The morning cold with strong southeast wind. The first division
commenced ferrying over the river at five o'clock and took a wagon over
every fifteen minutes. After breakfast I went over and wrote a letter
for Elder Kimball to James Brown at Pueblo, then walked up to a high
bluff on the northwest to view the country, but not being able to see
far from it, I went to another over a mile farther northwest. Although
this last was very high I could see nothing but a succession of high
ranges of bluffs as far as I could see, except the narrow space through
which the river winds its course. Seeing some heavy thunder clouds
rising very rapidly from the northwest I returned to camp and arrived
just before the rain commenced. Elders A. Lyman, Thomas Woolsey, John
H. Tippets and Roswell Stevens started at 11:15 on horses and mules for
Pueblo. President Young, Kimball, Richards and Pratt accompanied them
to the Laramie fork and then held a council, kneeled down and dedicated
them to God and blessed them. The four then forded the river and went
on their journey, the others returned to camp. At half past 1:00 p.m.
it commenced raining heavily accompanied by hail, lightning and very
loud thunder, which lasted till 3:30 p.m. During the storm, the horses
were mostly secured in the old fort. The ferrying ceased till it was
fair again, and about five o'clock the first division were all over.
The boat was then manned by the second division, John S. Higbee,
captain. They averaged a wagon across in eleven minutes and one in ten
minutes and one in ten minutes and twenty seconds. The quickest trip
made by the first division was thirteen minutes. About seven o'clock
it commenced raining again from the southeast and rained heavily,
consequently the brethren quit ferrying, leaving three companies of
about fifteen wagons on the other side. All the wagons would have been
taken over today if it had not been stormy.
There is a report come in that there are 2,000 wagons on the road to
Oregon, but a little distance behind, but we are satisfied the report
is exaggerated. There are eighteen wagons camped about three miles
below and one of the men who has come to the fort says that they have
counted over 500 wagons. They have lost four horses by the Indians.