morning, to make our camp to-night on the southwest arm of the lake, but
the fallen timber has delayed us in our travel and prevented our doing
so. The southwest arm of the lake has been our objective point for the
past three days, and we feel assured that Mr. Everts, finding himself
lost, will press on for that point, and, as he will not be hindered by
the care of a pack train, he can travel twice as far in one day as we
can, and we are therefore the more anxious to reach our destination. We
have carefully considered all the points in the case, and have
unanimously decided that it will be utter folly to remain in camp
here, and equally so to have remained in this morning's camp, hoping
that he would overtake us. On the evening that Mr. Hedges was lost, Mr.
Everts told him that he ought to have struck out for the lake, as he
(Everts) would do if lost. So we will move on to the southwest arm of
the lake and remain three or four days. If Mr. Everts overtakes us at
all he will do so by that time.
[Illustration: Truman C. Everts]
Sunday, September 11.--Gillette and Trumbull returned to camp this
morning, having traversed the shore of the lake to a point east of our
camp of September 9th, without discovering any sign of Mr. Everts. We
have arrived at the conclusion that he has either struck out for the
lake on the west, or followed down the stream which we crossed the day
he was lost, or that he is possibly following us. The latter, however,
is not very probable.
Mr. Hauser, Lieutenant Doane and I saddled up immediately after
breakfast, and, with a supply of provisions for Mr. Everts, pressed
forward in advance of the rest of the party, marking a trail for the
pack animals through the openings in the dense woods, and avoiding, as
far as possible, the fallen timber. We rode through with all possible
dispatch, watching carefully for the tracks of a horse, but found no
sign of Mr. Everts. We followed both the beach and the trail on the bank
for several miles in either direction, but we saw neither sign nor
track. The small stream which we crossed on the 9th does not flow into
this arm of the lake as we thought it might, and it is evidently a
tributary of the Snake river.
The pack train arrived early in the afternoon with the rest of the
party, and all were astonished and saddened that no trace of Mr. Everts
had been found. We shall to-night mature a plan for a systematic search
for him. It is probable that we will make this camp the base of
operations, and remain here several days. Everts has with him a supply
of matches, ammunition and fishing tackle, and if he will but travel in
a direct line and not veer around to the right or left in a circle, he
will yet be all right.
Directly west of our camp on the further side of this arm of the lake,
and about four miles distant, are several hot springs which we shall
visit before leaving the lake.
We were roused this morning about 2 o'clock by the shrill howl of a
mountain lion, and again while we were at breakfast we heard another
yell. As we stood around our campfire to-night, our ears were saluted
with a shriek so terribly human, that for a moment we believed it to be
a call from Mr. Everts, and we hallooed in response, and several of our
party started in the direction whence the sounds came, and would have
instituted a search for our comrade but for an admonitory growl of a
mountain lion.
We have traveled to-day about seven miles. On leaving our camps
yesterday and to-day, we posted conspicuously at each a placard, stating
clearly the direction we had taken and where provisions could be found.
The country through which we have passed for the past five days is like
that facetiously described by Bridger as being so desolate and
impassable and barren of resources, that even the crows flying over it
were obliged to carry along with them supplies of provisions.
Monday, September 12.--In accordance with our pre-arranged programme,
three parties were sent out this morning in search of Mr. Everts. Smith
and Trumbull were to follow the take shore until they came in sight of
our last camp. Hauser and Gillette were to return on our trail through
the woods, taking with them their blankets and two days' rations.
General Washburn and myself were to take a southerly direction towards
what we called "Brown Mountain," some twelve miles away. Smith and
Trumbull returned early in the afternoon and reported having seen in
the sand the tracks of a man's foot, and Smith thought that he saw
several Indians, who disappeared in the woods as they approached; but
Trumbull, who was with him, did not see them, and Smith says it was
because he was short-sighted. For some reason they did not pursue their
investigations farther, and soon returned in good order to camp.
The reconnaissance made by General Washburn and myself resulted in no
discovery of any trace of Everts. We traveled about eleven miles
directly south, nearly to the base of Brown mountain, carefully
examining the ground the whole of the way, to see if any horseshoe
tracks could be discovered. We crossed no stream between the lake and
the mountain, and if Mr. Everts followed the stream which we crossed on
the 9th, he is south of Brown mountain, for it is evident that he did
not pass westward between Brown mountain and Yellowstone lake; otherwise
we would have discovered the tracks of his horse.
It is now night, and Hauser and Gillette have not yet returned.
Two miles on this side (the north side) of Brown mountain, Washburn and
I passed over a low divide, which, I think, must be the main range of
the Rocky Mountains, just beyond which is another brimstone basin
containing forty or fifty boiling sulphur and mud springs, and any
number of small steam jets. A small creek runs through the basin, and
the slopes of the mountains on either side to the height of several
hundred feet showed unmistakable signs of volcanic action beneath the
crust over which we were traveling. A considerable portion of the slope
of the mountain was covered with a hollow incrustation of sulphur and
lime, or silica, from which issued in many places hot steam, and we
found many small craters from six to twelve inches in diameter, from
which issued the sound of the boiling sulphur or mud, and in many
instances we could see the mud or sulphur water. There are many other
springs of water slightly impregnated with sulphur, in which the water
was too hot for us to bear the hand more than two or three seconds, and
which overflowed the green spaces between the incrustations, completely
saturating the ground, and over which in many places the grass had
grown, forming a turf compact and solid enough to bear the weight of a
man ordinarily; but when it once gave way the underlying deposit was so
thin that it afforded no support. While crossing, heedless of General
Washburn's warning, one of these green places, my horse broke through
and sank to his body as if in a bed of quicksand. I was off his back in
an instant and succeeded in extricating the struggling animal, the turf
being strong enough to bear his body alone, without the addition of the
weight of a man. The fore legs of my horse, however, had gone through
the turf into the hot, thin mud beneath. General Washburn, who was a few
yards behind me on an incrusted mound of lime and sulphur (which bore us
in all cases), and who had just before called to me to keep off the
grassy place, as there was danger beneath it, inquired of me if the
deposit beneath the turf was hot. Without making examination I answered
that I thought it might be warm. Shortly afterwards the turf again gave
way, and my horse plunged more violently than before, throwing me over
his head, and, as I fell, my right arm was thrust violently through the
treacherous surface into the scalding morass, and it was with difficulty
that I rescued my poor horse, and I found it necessary to instantly
remove my glove to avoid blistering my hand. The frenzied floundering of
my horse had in the first instance suggested to General Washburn the
idea that the under stratum was hot enough to scald him. General
Washburn was right in his conjecture. It is a fortunate circumstance
that I to-day rode my light-weight pack horse; for, if I had ridden my
heavy saddle horse, I think that the additional weight of his body would
have broken the turf which held up the lighter animal, and that he would
have disappeared in the hot boiling mud, taking me with him.
At the base of Brown mountain is a lake, the size of which we could not
very accurately ascertain, but which was probably about two miles long
by three-quarters of a mile wide. On the south end appeared to be an
outlet, and it seems to be near the head of the Snake river. Owing to
the difficulty of reaching the beach, growing out of the mishaps arising
from the giving way of the turf, as I have described, our nearest
approach to the lake was about one-half of a mile.
During the absence of Washburn and myself Mr. Hedges has spent the day
in fishing, catching forty of the fine trout with which the lake
abounds. Mr. Stickney has to-day made an inventory of our larder, and we
find that our luxuries, such as coffee, sugar and flour, are nearly used
up, and that we have barely enough of necessary provisions--salt,
pepper, etc., to last us ten days longer with economy in their use. We
will remain at the lake probably three or four days longer with the hope
of finding some trace of Everts, when it will be necessary to turn our
faces homewards to avoid general disaster, and in the meantime we will
dry a few hundred pounds of trout, and carry them with us as a
precautionary measure against starvation. At all of our camps for the
past three days, and along the line of travel between them, we have
blazed the trees as a guide for Mr. Everts, and have left a small supply
of provisions at each place, securely cached, with notices directing Mr.
Everts to the places of concealment. The soldiers' rations issued for
thirty days' service will barely hold out for their own use, and we have
little chance of borrowing from them. We left Helena with thirty days'
rations, expecting to be absent but twenty-five days. We have already
been journeying twenty-seven days, and are still a long way from home.
A few nights ago I became ravenously hungry while on guard, and ate a
small loaf of bread, one of five loaves that I found in a pan by the
campfire. I was not aware at the time that these loaves were a part of
the soldiers' breakfast rations, nor did I know that in the army service
each soldier has his own particular ration of bread. So the next
morning, with one ration of bread missing, one soldier would have been
short in his allowance if the others had not shared their loaves with
him. I supposed at the time of my discovery of the five loaves that they
belonged to the larder of the Washburn branch of the party--not to the
escort--and I apologized to the soldiers when I learned the truth, and
we are now as good friends as ever; but, from an occasional remark which
they drop in my presence, I perceive that they think they have the laugh
on me. Unfortunately for them, we will part company before we reach the
settlements, and I will have no opportunity to _liquidate_ my
obligations. Hard work and plain living have already reduced my
superfluous flesh, and "my clothes like a lady's loose gown hang about
me," as the old song runs.
Day before yesterday Mr. Gillette and I discussed the question of the
probability of a man being able to sustain life in this region, by
depending for his subsistence upon whatever roots or berries are to be
found here. We have once before to-day referred to the fact that we have
seen none of the roots which are to be found in other parts of the Rocky
Mountain region, and especially in the elevated valleys. We have not
noticed on this trip a single growing plant or specimen of the camas,
the cowse, or yamph. If Mr. Everts has followed the stream on which we
were camped the day he was lost down into the Snake river valley, he
will find an abundance of the camas root, which is most nutritions, and
which will sustain his life if he has sufficient knowledge of the root
to distinguish the edible from the poisonous plant.
I have been told by James Stuart that in the valley of the Snake river
the "camas" and the "cowse" roots are to be found in great abundance,
and are much prized as food by the Indians. "Cowse" is a Nez Perce word,
the Snake Indians give the name "thoig" to the same root. It grows in
great abundance in the country of the Nez Perce Indians, who eat great
quantities of it, and these Indians are called by the Snake Indians the
"Thoig A-rik-ka," or "Cowse-eaters." The camas is both flour and
potatoes for several wandering nations, and it is found in the most
barren and desolate regions in greatest quantity. The camas is a small
round root, not unlike an onion in appearance. It is sweet to the taste,
full of gluten, and very satisfying to a hungry man. The Indians have a
mode of preparing it which makes it very relishable. In a hole a foot in
depth, and six feet in diameter, from which the turf has been carefully
removed, they build a fire for the purpose of heating the exposed earth
surface, while in another fire they heat at the same time a sufficient
number of flat rocks to serve as a cover. After the heating process is
completed, the roots are spread over the bottom of the hole, covered
with the turf with the grass side down, the heated rocks spread above,
and a fire built upon them, and the process of cooking produces about
the same change in the camas that is produced in coffee by roasting. It
also preserves it in a suitable form for ready use.
The yamph has a longer and smaller bulb than the camas, though not quite
as nutritious, and may be eaten raw. Either of these roots contains
nutriment sufficient to support life, and often in the experience of the
tribes of the mountains winters have been passed with no other food.
There is a poisonous camas, which is sometimes mistaken for the genuine
root, but which cannot be eaten in large quantities without fatal
results. It always grows where the true camas is found, and much care is
necessary to avoid mixing the two while gathering the roots in any
considerable quantity. So great is the esteem in which the camas is held
that many of the important localities of the country in which it is
found are named for it.[S]
[Illustration: SECTION OF FUNNEL-SHAPED SPRING.
SHOWING HOW BRANCHES AND TWIGS LODGE AT THE POINT OF CONVERGENCE SO AS
TO MAKE A FOUNDATION FOR GRASS AND EARTH UNTIL THE SPRING IS FILLED TO
THE TOP AND THE SURFACE IS COVERED WITH A LIVING TURF STRONG ENOUGH TO
BEAR A CONSIDERABLE WEIGHT.]
Lieutenant Doane was much amazed at the appearance of my horse's legs,
upon our return from Brown mountain, and has asked General Washburn and
myself what can be the nature of the ground where such a mishap could
occur. My theory of the matter is this: We frequently found springs of
hot water--though not boiling--some fifteen or twenty feet in diameter
at the top, the sides of which were funnel-shaped, and converged to a
narrow opening of say three feet diameter at a depth of twelve or
fifteen feet, and which below the point of convergence opened out like
an hour glass. In some of these springs at the point of convergence we
found tree branches that had fallen into the spring and had become
impregnated with the silica or lime of the water; water-soaked we call
it. I saw a number of such springs in which several branches of trees
were lying across the small opening at the point of convergence. When
once these are firmly lodged, they form a support for smaller branches
and twigs, and thus the tufts of grass which the spring floods or
melting snows bring down from the sides of the mountain will, after a
few years, made a sufficiently strong foundation for the earth, which
will also wash down the slopes into the spring. Once a firm footing is
established, it is only a question of time when the spring will be
filled to the brim with earth. Then gradually the seed blown over the
surface of the spring from the weeds and grass near by will take root,
and, in the course of a few years, a strong turf will be formed, through
which the water may percolate in many places, though giving to the
unsuspecting traveler no sign of its treacherous character. I think that
it was through such a turf as this that the fore legs of my horse and my
right hand were plunged.[T]
[Illustration: BREAKING THROUGH THE TURF, FORMED OVER THE SURFACE OF
SUCH A SPRING AS THAT SHOWN ABOVE.]
My pack horse which I rode to-day, a buckskin colored broncho, which is
docile under the pack saddle, "bucked" as I mounted him this morning;
but I kept my seat in the saddle without difficulty. Walter Trumbull,
however, on my return to-night, presented me with a sketch which he says
is a faithful portrayal of both horse and rider in the acrobatic act. I
think the sketch is an exaggeration, and that I hugged the saddle in
better form than it indicates.
[Illustration: MY BUCKING BRONCHO.]
Tuesday, September 13.--It was Jake Smith's turn to stand guard last
night, but he refused to do so, and Washburn took his place.
We have remained in camp all day. At about 9 o'clock this morning it
began to rain and hail, and we have had a little snow, which continued
to fall at intervals all day. At about 6 o'clock this evening Hauser and
Gillette arrived in camp, having returned on the trail to within three
miles of the place where we camped on the night of September 7th. They
examined the trail and the beach with the utmost care, but without
discovering any trace of Mr. Everts. They say that the trail over which
our train passed, or, rather, the path which our train made, was hardly
plain enough to be followed, and in many places where the pine leaves
had fallen thick upon the ground, it was totally invisible, so that no
one could have followed it with certainty except by dismounting and
closely observing the ground at every step. They made the journey very
well, from the fact that they had traveled the route once before, and
their horses instinctively followed the back path for a great part of
the distance without any special guidance. On their near approach to
camp, when the trail was no longer discernible, their dog "Booby" took
the lead when they were at fault, and brought them into camp all right.
They think they might have been forced to lie out all night but for the
sagacity of "Booby." They made on each of the two days nearly as great a
distance as our train traveled in four days. Their report has fully set
at rest the question of Mr. Everts having followed us. It settles as a
fact that he did not again strike our trail, and that had he done so he
could not have followed it, owing to his short-sightedness. Hauser and
Gillette are probably the two best trailers and woodsmen in our party,
and their report of the condition of the trail and the difficulty
experienced in following it has satisfied us that Mr. Everts has either
struck off in a southerly direction, following perhaps the headwaters of
the Snake river, or that he has made an effort to reach the head of the
lake with a view of returning by our trail to Boteler's ranch. It is
snowing hard to-night, and the prospect for a day or two more in this
camp is very good. The murky atmosphere to-night brings to view a number
of springs on the opposite shore of this arm of the lake and farther
back in the hills which we have not heretofore seen, and the steam is
rising from fifty craters in the timbered ridge, giving it the
appearance of a New England factory village.
After holding a council this evening we have resolved to remain at this
place two days more, hoping that Mr. Everts may overtake us, this arm of
the lake being the _objective point_ of our travel, fixed on the day
before that on which Mr. Everts was lost.
Wednesday, September 14.--We have remained in camp all day, as it is
next to impossible to move. The snow is nearly two feet deep, and is
very wet and heavy, and our horses are pawing in it for forage. Our
large army tent is doing us good service, and, as there is an abundance
of dry wood close by our camp, we are extremely comfortable. I am the
only one of the party who has a pair of water-proof boots, and I was up
and out of the tent this morning before daylight cutting into cordwood a
pine log, and before noon I had more than a half cord at the tent door.
Washburn and Hauser offered to do some of this work if I would loan them
my water-proof boots; but, as they are of a full size for me, and would
probably drop off of their feet, I told them that I would get the wood.
Lieutenant Doane to-day requested me to loan him this diary from which
to write up his records, as the condition of his thumb has interfered
with his use of a pen or pencil. I have accordingly loaned it to him,
and Private Moore has been busy the greater part of the day copying
portions of it.
For myself, I am very glad to have a day of rest, for I have felt much
wearied for several days. I think that I am certainly within bounds when
I say that I have put in sixteen hours a day of pretty hard work,
attending to camp duties, and writing each day till late at night, and I
realize that this journal of travel is becoming ponderous. Yet there is
daily crowded upon my vision so much of novelty and wonder, which should
be brought to the notice of the world, and which, so far as my
individual effort is concerned, will be lost to it if I do not record
the incidents of each day's travel, that I am determined to make my
journal as full as possible, and to purposely omit no details. It is a
lifetime opportunity for publishing to all who may be interested a
complete record of the discoveries of an expedition which in coming time
will rank among the first and most important of American explorations.
It is cold to-night, and the water in a pail standing at our tent door
was frozen at 7 o'clock in the evening.
The water fowl are more abundant at this point than they have been
elsewhere on the lake on our journey around it, and we could see to-day
hundreds of swans, geese and ducks, and many pelicans and gulls.
Thursday, September 15.--This forenoon the weather moderated, and
one-half the snow has melted, so that it is but about ten inches deep
to-night. Still, our horses are becoming restless for want of sufficient
food. The patches of grass which may be found under the snow are very
limited in extent, and as the animals are confined to the length of
their lariats, foraging is much more difficult than if they were running
loose. We have seen no signs of Indians following us since we made our
first camp upon the lake, and but little evidence that they have ever
been here, except some few logs piled so as to conceal from view a
hunter who may be attempting to bring down some of the game swimming on
the lake. We feel convinced that Jake Smith drew upon both his
imagination and his fears three days ago, when he reported that he had
seen Indians on the beach of the lake.
[Illustration: LIEUT. GUSTAVUS C. DOANE.]
Each night that we have been camped here we have heard the shrill cries
of the mountain lions, and under a momentary illusion I have each time
been half convinced that it was a human being in distress. Because of
the mountain lions we are keeping close watch upon our horses. They are
very fond of horse flesh, and oftentimes will follow a horseman a
long distance, more to make a meal upon the flesh of the horse than for
the purpose of attacking the rider.
[Illustration: JACK BARONETTE.]
During the three days we have spent in this camp, I have been enabled to
complete my diary for September 8th, 9th and 10th, which were red letter
days--days of great anxiety.
I had a good nap this afternoon while my diary was being used for
Lieutenant Doane, and I feel greatly refreshed. My first thought on
awakening was for poor Everts. I wonder where he can be throughout all
this fierce storm and deep snow! Perhaps the snow did not reach him, for
I noticed to-night that the ground was quite bare on the opposite side
of this arm of the lake, while the snow is eight or ten inches deep here
at our camp. Hauser is not feeling very well to-night.
Friday, September 16.--We this morning resolved to move over to the
vicinity of the hot springs on the opposite side of this arm of the
lake, from which point we will leave the Yellowstone for the Madison
river or some one of its branches. We followed up the beach for half a
mile, and then journeyed along the bank of the lake through the woods
for a mile to avoid the quicksands on the lake shore; then, taking the
beach again, we followed it to the springs where we are now camped.[U]