +<p>I thought he was doing it for bluff, so I said, "I'll go +with you."</p> + +<p>"Well, go and equip yourself," answered Joel.</p> + +<p>I replied, "What kind of equipment do you want me to +have, a double barreled rifle, shotgun and a Colts revolver +and a bowie-knife?"</p> + +<p>We had some of the guns in order, having been used for +hunting purposes and Joel and I knew it, but someone handed +me a Colts revolver, for they knew I had only a single +barreled pistol; another a combination gun, which had a +rifle barrel and shot gun barrel on the same stock. Joel was +equipped by the time I was. The Indians commenced holloing +again, up the river behind us, where we had come just +before camping. They would come down closer and then +stop and hollo the same words. I will never forget them +while I live.</p> + +<p>We started out and the men began to beg us not to go, for +they thought we would be killed. I informed them that I<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_26" id="Page_26">[Pg 26]</a></span> +had promised to go and that I was going to go if Joel did +not back out. The Indians by this time had located our +camp and were holloing again. Uncle Joshua came outside +the wagons, got one foot on the hub of the hind wheel, held +to the bow of the wagon cover, and plead for us to come +back and all fight and die together. Joel turned and told +him with an oath, that if he didn't hush, he would shoot +him, so uncle said no more. It was an awful dark night +and one could not tell one another at all, only by bulk and +that not more than a few feet from each other. We walked +straight as we could toward the sound of the Indians' voices. +We got out of the sound of the crying and lamenting at the +camp and Joel said, "Wash, I want to tell you something. +I have been drinking wine and my head is not exactly level +and I will have to depend on you to do the guessing for me."</p> + +<p>Later we heard voices and Joel whispered, "There are +the chiefs giving the command and if we can get them, we +can save the train, that is if we can get them before you +hear the screech raise in the camp. But if you hear the +screech raise in the camp before we get the chiefs, we will +have to give leg bail for security, for we are all the ones +that will get out alive."</p> + +<p>"Where did you get your wine," I asked.</p> + +<p>"In that wagon I am driving," said Joel. "Uncle Josh +has a keg of wine in that wagon and if we can get those +chiefs, you shall have wine to drink as long as that keg +lasts."</p> + +<p>I did not know there had been a bit of liquor of any kind +in the train for over two thousand miles and I was puzzled +to know what to do with a man under the influence of wine, +whether to go back to camp or go on and try to take the +chiefs. But I concluded to go ahead and try it, for Joel +had said that the Indians would do nothing without their +chiefs first giving the command.</p> + +<p>The chiefs kept going on west and north, circling around +our camp. Every time they would hollo, giving commands<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_27" id="Page_27">[Pg 27]</a></span> +to their tribe, we would have to change our course and go +more to our right in order to follow their voices, for that +was all we had to go by, for a man could not see six feet to +tell where they were. The chiefs got straight west of us +down the river below our camp. I think fully a mile from +our camp, and we could hear over a mile on a still night.</p> + +<p>The chiefs stopped and remained in one place and holloed +the same "Show shoney humbugen oss humbugen oss cawaw +cawaw cawowaw cawowaw cawaw cawaw." I could tell by +the sound of their voices, after I got pretty close to them, +that they laid down every time they holloed. Joel had told +me that when close enough and thought I could guess the +distance, we must count our steps and walk right straight to +the sound of their voices. When we had stepped to where I +thought they were, for me to stop and he would hollo as +loud as he could, "howdy doo."</p> + +<p>"They can't keep their mouth shut and they will say +'howdy doo' too, then you show one of them how you do +and I will show the other one how I do. Take him or die. +Kill him if you have to take him dead, and I will take the +other one or I'll die."</p> + +<p>We stationed ourselves to where their voices sounded close +to us, and when they holloed again, I whispered to Joel, +"About fifty steps, Joel, for your life."</p> + +<p>I don't believe I missed it two feet. Joel's head was +level enough to count his steps right, for we both stopped +at once. As we went along, Joel bore over toward me. I +was taller than he. I kept holding him over to the left, for +I thought he was trying to go too far to the right for the +sound of their voices. When we got to where they were +laying in the grass, they were several feet apart. We were +between them.</p> + +<p>"How do you do?" holloed Joel.</p> + +<p>"Howdy doo," said the Indian at my right.</p> + +<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_28" id="Page_28">[Pg 28]</a></span>Joel jumped across in front of me, right onto the Indian, +and said with a big word, "I'll show you how I do."</p> + +<p>As Joel passed in front of me, I looked quickly over to +my left, for the voice I had been listening to. It sounded +more to the left, when I saw something in the dark. I +thought it might be the other Indian's head. I jumped toward +it. When I lit, I could see the object more plainly +and I made the second jump as far as I could and grabbed +with my left hand. My fingers struck his head under the +plat of his hair. He pulled and twisted, thrust his feet forward +and threw his weight on my arm, but I jammed him +up by the hair and told him if he made a move to hurt me, +I would cut his heart out.</p> + +<p>"O, Wash!" called Joel, "Have you got your'n?"</p> + +<p>"Yes," I replied, "I've got him by the hair of his head, +with my left hand behind his back, and my bowie-knife +drawn on him, and if he makes a move to hurt me, I'll cut +his heart out. Have you got yours?"</p> + +<p>"I've got him in the same <ins class="tn" title="fix.">fix,</ins>" was the reply.</p> + +<p>As we talked, we were pushing toward each other, until +I could see Joel and his Indian. I told Joel not to get too +close, so that if they go to do anything, we wouldn't hurt +each other.</p> + +<p>When we neared the camp, uncle Joshua holloed, "Boys, +have you got 'em?"</p> + +<p>"Yes, we've got 'em," said Joel.</p> + +<p>Uncle evidently did not hear and he yelled, "O, Wash, +have you got 'em?"</p> + +<p>"Yes," I holloed as loud as I could, "I've got one by +the hair of his head and I'll cut his heart out if he makes a +bad move. Joel's got his in the same fix."</p> + +<p>"Hold on to them boys," uncle said, <ins class="errata" title="Hold on to them. We will start up the fires so you can see where to come,">"Hold on to them." I holloed +back, "Start up the fires so we can see where to come,"</ins> +and the fires lit up mighty quick.</p> + +<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_29" id="Page_29">[Pg 29]</a></span>I shoved up on my Indian's hair and made him tramp up. +When we got to where Aunt Susan Bailey, Bellry and Rachel +could see us with the Indians, they commenced to jump up +and down and clap their hands, exclaiming, "O, Goody, +goody," the tears running down their faces. The little boys +and girls all joined in.</p> + +<p>When the camp got more settled, the other men started +out to look after the stock and we had uncle with his seven +shot Colt rifle watching the Indians. Joel and I untied the +Indians' belts and took their tomahocks, knives, bows and +arrows from them. Each had a fox skin full of arrows. We +were going to hide them, when all at once the Indian I had +taken in, commenced holloing, "Show shoney humbugen—"</p> + +<p>But that was as far as he got, when we holloed to uncle, +"Knock him down, knock him down, don't let him hollo."</p> + +<p>We dropped the belts and Indian weapons and ran back +with our fists shut, ready to strike as soon as we could get +to him. Uncle had his fist dawn to strike, but grabbed his +Colts rifle which was leaning against a wagon, and drew his +gun on them both and said, "Drop to the ground or I'll blow +both your brains out."</p> + +<p>They dropped flat on their faces.</p> + +<p>"Now," said uncle, "If you fellows move or say a word +until tomorrow morning at sun up, I'll blow your brains out."</p> + +<p>They lay there all night and did not move until after sun +up the next morning.</p> + +<p>The men gathered up the stock and saw to them as well +as they could and then came in and got their suppers. It +was getting late by this time. Uncle sat in his place and +watched the Indians all night. All the men guarded the +stock and the camp except Joel and I. The men told us that +we were excused from further duty and that Joel and I +might go to bed and sleep. We were the only men in the +train that slept any that night. I don't believe the women +slept much either.</p> + +<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_30" id="Page_30">[Pg 30]</a></span>The next morning we held a council concerning these +chiefs. Uncle had more experience with Indians than the +rest of us.</p> + +<p>"If we kill them," said uncle, "The whole tribe might +come on us, and if we took them along, the other Indians +would see us and they might come onto us and overpower us. +The best thing we can do, is to give them their breakfast +and treat them well and let them go, and maybe they'll not +bother us any more."</p> + +<p>This we did. That morning we got a late start. The sun +was way up and it must have been about nine o'clock before +we drove out.</p> + +<p>While we were eating our dinner the following day, some +Indians came to us—one was a chief of another tribe. He was +an educated chief and could talk our language. We had just +gotten out of the tribe's territory where we had the time the +night before. He told my uncle and my brother, Crawford, +that those chiefs, whom Joel and I had taken, were bad men, +and if we had brought them with us, they would have fixed +them for us and that those bad chiefs had no more idea of our +men going out and jumping onto them, than nothing in the +world, and that that was all that saved us. He also stated +that the bad Indians did not care how many of their men +they lost, just so they accomplished the killing of the white +people and got their stock.</p> + +<p>Joel kept his word in reference to the wine. He drove +the ox team and wagon in which was the wine, also the bedding +for uncle's family. He would claim he was sleepy, get +the girls to drive for him, get the drinking cup, fill it two-thirds +<ins class="tn" title="ful">full</ins> when their backs were turned, and then come running +and holloing for me to hold up, for he wanted a drink, +as I had a keg of water in the hind end of my wagon. He +would never spill a bit of it. I would drink part of it and +Joel never let the rest go to waste. Joel was the prettiest +runner I ever saw. He could run so level, that his head<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_31" id="Page_31">[Pg 31]</a></span> +looked like it was sailing through the air. I never saw him +outrun, and I had seen him run with some who were counted +fast. He brought me wine several times. I asked him one +day, how much wine there was in that keg.</p> + +<p>"O! There's right smart of it," he replied.</p> + +<p>I told him not to bring me any more, and that was the +last he brought me, but I heard it was dry before we got +through.</p> + + + +<hr style="width: 65%;" /> +<div><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_32" id="Page_32">[Pg 32]</a></span></div> +<h2><a name="CHAPTER_IV" id="CHAPTER_IV"></a>CHAPTER IV</h2> + +<p class="center">OVER THE MOUNTAINS INTO CALIFORNIA</p> + + +<p>While we were going down the Humbolt River, several +days before we got to the sink or desert, six of our men got +tired going so slow, and went on and left us. Uncle tried to +get them to stay with us, but when they would go, he offered +them provisions to take along. Four of them were so gritty +that they would not take any. Two of them did. These +four thought they would come to what were called "trading +posts," but they had all gone back to California, as we afterwards +found. The men had nearly starved to death. They +had to shoot birds and they used everything they could find +for food.</p> + +<p>These "trading posts" were kept by men who had +brought on pack mules, provisions from California, to sell to +emigrants and bought up weak stock and herded them on the +grass until they got strong enough to drive across the Sierra +Nevada Mountains into California.</p> + +<p>Uncle thought we would soon come to one of these trading +posts, where we could get flour, but the traders had all +gone back and ceased to trade. We ran out of flour and sea +biscuits when we crossed the desert into Carson Valley. We +had to live on beef and mutton for five or six hundred miles. +The first flour and bread we got to eat, was after we crossed +the summit of the Sierra Nevada Mountains.</p> + +<p>I thought I had seen mountains before, but these beat +them all. When we got to the headwaters of the Carson +River, for it was up in the Sierra Nevada Mountains, we +went over what was called the Johnson Cut Off. When we<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_33" id="Page_33">[Pg 33]</a></span> +got to the foot of the mountain, I looked up its side and +told Uncle Joshua that we could never get up this mountain +in this world, for it looked as straight up as a wall could +possibly be.</p> + +<p>"O, yes, we can," he said. "We will get on the trail and +go first one way and then another, until we get up."</p> + +<p>We were six days getting everything to the top of that +mountain, and when we got up, we rested one night. The +first horse uncle lost was getting up this mountain. He was +a little weak, stumbled and fell off the trail and that was the +last we ever saw of him.</p> + +<p>The next morning we yoked up the oxen and all got ready +to start. Uncle instructed me to lead out. Right on top +of the mountain, it was pretty level for some distance. I +drove on ahead of the rest. I came to where I saw I had to +go down again. I stopped, locked both hind wheels of my +wagon, rough locked them by wrapping a chain twice around +the felloe and tire, so the tire would ride on the chain and +make it drag hard on the ground. I started down. I had +not gone far until I found I was going down the same kind +of a mountain we had been six days coming up. A little +further down, the trail got very narrow. I was on the left +side of the oxen, for that was the side upon which we had +always taken when driving. That put me on the lower side, +so that if I had been knocked off, that would have been the +last of me. I stopped and let the wagon pass me, so that I +could get on the upper side to drive. When I crossed +behind the wagon, the dust blew up in my face so thick +that I could not see my wagon, and that was the last I saw +of those oxen until nearly sun down.</p> + +<p>I went down the mountain as fast as I could. I had no +idea I would ever see those oxen again, but when I got +down on level ground at the foot of the mountain, where I +could see, off about one hundred yards, there stood my oxen +and wagon, right side up. There were three yoke of them, +six head of cattle, but my near ox, next to the wheel, died<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_34" id="Page_34">[Pg 34]</a></span> +that night.</p> + +<p>The first ones to come down following me, were uncle +and aunt. They were in a light one-seated top buggy, the +one they had used all the way across the plains. Uncle had +his feet under the buggy, holding down the hind axle tree, +while aunt had the lines, driving. They drove a brown +mare, which I had taken from Indiana and a black horse +they had fetched from Wisconsin.</p> + +<p>Aunt was saying, "O, Bailey, I will be killed, I will be +killed."</p> + +<p>"Hold on Susan, hold on, Susan," answered uncle.</p> + +<p>The team was nearly setting down on their hind parts +and just sliding. They could not move their feet to step +for rods at a time.</p> + +<p>"How did you ever get down that mountain," uncle +asked when he saw me.</p> + +<p>"I will never tell, uncle," I said.</p> + +<p>Nor did I tell, for I could not tell myself how those oxen +got down that mountain.</p> + +<p>When we got started again on the trail, we met a man +going across the mountains, over the same route, with a pack +train. He was packing provisions across to the miners in +Carson Valley. Uncle coaxed him out of two fifty pound +sacks of flour at thirty dollars a sack. This made our first +bread since crossing the desert.</p> + +<p>Somebody stole the black horse which uncle and aunt +drove down the mountain, while we were camped there that +night. This was the second horse uncle lost on the trip, +and the last one since starting from the states.</p> + +<p>We drove down the west slope toward the gold mine. +The second night after we left the summit, it commenced to +snow on us, but not very fast. Every day after that, it was +snowing or raining until we came to the gold mines. Some +mornings the snow would be two or three inches deep, but +by night we would get to where it was raining.</p> + +<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_35" id="Page_35">[Pg 35]</a></span>One night we camped in what was called Pleasant Valley, +near a stream called Boland's Run. A man by the name +of Thomas Boland, kept a trading post here, with a stock of +groceries, clothing, boots and shoes, and a saloon in connection. +A little further down, we helped uncle across the McCosma +River, to a place called Fair Play, where uncle said +that he and his family could get down to their future home +alone. We then bade farewell to uncle and family, and +started on a prospecting tour.</p> + +<p>This was now the last of November.</p> + +<p>After we got to California, we found out that those bad +Indians on the Humbolt River, had taken two or three messes +or camps, that year, and one man escaped from one of the +camps and two out of another, the rest of the men, women +and children being killed. These men, who got away from +among the Indians in some way or other, got to other camps. +The trains that were taken, were camped no great distance +apart; far enough so as to herd their stock and keep them +separate. They said the Indians holloed on one side and +while the campers were looking in the direction of the holloing, +the first thing they knew, other Indians came right in +on them behind their backs.</p> + +<p>These three remaining men said that the next morning +they gathered the white men from the camps up and down +the river, and followed on the trail of the marauders. The +Indians had cut open sacks of flour and scattered it along +their trail. They had also cut open feather beds and the +feathers were blown over the prairie. When the white men +came in sight, the Indians broke and ran in every direction, +and when they got up to the captured oxen and wagons, +which the Indians had taken from the campers, it was found +that the Indians had cooked and were eating an unyoked +ox, with the other ox still yoked with the dead one. They +did not know how to get the yoke off. The men took what +oxen and stock they could find, along with them, but had +no time to stay to hunt for them. This is the story of the<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_36" id="Page_36">[Pg 36]</a></span> +men who escaped, and were then living in California.</p> + +<p>These campers must have driven until after dark, for it +seemed they did not have their oxen unyoked, for we always +unyoked our oxen as soon as we stopped.</p> + +<p>I shall now try to give you a description of the country +through which we traveled. Starting in Nebraska, there +was what I considered pretty good land for two or three +hundred miles, though I did not see very much of the country +outside the Platte River bottom. After we came to the Rocky +Mountains, I never saw very much of what I called good +land laying in one body. Sometimes we would come to some +pretty fair rolling land, but it was what I called poor and +rough. At times we got so high up, we were above timber +line, but we always had grass where there was soil. We +passed through sage brush and sand, and all of that kind of +country looked desolate to me, but once in awhile, we would +come to prairie land. We found some pretty good, rich +strips of land away out on the other side of the Rocky Mountains. +A good long ways out, we came to such a strip of +land, which was called Fur Grove, covered with what we +called balsam fir. I do not know in what state it is now, +for the whole country from the Missouri River to California +was then known as Indian Territory.</p> + +<p>Sometimes we would be on the mountain tops, where we +could look down and see below where we saw a fog, or at +least thought so, but the men said it was raining down in +the valley, but clear where we were.</p> + +<p>We passed near Red Mountains and there were black +mountains not very far apart and which could be seen from +one point of view. We crossed some small rivers. I remember +one in particular we had to cross on one of those +willow brush bridges. There had been so much travel on +this bridge, that a great hole was worn in it, but uncle said +we did not have time to stop to mend it, and we would have +to risk it. We got the horses, sheep, oxen and wagons +across on the bridge, but the cattle we had to swim the river.<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_37" id="Page_37">[Pg 37]</a></span> +I don't believe I ever heard what the name of that river +was, if I did, I have forgotten it.</p> + +<p>I did not see much of Iowa on this trip. Of all the country +I saw from Indiana, through, or after I got through, there +was none suited me like Central Illinois, and I have not +changed my mind. There was government land in Illinois +to enter at that time.</p> + + + +<hr style="width: 65%;" /> +<div><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_38" id="Page_38">[Pg 38]</a></span></div> +<h2><a name="CHAPTER_V" id="CHAPTER_V"></a>CHAPTER V</h2> + +<p class="center">PROSPECTING FOR GOLD—SOME HARD EXPERIENCES</p> + + +<p>After we left uncle in the mining district called Fair Play, +we crossed back over the McCosma River to Boland's Run +and went over to Four Spring Valley and prospected for +some time before we struck any gold that paid. We finally +struck a claim that paid six dollars a day to the hand, +clear of water. We had to buy water from a dike that was +dug around on the side of the mountain and which cost us +four dollars a day. We worked on this claim about three +weeks, when the dike broke between where we were at work +and the head of the dike where the dam was made across +the <ins class="tn" title="McComa">McCosma</ins> River to turn the water out into the dike. We +could not work any more until the dike was mended.</p> + +<p>My brother, Crawford Bailey and Wint Crumly went out +prospecting. They went back across the McCosma River +into Fair Play district, where we had parted with Uncle +Joshua, a distance of fourteen miles. They struck a surface +digging, and they wrote me and I went to them. We +had to buy water at the same price, one dollar an inch, or +four dollars a day. This claim was richer of gold. We +made nine dollars a day to the hand, clear of water.</p> + +<p>We finally heard that the dike was mended over at Four +Springs Valley and I went over and sold our provisions and +collected sixty dollars we had loaned to a miner by the name +of Thomas Brison. We did not go back to Four Springs +Valley to work any more, but remained on the claim at Fair +Play, until in June, when the water gave out and we could<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_39" id="Page_39">[Pg 39]</a></span> +not get water to wash any longer. We then concluded to +go north on to the American, Uby and Feather rivers and +prospect and see if we could strike claims where we could +get water to wash with.</p> + +<p>The American River was the next river after leaving the +McCosma. When we came to the American River, up in +the gold region, where we were crossing, the mountains were +very steep and looked like they were straight up. We had +to travel six miles to get from the bottom of the mountain +to its top. But when we got to the American River district, +every place we went, we found it claimed up and plenty of +miners at work to do all the work there was to do. We +could neither find claims to work for ourselves, nor could +we hire out to work for any one else.</p> + +<p>We left the American River and went over the mountains +to the Uby River. When we got on top of the mountains +and started down toward Uby River, we had a hard time +finding the path. There was so much gravel and rock and +so little soil or dirt, it was almost impossible to see where +footmen had made the path. Far toward the west end of the +mountain, pack animals could get on top and then travel +east ward from where we were crossing, but nothing except +footmen and Indians could cross on the trail we were using.</p> + +<p>Woodmen had packed their wagons and tools up this +mountain somewhere to the westward, to the point where we +were crossing, and had cut sawlogs and hauled or rolled them +nearby. Then by rolling the logs three or four rods on sloping +ground, they would fall straight down to the river bottom, +a distance that took us fellows a half day to go up.</p> + +<p>I was hunting for the trail which led down the mountain, +when I came to the sloping ground where the woodmen had +rolled these logs off. I walked carefully down this place, +and when I looked down, I saw a yellow streak straight +below me. It looked like I could step across it, but I knew +it was a river. It made me dizzy to look over the precipice +and I stepped backward a few paces and then turned to<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_40" id="Page_40">[Pg 40]</a></span> +walk to the top of the mountain again. If I had slipped +there, that would have been the last of me.</p> + +<p>After hunting a good while, we found the trail and went +down the mountain. The path was just wide enough for one +to walk on. If a person had stepped off with one foot, the +rest of his life's story would have certainly been very brief. +When we got down to the river, that little yellow streak +which I thought I could step across when looking down the +mountain, we had to cross in a ferry boat, the Uby River +being a quarter of a mile wide.</p> + +<p>We went north and northeast until we reached Morisson's +Diggings. The snow at this place was over thirty feet deep +in the winter. They had to lay in provisions in the fall to +last them all winter and until the snow melted off, and the +mountain dried so the ground on the side of the mountains +got solid enough so that the trail would not slip off from +under the feet of the pack mules.</p> + +<p>They built their houses out of round pine or fur logs, a +foot and a half in diameter, and porches built by letting one +log at the eaves of the house run out and logs a foot through, +for posts set up under the ends of these logs. These porches +were used to put wood under for winter use. When the +snow commenced falling, they would beat it back with their +shovels and keep it beaten back until they could form an +arch overhead, making a tunnel from one house to another, +so they could visit each other during the winter.</p> + +<p>It was the twentieth day of July when we got there and +they were just getting started to wash gold. The gold was +mixed with dirt and quartz rock. These rocks were round +and smooth and about the size of a man's fist. When they +were washed in the sluice boxes and thrown in piles, they +looked as white as snow. I have often thought what a +beautiful walk or drive they would make if we had them in +Illinois.</p> + +<p>We stopped at Morisson's Diggings two or three days. +We found Uncle Isaac and his son, Jesse, at this place. We<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_41" id="Page_41">[Pg 41]</a></span> +left there and went across another mountain to a place +called Poker Flat, which was fourteen miles over the mountain. +We heard there, that across on the other side of another +mountain, on a stream called Nelson Creek, were new diggings. +Uncle Isaac and his son made us promise, that if we +heard of new diggings being struck, to give them word. I +went back the next day and told them and they returned +with me over to Poker Flat, where brother Crawford and the +four others were waiting for us.</p> + +<p>We went over the mountain to Nelson Creek. An old +Scotchman by the name of Wright, had struck a rich claim +on the side of the creek on a little bottom. The gold here +was coarser than it was in the southern diggings. The gold +that Mr. Wright was getting, looked like small potatoes. +Some were a little less and some a little over one ounce in +weight. We prospected all around there, but could not strike +any pay dirt. We concluded that if there was gold on this +bottom, there must be gold in the creek. We put six men +to dig a ditch to turn the creek out of the channel and +then dam the creek and turn the water out, so we could +get to the bottom of the creek.</p> + +<p>Old Mr. Wright had packed a whip saw over to make +lumber for sluice boxes. Uncle Isaac and I borrowed the saw +and went to work and whipsawed lumber for sluice boxes. +We cut down two trees, up as high as we could reach, then +cut small trees for skids, laid one end of the skid on the +side of the mountain and the other end of the skids on the +stumps of the trees we cut off, then rolled the log up on these +skids. Then with pick and shovel, a level place was dug +underneath, the length of the sawlog, barked and lined it on +two sides, then sawed to the lines. One stood on top of the +log, the other under it, or in the pit, as it was called. The +whipsaw is shaped like one of the common key saws, wide +at one end and narrow at the other, only the whipsaw had +handles on both ends. It took nice work to whipsaw lumber +and keep it true to the line.</p> + +<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_42" id="Page_42">[Pg 42]</a></span>We got our lumber sawed, our sluice boxes made, our +ditch dug, our creek damed and the creek turned out of the +channel, prepared to work in the bed of the creek.</p> + +<p>Late one evening, we just had time to roll over a large +bolder and get a pan of sand and gravel, and pan it out. +We dried the gold and weighed it and there was seventy-five +dollars worth of gold in that one pan. We worked out this +claim, but it proved to be a slate rock bed and was smooth +and sleek, and the water washed all the gold away, only +where a huge bolder was imbeded in the slate bed and the +gold settled around the bolders. We did not get any more +gold out of the rest of that claim, than I got in that one +pan.</p> + +<p>We left Uncle Isaac at this claim and followed down +Nelson Creek. Our party was composed of Crawford Bailey, +Winston Crumly, Jack Alberts, Guss Parberry, Bird Farris +and myself. There was a nice path beat down on the side +of the creek, but the mountains on both sides stood almost +straight up. We went down the creek, fifteen or twenty +miles, when we suddenly came to a waterfall where the +water dropped straight down about forty or fifty rods. +There was no way for us to get down. We then thought the +people who made the path, had to climb the mountains. We +looked up on our right hand and could see the dirt crumbling +out from between the rocks. It was straight up. We +saw there was no show to go up on that side. We looked +up on our left and could not see any dirt or rock crumbling +off this mountain.</p> + +<p>We concluded that they must have climbed up over this +mountain to get out. We started up. We could hardly +keep from falling backwards. We held to little vines or +little fine brush which grew out from between the layers of +rock. Finally, after we had gone up a distance of perhaps +a couple of miles, we could see above us a shelf of rock +extending out over our heads. It then dawned upon us that +the path we had followed down the creek, had been made<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_43" id="Page_43">[Pg 43]</a></span> +by people who had come that far and were compelled to go +back and that no one had ever gone up this mountain.</p> + +<p>We looked as far as we could see each way, but that +shelf of rock stood out over our heads from three to six or +eight feet. We were sure that when we got up to that shelf, +we could not get over it, neither could we go back down +again; for one can go up when one can see where to stick +their toes, but cannot see to go down without falling. We +began to think we were where we could not get away alive. +We looked off to our left and saw one place in this shelf +that was narrower than the rest, and we concluded to make +for that place with the possibility that we might be able +to break off some of the rock and get above. It was +still a good ways up from where we were. We made for +the narrow shelf, but when we got there, the rock was so +hard that we could not pierce it with our picks, but the +mountain was not quite so steep under this piece of shelf. +My brother said to me:</p> + +<p>"If you will pick in the side of the mountain and stick +your toes in so you will have a good foothold, and hold +against my back with my shovel, and two of the other men, +one on each side of me, fix their feet so they can lift me on +their picks while I hold to the shelf, I will try and see how +it looks above."</p> + +<p>Two of our strongest men lifted him on their picks while +I held against his back with the shovel until he was high +enough to look above the shelf.</p> + +<p>"The mountain," he said, "is not steep above here, and +it is not far to the top, if we could only get over this shelf. +Let me put one foot on one pick and the other foot on the +other pick and you fellows lift me up as high as you can. +Wash, you hold against my back and if I can get a little +farther up, I can catch some brush and pull myself up over +the shelf." They lifted and I held him to the shelf, +while he climbed up over it. We reached him a shovel and +a pick. He dug a good place in which to set his feet, and<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_44" id="Page_44">[Pg 44]</a></span> +then reached the shovel over the bench, for one of the boys +to catch hold. We lifted one of the boys, while Crawford +pulled him up. We kept this process up until all were up +but one. We left the lightest one to the last. He was +down where he couldn't see any of us and he got scared +and trembled and claimed that he did not believe he could +hold to the shovel for us to draw him up. We dug holes +to set our heels in and then held others by the feet so they +could look down over the shelf and see and talk to him. +He was pale and greatly frightened. I got some of the men +to hold me by the feet while I encouraged him. I told him +to take a good hold of the shovel and as soon as he came +to where I was and got him by the arm, he could count himself +safe. I don't believe that there ever was a white man +or an Indian, who ever went up that mountain before, nor +since the last man we got up.</p> + +<p>About two miles from where we got on the top of the +mountain, we came to a mining town, called Poor Man's Diggings. +We could not get work there. We prospected for a +few days, but could find no gold, although there were a +good many good, paying claims belonging to other men. We +left there and went to what was called American Valley, +where a man struck a rich claim. This was called a rich +claim, because it would pay one hundred dollars or over to +the hand a day. We tried to hire out and work by the +day, but they had all the hands they could work. Everywhere +up north, they paid a man at least five dollars a day.</p> + +<p>We left the American Valley country, which was on the +headwaters of the Feather River, and struck for the Sacramento +River Valley. We thought we might find work on a +ranch.</p> + +<p>We went down to Marysville. The Uba River enters the +Sacramento below Marysville and the Feather River above. +Farming was all done when we got down there, so we could +not find work. We then struck for Sacramento City. As +a fellow would say, we were getting "about strapped," that<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_45" id="Page_45">[Pg 45]</a></span> +is, running short of money. We walked from Marysville to +the American River bridge one night, about fifty miles. We +ate breakfast there, walked twenty miles up the American +River and about three o'clock that day, hired to work for +the next morning at two dollars and seventy-five cents per +day, and board ourselves. I worked for a man by the name +of Stewart. I was to work two weeks, but I worked ten +days.</p> + +<p>We went from here back to Fair Play, from where we +had started. We stayed there until November. The weather +kept dry—had no rain, so Uncle Joshua came to us and +wanted us to work for him on a ranch in the Sacramento +Valley, above the city of Sacramento something like three +hundred miles, between the towns of Tehama and Red Bluffs. +We worked for him ten months at fifty dollars a month.</p> + +<p>My brother got sick and went to the mountains and I +worked one month for a man by the name of David Jorden +and his partner, Joseph Moran, in a brick yard, for fifty +dollars. When uncle paid us, and I received my pay for +working at the brick yard, I went to my brother, sixty miles +southeast of Sacramento, to a mining town called Volcano.</p> + +<p>We remained in Volcano for about two weeks. We then +went to Sacramento. From there we took a steamboat to +San Francisco, where we stayed for two weeks. We then got +on a steamship and sailed for Panama. We landed once at +a town in Mexico, called Acapuco, to take on beef cattle. We +were <ins class="errata" title="four day">fourteen days</ins> on the way from San Francisco to Panama. +We remained in Panama one night, and then took a train +and crossed the isthmus by railroad, which was the first railroad +train I ever saw.</p> + +<p>The next day we arrived at Aspinwall, now called Colon, +where we stayed until the next day, when we boarded a ship +bound for New York. We were nine days on the way from +Aspinwall, or Colon, to New York City. We then took a +steamboat and went up the Hudson River to Albany, where<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_46" id="Page_46">[Pg 46]</a></span> +we took a train to Buffalo; from there to Cleveland, Ohio; +to Indianapolis, and then to LaFayette, Ind. I then went to +my home in Fountain County, and later came to Cheney's +Grove, Illinois, on horse back. I landed at Cheney's Grove +on New Year's Day, 1856.</p> + + + +<hr style="width: 65%;" /> +<div><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_47" id="Page_47">[Pg 47]</a></span></div> +<h2><a name="ERRATA" id="ERRATA"></a>ERRATA</h2> + + +<p>—Page 5, 2nd paragraph, "Peter House" should read, +"Peter Hughs." In next line, "John Feril" should read +"John Teril." Likewise same name in 1st line, 2nd paragraph, +page 19.</p> + +<p>—Page 18, 1st paragraph, should read, "We trailed westward +across the Pacific Springs toward the Bear River." +Also 3rd sentence, "When northeast of Salt Lake City" etc.</p> + +<p>—Page 28, last paragraph, should read, "'Hold on to +them, boys," uncle said, "Hold on to them." I holloed +back, "Start up the fires so we can see where to come," +and the fires lit up mighty quick.'</p> + +<p>—Page 45, 3rd paragraph, 6th sentence, should read "We +were 'fourteen' days on the way from San Francisco to +Panama."</p> + + + +<hr style="width: 65%;" /> +<div><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_50" id="Page_50">[Pg 48]</a></span></div> +<h2><a name="APPENDIX" id="APPENDIX"></a>APPENDIX</h2> + + +<p>The foregoing chapters conclude the excellent narrative +concerning the remarkable trip of Mr. Bailey to California +from 1853 to 1856. Mr. Bailey also kindly consented to give +for publication in the LeRoy Journal, a description of the +gold regions and the crude methods of mining practiced in +that early day, which is placed in this volume as a brief +appendix. His comments were as follows:</p> + +<p>I will now give you a description of the gold region where +gold was found, where I traveled and where I mined.</p> + +<p>The McCosma River headed up toward the summit of the +Sierra Nevada Mountains toward the northeast and runs a +little southwest until it empties into the Sacramento River. +Gold was found in what were called bars, that is, where rock, +gravel and sand had lodged on either side, or across the +river. Some of these bars would be very rich in gold.</p> + +<p>There were, also, what were called gulches, running out +from the river on either side. They often headed the valleys. +These gulches ran out between mountains and when they +headed pretty well up toward the top of a large mountain, +that divided the rivers, into what were called ravines. All +of these ravines would have gold in them. The bed rock +would raise up on both sides and the lowest place in this +bed rock, was called the lead. Some would be richer in +gold than others, taking the name of rich lead or poor lead. +Often there were places up on the sides of the mountains +where the bed rock was almost bare, and in these places were +cracks or seams down in the bed rock, where the gold would +be found mixed with sand and dirt.</p> + +<p>When the first miners came, they did not know how to<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_51" id="Page_51">[Pg 49]</a></span> +save the gold and they had no tools to work with. They +used their jackknives to dig the gold out of these crevises +and carried it in their pans to where there was water and +washed out the dirt and sand. When the miners had picks +and shovels, they made rockers. They were made just like +the rocking beds of the old fashioned kind to rock babies in, +only one end was out, except about two inches at the bottom, +for what they called a riffle, to lodge the gold against. +They put another of these riffles up higher in the rocker for +the same purpose. They made a box four square that set on +top of this rocker with a sheet iron bottom with round holes +punched in it to let the gold and sand through. They would +then fill this box with pay dirt, dip water from the creek or +river, and pour it in on the pay dirt with one hand and rock +with the other. They would then gather up the gold and +what little sand remained from behind the riffles, place it in +their pans and wash it out, leaving nothing but the gold and +some black sand.</p> + +<p>Another plan used and a better and faster method, was +to use what they called the long tom. This was made of +plank on the sides about six feet long and three feet wide. +The planks were cut curved on the lower end, so that the +sheet iron with the holes in it, would turn upward. The +upper end of the tom, was made of planks sawed sloping +and drawn in until it was wide enough to lay their water +hose in, which furnished the water for washing.</p> + +<p>When they washed the gold with pans, they would throw +all the top dirt away until they got down deep enough to +find it sufficiently rich to pay, then they would pan out the +rest of the dirt to the bed rock.</p> + +<p>When we mined in California, we washed with sluice boxes, +whenever we could get plenty of water. Sluice boxes were +made by sawing the bottom board two inches narrower at +one end than at the other so we could place the end of every +box in the upper end of the next box. We had slats nailed<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_52" id="Page_52">[Pg 50]</a></span> +across the top of the boxes to keep them from spreading. +There were slats for riffles, two and a half or three inches +wide, fitted down tight on the bottom, for the gold to lodge +against. The gold, with the sand and dirt would then be +removed and panned out as in the other methods mentioned +above.</p> + + +<hr /> + +<p><a name="tn" id="tn"></a>List of transcriber's changes<br /> +<br /> + - so be [we] would strike the lower end of the island.<br /> + - This was the "pipe of of [pipe of] peace"<br /> + - huddled and and asked [and asked] uncle<br /> + - and then skirt the [Rattlesnake] Rattlsnake<br /> + - Grand Canyons, of world renoun [renown]<br /> + - and he would do some of thier [their] work in exchange.<br /> + - a nice place to pull out on the side. [period added]<br /> + - River, cutting a canyon through it. [period added]<br /> + - in the same fix." [replaced period with comma] was the reply.<br /> + - fill it two-thirds ful [full] when their backs were turned<br /> + - where the dam was made across the McComa [McCosma] River</p> + +<p> </p> +<p> </p> +<hr class="full" /> +<p>***END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK A TRIP TO CALIFORNIA IN 1853***</p> +<p>******* This file should be named 38351-h.txt or 38351-h.zip *******</p> +<p>This and all associated files of various formats will be found in:<br /> +<a href="http://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/3/8/3/5/38351">http://www.gutenberg.org/3/8/3/5/38351</a></p> +<p>Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions +will be renamed.</p> + +<p>Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no +one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation +(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without +permission and without paying copyright royalties. Special rules, +set forth in the General Terms of Use part of this license, apply to +copying and distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works to +protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm concept and trademark. Project +Gutenberg is a registered trademark, and may not be used if you +charge for the eBooks, unless you receive specific permission. If you +do not charge anything for copies of this eBook, complying with the +rules is very easy. You may use this eBook for nearly any purpose +such as creation of derivative works, reports, performances and +research. They may be modified and printed and given away--you may do +practically ANYTHING with public domain eBooks. Redistribution is +subject to the trademark license, especially commercial +redistribution.</p> + + + +<pre> +*** START: FULL LICENSE *** + +THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE +PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK + +To protect the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting the free +distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work +(or any other work associated in any way with the phrase "Project +Gutenberg"), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full Project +Gutenberg-tm License (available with this file or online at +<a href="http://www.gutenberg.org/license">http://www.gutenberg.org/license)</a>. + + +Section 1. General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project Gutenberg-tm +electronic works + +1.A. By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg-tm +electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to +and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property +(trademark/copyright) agreement. If you do not agree to abide by all +the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or destroy +all copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in your possession. +If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic work and you do not agree to be bound by the +terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the person or +entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph 1.E.8. + +1.B. "Project Gutenberg" is a registered trademark. It may only be +used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who +agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement. There are a few +things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works +even without complying with the full terms of this agreement. See +paragraph 1.C below. There are a lot of things you can do with Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic works if you follow the terms of this agreement +and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg-tm electronic +works. See paragraph 1.E below. + +1.C. The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation ("the Foundation" +or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection of Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic works. Nearly all the individual works in the +collection are in the public domain in the United States. If an +individual work is in the public domain in the United States and you are +located in the United States, we do not claim a right to prevent you from +copying, distributing, performing, displaying or creating derivative +works based on the work as long as all references to Project Gutenberg +are removed. Of course, we hope that you will support the Project +Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting free access to electronic works by +freely sharing Project Gutenberg-tm works in compliance with the terms of +this agreement for keeping the Project Gutenberg-tm name associated with +the work. You can easily comply with the terms of this agreement by +keeping this work in the same format with its attached full Project +Gutenberg-tm License when you share it without charge with others. + +1.D. The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern +what you can do with this work. Copyright laws in most countries are in +a constant state of change. If you are outside the United States, check +the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this agreement +before downloading, copying, displaying, performing, distributing or +creating derivative works based on this work or any other Project +Gutenberg-tm work. The Foundation makes no representations concerning +the copyright status of any work in any country outside the United +States. + +1.E. Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg: + +1.E.1. The following sentence, with active links to, or other immediate +access to, the full Project Gutenberg-tm License must appear prominently +whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg-tm work (any work on which the +phrase "Project Gutenberg" appears, or with which the phrase "Project +Gutenberg" is associated) is accessed, displayed, performed, viewed, +copied or distributed: + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + +1.E.2. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is derived +from the public domain (does not contain a notice indicating that it is +posted with permission of the copyright holder), the work can be copied +and distributed to anyone in the United States without paying any fees +or charges. If you are redistributing or providing access to a work +with the phrase "Project Gutenberg" associated with or appearing on the +work, you must comply either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1 +through 1.E.7 or obtain permission for the use of the work and the +Project Gutenberg-tm trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or +1.E.9. + +1.E.3. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is posted +with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution +must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any additional +terms imposed by the copyright holder. Additional terms will be linked +to the Project Gutenberg-tm License for all works posted with the +permission of the copyright holder found at the beginning of this work. + +1.E.4. Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg-tm +License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this +work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg-tm. + +1.E.5. Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this +electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without +prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with +active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project +Gutenberg-tm License. + +1.E.6. You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary, +compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including any +word processing or hypertext form. However, if you provide access to or +distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg-tm work in a format other than +"Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other format used in the official version +posted on the official Project Gutenberg-tm web site (www.gutenberg.org), +you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense to the user, provide a +copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means of obtaining a copy upon +request, of the work in its original "Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other +form. Any alternate format must include the full Project Gutenberg-tm +License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1. + +1.E.7. Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying, +performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg-tm works +unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9. + +1.E.8. You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing +access to or distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works provided +that + +- You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from + the use of Project Gutenberg-tm works calculated using the method + you already use to calculate your applicable taxes. The fee is + owed to the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark, but he + has agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the + Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation. Royalty payments + must be paid within 60 days following each date on which you + prepare (or are legally required to prepare) your periodic tax + returns. Royalty payments should be clearly marked as such and + sent to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the + address specified in Section 4, "Information about donations to + the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation." + +- You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies + you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he + does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg-tm + License. You must require such a user to return or + destroy all copies of the works possessed in a physical medium + and discontinue all use of and all access to other copies of + Project Gutenberg-tm works. + +- You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of any + money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the + electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days + of receipt of the work. + +- You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free + distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm works. + +1.E.9. If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project Gutenberg-tm +electronic work or group of works on different terms than are set +forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing from +both the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and Michael +Hart, the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark. Contact the +Foundation as set forth in Section 3 below. + +1.F. + +1.F.1. Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable +effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread +public domain works in creating the Project Gutenberg-tm +collection. Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg-tm electronic +works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may contain +"Defects," such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate or +corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other intellectual +property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or other medium, a +computer virus, or computer codes that damage or cannot be read by +your equipment. + +1.F.2. LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the "Right +of Replacement or Refund" described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project +Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project +Gutenberg-tm trademark, and any other party distributing a Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all +liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal +fees. YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT +LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE +PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH 1.F.3. YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE +TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE +LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR +INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH +DAMAGE. + +1.F.3. LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a +defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can +receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a +written explanation to the person you received the work from. If you +received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium with +your written explanation. The person or entity that provided you with +the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in lieu of a +refund. If you received the work electronically, the person or entity +providing it to you may choose to give you a second opportunity to +receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund. If the second copy +is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing without further +opportunities to fix the problem. + +1.F.4. Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth +in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you 'AS-IS,' WITH NO OTHER +WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO +WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTIBILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE. + +1.F.5. Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied +warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of damages. +If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement violates the +law of the state applicable to this agreement, the agreement shall be +interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or limitation permitted by +the applicable state law. The invalidity or unenforceability of any +provision of this agreement shall not void the remaining provisions. + +1.F.6. INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the +trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone +providing copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in accordance +with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the production, +promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works, +harmless from all liability, costs and expenses, including legal fees, +that arise directly or indirectly from any of the following which you do +or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this or any Project Gutenberg-tm +work, (b) alteration, modification, or additions or deletions to any +Project Gutenberg-tm work, and (c) any Defect you cause. + + +Section 2. Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg-tm + +Project Gutenberg-tm is synonymous with the free distribution of +electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of computers +including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers. It exists +because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations from +people in all walks of life. + +Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the +assistance they need are critical to reaching Project Gutenberg-tm's +goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg-tm collection will +remain freely available for generations to come. In 2001, the Project +Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure +and permanent future for Project Gutenberg-tm and future generations. +To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation +and how your efforts and donations can help, see Sections 3 and 4 +and the Foundation web page at http://www.gutenberg.org/fundraising/pglaf. + + +Section 3. Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive +Foundation + +The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non profit +501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the +state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal +Revenue Service. The Foundation's EIN or federal tax identification +number is 64-6221541. Contributions to the Project Gutenberg +Literary Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent +permitted by U.S. federal laws and your state's laws. + +The Foundation's principal office is located at 4557 Melan Dr. S. +Fairbanks, AK, 99712., but its volunteers and employees are scattered +throughout numerous locations. Its business office is located at +809 North 1500 West, Salt Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887, email +business@pglaf.org. Email contact links and up to date contact +information can be found at the Foundation's web site and official +page at http://www.gutenberg.org/about/contact + +For additional contact information: + Dr. Gregory B. Newby + Chief Executive and Director + gbnewby@pglaf.org + +Section 4. Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg +Literary Archive Foundation + +Project Gutenberg-tm depends upon and cannot survive without wide +spread public support and donations to carry out its mission of +increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be +freely distributed in machine readable form accessible by the widest +array of equipment including outdated equipment. Many small donations +($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt +status with the IRS. + +The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating +charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United +States. Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a +considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up +with these requirements. We do not solicit donations in locations +where we have not received written confirmation of compliance. To +SEND DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any +particular state visit http://www.gutenberg.org/fundraising/pglaf + +While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we +have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition +against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who +approach us with offers to donate. + +International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make +any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from +outside the United States. U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff. + +Please check the Project Gutenberg Web pages for current donation +methods and addresses. Donations are accepted in a number of other +ways including checks, online payments and credit card donations. +To donate, please visit: http://www.gutenberg.org/fundraising/donate + + +Section 5. General Information About Project Gutenberg-tm electronic +works. + +Professor Michael S. Hart is the originator of the Project Gutenberg-tm +concept of a library of electronic works that could be freely shared +with anyone. For thirty years, he produced and distributed Project +Gutenberg-tm eBooks with only a loose network of volunteer support. + +Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks are often created from several printed +editions, all of which are confirmed as Public Domain in the U.S. +unless a copyright notice is included. Thus, we do not necessarily +keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper edition. + +Each eBook is in a subdirectory of the same number as the eBook's +eBook number, often in several formats including plain vanilla ASCII, +compressed (zipped), HTML and others. + +Corrected EDITIONS of our eBooks replace the old file and take over +the old filename and etext number. The replaced older file is renamed. +VERSIONS based on separate sources are treated as new eBooks receiving +new filenames and etext numbers. + +Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search facility: + +<a href="http://www.gutenberg.org">http://www.gutenberg.org</a> + +This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg-tm, +including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary +Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to +subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks. + +EBooks posted prior to November 2003, with eBook numbers BELOW #10000, +are filed in directories based on their release date. If you want to +download any of these eBooks directly, rather than using the regular +search system you may utilize the following addresses and just +download by the etext year. + +<a href="http://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/etext06/">http://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/etext06/</a> + + (Or /etext 05, 04, 03, 02, 01, 00, 99, + 98, 97, 96, 95, 94, 93, 92, 92, 91 or 90) + +EBooks posted since November 2003, with etext numbers OVER #10000, are +filed in a different way. The year of a release date is no longer part +of the directory path. The path is based on the etext number (which is +identical to the filename). The path to the file is made up of single +digits corresponding to all but the last digit in the filename. For +example an eBook of filename 10234 would be found at: + +http://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/1/0/2/3/10234 + +or filename 24689 would be found at: +http://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/2/4/6/8/24689 + +An alternative method of locating eBooks: +<a href="http://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/GUTINDEX.ALL">http://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/GUTINDEX.ALL</a> + +*** END: FULL LICENSE *** +</pre> +</body> +</html> diff --git a/38351-h/images/portrait.jpg b/38351-h/images/portrait.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..84badc2 --- /dev/null +++ b/38351-h/images/portrait.jpg diff --git a/38351.txt b/38351.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..cc39536 --- /dev/null +++ b/38351.txt @@ -0,0 +1,2032 @@ +The Project Gutenberg eBook, A Trip to California in 1853, by Washington +Bailey + + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + + + + + +Title: A Trip to California in 1853 + Recollections of a Gold Seeking Trip by Ox Train across the Plains and Mountains by an Old Illinois Pioneer + + +Author: Washington Bailey + + + +Release Date: December 20, 2011 [eBook #38351] + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ISO-646-US (US-ASCII) + + +***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK A TRIP TO CALIFORNIA IN 1853*** + + +E-text prepared by Karin Praetorius and the Online Distributed +Proofreading Team (http://www.pgdp.net) from page images generously made +available by Internet Archive/American Libraries +(http://www.archive.org/details/americana) + + + +Note: Project Gutenberg also has an HTML version of this + file which includes the original illustration. + See 38351-h.htm or 38351-h.zip: + (http://www.gutenberg.org/files/38351/38351-h/38351-h.htm) + or + (http://www.gutenberg.org/files/38351/38351-h.zip) + + + Images of the original pages are available through + Internet Archive/American Libraries. See + http://www.archive.org/details/triptocalifornia00bail + + +Transcriber's note: + + Text enclosed by underscores is in italics (_italics_). + + Errors listed in the Errata have been corrected. + + The original spelling and inconsistencies have been retained + except as listed at the end of the book. + + The table of contents was generated for the reader's + convenience. The original does not contain a table of contents. + + +CONTENTS + + Brief Biography Of The Author + CHAPTER I, Uncle Joshua's Visit And Our Preparations + For The West + CHAPTER II, On The Western Plains--Some Of Our Experiences + CHAPTER III, Among The Foot Hills And Troublesome Indians + CHAPTER IV, Over The Mountains Into California + CHAPTER V, Prospecting For Gold--Some Hard Experiences + ERRATA + APPENDIX + + + + + +[Illustration: WASHINGTON BAILEY] + + +A TRIP TO CALIFORNIA IN 1853 + +by + +WASHINGTON BAILEY + +Recollections of a gold seeking trip +by ox train across the plains and +mountains by an old Illinois pioneer + + + + + + + +LeRoy Journal Printing Company +1915 + + + + +_Mr. Bailey was induced by some of his friends to put in writing his +recollections of an overland trip made by "prairie schooner" to +California, over sixty years ago. These recollections were published in +the LeRoy Journal in series, and later collected and reprinted herewith +in book form on the solicitation of his friends who desired a permanent +record._ + + + + +BRIEF BIOGRAPHY OF THE AUTHOR + + +Washington Bailey, the author of this narrative of a trip to California +in 1853, was born October, 1831, in Adams County, Ohio. Afterwards he, +with his parents, came to Fountain County, Indiana, from which place he +went to California, returning in 1856 to Cheney's Grove, now Saybrook, +Illinois. + +While in California, he sent money back to his father, who bought for +him, fifty acres of land, where Bellflower village now stands, paying +$5.00 per acre. This he sold in 1856, getting $6.00 per acre. He then +bought 85 acres north of Saybrook, adding to it later 40 acres, at a +total cost of $1,400. This was sold in 1864 for $1,875. The next year he +purchased 141 acres in DeWitt County, Ill., where Mike Walden now lives, +paying $22.00 per acre. He purchased more land bordering this farm until +1891, when he moved to LeRoy, where he has since resided in a commodious +home south of the city park. + +This farm of 261 acres was divided up among his children and afterwards +sold. Mr. Bailey later invested in 160 acres in DeWitt County, which he +now owns conjointly with his wife, having deeded 80 acres to her. +Besides his residence, he owns another residence property in LeRoy. + +Mr. Bailey was married to Julian Brittin, March 19, 1857, and they are +parents of three boys and three girls, all living. They are: A. G. +Bailey, who was serving his second term as mayor of LeRoy, when this +volume was published; Henry Bailey, of Normal; Lincoln Bailey and Mrs. +Nancy Van Deventer, of LeRoy; Mrs. Sarah Brown, of Maroa, and Mrs. Emma +Vance, of Farmer City. + +Mr. Bailey has served several terms as justice of the peace and school +director. He has been a loyal member of the Methodist church since +boyhood. He has a remarkable memory and has always took a lively +interest in politics. His mind is a store-house of dates and facts +concerning political affairs. He is a staunch foe of the liquor traffic, +and holds to the Republican doctrine of McKinley and Roosevelt. He is a +man of deep convictions and is always ready to advocate them on all +occasions. + +Although about 84 years of age as this book goes to press, Mr. Bailey is +enjoying good health and goes up town every day to greet old friends and +acquaintances. Loved by all his children, respected by the whole +community, still enjoying the companionship of his good wife, there are +no clouds in the western horizon, and the sundown of his life is radiant +with worthy motives and deeds of a three-quarters of a century. + + + + +CHAPTER I + +UNCLE JOSHUA'S VISIT AND OUR PREPARATIONS FOR THE WEST + + +In the spring of 1853, my uncle, Joshua Bailey, came from California to +Ohio to see his mother and his brothers, uncle John Bailey, and my +father, Eben Bailey. But my father had moved to Fountain County, +Indiana, so uncle Joshua came through Indiana to see us. + +Joshua Bailey had gone to California in 1849, across the plains and had +made over one hundred thousand dollars in gold. He hired my +brother-in-law, William Reighley, to come out with him from Adams +County, Ohio, to Indiana, to buy stock to take across the plains to +California. My uncle had bought a span of mules in Ohio. Three of my +cousins, William McNeal, Joel Bailey, George Bailey, and a man by the +name of Bart Robins, brought the mules and some harness through to +Indiana, so William Reighley, uncle Joshua and my cousins, were all +together at my father's. My brother, Crawford Bailey, and my self, +concluded to go along with them. + +Uncle Joshua Bailey had gone to the lead mines when he was a young man, +had married and raised his family there. It was from there he had gone +to the gold mines. I was twenty-one year old at the time of uncle's +visit to our house in Indiana, and it was the first time I had ever seen +him. + +My uncle poured out a pile of gold coins from a carpet sachel that was +lined inside with buck skin and counted out several thousand dollars, +enough to buy 250 head of cattle, 1,500 head of sheep and some horses +and gave it to William Reighley, to go to Illinois to buy this stock and +it did not look like you could hardly miss it out of the pile of gold +coins on the table. He gave him more money than would be necessary to +buy the stock and my brother, Crawford Bailey and cousin, William McNeal +were to take what was left and pay the expense of feeding the stock and +their lodging through to Indian Territory, where we were to start across +the plains, and what was left, turn it over to uncle. + +Wm. Reighley, for his labor buying the cattle and covering his expenses, +kept out $50. He had traveled over 800 miles in coming to Illinois and +traveling over Piatt, Macon, DeWitt, Logan, Tazwell and Peoria counties, +picking up the stock. When the stock was finally delivered to uncle +Joshua, he was well pleased with the judgment William used in the +buying. + +After uncle had made arrangements for the purchase of the stock, he went +back to Wisconsin to his family and made preparations to move to +California to make his home. After William Reighley had bought the stock +in Illinois, he went with the boys as far as the Illinois River and then +returned to Ohio. While the stock was being bought, I, with two other +young men, were making preparations to go and overtake them. We had +rented some land and had to dispose of that and sell some grain and some +horses before starting. + +We were to meet the advance party at Independence, Mo., but when we were +ready to start, heavy rains had set in and we were much delayed by +swollen streams. At many places we had to swim our horses as there were +but few bridges. We had to go out of the way ten miles at Danville, in +order to get across the Vermillion River. When we got to Peoria, we +learned that the roads were so bad that we took passage on a steam boat +down the Illinois River to St. Louis. There we took passage up the +Missouri River to Independence, Mo., where we expected to find the men +with the stock. + +After reaching Independence and waiting several days, we were not able +to hear anything of uncle or of the drove which he was driving through +from Wisconsin. We learned that there were other places from which the +overland trains started for the West. One was St. Joe, about eighty +miles up the river, and two of my party went to St. Joe, while I +remained at Independence. By watching at St. Joe and Independence, we +expected to meet the train as we knew that we must be ahead of them. The +men at St. Joe happened to run across uncle, who had been in St. Louis +to buy supplies for the trip. They wrote me and I left for St. Joe. + +We told uncle that he had instructed the men who were driving stock +through from Illinois, to go to Independence, but he did not understand +it that way. He had instructed his family and the men who were bringing +the stock from Wisconsin, to go to Cainsville, Iowa, which was +twenty-five miles above Council Bluffs on the Missouri River, and about +150 miles from St. Joe. Uncle bought a yoke of oxen and a wagon at St. +Joe and he and I started for Cainsville. + +After we were in Cainsville for several days, the family and party, with +the horses, wagons and cattle, came from Wisconsin. In the party, were +Peter House, his brother-in-law and family, William Nailer, Thomas +Roberts, John Feril, Allen Gilber, Horace Failling, Thomas Brooks, John +Brooks and James Creek. + +We remained there for two or three weeks, hoping to hear from the drove +from Illinois. Uncle finally came to the conclusion that he had told +them to go to Independence, Mo., and he sent Jobe Spray to St. Joe to +see if he could find trace of them. He was given money to buy a horse +and saddle, and in case they had crossed the river at St. Joe, he was to +follow and overtake them, in order to get the two parties together. When +he reached St. Joe, he found that they had crossed there and later +learned that when crossing the Missouri, that they had stopped to shear +the sheep, and on finding that Independence was south of the direct +line, they had made directly for St. Joe and had crossed the river +before Jobe had arrived. On account of the misunderstanding, uncle, with +his party, was above Council Bluff on the east side of the Missouri, and +the Illinois party was somewhere on the west side of the river in what +is now Kansas. + +I was with the party at Cainsville, when an incident happened which I +never will forget. We were waiting for word from Jobe Spray, and uncle +and all the party except one other man and myself had left the camp and +gone to Cainsville. We were left to herd the cattle. While in the town, +uncle met a man who owned a farm near the camp. They rode out as far as +the camp together, and as uncle's horse was a little thin, having been +ridden through from Wisconsin, and the farm was but a short distance +away, he picketed out the horse, took off the saddle and threw it away +far enough so that the horse could not reach it. He proceeded on foot to +the man's farm. + +From where I was herding, I could see the horse and went down, thinking +that some of the party had come back from Cainsville, and that I would +be able to get something to eat as I was very hungry. When I got to the +camp, I saw that it was uncle's horse, but could not see anything of +uncle. I started back to the cattle when I discovered the saddle in the +grass with a two-bushel sack tied to the horn of the saddle. I was +interested to know what was in the sack, thinking it might be crackers, +so I gave the sack a kick with the toe of my boot. There was a jingling +sound as if there were ox shoes and nails in it. So to satisfy my +curiosity, I untied the sack from the saddle, ran my hand into it and +took out, to my great surprise, a handful of gold. Tying up the sack, I +looked in all directions for uncle, but could not see him. I called out +for him as loud as I could, three or four time, but received no answer. + +After waiting for quite awhile, I took the sack and hid it under some +clothing and bedding in the bottom of one of the covered wagons. I then +went to a high point near the cattle where I could watch both, the +cattle and the wagon. + +Along in the afternoon, the folks returned from Cainsville, and my mind +was relieved, as I knew there was no further danger of prowlers. My +helper and myself, gathered up the stock, and when we got into camp, +it was dark and I was hungrier than I had ever been before in my life. + +"Come to supper," was a welcome shout and the thought of the gold had +vanished. While eating, I heard uncle call out to some of the men: + +"Did you see anything of a sack on my saddle horn?" + +Several of the men answered, "No," before I could get my mouth emptied +and when my vocal canal was free from congestion, I holloed, + +"I saw a sack on the horn of your saddle," and he answered back, + +"All right Wash," and I told him to wait until I had my supper and I +would be over and get it for him. + +I went to the camp fire where the men were huddled and asked uncle where +he had been and he said that he had walked to the farm across the +fields. I asked him how much was in the sack and replied, "Thirty-six +thousand Dollars." + +I went to the wagon and got the sack. Uncle was badly scared and +remarked that it was the most careless trick that he had ever done. +There were some Mormons camped a short distance away and he said that if +they had found the sack, that he would have been ruined. + +While waiting at Cainsville, we finally received word from Jobe Spray +that the Illinois party had crossed the river at St. Joe and had +proceeded on west and that he would follow them, they having crossed the +river two weeks before he got there. He had followed day and night and +overtaken them about half way between St. Joe and Fort Kearney, which +would be about 150 miles from St. Joe. After receiving the letter, we +began to make arrangements to cross the Missouri River. The steam ferry +boat had gone up the river after furs, so we had no way to get our stock +and wagons across. + +While waiting, a fur boat came down the river with three men. This boat +was strictly a home made affair. It was built of rough sawed lumber and +the bottom and sides were nailed onto the frame with several thicknesses +of boards and caulked up with buffalo tallow to keep it from leaking too +badly. We secured this boat to get us across. + +The process of getting that old boat across the river was a difficult +one and as it only could take sixteen cattle at a time, many trips had +to be made. A round trip across the river, meant much labor, and was as +follows: + +After the cargo was put in the boat, it had to be hauled by ropes and +pushed by pike poles up the river along the bank, until we were above an +island which was in the middle of the river. Then we would cast off from +the shore and by means of the oars, pulled for the opposite shore. The +current, however, would take the boat in a diagonal direction so we +would strike the lower end of the island. Then we would pull and push +the old ark to the upper end of the island and again cast loose and +finally reach the shore at a point much lower, being carried along with +the current. In order to get back, we would drag the boat along the west +shore to above the island again and cast off, reaching the lower end of +the island. Dragging the boat along the shore to the upper end of the +island and crossing, finally reach the east side below the camp. After +two weeks of hard work, we managed to ferry all the stock and camp +outfit across without serious accident. + + + + +CHAPTER II + +ON THE WESTERN PLAINS--SOME OF OUR EXPERIENCES + + +When we reached the other side, we were in Indian territory, or what is +now known as Nebraska, and a short distance north from where Omaha now +is. At this place, uncle Joshua impressed on our minds the danger of an +attack by the Indians and told us to make plenty of bullets and have our +guns well loaded to protect ourselves. Up to this time, I had seen only +two Indians. One of them was a squaw named Gripteth, on this side of the +Wabash River in Warren County, Indiana. The other one I came upon lying +in the grass south of Cainsville, wrapped up in a red blanket. The way +uncle talked I thought that we would have to fight our way through. The +imagination pictured out every bunch of grass or object in the distance +as Indians, but coming closer, we found that we were always +unnecessarily alarmed. The scare over meeting Indians gradually wore +off, and when we came to the Indians, or rather, when they came to us, I +was not as afraid of them as I was of the wolves. + +We followed the Indian trail until we came to the Elkhorn River and +there we crossed on a willow brush bridge. These bridges lay flat on the +water and I did not find out how they were fastened to the banks. Before +we reached California, we had crossed over several of them. + +We kept a southwest course, following the trail and reached the Platte +River, which we followed on the north side. We had traveled about 200 +miles in Nebraska. We heard cannons firing and we knew that we were near +Fort Kearney and that they were celebrating the Fourth of July. + +Uncle Joshua, on a fine bay blooded mare which he had brought from +Wisconsin, forded the river after a life and death struggle with the +treacherous quick sands along the banks, and managed, by wading and +swimming the horse, to get across the river. + +After arriving on the opposite bank, he waved his hat in token of his +success and started for the fort. He carried with him a seven shot Colts +rifle and a five caliber Colts revolver. When uncle reached Fort +Kearney, as we afterwards learned, he found that the Illinois train had +passed through there two weeks before. Uncle took up the trail and after +following for ten days, he overtook them on the south side of the North +Platte, a short distance on this side of Fort Laramie near the +Wyoming-Nebraska line, at a place called Ash Hollow. The river was +forded and the cattle, sheep and horses were now on the right bank of +the river. + +The night after uncle had left the camp, we were camped near the river +on some ground which was level and smooth. Aunt and her two children, +Henry and Ellen, were with her in one of the tents. During the night +there was a heavy rain or water spout. I was lying on the ground with my +boots and coat under my head, and I was awakened by the water which had +partly covered my body. I heard aunt crying and calling: "Where is +Henry? I can't find Henry." + +I started to go to her and got into deeper water and realized the water +was raising very fast. I reached aunt, who was holding the little girl +in her arms and she was hysterical about the boy. I heard a splash and +following the direction of the sound in the darkness, I got my hand on +his head and lifted him out of the water. I took aunt and the children +to a covered wagon, where we stayed until morning. The water had raised +until it was two and one-half feet deep, when it began to go down and by +morning it was all gone. We were not able to understand where so much +water came from so quickly or where it had gone, as the river was about +a mile from the camp. + +We broke camp and trailed on westward on the north side of the river, +and after several days, we met uncle, who was returning from overtaking +the Illinois train. He had halted them at Ash Hollow, near Fort Laramie. +We finally reached their camp and for the first time after about a +thousand miles' travel, the two trains were united. + +It will be remembered that the junction place was to be Independence, +Missouri, but the meeting place turned out to be in the borders of +Wyoming. The two herds made 1500 sheep and 500 cattle and we were on the +borders of the rough and tumble freaks of nature near the foot hills of +the great Rockies. + +After we had passed Fort Kearney in the month of July, we saw great +herds of Buffalo going north. At times as we looked across the Platte +River, we could see countless numbers of them and the earth would be +black with them for miles. The droves would travel in "V" shape, with +the leaders at the point. When a drove would cross the river toward us, +it was necessary to use the utmost care in order that our cattle would +not stampede. We would herd our cattle up close and get out with our +guns and by shooting and holloing, we were able to turn the buffalo in a +direction away from our cattle. + +We came to high grounds, once, where there was excellent grazing and we +stopped there for the day, to let the cattle and stock take advantage of +the good grass. While we were eating our dinner, two Indians came riding +up, with two of the finest spotted ponies I had ever seen. They got off +and were holding them with a sort of a lariat, as they had no bridles, +when Bart Robins, one of the men with us, made the Indians understand by +signs, that he wanted to ride one of the ponies. + +He mounted one of them and rode away to round some of the cattle which +were straying. When Bart first started off, they did not care, but when +they saw him circle away from the main herd, they evidently thought that +he was running away with it, and one of them jumped on the other pony, +fixed an arrow to his bow and started in pursuit. By yelling as loud as +we could, we attracted the attention of Bart and motioned for him to +circle back to camp. By keeping a circle, he kept out of shooting +distance of the bow, and arrived in camp safe, but somewhat frightened +over his experience. The Indians got on their ponies and left. + +Two or three days after this incident, a chief and about twenty of his +tribe, came to us and after a pow-wow, they sat down in a row and uncle +understanding the maneuver, had as many of the men sit down facing them, +as there were Indians. The chief lit his tomahock pipe, took a puff, +passed it to uncle, who did the same. The order pursued, was that the +chief would hand it to one of the Indians; the pipe would be returned to +him, and he would hand it to uncle, who would give it to one of the men, +who would return it to uncle, and uncle would give it back to the chief. +The order was maintained until all the men and Indians had a puff at the +pipe. When the program was over, the chief arose and said, "How!" and he +and the Indians took their departure. This was the "pipe of peace" and +meant that they would do us no harm, and we were not to harm them. +Evidently this visit was to clear up the misunderstanding concerning the +pony incident. + +A rule had been made and understood by the men that there was to be no +quarreling or fighting in the camp. It is unfortunate in camp life, +especially on a trail far west, to have enmity in the camp. Tom Brooks, +who was one of the cooks, was a crabbed fellow. James Greek was an +orphan boy, who had made his home with uncle for several years, and who +one day killed a big buffalo. + +In order to preserve the meat, it was put through a process of jerking, +which was to cut it into strips to be dried by the sun or by heating. We +had made a scaffold by putting forked sticks in the ground and by laying +sticks across in them, had made a platform about the fire. After the +fire became a bed of charcoal, the meat was laid on the cross sticks to +roast and dry. + +James, who was a good natured chap of eighteen years of age, and having +killed the buffalo, helped himself to a piece of the meat. Tom Brooks +ordered him to put the meat back, which he refused to do, Tom jumping +onto him and beat him, until his face was black with the beating. The +sympathy of the camp was with Jim and Tom lost the respect of the camp +by his bullying disposition. Uncle was restrained from taking a hand in +the matter, as he could not afford to lose any of his helpers. + +One day when uncle and aunt rode ahead to pick out a camping place, he +had instructed us to drive the cattle to the left side of the trail as +we were nearing alkali water, which was unfit for the stock to drink. He +had given us wrong instructions, for instead of driving them away from +the danger, we drove them to where they drank the injurious water. As a +result, we lost, with what we had killed for beef, about 250 head of +cattle. If the sheep drank any of the water, they were not affected. + +In the herd of cattle we had left, were forty or fifty milk cows, some +of them fresh and we had plenty of milk. The boys all milked except Wm. +Nailor, who could not, but had made arrangements with the other boys to +take his place and he would do some of their work in exchange. + +One day, Nailor, who was in the rear of the train, came in late for +dinner. It was customary for every one to have a cup of milk for dinner, +and he held out his cup to Tom, the cook, for his milk. Tom, after the +others had eaten, poured the milk out on the ground and said to Nailor, +"No man who wont milk, can drink milk." + +Nailor replied that he had made arrangement for others to milk in his +place and that it was none of Tom's business. Angry words followed and +Tom took a run at Nailor, butting him in the stomach. Nailor was knocked +down, and in falling, his head struck the wheel of a wagon, cutting a +gash in his scalp. This ended the fight and Tom, after this, was meaner +than ever, as he had whipped Nailor, who had some reputation as a +fighter. + +It has been over sixty years since these events took place, but I +distinctly remember another of the mean tricks of the cook. Tom had a +way of cutting out of a side of bacon, the best part, leaving the +balance for the family. My aunt spoke to him about it and with an oath, +he told my aunt to attend to her own business. Such insolence was +endured for the time being, but later Tom paid the penalty, the story of +which will be told later. + +I remember at one place where we camped late at night, that when we +awoke the next morning, we discovered two graves side by side. Near the +graves was an endgate of a wagon on which was cut with a knife, the +words, "Do not camp here." + +Evidently it was a dangerous place to camp on account of the Indians and +the graves were mute testimony of that fact. The graves were lined with +large rocks or bowlders, and over the top there were also rocks to +protect the bodies from wolves. However, the wolves had dug down on one +side deeper than the graves and dislodged some of the rocks and got the +bodies. Some of the human bones were on the ground where the wolves left +them after picking off the flesh. + +We followed the headwaters of the North Platte, which flowed to the +east, and leaving this river, we soon arrived at the headwaters of the +Sweet River, whose waters flow westward into the Green River and on +through the Columbia River to the Pacific. If you will take your atlas +and find Fort Laramie on the Platte River, and follow it until you come +to Casper, and then skirt the Rattlesnake hills on the north, you will +reach the Sweet Water River near what is now called Independence Rock +and Slit Rock. + +The Sweet River Mountains will be on your south and the Wind Mountains +on the north, as you cross between, through South Pass along the banks +of the beautiful river Sweet Water. We saw the Chimney Rock which stood +out by itself like a chimney after the house had burned. I think that it +must be what is now called Independence Rock, which name is very +appropriate. Also there was the Court House Rock, called that because of +the rooms in it as if someone had cut rooms into the soft rock. There +was the Devil's Gate, which was a massive ridge of rock, through which +the river, some time in the dim past, had apparently drilled, and +through the ages, disposed of the rock above, until a deep and +straight-faced canyon greeted the "Path Finder" of other centuries. + +We camped here for a day and others of the camp discovered a beautiful +pool of water jutting out from the river. The water was clear as crystal +and we could see in the water the most beautiful fish that I had ever +seen. They were spotted or speckled and all about the same size--about +twenty inches long. They were the speckled trout so much prized by the +anglers of today. + +We took one of uncle's wagon covers, tied a log chain to one side along +the edge; tied a rope on the other side; got some tent poles and tied +them to the end of the cover. We were going to seine this pool of water, +when uncle came down to where we were and wanted to know what we were +doing. We told him that we were going to seine the pool and catch some +of those fine fish. + +He said, "You can't catch fish with a wagon cover. You will only tear my +cover to pieces and catch no fish. I don't want my cover torn up. I will +need it." + +We told him we would not hurt his wagon cover, but he forbade us using +it. We told him that we had it fixed and we were going to make one haul +any how, and show him we could catch fish with a wagon cover. Uncle got +out of humor, but we did that once as we pleased. We went in with our +seine at the upper end of the pool and dragged down to the lower end, +where there was a nice gravel riffle, a nice place to pull out on the +side. We boys had seined with uncle John's wagon cover in Elkrun in +Ohio, and we understood the business. In the first haul, we had a lot of +the finest kind of fish and uncle's wagon cover was not damaged. + +Uncle was so surprised to see such a lot at one drag, that he told the +men to unyoke the oxen, and that they could dress and fry fish the rest +of the day. We caught all the fish they all wanted and as many as they +wanted to take along. + + + + +CHAPTER III + +AMONG THE FOOT HILLS AND TROUBLESOME INDIANS + + +If you will take your atlas, and look on the map of Wyoming, at the base +of the Wind Mountains, the most rugged group of the Rockies, you will +find South Pass, with the headwaters of the Sweetwater River, cutting a +canyon through it. Going westward from this point and following the +Sweetwater River, we came to the headwater, which was called Atlantic +Springs. A few hundred yards beyond, we came to the Pacific Springs. +This small strip of land is the water shed or dividing point between the +two oceans. The water which bubbles up from the Atlantic Springs, races +eastward through the rocky canyon of the Sweetwater and to the Platte +and from the Platte to the Missouri, thence the Mississippi, uniting +with the waters of the Ohio, Illinois, Tennesse and Cumberland, the +Monongahela, of the Allegheny Mountains, finally reaching Gulf of Mexico +and the Atlantic Ocean. + +But should you follow the course of the sparkling water that gushes from +the Pacific Springs, you would course along the Big Sandy to the Green +River, which cuts its way through the sand and rocks of that rough and +tumble country of northern Utah and northwestern Colorado. Launch your +boat on the turbulent waters and drift, if you were not capsized, in +southern Utah, you would come to Colorado River and then soon in the +shadows of the most wonderful canyons which scar Mother Earth, the +Cataract, Marble and Grand Canyons, of world renown. These livid +seething waters find rest in the bosom of the great Pacific. + +We trailed westward across the Pacific Springs on the Bear River which +flowed south to Bear Lake in the northern part of Utah. We were on what +was called Fremont and Carson route. This lead southwest to Salt Lake +City. When north of Salt Lake City, we came to what was called the +Truckey route. This route left Salt Lake City to our left. We were +behind all the other trains and it had been reported that the Mormons +had killed a whole train of men, women and children, for plunder and had +laid it onto the Indians. Old Brigham Young had sent what he called his +"Destroying Angels" and had murdered all of them and took all the stock +and wagons. We decided to take the Truckey route and keep away from +Brigham Young and his "destroying angels." + +Perhaps one of the most interesting things I saw while traveling through +the Bear River country in southern Utah, was a lava bed, about fifty or +sixty feet high and I judge about two hundred feet wide at the base. At +the crest, the lava was bubbling out as clear as water and running down +the side of the mound, it would cool and turn into rock, forming a rocky +mound. I saw three such mounds of lava or rock, which had been formed +this way. The soil in the Bear River bottom was rich, black soil, and I +thought what a pity it was that it should be covered with these mounds +of lava. + +There was a grave at the foot of this mound with a head board, on which +we were informed that the deceased had drunk of the lava water and had +died in a few minutes and that the water was poison. + +We came across what was called Soda Springs and the water was as fine as +any I had ever drank, and it came out of the ground foaming, a veritable +natural soda water fountain. We also saw the Steam Boat Springs, which +gushed from a hole in the basin of rock. The water was boiling hot and +it bubbled and sizzled like boiling water on a stove. It would boil for +a short time and then the steam would shoot up about fifteen feet high. +Below this spring and near the river, was a strip of rocks about twenty +feet wide, that seemed to be in motion with heat. The water in the river +was so hot we could not hold our hands in it for two or three rods along +the banks. + +Down the river and off to one side, we came to Bear Rock. This rock was +cut up with great crevices and if a man or beast had fallen into one of +them, they would have disappeared from view in the bowels of the earth. +I threw a rock into one of them and heard it rattling down into the +depths until the sound gradually died away in what appeared to be +bottomless. This serrated rock appeared to be about three miles across +and it was the most dangerous place we had encountered. It had to be +crossed as it was the path of the trail. A road had been made by wedging +rock in the crevices and by means of picks, the way had been smoothed +down so we were able to get across without serious accident. + +While near Bear River, James Bailey and John Ferril were driving a cow +whose feet were so worn that she could not keep up with the rest of the +drove. The boys would drive her along slowly and arrive late in the +evening at the camp. She was a big red cow and uncle hated to lose her, +but one evening she laid down and the boys could not whip her up and +they had to come to camp without her. The next morning uncle sent Jim +and I after her. As we came in sight of her, an awful sight came to our +view. A pack of wolves were around her, snarling and gnashing on all +sides. The cow was making a desperate struggle to keep off the ravenous +wolves. When we saw the condition, we rode as fast as we could and the +wolves took to the tall grass. We found the hind quarter of the cow +bleeding and in some places the flesh was stripped off to the bone. +There was nothing to do but to put her out of her misery, which I did +with a shot from my gun. + +Jim held my horse and I went near enough to the grass to shoot at them +as they ventured out of the grass. I could not tell whether I killed +any of them or not as they would leap back in the grass. I had in mind +to go nearer to the grass to see the result of my shots, when Jim called +to me and said, "Wash, come quick. Get on your horse, the grass is alive +with them." + +When I got on my horse, I could see on both sides of the trail the grass +all in motion with the cat like movements of the wolves. We could not +see them, but the waving grass showed that it was full of them. We put +spurs to our horses and when we got to a safe distance, we stopped and +looked back. The wolves had come out of the grass and were pilled upon +the cow, resembling a small hay stack. + +One day soon after this, when we had made a noon stop, an Indian chief, +who could talk our language, told us that his men, while hunting, had +found a white man who was nearly starved to death, and that he had +carried him to his lodge. Uncle and some more of the men went with him +to see if he was strong enough to be taken along. They found him too +weak to be moved. After a council between uncle and the chief, it was +decided to leave him there and the chief promised to look after him and +when he was strong enough, that he would put him on a pony and send him +to Salt Lake City. I believe the man was left in good hands and that the +chief was a man of his word. + +We were now coming to the desert country of Nevada and our cattle had +been without water for a day, when we came to what is known as Poison +Water. To get across this little stream, we put the cattle in bunches of +twelve and whipped them across, not letting them stop to drink. We got +all of our stock across without being poisoned. After we got across, on +the side of the hill, we saw the awful effects of the poison water, as +there were hundreds of dead cattle and rods at a time, we could step on +dead cattle without stepping on the ground. + +After we got back on the Freemont and Carson route and were making for +the headwaters of the Humbolt River, we found some fair grass land for +the stock. We followed the Humbolt River for many miles until we came to +the Humbolt Sink. At first it was as smooth as a rock for some distance, +but later we dropped off into sand and it was the worst travelling I +ever saw. The sand was so light and fine, that one foot would go down +until I would set the other foot on top of the sand and pull that foot +out, before I could step one foot ahead of the other. It was about the +same sort of motion and as slow as treading water. We were three days +and nights crossing that desert. + +After getting across this desert stretch, we came to the banks of the +Carson River, which we were to follow for many miles to the borders of +California. When we reached Carson River, we came to a trader's pound, +constructed of wagon tires and log chains. It was about the size of an +ordinary city lot. There were tires lengthwise and crosswise, hind wheel +tires, front wheel tires and log chains, bound together in all kinds of +shapes. There were tons of steel in that fence. We came across another +pound on the Carson River, near the Sierra Nevada Mountains, built of +logs. The logs were 100 feet or over in length and had notches cut in +them. These logs were placed in two rows and were crossed by small logs +resting in the notches. It was built high enough so that stock could not +jump over. + +One night when we were afraid the Indians would come in on us, a double +guard was put on duty. Four men stood guard in the fore part of the +night and four in the after part. The eight men to do duty were all the +men in my mess. Uncle said that the bacon was getting low and that he +wanted some one of our mess, to get up early and help kill a beef. I +told him to have some of the men in the other mess to help, as we would +be on guard duty all night. Uncle said, "All right." + +The men of my mess had killed all the beeves and mutton up to that time. +We did not care, nor did we think much about it, as one of our men was +a butcher. The next morning uncle called for some one to get up and help +him kill a beef. He called the second and third time, and no one got up +and he said, "If no one will get up and help, you will do without meat." + +Two of the men in my mess said, "If the other fellows will not help, we +will." + +I did not help as I was willing to do without meat rather than help +after being on guard about all night. When I got up, I went over to the +other camp to see what was the matter and why they would not help to +kill the beef. They had all gone to look after the stock except John and +Tom Brooks. Tom, the cook, did not have to help with the other work. I +asked, "John, why did not you fellows get up this morning and help +uncle?" + +He looked at me, wrinkled up his face, swore and said as hateful as he +could, "You will be a good deal prettier than you are, before I will +help kill a beef." + +"Johnny," I replied, "If you don't propose to do your part, you might +get a dose you would not like so well." + +I thought I would go back to my camp and say nothing more about it. I +started off and had gone about a rod, when John said, "Now you go off to +your own camp, or I will put Tom at you." + +I turned around and looked at him and remarked, "You low lived +insignificant scoundrel, you will put Tom at me?" + +"Yes, and if you don't go to your own home, I will get at you," Tom cut +in. + +"You big necked, nigerfied, curly-headed villian, you will get at me?" I +replied. + +At that he came running toward me and as he came near, he ducked his +head to butt me in the stomach. When I saw that, I ran backwards a +little to kill the shock and I reached down and caught him in the cheek, +gave him a jerk, and he fell on his back. He fell near the hind wheel of +a wagon. He pulled himself up by holding to the wheel and I got him by +the throat and pushed him back between the wheel and the bed, and beat +his face and head like he did poor Jim Greek and gave him some for +Nailor and some for abusing aunt, and some for jumping on to me. When I +got through, he had a plenty and the great fighter was badly whipped and +he had not given me a scratch. + +This was the first fight I had ever had and I found out afterwards that +he had told the boys, that if any of his mess helped kill the beef, they +would have had him to whip first. Aunt saw the commotion and called for +me to come to their camp fire and get my breakfast. She said, "I am +going to give you the best breakfast you ever had on the plains, for +whipping that low lived, good for nothing, Tom Brooks." + +I ate breakfast with aunt--was the best meal on the plains and the only +time I had eaten with her. Tom Brooks behaved after that. + +One morning we missed a cow out of the herd. Several of us went to find +her. We hunted for quite a while and finally all came back to camp with +the exception of my brother, Crawford Bailey and Wint Crumley. There was +a willow thicket along the river and they got out of sight of us. They +had found the trail of the cow and followed it. The camp had moved on +down the trail while George Bailey had taken his gun and went on foot to +kill an antelope. While hunting on the side of the trail, he was +surprised to see Crawford and Wint running their horses around a bend in +the river. He made for the trail just in time to catch one of the horses +by the tail and by that means, kept up with the fleeing men. The Indians +who were after them, tried to cut them off, but when they came in sight +of the camp, they gave up the chase and disappeared. The two boys had +followed the track of the cow into a willow thicket and they came across +the Indians with a cow's hide stretched across poles, scrapping it ready +for tanning. The Indians saw them and gave chase, but the fleetness of +the horses and George's lucky hold on the tail of the horse, saved +their scalps. + +A few nights after this incident, we had to drive late to get to where +there was a good place to camp. It was dusk when we camped. We had to +turn off to the right of the main trail and the river bent off to the +north and I think it was a quarter of a mile from the main trail to +where we camped. We had built our fires and were just ready to commence +getting supper, when we heard the Indians begin holloing, "Show shony, +show shony, humbugen, humbugen oss cawaw cawaw, cawowaw cawowaw cawowaw +cawaw cawaw." + +The first time they holloed this, uncle Joshua Bailey said, "There! We +are going to be attacked. That is the war whoop. Put out the fires and +corral the wagons." + +The wagons were placed in a circle, running the tongues under each other +so we could get inside and protect ourselves from their arrows as much +as possible. When we got that done, which was in short order, he said, +"All hands load your guns and your revolvers and have your knives +ready." + +We had been so long on the road that everybody had become careless. Some +of the guns had not been used for a long time and were rusty and others +had no bullets. Some had to prepare their guns, while others tried to +run bullets. We had what we called ladles to melt lead in. They were +made of wooden pieces split out of oak or some other kind of hard +timber, four square, with one end hewed round for the handle, the other +end, that is, the square end, had a hole cut down in with the corner of +the ax. We would put lead in this ladle and put coals of fire in on the +lead and blow the coals with our breath, and which would not make much +light. + +Joel Bailey, my cousin, had run off from home when a small boy, got on a +steam boat at Ripley, Ohio, worked his passage as dish washer, and had +gone to Wisconsin, where my three uncles were. While there, Joel got +acquainted with the Indians and their ways more than I did, but I had +got pretty well acquainted by this time myself. + +Aunt Susan Bailey was crying and talking to uncle and saying, "O, +Bailey, why did you bring us all out here to be killed by the Indians." + +"We had treaties and I did not think they would bother us," replied +uncle. + +Bellry Bailey, their eldest daughter, was of age, and Rachel Ann, the +next daughter, was nearly of age, together with Aunt Susan and the rest +of the little boys and girls of the camp were crying, and there in the +utter darkness, it was hard to tell who were or were not crying. + +Joel Bailey, I knew, was a coward when he was sober, but when under the +influence of liquor, he was not afraid of anything. All at once he +holloed out, "If any other man will go with me, we will go out and see +what those fellows want." + +I thought he was doing it for bluff, so I said, "I'll go with you." + +"Well, go and equip yourself," answered Joel. + +I replied, "What kind of equipment do you want me to have, a double +barreled rifle, shotgun and a Colts revolver and a bowie-knife?" + +We had some of the guns in order, having been used for hunting purposes +and Joel and I knew it, but someone handed me a Colts revolver, for they +knew I had only a single barreled pistol; another a combination gun, +which had a rifle barrel and shot gun barrel on the same stock. Joel was +equipped by the time I was. The Indians commenced holloing again, up the +river behind us, where we had come just before camping. They would come +down closer and then stop and hollo the same words. I will never forget +them while I live. + +We started out and the men began to beg us not to go, for they thought +we would be killed. I informed them that I had promised to go and that +I was going to go if Joel did not back out. The Indians by this time had +located our camp and were holloing again. Uncle Joshua came outside the +wagons, got one foot on the hub of the hind wheel, held to the bow of +the wagon cover, and plead for us to come back and all fight and die +together. Joel turned and told him with an oath, that if he didn't hush, +he would shoot him, so uncle said no more. It was an awful dark night +and one could not tell one another at all, only by bulk and that not +more than a few feet from each other. We walked straight as we could +toward the sound of the Indians' voices. We got out of the sound of the +crying and lamenting at the camp and Joel said, "Wash, I want to tell +you something. I have been drinking wine and my head is not exactly +level and I will have to depend on you to do the guessing for me." + +Later we heard voices and Joel whispered, "There are the chiefs giving +the command and if we can get them, we can save the train, that is if we +can get them before you hear the screech raise in the camp. But if you +hear the screech raise in the camp before we get the chiefs, we will +have to give leg bail for security, for we are all the ones that will +get out alive." + +"Where did you get your wine," I asked. + +"In that wagon I am driving," said Joel. "Uncle Josh has a keg of wine +in that wagon and if we can get those chiefs, you shall have wine to +drink as long as that keg lasts." + +I did not know there had been a bit of liquor of any kind in the train +for over two thousand miles and I was puzzled to know what to do with a +man under the influence of wine, whether to go back to camp or go on and +try to take the chiefs. But I concluded to go ahead and try it, for Joel +had said that the Indians would do nothing without their chiefs first +giving the command. + +The chiefs kept going on west and north, circling around our camp. Every +time they would hollo, giving commands to their tribe, we would have to +change our course and go more to our right in order to follow their +voices, for that was all we had to go by, for a man could not see six +feet to tell where they were. The chiefs got straight west of us down +the river below our camp. I think fully a mile from our camp, and we +could hear over a mile on a still night. + +The chiefs stopped and remained in one place and holloed the same "Show +shoney humbugen oss humbugen oss cawaw cawaw cawowaw cawowaw cawaw +cawaw." I could tell by the sound of their voices, after I got pretty +close to them, that they laid down every time they holloed. Joel had +told me that when close enough and thought I could guess the distance, +we must count our steps and walk right straight to the sound of their +voices. When we had stepped to where I thought they were, for me to stop +and he would hollo as loud as he could, "howdy doo." + +"They can't keep their mouth shut and they will say 'howdy doo' too, +then you show one of them how you do and I will show the other one how I +do. Take him or die. Kill him if you have to take him dead, and I will +take the other one or I'll die." + +We stationed ourselves to where their voices sounded close to us, and +when they holloed again, I whispered to Joel, "About fifty steps, Joel, +for your life." + +I don't believe I missed it two feet. Joel's head was level enough to +count his steps right, for we both stopped at once. As we went along, +Joel bore over toward me. I was taller than he. I kept holding him over +to the left, for I thought he was trying to go too far to the right for +the sound of their voices. When we got to where they were laying in the +grass, they were several feet apart. We were between them. + +"How do you do?" holloed Joel. + +"Howdy doo," said the Indian at my right. + +Joel jumped across in front of me, right onto the Indian, and said with +a big word, "I'll show you how I do." + +As Joel passed in front of me, I looked quickly over to my left, for the +voice I had been listening to. It sounded more to the left, when I saw +something in the dark. I thought it might be the other Indian's head. I +jumped toward it. When I lit, I could see the object more plainly and I +made the second jump as far as I could and grabbed with my left hand. My +fingers struck his head under the plat of his hair. He pulled and +twisted, thrust his feet forward and threw his weight on my arm, but I +jammed him up by the hair and told him if he made a move to hurt me, I +would cut his heart out. + +"O, Wash!" called Joel, "Have you got your'n?" + +"Yes," I replied, "I've got him by the hair of his head, with my left +hand behind his back, and my bowie-knife drawn on him, and if he makes a +move to hurt me, I'll cut his heart out. Have you got yours?" + +"I've got him in the same fix," was the reply. + +As we talked, we were pushing toward each other, until I could see Joel +and his Indian. I told Joel not to get too close, so that if they go to +do anything, we wouldn't hurt each other. + +When we neared the camp, uncle Joshua holloed, "Boys, have you got 'em?" + +"Yes, we've got 'em," said Joel. + +Uncle evidently did not hear and he yelled, "O, Wash, have you got 'em?" + +"Yes," I holloed as loud as I could, "I've got one by the hair of his +head and I'll cut his heart out if he makes a bad move. Joel's got his +in the same fix." + +"Hold on to them boys," uncle said, "Hold on to them. We will start up +the fires so you can see where to come," and the fires lit up mighty +quick. + +I shoved up on my Indian's hair and made him tramp up. When we got to +where Aunt Susan Bailey, Bellry and Rachel could see us with the +Indians, they commenced to jump up and down and clap their hands, +exclaiming, "O, Goody, goody," the tears running down their faces. The +little boys and girls all joined in. + +When the camp got more settled, the other men started out to look after +the stock and we had uncle with his seven shot Colt rifle watching the +Indians. Joel and I untied the Indians' belts and took their tomahocks, +knives, bows and arrows from them. Each had a fox skin full of arrows. +We were going to hide them, when all at once the Indian I had taken in, +commenced holloing, "Show shoney humbugen--" + +But that was as far as he got, when we holloed to uncle, "Knock him +down, knock him down, don't let him hollo." + +We dropped the belts and Indian weapons and ran back with our fists +shut, ready to strike as soon as we could get to him. Uncle had his fist +dawn to strike, but grabbed his Colts rifle which was leaning against a +wagon, and drew his gun on them both and said, "Drop to the ground or +I'll blow both your brains out." + +They dropped flat on their faces. + +"Now," said uncle, "If you fellows move or say a word until tomorrow +morning at sun up, I'll blow your brains out." + +They lay there all night and did not move until after sun up the next +morning. + +The men gathered up the stock and saw to them as well as they could and +then came in and got their suppers. It was getting late by this time. +Uncle sat in his place and watched the Indians all night. All the men +guarded the stock and the camp except Joel and I. The men told us that +we were excused from further duty and that Joel and I might go to bed +and sleep. We were the only men in the train that slept any that night. +I don't believe the women slept much either. + +The next morning we held a council concerning these chiefs. Uncle had +more experience with Indians than the rest of us. + +"If we kill them," said uncle, "The whole tribe might come on us, and if +we took them along, the other Indians would see us and they might come +onto us and overpower us. The best thing we can do, is to give them +their breakfast and treat them well and let them go, and maybe they'll +not bother us any more." + +This we did. That morning we got a late start. The sun was way up and it +must have been about nine o'clock before we drove out. + +While we were eating our dinner the following day, some Indians came to +us--one was a chief of another tribe. He was an educated chief and could +talk our language. We had just gotten out of the tribe's territory where +we had the time the night before. He told my uncle and my brother, +Crawford, that those chiefs, whom Joel and I had taken, were bad men, +and if we had brought them with us, they would have fixed them for us +and that those bad chiefs had no more idea of our men going out and +jumping onto them, than nothing in the world, and that that was all that +saved us. He also stated that the bad Indians did not care how many of +their men they lost, just so they accomplished the killing of the white +people and got their stock. + +Joel kept his word in reference to the wine. He drove the ox team and +wagon in which was the wine, also the bedding for uncle's family. He +would claim he was sleepy, get the girls to drive for him, get the +drinking cup, fill it two-thirds full when their backs were turned, and +then come running and holloing for me to hold up, for he wanted a drink, +as I had a keg of water in the hind end of my wagon. He would never +spill a bit of it. I would drink part of it and Joel never let the rest +go to waste. Joel was the prettiest runner I ever saw. He could run so +level, that his head looked like it was sailing through the air. I +never saw him outrun, and I had seen him run with some who were counted +fast. He brought me wine several times. I asked him one day, how much +wine there was in that keg. + +"O! There's right smart of it," he replied. + +I told him not to bring me any more, and that was the last he brought +me, but I heard it was dry before we got through. + + + + +CHAPTER IV + +OVER THE MOUNTAINS INTO CALIFORNIA + + +While we were going down the Humbolt River, several days before we got +to the sink or desert, six of our men got tired going so slow, and went +on and left us. Uncle tried to get them to stay with us, but when they +would go, he offered them provisions to take along. Four of them were so +gritty that they would not take any. Two of them did. These four thought +they would come to what were called "trading posts," but they had all +gone back to California, as we afterwards found. The men had nearly +starved to death. They had to shoot birds and they used everything they +could find for food. + +These "trading posts" were kept by men who had brought on pack mules, +provisions from California, to sell to emigrants and bought up weak +stock and herded them on the grass until they got strong enough to drive +across the Sierra Nevada Mountains into California. + +Uncle thought we would soon come to one of these trading posts, where we +could get flour, but the traders had all gone back and ceased to trade. +We ran out of flour and sea biscuits when we crossed the desert into +Carson Valley. We had to live on beef and mutton for five or six hundred +miles. The first flour and bread we got to eat, was after we crossed the +summit of the Sierra Nevada Mountains. + +I thought I had seen mountains before, but these beat them all. When we +got to the headwaters of the Carson River, for it was up in the Sierra +Nevada Mountains, we went over what was called the Johnson Cut Off. When +we got to the foot of the mountain, I looked up its side and told Uncle +Joshua that we could never get up this mountain in this world, for it +looked as straight up as a wall could possibly be. + +"O, yes, we can," he said. "We will get on the trail and go first one +way and then another, until we get up." + +We were six days getting everything to the top of that mountain, and +when we got up, we rested one night. The first horse uncle lost was +getting up this mountain. He was a little weak, stumbled and fell off +the trail and that was the last we ever saw of him. + +The next morning we yoked up the oxen and all got ready to start. Uncle +instructed me to lead out. Right on top of the mountain, it was pretty +level for some distance. I drove on ahead of the rest. I came to where I +saw I had to go down again. I stopped, locked both hind wheels of my +wagon, rough locked them by wrapping a chain twice around the felloe and +tire, so the tire would ride on the chain and make it drag hard on the +ground. I started down. I had not gone far until I found I was going +down the same kind of a mountain we had been six days coming up. A +little further down, the trail got very narrow. I was on the left side +of the oxen, for that was the side upon which we had always taken when +driving. That put me on the lower side, so that if I had been knocked +off, that would have been the last of me. I stopped and let the wagon +pass me, so that I could get on the upper side to drive. When I crossed +behind the wagon, the dust blew up in my face so thick that I could not +see my wagon, and that was the last I saw of those oxen until nearly sun +down. + +I went down the mountain as fast as I could. I had no idea I would ever +see those oxen again, but when I got down on level ground at the foot of +the mountain, where I could see, off about one hundred yards, there +stood my oxen and wagon, right side up. There were three yoke of them, +six head of cattle, but my near ox, next to the wheel, died that night. + +The first ones to come down following me, were uncle and aunt. They were +in a light one-seated top buggy, the one they had used all the way +across the plains. Uncle had his feet under the buggy, holding down the +hind axle tree, while aunt had the lines, driving. They drove a brown +mare, which I had taken from Indiana and a black horse they had fetched +from Wisconsin. + +Aunt was saying, "O, Bailey, I will be killed, I will be killed." + +"Hold on Susan, hold on, Susan," answered uncle. + +The team was nearly setting down on their hind parts and just sliding. +They could not move their feet to step for rods at a time. + +"How did you ever get down that mountain," uncle asked when he saw me. + +"I will never tell, uncle," I said. + +Nor did I tell, for I could not tell myself how those oxen got down that +mountain. + +When we got started again on the trail, we met a man going across the +mountains, over the same route, with a pack train. He was packing +provisions across to the miners in Carson Valley. Uncle coaxed him out +of two fifty pound sacks of flour at thirty dollars a sack. This made +our first bread since crossing the desert. + +Somebody stole the black horse which uncle and aunt drove down the +mountain, while we were camped there that night. This was the second +horse uncle lost on the trip, and the last one since starting from the +states. + +We drove down the west slope toward the gold mine. The second night +after we left the summit, it commenced to snow on us, but not very fast. +Every day after that, it was snowing or raining until we came to the +gold mines. Some mornings the snow would be two or three inches deep, +but by night we would get to where it was raining. + +One night we camped in what was called Pleasant Valley, near a stream +called Boland's Run. A man by the name of Thomas Boland, kept a trading +post here, with a stock of groceries, clothing, boots and shoes, and a +saloon in connection. A little further down, we helped uncle across the +McCosma River, to a place called Fair Play, where uncle said that he and +his family could get down to their future home alone. We then bade +farewell to uncle and family, and started on a prospecting tour. + +This was now the last of November. + +After we got to California, we found out that those bad Indians on the +Humbolt River, had taken two or three messes or camps, that year, and +one man escaped from one of the camps and two out of another, the rest +of the men, women and children being killed. These men, who got away +from among the Indians in some way or other, got to other camps. The +trains that were taken, were camped no great distance apart; far enough +so as to herd their stock and keep them separate. They said the Indians +holloed on one side and while the campers were looking in the direction +of the holloing, the first thing they knew, other Indians came right in +on them behind their backs. + +These three remaining men said that the next morning they gathered the +white men from the camps up and down the river, and followed on the +trail of the marauders. The Indians had cut open sacks of flour and +scattered it along their trail. They had also cut open feather beds and +the feathers were blown over the prairie. When the white men came in +sight, the Indians broke and ran in every direction, and when they got +up to the captured oxen and wagons, which the Indians had taken from the +campers, it was found that the Indians had cooked and were eating an +unyoked ox, with the other ox still yoked with the dead one. They did +not know how to get the yoke off. The men took what oxen and stock they +could find, along with them, but had no time to stay to hunt for them. +This is the story of the men who escaped, and were then living in +California. + +These campers must have driven until after dark, for it seemed they did +not have their oxen unyoked, for we always unyoked our oxen as soon as +we stopped. + +I shall now try to give you a description of the country through which +we traveled. Starting in Nebraska, there was what I considered pretty +good land for two or three hundred miles, though I did not see very much +of the country outside the Platte River bottom. After we came to the +Rocky Mountains, I never saw very much of what I called good land laying +in one body. Sometimes we would come to some pretty fair rolling land, +but it was what I called poor and rough. At times we got so high up, we +were above timber line, but we always had grass where there was soil. We +passed through sage brush and sand, and all of that kind of country +looked desolate to me, but once in awhile, we would come to prairie +land. We found some pretty good, rich strips of land away out on the +other side of the Rocky Mountains. A good long ways out, we came to such +a strip of land, which was called Fur Grove, covered with what we called +balsam fir. I do not know in what state it is now, for the whole country +from the Missouri River to California was then known as Indian +Territory. + +Sometimes we would be on the mountain tops, where we could look down and +see below where we saw a fog, or at least thought so, but the men said +it was raining down in the valley, but clear where we were. + +We passed near Red Mountains and there were black mountains not very far +apart and which could be seen from one point of view. We crossed some +small rivers. I remember one in particular we had to cross on one of +those willow brush bridges. There had been so much travel on this +bridge, that a great hole was worn in it, but uncle said we did not have +time to stop to mend it, and we would have to risk it. We got the +horses, sheep, oxen and wagons across on the bridge, but the cattle we +had to swim the river. I don't believe I ever heard what the name of +that river was, if I did, I have forgotten it. + +I did not see much of Iowa on this trip. Of all the country I saw from +Indiana, through, or after I got through, there was none suited me like +Central Illinois, and I have not changed my mind. There was government +land in Illinois to enter at that time. + + + + +CHAPTER V + +PROSPECTING FOR GOLD--SOME HARD EXPERIENCES + + +After we left uncle in the mining district called Fair Play, we crossed +back over the McCosma River to Boland's Run and went over to Four Spring +Valley and prospected for some time before we struck any gold that paid. +We finally struck a claim that paid six dollars a day to the hand, clear +of water. We had to buy water from a dike that was dug around on the +side of the mountain and which cost us four dollars a day. We worked on +this claim about three weeks, when the dike broke between where we were +at work and the head of the dike where the dam was made across the +McCosma River to turn the water out into the dike. We could not work any +more until the dike was mended. + +My brother, Crawford Bailey and Wint Crumly went out prospecting. They +went back across the McCosma River into Fair Play district, where we had +parted with Uncle Joshua, a distance of fourteen miles. They struck a +surface digging, and they wrote me and I went to them. We had to buy +water at the same price, one dollar an inch, or four dollars a day. This +claim was richer of gold. We made nine dollars a day to the hand, clear +of water. + +We finally heard that the dike was mended over at Four Springs Valley +and I went over and sold our provisions and collected sixty dollars we +had loaned to a miner by the name of Thomas Brison. We did not go back +to Four Springs Valley to work any more, but remained on the claim at +Fair Play, until in June, when the water gave out and we could not get +water to wash any longer. We then concluded to go north on to the +American, Uby and Feather rivers and prospect and see if we could strike +claims where we could get water to wash with. + +The American River was the next river after leaving the McCosma. When we +came to the American River, up in the gold region, where we were +crossing, the mountains were very steep and looked like they were +straight up. We had to travel six miles to get from the bottom of the +mountain to its top. But when we got to the American River district, +every place we went, we found it claimed up and plenty of miners at work +to do all the work there was to do. We could neither find claims to work +for ourselves, nor could we hire out to work for any one else. + +We left the American River and went over the mountains to the Uby River. +When we got on top of the mountains and started down toward Uby River, +we had a hard time finding the path. There was so much gravel and rock +and so little soil or dirt, it was almost impossible to see where +footmen had made the path. Far toward the west end of the mountain, pack +animals could get on top and then travel east ward from where we were +crossing, but nothing except footmen and Indians could cross on the +trail we were using. + +Woodmen had packed their wagons and tools up this mountain somewhere to +the westward, to the point where we were crossing, and had cut sawlogs +and hauled or rolled them nearby. Then by rolling the logs three or four +rods on sloping ground, they would fall straight down to the river +bottom, a distance that took us fellows a half day to go up. + +I was hunting for the trail which led down the mountain, when I came to +the sloping ground where the woodmen had rolled these logs off. I walked +carefully down this place, and when I looked down, I saw a yellow streak +straight below me. It looked like I could step across it, but I knew it +was a river. It made me dizzy to look over the precipice and I stepped +backward a few paces and then turned to walk to the top of the mountain +again. If I had slipped there, that would have been the last of me. + +After hunting a good while, we found the trail and went down the +mountain. The path was just wide enough for one to walk on. If a person +had stepped off with one foot, the rest of his life's story would have +certainly been very brief. When we got down to the river, that little +yellow streak which I thought I could step across when looking down the +mountain, we had to cross in a ferry boat, the Uby River being a quarter +of a mile wide. + +We went north and northeast until we reached Morisson's Diggings. The +snow at this place was over thirty feet deep in the winter. They had to +lay in provisions in the fall to last them all winter and until the snow +melted off, and the mountain dried so the ground on the side of the +mountains got solid enough so that the trail would not slip off from +under the feet of the pack mules. + +They built their houses out of round pine or fur logs, a foot and a half +in diameter, and porches built by letting one log at the eaves of the +house run out and logs a foot through, for posts set up under the ends +of these logs. These porches were used to put wood under for winter use. +When the snow commenced falling, they would beat it back with their +shovels and keep it beaten back until they could form an arch overhead, +making a tunnel from one house to another, so they could visit each +other during the winter. + +It was the twentieth day of July when we got there and they were just +getting started to wash gold. The gold was mixed with dirt and quartz +rock. These rocks were round and smooth and about the size of a man's +fist. When they were washed in the sluice boxes and thrown in piles, +they looked as white as snow. I have often thought what a beautiful walk +or drive they would make if we had them in Illinois. + +We stopped at Morisson's Diggings two or three days. We found Uncle +Isaac and his son, Jesse, at this place. We left there and went across +another mountain to a place called Poker Flat, which was fourteen miles +over the mountain. We heard there, that across on the other side of +another mountain, on a stream called Nelson Creek, were new diggings. +Uncle Isaac and his son made us promise, that if we heard of new +diggings being struck, to give them word. I went back the next day and +told them and they returned with me over to Poker Flat, where brother +Crawford and the four others were waiting for us. + +We went over the mountain to Nelson Creek. An old Scotchman by the name +of Wright, had struck a rich claim on the side of the creek on a little +bottom. The gold here was coarser than it was in the southern diggings. +The gold that Mr. Wright was getting, looked like small potatoes. Some +were a little less and some a little over one ounce in weight. We +prospected all around there, but could not strike any pay dirt. We +concluded that if there was gold on this bottom, there must be gold in +the creek. We put six men to dig a ditch to turn the creek out of the +channel and then dam the creek and turn the water out, so we could get +to the bottom of the creek. + +Old Mr. Wright had packed a whip saw over to make lumber for sluice +boxes. Uncle Isaac and I borrowed the saw and went to work and whipsawed +lumber for sluice boxes. We cut down two trees, up as high as we could +reach, then cut small trees for skids, laid one end of the skid on the +side of the mountain and the other end of the skids on the stumps of the +trees we cut off, then rolled the log up on these skids. Then with pick +and shovel, a level place was dug underneath, the length of the sawlog, +barked and lined it on two sides, then sawed to the lines. One stood on +top of the log, the other under it, or in the pit, as it was called. The +whipsaw is shaped like one of the common key saws, wide at one end and +narrow at the other, only the whipsaw had handles on both ends. It took +nice work to whipsaw lumber and keep it true to the line. + +We got our lumber sawed, our sluice boxes made, our ditch dug, our creek +damed and the creek turned out of the channel, prepared to work in the +bed of the creek. + +Late one evening, we just had time to roll over a large bolder and get a +pan of sand and gravel, and pan it out. We dried the gold and weighed it +and there was seventy-five dollars worth of gold in that one pan. We +worked out this claim, but it proved to be a slate rock bed and was +smooth and sleek, and the water washed all the gold away, only where a +huge bolder was imbeded in the slate bed and the gold settled around the +bolders. We did not get any more gold out of the rest of that claim, +than I got in that one pan. + +We left Uncle Isaac at this claim and followed down Nelson Creek. Our +party was composed of Crawford Bailey, Winston Crumly, Jack Alberts, +Guss Parberry, Bird Farris and myself. There was a nice path beat down +on the side of the creek, but the mountains on both sides stood almost +straight up. We went down the creek, fifteen or twenty miles, when we +suddenly came to a waterfall where the water dropped straight down about +forty or fifty rods. There was no way for us to get down. We then +thought the people who made the path, had to climb the mountains. We +looked up on our right hand and could see the dirt crumbling out from +between the rocks. It was straight up. We saw there was no show to go up +on that side. We looked up on our left and could not see any dirt or +rock crumbling off this mountain. + +We concluded that they must have climbed up over this mountain to get +out. We started up. We could hardly keep from falling backwards. We held +to little vines or little fine brush which grew out from between the +layers of rock. Finally, after we had gone up a distance of perhaps a +couple of miles, we could see above us a shelf of rock extending out +over our heads. It then dawned upon us that the path we had followed +down the creek, had been made by people who had come that far and were +compelled to go back and that no one had ever gone up this mountain. + +We looked as far as we could see each way, but that shelf of rock stood +out over our heads from three to six or eight feet. We were sure that +when we got up to that shelf, we could not get over it, neither could we +go back down again; for one can go up when one can see where to stick +their toes, but cannot see to go down without falling. We began to think +we were where we could not get away alive. We looked off to our left and +saw one place in this shelf that was narrower than the rest, and we +concluded to make for that place with the possibility that we might be +able to break off some of the rock and get above. It was still a good +ways up from where we were. We made for the narrow shelf, but when we +got there, the rock was so hard that we could not pierce it with our +picks, but the mountain was not quite so steep under this piece of +shelf. My brother said to me: + +"If you will pick in the side of the mountain and stick your toes in so +you will have a good foothold, and hold against my back with my shovel, +and two of the other men, one on each side of me, fix their feet so they +can lift me on their picks while I hold to the shelf, I will try and see +how it looks above." + +Two of our strongest men lifted him on their picks while I held against +his back with the shovel until he was high enough to look above the +shelf. + +"The mountain," he said, "is not steep above here, and it is not far to +the top, if we could only get over this shelf. Let me put one foot on +one pick and the other foot on the other pick and you fellows lift me up +as high as you can. Wash, you hold against my back and if I can get a +little farther up, I can catch some brush and pull myself up over the +shelf." They lifted and I held him to the shelf, while he climbed up +over it. We reached him a shovel and a pick. He dug a good place in +which to set his feet, and then reached the shovel over the bench, for +one of the boys to catch hold. We lifted one of the boys, while Crawford +pulled him up. We kept this process up until all were up but one. We +left the lightest one to the last. He was down where he couldn't see any +of us and he got scared and trembled and claimed that he did not believe +he could hold to the shovel for us to draw him up. We dug holes to set +our heels in and then held others by the feet so they could look down +over the shelf and see and talk to him. He was pale and greatly +frightened. I got some of the men to hold me by the feet while I +encouraged him. I told him to take a good hold of the shovel and as soon +as he came to where I was and got him by the arm, he could count himself +safe. I don't believe that there ever was a white man or an Indian, who +ever went up that mountain before, nor since the last man we got up. + +About two miles from where we got on the top of the mountain, we came to +a mining town, called Poor Man's Diggings. We could not get work there. +We prospected for a few days, but could find no gold, although there +were a good many good, paying claims belonging to other men. We left +there and went to what was called American Valley, where a man struck a +rich claim. This was called a rich claim, because it would pay one +hundred dollars or over to the hand a day. We tried to hire out and work +by the day, but they had all the hands they could work. Everywhere up +north, they paid a man at least five dollars a day. + +We left the American Valley country, which was on the headwaters of the +Feather River, and struck for the Sacramento River Valley. We thought we +might find work on a ranch. + +We went down to Marysville. The Uba River enters the Sacramento below +Marysville and the Feather River above. Farming was all done when we got +down there, so we could not find work. We then struck for Sacramento +City. As a fellow would say, we were getting "about strapped," that is, +running short of money. We walked from Marysville to the American River +bridge one night, about fifty miles. We ate breakfast there, walked +twenty miles up the American River and about three o'clock that day, +hired to work for the next morning at two dollars and seventy-five cents +per day, and board ourselves. I worked for a man by the name of Stewart. +I was to work two weeks, but I worked ten days. + +We went from here back to Fair Play, from where we had started. We +stayed there until November. The weather kept dry--had no rain, so Uncle +Joshua came to us and wanted us to work for him on a ranch in the +Sacramento Valley, above the city of Sacramento something like three +hundred miles, between the towns of Tehama and Red Bluffs. We worked for +him ten months at fifty dollars a month. + +My brother got sick and went to the mountains and I worked one month for +a man by the name of David Jorden and his partner, Joseph Moran, in a +brick yard, for fifty dollars. When uncle paid us, and I received my pay +for working at the brick yard, I went to my brother, sixty miles +southeast of Sacramento, to a mining town called Volcano. + +We remained in Volcano for about two weeks. We then went to Sacramento. +From there we took a steamboat to San Francisco, where we stayed for two +weeks. We then got on a steamship and sailed for Panama. We landed once +at a town in Mexico, called Acapuco, to take on beef cattle. We were +four day on the way from San Francisco to Panama. We remained in Panama +one night, and then took a train and crossed the isthmus by railroad, +which was the first railroad train I ever saw. + +The next day we arrived at Aspinwall, now called Colon, where we stayed +until the next day, when we boarded a ship bound for New York. We were +nine days on the way from Aspinwall, or Colon, to New York City. We then +took a steamboat and went up the Hudson River to Albany, where we took +a train to Buffalo; from there to Cleveland, Ohio; to Indianapolis, and +then to LaFayette, Ind. I then went to my home in Fountain County, and +later came to Cheney's Grove, Illinois, on horse back. I landed at +Cheney's Grove on New Year's Day, 1856. + + + + +ERRATA + + +--Page 5, 2nd paragraph, "Peter House" should read, "Peter Hughs." In +next line, "John Feril" should read "John Teril." Likewise same name in +1st line, 2nd paragraph, page 19. + +--Page 18, 1st paragraph, should read, "We trailed westward across the +Pacific Springs toward the Bear River." Also 3rd sentence, "When +northeast of Salt Lake City" etc. + +--Page 28, last paragraph, should read, "'Hold on to them, boys," uncle +said, "Hold on to them." I holloed back, "Start up the fires so we can +see where to come," and the fires lit up mighty quick.' + +--Page 45, 3rd paragraph, 6th sentence, should read "We were 'fourteen' +days on the way from San Francisco to Panama." + + + + +APPENDIX + + +The foregoing chapters conclude the excellent narrative concerning the +remarkable trip of Mr. Bailey to California from 1853 to 1856. Mr. +Bailey also kindly consented to give for publication in the LeRoy +Journal, a description of the gold regions and the crude methods of +mining practiced in that early day, which is placed in this volume as a +brief appendix. His comments were as follows: + +I will now give you a description of the gold region where gold was +found, where I traveled and where I mined. + +The McCosma River headed up toward the summit of the Sierra Nevada +Mountains toward the northeast and runs a little southwest until it +empties into the Sacramento River. Gold was found in what were called +bars, that is, where rock, gravel and sand had lodged on either side, or +across the river. Some of these bars would be very rich in gold. + +There were, also, what were called gulches, running out from the river +on either side. They often headed the valleys. These gulches ran out +between mountains and when they headed pretty well up toward the top of +a large mountain, that divided the rivers, into what were called +ravines. All of these ravines would have gold in them. The bed rock +would raise up on both sides and the lowest place in this bed rock, was +called the lead. Some would be richer in gold than others, taking the +name of rich lead or poor lead. Often there were places up on the sides +of the mountains where the bed rock was almost bare, and in these places +were cracks or seams down in the bed rock, where the gold would be found +mixed with sand and dirt. + +When the first miners came, they did not know how to save the gold and +they had no tools to work with. They used their jackknives to dig the +gold out of these crevises and carried it in their pans to where there +was water and washed out the dirt and sand. When the miners had picks +and shovels, they made rockers. They were made just like the rocking +beds of the old fashioned kind to rock babies in, only one end was out, +except about two inches at the bottom, for what they called a riffle, to +lodge the gold against. They put another of these riffles up higher in +the rocker for the same purpose. They made a box four square that set on +top of this rocker with a sheet iron bottom with round holes punched in +it to let the gold and sand through. They would then fill this box with +pay dirt, dip water from the creek or river, and pour it in on the pay +dirt with one hand and rock with the other. They would then gather up +the gold and what little sand remained from behind the riffles, place it +in their pans and wash it out, leaving nothing but the gold and some +black sand. + +Another plan used and a better and faster method, was to use what they +called the long tom. This was made of plank on the sides about six feet +long and three feet wide. The planks were cut curved on the lower end, +so that the sheet iron with the holes in it, would turn upward. The +upper end of the tom, was made of planks sawed sloping and drawn in +until it was wide enough to lay their water hose in, which furnished the +water for washing. + +When they washed the gold with pans, they would throw all the top dirt +away until they got down deep enough to find it sufficiently rich to +pay, then they would pan out the rest of the dirt to the bed rock. + +When we mined in California, we washed with sluice boxes, whenever we +could get plenty of water. Sluice boxes were made by sawing the bottom +board two inches narrower at one end than at the other so we could place +the end of every box in the upper end of the next box. We had slats +nailed across the top of the boxes to keep them from spreading. There +were slats for riffles, two and a half or three inches wide, fitted down +tight on the bottom, for the gold to lodge against. The gold, with the +sand and dirt would then be removed and panned out as in the other +methods mentioned above. + + + + + * * * * * * + + + + +List of transcriber's corrections + + - so be [we] would strike the lower end of the island. + - This was the "pipe of of [pipe of] peace" + - huddled and and asked [and asked] uncle + - and then skirt the [Rattlesnake] Rattlsnake + - Grand Canyons, of world renoun [renown] + - and he would do some of thier [their] work in exchange. + - a nice place to pull out on the side. [period added] + - River, cutting a canyon through it. [period added] + - in the same fix." [replaced period with comma] was the reply. + - fill it two-thirds ful [full] when their backs were turned + - where the dam was made across the McComa [McCosma] River + + + +***END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK A TRIP TO CALIFORNIA IN 1853*** + + +******* This file should be named 38351.txt or 38351.zip ******* + + +This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: +http://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/3/8/3/5/38351 + + + +Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions +will be renamed. + +Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no +one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation +(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without +permission and without paying copyright royalties. Special rules, +set forth in the General Terms of Use part of this license, apply to +copying and distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works to +protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm concept and trademark. Project +Gutenberg is a registered trademark, and may not be used if you +charge for the eBooks, unless you receive specific permission. If you +do not charge anything for copies of this eBook, complying with the +rules is very easy. You may use this eBook for nearly any purpose +such as creation of derivative works, reports, performances and +research. They may be modified and printed and given away--you may do +practically ANYTHING with public domain eBooks. Redistribution is +subject to the trademark license, especially commercial +redistribution. + + + +*** START: FULL LICENSE *** + +THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE +PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK + +To protect the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting the free +distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work +(or any other work associated in any way with the phrase "Project +Gutenberg"), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full Project +Gutenberg-tm License (available with this file or online at +http://www.gutenberg.org/license). + + +Section 1. General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project Gutenberg-tm +electronic works + +1.A. By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg-tm +electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to +and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property +(trademark/copyright) agreement. If you do not agree to abide by all +the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or destroy +all copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in your possession. +If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic work and you do not agree to be bound by the +terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the person or +entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph 1.E.8. + +1.B. "Project Gutenberg" is a registered trademark. It may only be +used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who +agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement. There are a few +things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works +even without complying with the full terms of this agreement. See +paragraph 1.C below. There are a lot of things you can do with Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic works if you follow the terms of this agreement +and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg-tm electronic +works. See paragraph 1.E below. + +1.C. The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation ("the Foundation" +or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection of Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic works. Nearly all the individual works in the +collection are in the public domain in the United States. If an +individual work is in the public domain in the United States and you are +located in the United States, we do not claim a right to prevent you from +copying, distributing, performing, displaying or creating derivative +works based on the work as long as all references to Project Gutenberg +are removed. Of course, we hope that you will support the Project +Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting free access to electronic works by +freely sharing Project Gutenberg-tm works in compliance with the terms of +this agreement for keeping the Project Gutenberg-tm name associated with +the work. You can easily comply with the terms of this agreement by +keeping this work in the same format with its attached full Project +Gutenberg-tm License when you share it without charge with others. + +1.D. The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern +what you can do with this work. Copyright laws in most countries are in +a constant state of change. If you are outside the United States, check +the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this agreement +before downloading, copying, displaying, performing, distributing or +creating derivative works based on this work or any other Project +Gutenberg-tm work. The Foundation makes no representations concerning +the copyright status of any work in any country outside the United +States. + +1.E. Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg: + +1.E.1. The following sentence, with active links to, or other immediate +access to, the full Project Gutenberg-tm License must appear prominently +whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg-tm work (any work on which the +phrase "Project Gutenberg" appears, or with which the phrase "Project +Gutenberg" is associated) is accessed, displayed, performed, viewed, +copied or distributed: + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + +1.E.2. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is derived +from the public domain (does not contain a notice indicating that it is +posted with permission of the copyright holder), the work can be copied +and distributed to anyone in the United States without paying any fees +or charges. If you are redistributing or providing access to a work +with the phrase "Project Gutenberg" associated with or appearing on the +work, you must comply either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1 +through 1.E.7 or obtain permission for the use of the work and the +Project Gutenberg-tm trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or +1.E.9. + +1.E.3. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is posted +with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution +must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any additional +terms imposed by the copyright holder. Additional terms will be linked +to the Project Gutenberg-tm License for all works posted with the +permission of the copyright holder found at the beginning of this work. + +1.E.4. Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg-tm +License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this +work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg-tm. + +1.E.5. Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this +electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without +prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with +active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project +Gutenberg-tm License. + +1.E.6. You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary, +compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including any +word processing or hypertext form. However, if you provide access to or +distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg-tm work in a format other than +"Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other format used in the official version +posted on the official Project Gutenberg-tm web site (www.gutenberg.org), +you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense to the user, provide a +copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means of obtaining a copy upon +request, of the work in its original "Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other +form. Any alternate format must include the full Project Gutenberg-tm +License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1. + +1.E.7. Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying, +performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg-tm works +unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9. + +1.E.8. You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing +access to or distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works provided +that + +- You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from + the use of Project Gutenberg-tm works calculated using the method + you already use to calculate your applicable taxes. The fee is + owed to the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark, but he + has agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the + Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation. Royalty payments + must be paid within 60 days following each date on which you + prepare (or are legally required to prepare) your periodic tax + returns. Royalty payments should be clearly marked as such and + sent to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the + address specified in Section 4, "Information about donations to + the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation." + +- You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies + you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he + does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg-tm + License. You must require such a user to return or + destroy all copies of the works possessed in a physical medium + and discontinue all use of and all access to other copies of + Project Gutenberg-tm works. + +- You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of any + money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the + electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days + of receipt of the work. + +- You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free + distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm works. + +1.E.9. If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project Gutenberg-tm +electronic work or group of works on different terms than are set +forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing from +both the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and Michael +Hart, the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark. Contact the +Foundation as set forth in Section 3 below. + +1.F. + +1.F.1. Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable +effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread +public domain works in creating the Project Gutenberg-tm +collection. Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg-tm electronic +works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may contain +"Defects," such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate or +corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other intellectual +property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or other medium, a +computer virus, or computer codes that damage or cannot be read by +your equipment. + +1.F.2. LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the "Right +of Replacement or Refund" described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project +Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project +Gutenberg-tm trademark, and any other party distributing a Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all +liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal +fees. YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT +LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE +PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH 1.F.3. YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE +TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE +LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR +INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH +DAMAGE. + +1.F.3. LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a +defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can +receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a +written explanation to the person you received the work from. If you +received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium with +your written explanation. The person or entity that provided you with +the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in lieu of a +refund. If you received the work electronically, the person or entity +providing it to you may choose to give you a second opportunity to +receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund. If the second copy +is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing without further +opportunities to fix the problem. + +1.F.4. Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth +in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you 'AS-IS', WITH NO OTHER +WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO +WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTIBILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE. + +1.F.5. Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied +warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of damages. +If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement violates the +law of the state applicable to this agreement, the agreement shall be +interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or limitation permitted by +the applicable state law. The invalidity or unenforceability of any +provision of this agreement shall not void the remaining provisions. + +1.F.6. INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the +trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone +providing copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in accordance +with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the production, +promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works, +harmless from all liability, costs and expenses, including legal fees, +that arise directly or indirectly from any of the following which you do +or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this or any Project Gutenberg-tm +work, (b) alteration, modification, or additions or deletions to any +Project Gutenberg-tm work, and (c) any Defect you cause. + + +Section 2. Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg-tm + +Project Gutenberg-tm is synonymous with the free distribution of +electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of computers +including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers. It exists +because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations from +people in all walks of life. + +Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the +assistance they need are critical to reaching Project Gutenberg-tm's +goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg-tm collection will +remain freely available for generations to come. In 2001, the Project +Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure +and permanent future for Project Gutenberg-tm and future generations. +To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation +and how your efforts and donations can help, see Sections 3 and 4 +and the Foundation web page at http://www.gutenberg.org/fundraising/pglaf. + + +Section 3. Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive +Foundation + +The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non profit +501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the +state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal +Revenue Service. The Foundation's EIN or federal tax identification +number is 64-6221541. Contributions to the Project Gutenberg +Literary Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent +permitted by U.S. federal laws and your state's laws. + +The Foundation's principal office is located at 4557 Melan Dr. S. +Fairbanks, AK, 99712., but its volunteers and employees are scattered +throughout numerous locations. Its business office is located at +809 North 1500 West, Salt Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887, email +business@pglaf.org. Email contact links and up to date contact +information can be found at the Foundation's web site and official +page at http://www.gutenberg.org/about/contact + +For additional contact information: + Dr. Gregory B. Newby + Chief Executive and Director + gbnewby@pglaf.org + +Section 4. Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg +Literary Archive Foundation + +Project Gutenberg-tm depends upon and cannot survive without wide +spread public support and donations to carry out its mission of +increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be +freely distributed in machine readable form accessible by the widest +array of equipment including outdated equipment. Many small donations +($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt +status with the IRS. + +The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating +charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United +States. Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a +considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up +with these requirements. We do not solicit donations in locations +where we have not received written confirmation of compliance. To +SEND DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any +particular state visit http://www.gutenberg.org/fundraising/donate + +While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we +have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition +against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who +approach us with offers to donate. + +International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make +any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from +outside the United States. U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff. + +Please check the Project Gutenberg Web pages for current donation +methods and addresses. Donations are accepted in a number of other +ways including checks, online payments and credit card donations. +To donate, please visit: +http://www.gutenberg.org/fundraising/donate + + +Section 5. General Information About Project Gutenberg-tm electronic +works. + +Professor Michael S. Hart is the originator of the Project Gutenberg-tm +concept of a library of electronic works that could be freely shared +with anyone. For thirty years, he produced and distributed Project +Gutenberg-tm eBooks with only a loose network of volunteer support. + +Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks are often created from several printed +editions, all of which are confirmed as Public Domain in the U.S. +unless a copyright notice is included. Thus, we do not necessarily +keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper edition. + +Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search facility: + + http://www.gutenberg.org + +This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg-tm, +including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary +Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to +subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks. + diff --git a/38351.zip b/38351.zip Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..4e6fc4e --- /dev/null +++ b/38351.zip diff --git a/LICENSE.txt b/LICENSE.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6312041 --- /dev/null +++ b/LICENSE.txt @@ -0,0 +1,11 @@ +This eBook, including all associated images, markup, improvements, +metadata, and any other content or labor, has been confirmed to be +in the PUBLIC DOMAIN IN THE UNITED STATES. + +Procedures for determining public domain status are described in +the "Copyright How-To" at https://www.gutenberg.org. + +No investigation has been made concerning possible copyrights in +jurisdictions other than the United States. Anyone seeking to utilize +this eBook outside of the United States should confirm copyright +status under the laws that apply to them. diff --git a/README.md b/README.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..d3024f0 --- /dev/null +++ b/README.md @@ -0,0 +1,2 @@ +Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for +eBook #38351 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/38351) |
