ahead a few hundred yards. 'Life yet,' said he, as he came up,
'life yet; I have found a hillside sprinkled with grass enough for
the night.' We drove along our horses, and encamped at the place
about dark, and there was just room enough to make a place for
shelter on the edge of the stream. Three horses were lost today --
Proveau; a fine young horse from the Columbia, belonging to Charles
Towns; and another Indian horse which carried our cooking utensils;
the two former gave out, and the latter strayed off into the woods
as we reached the camp: and Derosier knowing my attachment to
Proveau, volunteered to go and bring him in.

"Carson and I climbed one of the nearest mountains; the forest land
still extended ahead, and the valley appeared as far as ever. The
pack horse was found near the camp, but Derosier did not get in.

"We began to be uneasy at Derosier's absence, fearing he might
have been bewildered in the woods. Charles Towns, who had not yet
recovered his mind, went to swim in the river, as if it was summer,
and the stream placid, when it was a cold mountain torrent foaming
among the rocks. We were happy to see Derosier appear in the evening.
He came in, and sitting down by the fire, began to tell us where
he had been. He imagined he had been gone several days, and thought
we were still at the camp where he had left us; and we were pained
to see that his mind was deranged. It appeared that he had been
lost in the mountain, and hunger and fatigue, joined to weakness
of body, and fear of perishing in the mountains had crazed him. The
times were severe when stout men lost their minds from extremity of
suffering -- when horses died -- and when mules and horses, ready
to die of starvation, were killed for food. Yet there was no
murmuring or hesitation. In the meantime Mr. Preuss continued on