Part 1 (2/2)
This road has received a large amount of travel since 1849, is well tracked and defined, and, excepting about twenty miles of ”hog wallow prairie” near Powder-horn, it is an excellent road for carriages and wagons. It pa.s.ses through a settled country for 250 miles, and within this section supplies can be had at reasonable rates.
At Victoria and San Antonio many fine stores will be found, well supplied with large stocks of goods, embracing all the articles the traveler will require.
The next route to the north is that over which the semi-weekly mail to California pa.s.ses, and which, for a great portion of the way to New Mexico, I traveled and recommended in 1849. This road leaves the Arkansas River at Fort Smith, to which point steamers run during the seasons of high water in the winter and spring.
Supplies of all descriptions necessary for the overland journey may be procured at Fort Smith, or at Van Buren on the opposite side of the Arkansas. Horses and cattle are cheap here. The road, on leaving Fort Smith, pa.s.ses through the Choctaw and Chickasaw country for 180 miles, then crosses Red River by ferry-boat at Preston, and runs through the border settlements of northern Texas for 150 miles, within which distances supplies may be procured at moderate prices.
This road is accessible to persons desiring to make the entire journey with their own transportation from Tennessee or Mississippi, by crossing the Mississippi River at Memphis or Helena, pa.s.sing Little Rock, and thence through Was.h.i.+ngton County, intersecting the road at Preston. It may also be reached by taking steamers up Red River to Shreveport or Jefferson, from either of which places there are roads running through a populated country, and intersecting the Fort Smith road near Preston.
This road also unites with the San Antonio road at El Paso, and from that point they pa.s.s together over the mountains to Fort Yuma and to San Francisco in California.
Another road leaves Fort Smith and runs up the south side of the Canadian River to Santa Fe and Albuquerque in New Mexico.
This route is set down upon most of the maps of the present day as having been discovered and explored by various persons, but my own name seems to have been carefully excluded from the list. Whether this omission has been intentional or not, I leave for the authors to determine. I shall merely remark that I had the command and entire direction of an expedition which in 1849 discovered, explored, located, and marked out this identical wagon road from Fort Smith, Arkansas, to Santa Fe, New Mexico, and that this road, for the greater portion of the distance, is the same that has been since recommended for a Pacific railway.
This road, near Albuquerque, unites with Captain Whipple's and Lieutenant Beall's roads to California.
Another road, which takes its departure from Fort Smith and pa.s.ses through the Cherokee country, is called the ”Cherokee Trail.” It crosses Grand River at Fort Gibson, and runs a little north of west to the Verdigris River, thence up the valley of this stream on the north side for 80 miles, when it crosses the river, and, taking a northwest course, strikes the Arkansas River near old Fort Mann, on the Santa Fe trace; thence it pa.s.ses near the base of Pike's Peak, and follows down Cherry Creek from its source to its confluence with the South Platte, and from thence over the mountains into Utah, and on to California via Fort Bridger and Salt Lake City.
For persons who desire to go from the Southern States to the gold diggings in the vicinity of Cherry Creek, this route is shorter by some 300 miles than that from Fort Smith via Fort Leavenworth. It is said to be an excellent road, and well supplied with the requisites for encamping. It has been traveled by large parties of California emigrants for several years, and is well tracked and defined.
The gra.s.s upon all the roads leaving Fort Smith is sufficiently advanced to afford sustenance to animals by the first of April, and from this time until winter sets in it is abundant. The next route on the north leaves the Missouri River at Westport, Leavenworth City, Atcheson, or from other towns above, between either of which points and St. Louis steamers ply during the entire summer season.
The necessary outfit of supplies can always be procured at any of the starting-points on the Missouri River at moderate rates.
This is the great emigrant route from Missouri to California and Oregon, over which so many thousands have traveled within the past few years. The track is broad, well worn, and can not be mistaken. It has received the major part of the Mormon emigration, and was traversed by the army in its march to Utah in 1857.
At the point where this road crosses the South Platte River, Lieutenant Bryan's road branches off to the left, leading through Bridger's Pa.s.s, and thence to Fort Bridger. The Fort Kearney route to the gold region near Pike's Peak also leaves the emigrant road at this place and runs up the South Platte.
From Fort Bridger there are two roads that may be traveled with wagons in the direction of California; one pa.s.sing Salt Lake City, and the other running down Bear River to Soda Springs, intersecting the Salt Lake City road at the City of Rocks. Near Soda Springs the Oregon road turns to the right, pa.s.sing Fort Hall, and thence down Snake River to Fort Wallah-Wallah. Unless travelers have business in Salt Lake Valley, I would advise them to take the Bear River route, as it is much shorter, and better in every respect. The road, on leaving the Missouri River, pa.s.ses for 150 miles through a settled country where grain can be purchased cheap, and there are several stores in this section where most of the articles required by travelers can be obtained.
Many persons who have had much experience in prairie traveling prefer leaving the Missouri River in March or April, and feeding grain to their animals until the new gra.s.s appears. The roads become muddy and heavy after the spring rains set in, and by starting out early the worst part of the road will be pa.s.sed over before the ground becomes wet and soft. This plan, however, should never be attempted unless the animals are well supplied with grain, and kept in good condition. They will eat the old gra.s.s in the spring, but it does not, in this climate, as in Utah and New Mexico, afford them sufficient sustenance.
The gra.s.s, after the 1st of May, is good and abundant upon this road as far as the South Pa.s.s, from whence there is a section of about 50 miles where it is scarce; there is also a scarcity upon the desert beyond the sink of the Humboldt. As large numbers of cattle pa.s.s over the road annually, they soon consume all the gra.s.s in these barren localities, and such as pa.s.s late in the season are likely to suffer greatly, and oftentimes perish from starvation. When I came over the road in August, 1858, I seldom found myself out of sight of dead cattle for 500 miles along the road, and this was an unusually favorable year for gra.s.s, and before the main body of animals had pa.s.sed for that season.
Upon the head of the Sweet.w.a.ter River, and west of the South Pa.s.s, alkaline springs are met with, which are exceedingly poisonous to cattle and horses. They can readily be detected by the yellowish-red color of the gra.s.s growing around them. Animals should never be allowed to graze near them or to drink the water.
ORGANIZATION OF COMPANIES.
After a particular route has been selected to make the journey across the plains, and the requisite number have arrived at the eastern terminus, their first business should be to organize themselves into a company and elect a commander. The company should be of sufficient magnitude to herd and guard animals, and for protection against Indians.
From 50 to 70 men, properly armed and equipped, will be enough for these purposes, and any greater number only makes the movements of the party more c.u.mbersome and tardy.
In the selection of a captain, good judgment, integrity of purpose, and practical experience are the essential requisites, and these are indispensable to the harmony and consolidation of the a.s.sociation. His duty should be to direct the order of march, the time of starting and halting, to select the camps, detail and give orders to guards, and, indeed, to control and superintend all the movements of the company.
An obligation should then be drawn up and signed by all the members of the a.s.sociation, wherein each one should bind himself to abide in all cases by the orders and decisions of the captain, and to aid him by every means in his power in the execution of his duties; and they should also obligate themselves to aid each other, so as to make the individual interest of each member the common concern of the whole company. To insure this, a fund should be raised for the purchase of extra animals to supply the places of those which may give out or die on the road; and if the wagon or team of a particular member should fail and have to be abandoned, the company should obligate themselves to transport his luggage, and the captain should see that he has his share of transportation equal with any other member. Thus it will be made the interest of every member of the company to watch over and protect the property of others as well as his own.
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