concerning our old acquaintances during
which time another mountaineer had been
the victim of a quarrel, though his death
we did not. witness when I proposed to
Hu'itly to set forward at once, and leave a
place so little adapted to our tastes and
fee! in ;;.
But where do you propose going, Frank?" inquired my friend.
"To California."
"But can we find the way by our selves "
"We shall hardly find a place less to our liking than this, at all events," I re plied.
"But we are safe here, Frank."
"I presume Charles Huntly does not fear danger, or he would not have ventured westward at all."
"Enough, Frank! Say no more! I am your man. But when shall we start?"
"What say you for to-morrow morn ing ?"
"Agreed. But perhaps we can hire a guide?"
"We will try," I rejoined.
But our trial proved fruitless. No guide coxilcl be found, whose love of money would tempt him, at this season of the year, to undertake the conducting of us to Califor nia : while on every hand we were assailed by the mountaineers, with the most start ling accounts of dangers from Indians, from snows, from floods, from storms, and from starvation.
"You never can fetch through," said one. " It's a fixed impossibility."
"You're fools ef you undertake it," join ed in another.
"It's like jumpin on to rocks down a three hundred foot precipice, and spectin to git off without no bones broke," rejoin ed a third.
"Ef you know what's safe, you'll jest keep your eyes skinned, and not leave these here diggins," added a fourth.
But these remarks, instead of discour aging us, produced exactly the opposite ef fect, and roused our ambition to encounter the formidable dangers of which, all were BO tager to warn us. To Huntl) and my self, there appeared something bold and inanly in attempting what all seemed to dread; and to each and all I accordingly replied :
"It is useless, gentlemen, trying to dis courage us. We have tlecided on going, and go we shall at all hazards."
"All I've got to say, then, is, that ii'll be the last goin you'll do in this world," rejoined the friend of Black George, who seemed uncommonly loth to part with us.
The next morning rose clear and cold for the air in this part of the coun ry had become quite frosty and agreeably to our resolve of the preceding day, we equipped ourselves and horses once more, and bid ding our mountaineer friends adieu, set forward in fine spirits shaping our course, to the best of our judgment, so as to strike the southern range of the Bear River Mountains, in the vicinity of the Utah Lake, which connects with the Great Salt Lake on the north.
To give our progress in -detail, would only be to describe a succession of scenes, incidents, and perils, similar to those al ready set before the reader, and take up time and space which the necessity of the case requires me to use for a more imporl- ant purpose. I shall, therefore, content myself with sketching some of the mosit prominent and startling features of our route a route sufficiently full of perils, as we found to our cost, to put to ilie test the temerity and try the iron constitution of the boldest and most hardy adventurer.
While in Brown's Hole, we had succeed ed in purchasing of one of the traders, 'it i a high price, a map and compass, whu h. he had designed especially for his own ! use, and similar to those we had provided ourselves with on starting, but which, to gether with many other valuable articles, had been left in our possible sacks at Fort Laramie.
On our compass and map we now placed our whole dependence, as our only guide over a vast region of unexplored country or explored only by a few traders, trap pers, and Indians Fremont's Celebrated expedition, which created at the time such universal interest throughout the United Suites, not being made till some three or four years subsequent to the date of which I am writing. And here, en }>Qs*tira*\ would remark, that in determining our course for California, we had particular reference to the southern portion of it; for as every reader knows, who is
