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25 - Life and Adventures of Kit Carson by DeWitt C. Peters · Life and Adventures of Kit Carson

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  Speaker 1: Section twenty four, Chapter fifteen, Part one of the Life
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  Speaker 1: and Adventures of Kit Carson. This is a LibriVox recording.
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  Speaker 1: All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain. For more
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  Speaker 1: information or to volunteer, please visit LibriVox dot org. Recording
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  Speaker 1: by Denise Nordell. The Life and Adventures of Kit Carson
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  Speaker 1: by DeWitt C. Peters, Section twenty four, Chapter fifteen, Part one,
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  Speaker 1: Chapter fifteen, Kit Carson's last trapping expedition. He embarks in
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  Speaker 1: a speculation, his trip to California with a large flock
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  Speaker 1: of sheep, the method employed by Mexicans in driving herds
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  Speaker 1: and their dexterity. Kit Carson goes to San Francisco, its
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  Speaker 1: wonderful growth. Maxwell joins Kit Carson at Sacramento City. The
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  Speaker 1: Lucky Speculation, the return trip to New Mexico, and its adventures.
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  Speaker 1: The Mormon Delegate to Congress informs Kit Carson of his
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  Speaker 1: appointment as Indian Agent. Kit Carson enters upon the duties
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  Speaker 1: of his office. Bells fight with the Apaches on Red River.
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  Speaker 1: Kit Carson's interview with the same Indians, high handed measures
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  Speaker 1: on the part of the Apaches, Davidson's desperate fight with them,
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  Speaker 1: the soldiers defeated with severe loss. Davidson's bravery is unjustly
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  Speaker 1: questioned kit Carson's opinion of it. The apaches elated by
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  Speaker 1: their victory their imitations of the actions of military men.
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  Speaker 1: The expedition into the United States, which terminated with the
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  Speaker 1: last chapter, proved to be valuable in its results so
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  Speaker 1: far as the parties engaged in it were concerned. Kit
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  Speaker 1: Carson was once more trying hard to keep quiet in
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  Speaker 1: his comfortable home at Riatto, but his restless spirit was
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  Speaker 1: not proof against this inactivity. His stay at home therefore
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  Speaker 1: was short. The memories of other days came upon him,
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  Speaker 1: and he longed once more to enjoy, in company with
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  Speaker 1: the friends of his youth, the scenes, excitements, and pleasures
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  Speaker 1: of his old life as a trapper. Throughout his eventful life,
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  Speaker 1: as the reader has been able clearly to see, kit
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  Speaker 1: Carson's soldom spent his time in idle thinking. His thoughts
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  Speaker 1: almost invariably take form in actions. This eager longing resulted
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  Speaker 1: therefore in the forming of a regular trapping expedition after
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  Speaker 1: the Olden style shape, et cetera, which he organized with
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  Speaker 1: great care and attention. The members of the party were
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  Speaker 1: selected by himself, chiefly with great exclusiveness, and numbers who
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  Speaker 1: wished to join the party were refused on account of
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  Speaker 1: their inexperience. After a good deal of inquiry, Kit succeeded
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  Speaker 1: in collecting eighteen of his old companions. No one among
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  Speaker 1: them was not entitled to be called a mountaineer. Kit
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  Speaker 1: looked upon this party of men with an eye of
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  Speaker 1: real affection. The meeting previous to the start was a
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  Speaker 1: scene to behold. Such a greeting of old friends, well
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  Speaker 1: tried and true, will not soon be again seen on
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  Speaker 1: the American continent. The day when men went trapping was
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  Speaker 1: long time ago. Kit Carson, as he stood among this
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  Speaker 1: band of friends, the acknowledged leader of the party, every
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  Speaker 1: man of whom he knew, would have periled his life
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  Speaker 1: for either one of the company, felt that indeed the
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  Speaker 1: days of his youth had reached turned unto him. Everything
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  Speaker 1: preliminary was arranged in the most approved style. When all
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  Speaker 1: was complete, Kit Carson, mounted on his magnificent charger, Apache,
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  Speaker 1: riding to the head of the line, gave the order
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  Speaker 1: to march. Kit had put it to a vote, and
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  Speaker 1: the result was unanimous that the expedition should be No
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  Speaker 1: boy's play. On the contrary, the boldest and one of
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  Speaker 1: the longest of the routes known to their experienced footsteps
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  Speaker 1: was selected. It comprised many of the mighty rivers of
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  Speaker 1: the Rocky Mountains, every one of which was almost a
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  Speaker 1: hunting ground by itself. Onward over the wild and broad plains,
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  Speaker 1: this band of stalwart men, brave and kindred spirits dashed.
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  Speaker 1: They soon put many a mile between them and the
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  Speaker 1: comfortable firesides at Royatto. But these miles kit Carson has
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  Speaker 1: often said were the shortest he ever traveled. The way
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  Speaker 1: was beguiled by many a recollection in which every man
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  Speaker 1: present could participate with a relish keen, as disuse alone
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  Speaker 1: can render the palate of enjoyment. In a short time,
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  Speaker 1: the well remembered waters of the south fork of the
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  Speaker 1: River Platte were descried. Their practiced eyes soon discovered the
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  Speaker 1: oft noted signs of the beaver. The camp was formed
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  Speaker 1: and the trap set. The beaver, so long left to
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  Speaker 1: mind their own business, had increased in great numbers. The
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  Speaker 1: hunt proved correspondingly successful. The party continued working down this
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  Speaker 1: stream through the plains of Laramie to the new Park,
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  Speaker 1: and from thence on to the old park. We cannot
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  Speaker 1: follow them through this long and enlivening hunt. They trapped
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  Speaker 1: a large number of their old streams, until finally the
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  Speaker 1: expedition was terminated on the Arkansas River. Throughout the whole
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  Speaker 1: course the hunt proved to be very successful, with a
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  Speaker 1: large stalk of furs. They returned in safety to Roatto
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  Speaker 1: via the Raton Mountains, which are spurs of the Great
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  Speaker 1: Rocky Chain. The fact that most of the old trappers
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  Speaker 1: had given up their vocation furnishes the reason why the
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  Speaker 1: beaver were found along the entire route to be so plentiful.
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  Speaker 1: We desire that the reader shall paint for himself the
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  Speaker 1: enjoyment which these men gathered in this renewal of a pursuit,
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  Speaker 1: rendered congenial by the experience of long years of activity.
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  Speaker 1: In following it, it has been our purpose to enable
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  Speaker 1: the reader to gather a spark of this same enjoyment,
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  Speaker 1: by the endeavor to make of him an amateur trapper.
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  Speaker 1: He has followed Kit Carson throughout the trapping expeditions of
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  Speaker 1: his earlier life. It is to be supposed that with
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  Speaker 1: Kit he has acquired some experience. With Kit, therefore he
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  Speaker 1: shall now receive his final polishing. And if he does, not,
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  Speaker 1: in the end catch a beaver, he shall at least
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  Speaker 1: learn how they are caught, and all the necessary minutia
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  Speaker 1: of toil which he must expect to encounter and undergo
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  Speaker 1: on striking any river. When on the hunt, the trappers
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  Speaker 1: are accustomed to keep a bright lookout for signs. Often
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  Speaker 1: heretofore referred to the word signs conveys but a vague
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  Speaker 1: idea of its all important meaning. As it was received
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  Speaker 1: by the trappers. The news of the presence of signs
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  Speaker 1: sent a thrill of joy through the hunters of the
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  Speaker 1: olden time, only equalled on board of whale ships. When
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  Speaker 1: the man at the lookout cries the a ar she blows.
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  Speaker 1: It rarely happens that this cunning, amphibious animal can be
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  Speaker 1: seen moving free, either on the river banks or in
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  Speaker 1: the water. For nature has given him no powerful weapons
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  Speaker 1: with which to defend himself when surprised and attacked. But
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  Speaker 1: what is better, she has endowed him with exceedingly sensitive eye,
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  Speaker 1: sight and hearing, which enables him to detect the approach
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  Speaker 1: of danger in time to escape. The marks, however, which
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  Speaker 1: he leaves behind, are for a time ineffaceable. These were
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  Speaker 1: only to be detected and used for his own purposes
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  Speaker 1: by the superior intellect of man. The unequaled industry of
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  Speaker 1: gnawing down trees and cutting twigs, peeling off the tender
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  Speaker 1: cuticle of the willow bushes, digging away banks, and carrying
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  Speaker 1: on their shovel shaped tails the earth, together with innumerable
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  Speaker 1: footprints and sometimes dams, were the items which filled up
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  Speaker 1: the catalog of signs on which the trapper's vision was
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  Speaker 1: regaled after long and dangerous tramps in search of them.
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  Speaker 1: These signs were not always found together, but instead they
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  Speaker 1: each could exist separately, and thus would arouse the hunter's
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  Speaker 1: suspicion of the game near by. The little twig as
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  Speaker 1: it floated down the stream, half denuded of its bark,
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  Speaker 1: would go unheeded by the casual observer, but to the
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  Speaker 1: experienced trapper it was a prize to be obtained, for
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  Speaker 1: by its freshness it indicated to his mind how near
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  Speaker 1: he was to the chance of obtaining and adding another
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  Speaker 1: pound or so of valuable fur to his stock on hand.
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  Speaker 1: To him, this small event, or one like it, as
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  Speaker 1: for instance, a fresh footprint with its neatly defined claw tracks,
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  Speaker 1: as molded in the moistened earth or sand, was of
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  Speaker 1: a greater importance than the wonderful and striking workmanship exhibited
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  Speaker 1: in a dam, for the latter might be old and deserted,
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  Speaker 1: whereas the former was too recent to cause him to
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  Speaker 1: be deceived with such a sign, and in such a vicinity,
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  Speaker 1: he hesitated not to set his trap. An idea prevails
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  Speaker 1: which ought to be exploded. It is boldly asserted that
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  Speaker 1: the beaver builds his dam for the purpose of having
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  Speaker 1: a nice swimming pond in the neighborhood of his residence,
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  Speaker 1: which is always located in the river's bank. This is
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  Speaker 1: not true, for in every stream which he inhabits. If
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  Speaker 1: this was his sole object, he could select many natural
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  Speaker 1: places where the water is without a ripple, and where
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  Speaker 1: it is both deep and broad. The animal has a
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  Speaker 1: wiser object in view, and it consists in providing against
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  Speaker 1: the pinching wants of hunger during winter, when nearly everything
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  Speaker 1: green has lost its sap and nutrition, and is as
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  Speaker 1: a body without blood and animation. He therefore chooses a
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  Speaker 1: place favorable for obtaining food, and also where his labors
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  Speaker 1: will be assisted by natural formations or accidents. In the
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  Speaker 1: river's course and construction. Having pitched upon the right section
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  Speaker 1: to build, he sets to work with his fellows and
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  Speaker 1: falls giant trees. In this he again exhibits his wonderful instinct,
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  Speaker 1: for while one party is cutting with their sharp teeth
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  Speaker 1: the hard wood of one side of the tree, another
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  Speaker 1: division is actively employed on the other side, never forgetting
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  Speaker 1: to make liken to the woodman. The lowest incision on
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  Speaker 1: the side the tree is to fall, which, to suit
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  Speaker 1: their purposes, is always directly into and across the stream.
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  Speaker 1: When a tree is thus fallen, it is attacked in
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  Speaker 1: its branches, which are so turned and woven together in
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  Speaker 1: the outline of the dam as to catch in their
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  Speaker 1: meshes any floating material, or to receive the tail loads
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  Speaker 1: of soil and rubbish which they carry to it. Another
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  Speaker 1: and another tree are then systematically fallen and arranged as
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  Speaker 1: is the first, until the work is finished as completely
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  Speaker 1: as if it had been planned and executed by a
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  Speaker 1: reasoning mind. The finishing stroke is the transporting of the
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  Speaker 1: mud and laying it. In this labor they show themselves
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  Speaker 1: to be excellent masons. They now act in concert. A
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  Speaker 1: large gang marches into a line to the bank where
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  Speaker 1: they load each other's tails and swim with their cargoes
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  Speaker 1: elevated above and free from the water. When they arrive
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  Speaker 1: at an unfinished point of the dam, they dump the
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  Speaker 1: mud and mold it in place their houses they have
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  Speaker 1: previously built in the river banks. These consist of holes
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  Speaker 1: which lead into large and airy subterranean rooms, and which
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  Speaker 1: are above the water mark. In these houses they are
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  Speaker 1: said to sleep and live in pairs, and, if we
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  Speaker 1: could believe the story of the trapper related many pages back,
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  Speaker 1: they imitate humans in managing their household and in keeping house.
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  Speaker 1: The main object they have in staying the progress of
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  Speaker 1: the current of the river is to afford a deep
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  Speaker 1: place where, having fallen numbers of trees, the deep water
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  Speaker 1: will preserve tender and fresh the limbs and shrubs on
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  Speaker 1: which to subsist during not only time present, but also
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  Speaker 1: to time to come. It is well known that fresh
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  Speaker 1: branches of trees and young willows, when placed in water,
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  Speaker 1: will keep up partial life for a considerable length of time.
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  Speaker 1: On this principle, the beaver acts in submerging his food
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  Speaker 1: deep in the water, where it will retain its verdure,
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  Speaker 1: and where the freezing process that is going on at
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  Speaker 1: the surface of the river will not bar his efforts
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  Speaker 1: in getting at his store of provisions. During the winter season,
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  Speaker 1: it is said that the beaver goes so far as
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  Speaker 1: to bundle up small branches of trees and willows, which
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  Speaker 1: he stows away in the muddy bottom of the river.
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  Speaker 1: The trapper, in his wondrous yarns, insists that there are
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  Speaker 1: grades of society among beavers, the same as among men,
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  Speaker 1: and he will have it that they have their head chiefs,
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  Speaker 1: and that often individuals among them roll in wealth, and
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  Speaker 1: that they have slaves who stand ready to do their
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  Speaker 1: master's bidding at a moment's warning, for instance, to bring
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  Speaker 1: them a bundle of green twigs on which to feast.
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  Speaker 1: According to their imaginative stories, the life of a beaver
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  Speaker 1: cannot be rivaled in happiness, and if we could put
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  Speaker 1: full credence in their descriptions of the pastimes of the animal,
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  Speaker 1: his palaces and luxuries, could only compare a beaver to
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  Speaker 1: a citizen of Venice in her most palmy days, the
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  Speaker 1: difference between the two being that the former enjoyed himself
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  Speaker 1: more in the water than the latter did on it.
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  Speaker 1: In his favorite gondola, the beaver, when captured young, can
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  Speaker 1: be sufficiently domesticated to make him a pet, but their
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  Speaker 1: unattractive form is anything but an ornament to the house.
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  Speaker 1: With young children, they are very friendly, though their disposition
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  Speaker 1: is amiable to anyone. They are very neat in their person,
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  Speaker 1: and when moved from their comrades and domiciled with human beings,
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  Speaker 1: nothing do they so much like as being allowed the
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  Speaker 1: daily privilege of taking a clean bath. When thus engaged,
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  Speaker 1: they are a curiosity to look at, as they are
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  Speaker 1: very agile and particular in removing every particle of dirt.
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  Speaker 1: We remember seeing one of these pets in the Mexican
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  Speaker 1: town of Culebro, Thus enjoying himself. His owner hesitated not
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  Speaker 1: in taking the animal to the river, which was close by,
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  Speaker 1: and giving him his freedom. On finishing his ablutions, the
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  Speaker 1: beaver returned to where his owner was standing, without making
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  Speaker 1: an effort to escape, and by a look as much
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  Speaker 1: as said, I am ready to return to your home.
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  Speaker 1: The signs having been discovered, the trappers next select a
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  Speaker 1: suitable location for a camp, which they soon occupy. After
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  Speaker 1: the pack animals are unloaded, a part of the men
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  Speaker 1: start out to set the traps while the remainder busy
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  Speaker 1: themselves in looking after their wants and in cooking and
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  Speaker 1: guarding their property, et cetera. The trap is very much
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  Speaker 1: like the same instrument used in different sections of the
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  Speaker 1: United States for catching foxes, wolves, et cetera, excepting that
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  Speaker 1: it is smaller and perhaps made with more skill. Old
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  Speaker 1: trappers were very superstitious in regard to the makers of
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  Speaker 1: their traps, for they entertained the idea that much of
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  Speaker 1: their good or bad fortune depended on the tools they
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  Speaker 1: worked with. Hence, they always had their favorite makers, and
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  Speaker 1: would pay more for their traps than for those of
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  Speaker 1: any other maker. This is true also with their rifles.
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  Speaker 1: For many years, a rifle was condemned at first sight
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  Speaker 1: if it did not have the name of Hawkins stamped
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  Speaker 1: on it. And it was not uncommon for them, when
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  Speaker 1: boasting of the good qualities of their riding animals, if
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  Speaker 1: they considered them of the maximum degree of superiority, to
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  Speaker 1: style them regular Hawkins horses, thereby showing how far in
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  Speaker 1: this respect their predilections grounded their opinions. The setting of
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  Speaker 1: the trap required expertness and experience, or else it availed nothing.
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  Speaker 1: For the game to be caught. Is as the reader
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  Speaker 1: can now readily conceive, very wary, and his suspicions of
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  Speaker 1: there being anything wrong near at hand had to be
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  Speaker 1: allayed by concealing as much as possible the instrument from view.
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  Speaker 1: Yet it must not be far from the surface of
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  Speaker 1: the water. And then again it had to be firmly
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  Speaker 1: fixed in its position by being made fast to something
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  Speaker 1: that was firm, so as to prevent its being dragged off.
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  Speaker 1: The trapper, while thus engaged, is in the water. About
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  Speaker 1: his waist. There is a strap to which is attached
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  Speaker 1: a pouch in which is carried the bait. Everything being arranged,
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  Speaker 1: the trap is set and the bait applied. When the
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  Speaker 1: man notes the place where he has been at work
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  Speaker 1: so as to recognize it again, and then takes his
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  Speaker 1: departure to return early the following morning. The beaver during
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  Speaker 1: this interim is attracted by the peculiar scent of the bait,
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  Speaker 1: and as a reward for his curiosity, he generally is
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  Speaker 1: caught by one of his paws, and thus falls a
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  Speaker 1: prey to the hunter's pleasure. The traps, when visited, are
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  Speaker 1: relieved to their contents, and then set again. The game
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  Speaker 1: is put out of its misery and carried to camp,
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  Speaker 1: where it is skinned, and where all of the pelts
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  Speaker 1: recently taken are stretched out, dried, cured, and packed in
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  Speaker 1: small bales. Whenever a sufficient quantity is obtained, so to
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  Speaker 1: do with it. The trapper, when in full dress for
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  Speaker 1: an expedition, and especially after having been on one with
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  Speaker 1: its concomitant hair breath, escapes indian and bare fights, et cetera,
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  Speaker 1: cuts to all appearances a sorrowful figure. His wardrobe is
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  Speaker 1: meager and the extreme, yet it answers all of his purposes,
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  Speaker 1: and the man would have no other. When summed up,
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  Speaker 1: it would be found to consist usually of two pairs
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  Speaker 1: of moccasins, one or two pair of buckskin pantaloons, two
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  Speaker 1: woolen shirts, a loose fringed buckskin coat, and an old
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  Speaker 1: slouched hat, usually made of some kind of skin with
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  Speaker 1: the fur on. His baggage, limited to a very small bundle,
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  Speaker 1: comprises his blankets, a buffalo robe or two, a spare
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  Speaker 1: hide of dressed buckskin, his extra garments above spoken of,
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  Speaker 1: and a little tobacco when it can be had. These
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  Speaker 1: with his camp kettle and outfit of powder lad extra traps, scanty,
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  Speaker 1: allowance of provisions, guns, pistols, horses, bridles, saddles, et cetera
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  Speaker 1: make up his traveling and working kit. It may be
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  Speaker 1: only for a few months, or it may be for years. Footnote.
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  Speaker 1: These saddles and bridles are queer looking articles, but for
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  Speaker 1: use they could not be surpassed, either for durability or comfort.
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  Speaker 1: Their bridle bits are the same as are used by
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  Speaker 1: the Mexicans. They are very powerful and intended for managing
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  Speaker 1: wild horses and mules, particularly the latter. With one in
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  Speaker 1: his mouth, an animal cannot drink or feed. A Mexican
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  Speaker 1: only waters his horse twice a day. When traveling these
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  Speaker 1: morning and night with them, he was ready to penetrate
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  Speaker 1: the loftiest mountains and unexplored regions. This is but a
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  Speaker 1: true picture, in a brief space, of the appearance of
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  Speaker 1: kit Carson and his resources of his earlier days, the
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  Speaker 1: tools he had to work with, the mode of doing
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  Speaker 1: his labor, and the habits of the animal. He diligently
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  Speaker 1: hunted for several years in order that his fellow man
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  Speaker 1: might convert into a luxury the products of his toil. Yet,
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  Speaker 1: had he been allowed the choice, he would not have
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  Speaker 1: exchanged situations with the consumer of the commodity, in the
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  Speaker 1: company of his boon companions, and enjoying the pure mountain
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  Speaker 1: air he had often seen as happy hours as ever
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  Speaker 1: fell to the lot of any man, and now he
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  Speaker 1: was starting out on probably his last trapping expedition. The
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  Speaker 1: party did not return to their homes until several months
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  Speaker 1: had expired, and as much of the excitement that had
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  Speaker 1: used to pertain to their former exploits had been worn
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  Speaker 1: off from the changes brought about by civilization, they decided
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  Speaker 1: that this, as far as they were concerned, should be
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  Speaker 1: their last trapping expedition. Therefore, this visit to their old
• 16:33
  Speaker 1: haunts was a sort of funeral service performed over their
• 16:36
  Speaker 1: early adventures. On quitting each favorite river, the trappers felt
• 16:40
  Speaker 1: that they were shaking hands with the streams and bidding them,
• 16:43
  Speaker 1: one by one a final good bye. Kit Carson, after
• 16:48
  Speaker 1: disposing of his beaver, occupied himself in attending to his ranch,
• 16:51
  Speaker 1: and was thus employed. When news was brought to Mexico
• 16:54
  Speaker 1: of the exorbitant prices which sheep were bringing in California,
• 16:58
  Speaker 1: he made up his mind to embark in a speculation
• 17:00
  Speaker 1: in those animals by collecting a herd and driving it
• 17:03
  Speaker 1: to that territory, he set out for the valley of
• 17:05
  Speaker 1: Rio Abajo, which lies to the south of Santa Fe,
• 17:08
  Speaker 1: and there, to his satisfaction, made his purchases in company
• 17:12
  Speaker 1: with two friends. After employing a suitable number of shepherds,
• 17:15
  Speaker 1: he commenced his journey and traveled northward to Fort Laramie,
• 17:18
  Speaker 1: where he came to and followed the emigrant road that
• 17:21
  Speaker 1: leads direct into California via Salt Lake, et cetera. In
• 17:24
  Speaker 1: the month of August eighteen fifty three, after meeting with
• 17:27
  Speaker 1: very trifling losses as he traveled very slowly and understood
• 17:31
  Speaker 1: thoroughly the business he was employed in kit Carson, with
• 17:33
  Speaker 1: his flock of sixty five hundred sheep, reached the point
• 17:36
  Speaker 1: of his destination in California, where he found no difficulty
• 17:40
  Speaker 1: in disposing of them at the rate of five dollars
• 17:42
  Speaker 1: and fifty cents per head. The making of these long
• 17:45
  Speaker 1: journeys with such large herds of sheep over a diversified country,
• 17:49
  Speaker 1: sometimes abounding in water and grass, while on the other hand,
• 17:52
  Speaker 1: and not unfrequently for many miles the earth is barren,
• 17:55
  Speaker 1: is a difficult task. When broad, deep and swift rivers
• 17:59
  Speaker 1: are to be forded it requires dexterity and management to
• 18:02
  Speaker 1: prevent heavy losses. The trail which kit Carson followed to
• 18:06
  Speaker 1: Fort Laramie is now a well beaten path. It runs
• 18:09
  Speaker 1: almost due north from Taos and abounds in the proper
• 18:12
  Speaker 1: season in good grass and water. For about one hundred
• 18:15
  Speaker 1: and twenty miles. It passes through a broken country, but
• 18:18
  Speaker 1: when that distance is accomplished, the traveler is ushered onto
• 18:21
  Speaker 1: the plains and keeps on them from most of the
• 18:23
  Speaker 1: way close under the rocky mountains. The scenery on this
• 18:26
  Speaker 1: route is most magnificent and at times as grand, perhaps
• 18:30
  Speaker 1: as can be seen in any part of the world.
• 18:32
  Speaker 1: The distance from Taos, kit Carson's starting point to Laramie
• 18:35
  Speaker 1: River is counted by hundreds of miles. And in this
• 18:38
  Speaker 1: great tract of country there lives several of the largest
• 18:41
  Speaker 1: and most troublesome tribes of Indians in the far West.
• 18:45
  Speaker 1: The names of these tribes are the Utahs, Apaches, Arapahose, Cheyennes,
• 18:49
  Speaker 1: and Sioux. A man with a large drove of sheep
• 18:52
  Speaker 1: is so conspicuous an object that he is certain to
• 18:54
  Speaker 1: attract their notice and bring them to him. Kit Carson, however,
• 18:58
  Speaker 1: was well received by them, allowed to pass unmolested. They
• 19:02
  Speaker 1: were pleased to find so formidable an enemy moving soul
• 19:05
  Speaker 1: boldly into their country and bearing the olive branch of peace. He, however,
• 19:09
  Speaker 1: forgot not to pay them toll by presenting them with
• 19:12
  Speaker 1: a suitable number of the sheep. In this way he
• 19:14
  Speaker 1: prevented them from being tempted to steal from him. This
• 19:17
  Speaker 1: is a usual custom, and the Indians expect that this
• 19:20
  Speaker 1: sort of attention will be shown them. They do not
• 19:23
  Speaker 1: like at all seasons of the year to have these
• 19:24
  Speaker 1: herds pass through their country. Being so large, they eat
• 19:27
  Speaker 1: up much of the grass, which assists greatly to drive
• 19:30
  Speaker 1: away the game. We remember on one occasion that an
• 19:33
  Speaker 1: American in charge of several thousand sheep started on a
• 19:36
  Speaker 1: journey from New Mexico to California. Everything went prosperously with
• 19:40
  Speaker 1: the man until he left the Raton mountains and entered
• 19:42
  Speaker 1: the country inhabited by the Arapahos and Cheyennes. At first
• 19:46
  Speaker 1: he was received in a friendly manner by these Indians,
• 19:49
  Speaker 1: but was commanded by them to rest where he was
• 19:52
  Speaker 1: until they went ahead and killed their annual amount of buffalo.
• 19:55
  Speaker 1: This the man could not do, for the season was
• 19:58
  Speaker 1: so far advanced that if he delayed and the and
• 20:00
  Speaker 1: attempted to make California, he would be certainly overtaken by snowstorms,
• 20:04
  Speaker 1: which would bury him and his property in the mountains.
• 20:07
  Speaker 1: In vain. He used his best endeavors to impress the
• 20:09
  Speaker 1: state of affairs on the minds of the Indians. They
• 20:12
  Speaker 1: would not listen to him or sanction his going on,
• 20:15
  Speaker 1: and threaten to punish him if he undertook to disobey them.
• 20:18
  Speaker 1: Bidding defiance to these threats, this man started, but had
• 20:21
  Speaker 1: only proceeded a few miles when a band of one
• 20:23
  Speaker 1: hundred squaws mounted on horseback, overtook him and dashed into
• 20:27
  Speaker 1: his herd, and, with savage delight, put to death one
• 20:30
  Speaker 1: hundred and fifty of the sheep before their owner's eyes,
• 20:32
  Speaker 1: and without his being able to stop them. The carcasses
• 20:35
  Speaker 1: of the slaughtered animals were left to rot on the ground,
• 20:38
  Speaker 1: thereby showing that the Indians did not stand in need
• 20:40
  Speaker 1: of food, but that they wished to teach the intruder
• 20:43
  Speaker 1: a lesson which he would be apt to remember. These
• 20:45
  Speaker 1: women had been sent out by their husbands, who no
• 20:47
  Speaker 1: doubt were close by in case their services should be
• 20:50
  Speaker 1: needed to show the white Man the contempt they had
• 20:52
  Speaker 1: of his power. The result was that the American was
• 20:55
  Speaker 1: obliged to return to New Mexico from whence he came.
• 20:58
  Speaker 1: When he set out again, he chose what is known
• 21:00
  Speaker 1: as the Southern Route, which runs via the Riohila and
• 21:03
  Speaker 1: strikes California in its lower section in the Rocky Mountains.
• 21:07
  Speaker 1: The Indian women are rather small in stature, but from
• 21:10
  Speaker 1: their constant exercise, they are physically very strong. They are
• 21:13
  Speaker 1: naturally not wanting in modesty, but being compelled to work
• 21:17
  Speaker 1: and even engage in war, they soon become roughened and hardened.
• 21:20
  Speaker 1: Their dresses consist principally of deer skins, and sometimes they
• 21:23
  Speaker 1: are very tastefully arranged. They give birth to their children
• 21:26
  Speaker 1: with great ease, and as they have not become martyrs
• 21:28
  Speaker 1: to fashions or dress, they suffer but little inconvenience from
• 21:32
  Speaker 1: this provision of nature. The children learn during their earliest
• 21:35
  Speaker 1: years to look out for themselves, and soon become expert
• 21:38
  Speaker 1: at it. The marriage ceremony amounts to little or nothing,
• 21:41
  Speaker 1: and consists of a mere barter. The warrior is obliged
• 21:44
  Speaker 1: to pay so many horses to the father for the bride.
• 21:47
  Speaker 1: We remember on one occasion buying a superior pony from
• 21:50
  Speaker 1: a trader who said that he had obtained him from
• 21:52
  Speaker 1: his Indian owner with great difficulty. The facts were as follows.
• 21:56
  Speaker 1: This Indian was in love with a young maiden of
• 21:58
  Speaker 1: his tribe. The young girl wished some silver ornaments, which
• 22:01
  Speaker 1: the trader had. The Only thing the warrior had to
• 22:04
  Speaker 1: exchange for these trinkets was his prized pony. An old
• 22:07
  Speaker 1: chief stood by with the trader and saw the warrior
• 22:09
  Speaker 1: look and sigh at his horse. The chief gave the
• 22:12
  Speaker 1: trader a wink and said, in a low tone of
• 22:14
  Speaker 1: voice to him that man loves his horse, and he
• 22:17
  Speaker 1: loves his affianced bride. But the bride elect will conquer
• 22:20
  Speaker 1: hold on, and he will sacrifice the horse to please
• 22:22
  Speaker 1: the girl. His love for her is the deepest feeling.
• 22:26
  Speaker 1: Sure Enough, this came true, and we never regretted that
• 22:28
  Speaker 1: it was so. The pony proved a valuable addition to
• 22:31
  Speaker 1: our stock of animals. End of Section twenty four, Chapter fifteen,
• 22:38
  Speaker 1: Part one recording by Denise Nordal Modesto, California,