Part 15 (1/2)
”The wagons are ready--they are going!”
As the sun mounted slowly in the cloudless sky, from all parts of town there still flocked friends and relatives of the s trip across the plains, going to golden California
California-- to wish the travelers God-speed, nor any of the band ere leaving their hoe of that new country tohich the erants were about to turn their faces
The crowd of friends gathered at the Reeds' hoons and those of the Donners were drawn up in a long line before the door; the provision wagons, filled to overfloith necessities and luxuries, the faht Mr Jafield's hly respected citizens, and the Donner brothers, who lived just outside of the town, had enthusiastically joined hi the details of the journey, and had coht before, with their families, to be ready for an early start And now they were really going!
All through the previous winter, in the evening, when the Reeds were gathered before their big log fire, they had talked of the wonderful adventure, while Mrs Reed's skilful fingers fashi+oned such garments as would be needed for the journey And while she sewed, Grandma Keyes told the children marvelous tales of Indianto travel ariant red men, whose tomahaere always ready to descend on the heads of unlucky travelers who crossed their path--told so s bethite men and Indian warriors that the little boys, Jainia, were spellbound as they listened
To Virginia, an i their way up the chimney in fantastic shapes, becarants on their way to the golden West, and even after she had gone to bed it seeh old-fashi+oned bedposts down to the shovel and tongs, was transformed into the dusky tribe in paint and feathers, all ready for a war-dance” as they looe out of shadowy corners She would hide her head under the clothes, scarcely daring to wink or breathe, then come boldly to the surface, face her shadowy foes, and fall asleep without having co to California--oh the ecstatic terror of it! And now the day and the hour of departure had coons had all been made to order, and carefully planned by Mr Reed himself with a view to comfort in every detail, so they were the best of their kind that ever crossed the plains, and especially was their faive every possible convenience to Mrs Reed and Grandma Keyes When the trip had been first discussed by the Reeds, the old lady, then seventy-five years old and for the most part confined to her bed, showed such enthusiasly: ”I declare,with us”
”I a to be left behind whento take such a journey as that, do you? I thought you had o, despite her years and her infiron was drawn by four yoke of fine oxen, and their provision wagons by three They had also cows, and a nuinia's pony Billy, on whose back she had been held and taught to ride when she was only seven years old
The provision wagons were filled to overfloith all sorts of supplies There were far the land in that new country to which they were going, and a bountiful supply of seeds Besides these farm supplies, there were bolts of cotton prints and flannel for dresses and shi+rts, also gay handkerchiefs, beads, and other trinkets to be used for barter with the Indians More important still, carefully stoas a store of fine laces, rich silks and velvets, rants The faon, too, had been fitted up with every kind of co-stove, with its son, and a looking-glass which Mrs Reed's friends had hung on the canvas wall opposite the wagon door--”so you will not forget to keep your good looks, they said!”
And now the party was ready to start A its number were Mrs Reed and her husband, with little Patty, the two sinia; the Donners, George and Jacob, with their wives and children; Milton Elliott, driver of the Reed fa sawmill; Eliza Baylis, the Reeds' dofor adventure In all, on that lovely April roup of thirty-one persons around wholimpses, and it was a sad moment for all Mrs Reed broke dohen she realized that thehad really coood wishes showered on hiripped hand after hand, then he hurried into the house with Milt Elliott, and presently caht of whom her friends cheered lustily She waved her thin hand in response as she was lifted gently into the wagon and placed on a large feather-bed, where she was propped up with pillows and declared herself to be perfectly co-place was very on had been built with its entrance at the side, like an old-fashi+oned stage-coach, and from the door one stepped into a s seats with high backs, which were coth of the wagon, a wide board had been placed, inia called a ”really truly second story” on which beds were made up Under this ”second story” were roo the clothing of the party, each bag plainly marked with a name There was also a full supply of ency, and Mr Reed had provided a good library of standard books, not only to read during the journey, but knowing they could not be bought in the new West Altogether, froon to family caravan, there was a complete equipment for every need, and yet when they arrived in California, as one of the party said, ”We were alons were loaded, Grandma was safely stoay in her war on its end where she could hold back the door flap that the old lady limpse of her old home--the hard farewells had been said, and now Mr Reed called in as cheery a voice as he could command, ”All aboard!”
Milton Elliott cracked his whip, and the long line of prairie-wagons, horses and cattle started Then cato follow the party to their first night's encainia's schoolh the principal streets of the town until one by one they dropped back froon while they were in sight
The first day's trip was not a long one, as it was thought wise to inia rode on Billy, so ahead with her father A bridge was seen in the distance, and Patty and the boys cried out to Milton, ”Please stop, and let us get out and walk over it; the oxen may not take us across safely!” Milt threw back his head and roared with laughter at such an idea, but he halted to humor them, then with a skilful use of his loud-voiced ”Gee! and Haw!” reat wagons wound its way beyond the town, until the sun was sinking in the west, when they stopped for the night on the ground where the Illinois State House now stands The oxen were then unhitched and the wagons drawn up in a hollow circle or ”corral,”
within the protection of which cattle and horses were set free for the night, while outside the corral a huge caathered for their first evening ether, and their last one with those friends who had come thus far on their ith theroup around the fire, and stories were told and songs sung, which to the radiant Virginia were a foretaste of such co adventure as was beyond her wildest drealow of the camp-fire, with sleepy Patty's head pillowed on her lap, she felt evenTo keep a record of her travels,--that was the thing to do! Full of the idea, she pinned together sheets of wrapping-paper into a bulky blank-book, on the outside of which she printed:
_Going to California 1846_
Froh not a continuous record of the experiences of what came to be known later as ”the ill-fated Donner party of martyr pioneers” And fro to the golden West
By the eleventh day of May the band of erants had reached the town of Independence, Missouri, and Virginia's record says:
”Men and beasts are in fine condition There is nothing in all the world so fascinating as to travel by day in the warht under the stars Here we are just outside the ood news to find a large nuons, ready to cross the prairie with us Who knows, perhaps soether! They all seelad I will get acquainted with ascheerful ones to visit Grandma, for she feels rather hoain, ”The first few days of travel through the Territory of Kansas were lovely The floere so bright and there were soEach day father and I would ride ahead to find a place to caalloped back ould find the wagons halting at a creek, while washi+ng was done or the young people took a swiht, and spread it on the bushes to dry All this is such a peaceful recital that I began to think I need not keep a diary at all, till one hot day when I was in the wagon helping Patty cut out soon, terribly excited and crying out:
”'Indians, Virginia! Come and see! They have to take us across the river!' Out he rushed and I after hihto be an adventure! But there wasn't We had reached the Caw River, where there were Indians to ferry us across They were real and red and terrifying, but I never flinched If they brought out tohter should be But would you believe me, those Indians were as tame as pet canaries, and just shot us across the river without glancing at us, and held out their big hands with a grunt, for the coins! That was one of the greatest disappointments ofthose first weeks of the trip, and no one enjoyed itho Blue river, it was so swollen that they had to lie by and wait for it to go down, orGrandan to fail, and on the 29th of May, with scarcely any pain, she died Virginia's diary says: ”It was hard to comfort mother until I persuaded her that to die out in that lovely country, and withlonger at hofield So mother cheered up a little, while all the party helped us inthe sad preparations A coffin wasray stone slab and cut Grande on it A minister of the party h the trees we buried her under an oak-tree and covered the grave ild flowers Then we had to go on our way and leave dear Grandma in the vast wilderness, which was so hard for mother that for many days I did not take my rides on Billy, but just stayed with her But the landscape was so coan to feel that Grandma was not left alone in the forest, but ith God Strange to say, that grave in the woods has never been disturbed; around it grew up the city of Manhattan, Kansas, and there it is in the city ceo down, as the an to cut down trees and split thes which were hollowed out and joined together by cross timbers, these were firmly lashed to stakes driven into the bank, and ropes were tied to each end to pull the rafts back and forth across the river It was no easy ons down the steep bank to the rafts, and they had to be held back by the ropes and let down slowly so the wheels would run into the hollowed logs The wohed gaily, that they ht not show the fear they felt as they balanced above the swollen river But it was crossed safely and then on the oxen jogged over a rough road until the great Valley of the Platte was reached, where the road was good and the country beautiful beyond expression Virginia says: ”Our party was now so large that there was a line of forty wagons winding its way like a serpent through the valley There was no danger of any kind, and each day was happier than the one before How I enjoyed galloping over the plains on Billy!” she exclai folks would sit around the ca would be heard, or soate of a wagon!”
The caravan wound its sloestward, ht, when the party ca Indians, who, says Virginia, sadly, ”are not like grands, which is annoying but not terrifying”
And she adds, ”We have fine fare for those who like to eat gaood rifle it in” She then confesses, ”I certainly never thought I would be relishi+ng antelope and buffalo steaks, but they are good food when one has grown used to them Often I ride with father in a buffalo hunt, which is very thrilling We all help Eliza, who has turned into a fine camp cook As soon as we reach the place where we are to spend the night all hands get to work, and, ood when that meal is ready! When we drove into the South Fork of the Platte, Eliza had the crea the stream she worked so hard that she turned out several pounds of butter”