thence "north by west through the woods," by way of the ford of
the Tangipahoa, Cooper's Plantation, Tickfaw River, Amite River,
and the "Hurricane" (the path of a tornado) to the beginning of
the Apalousa country. This tangled region of stunted growth was
reputed to be seven miles in width from "shore to shore" and
three hundred miles in length. It took the party half a day to
reach the opposite "shore," and they had to quench their thirst
on the way with dew.

At Natchez, Baily organized a party which included the five
"Dutchmen" whose horse boat had proved a failure. For their
twenty-one days' journey to Nashville the party laid in the
following provisions: 15 pounds of biscuit, 6 pounds of flour, 12
pounds of bacon, 10 pounds of dried beef, 8 pounds of rice, 1 1/2
pounds of coffee, 4 pounds of sugar, and a quantity of pounded
corn, such as the Indians used on all their journeys. After
celebrating the Fourth of July, 1797, with "all the inhabitants
who were hostile to the Spanish Government," and bribing the
baker at the Spanish fort to bake them a quarter of a
hundredweight of bread, the party started on their northward
journey.

They reached without incident the famous Grindstone Ford of Bayou
Pierre, where crayfishes had destroyed a pioneer dam. Beyond, at
the forks of the path where the Choctaw Trail bore off to the
cast the party pursued the alternate Chickasaw Trail by Indian
guidance, and soon noted the change in the character of the soil
from black loam to sandy gravel, which indicated that they had
reached the Piedmont region. Indian marauders stole one horse
from the camp, and three of the party fell ill. The others,