that they fought on, utterly regardless of our presence although on foot
and on horseback we were firing, in open view, within twenty yards of
them. But this did not last long. In a very few seconds, we created a
commotion among them. One or two, which were knocked over by the balls,
jumped up and ran off into the hills; and they began to retreat slowly
along a broad ravine to the river, fighting furiously as they went. By the
time they had reached the bottom, we had pretty well dispersed them, and
the old bull hobbled off to lie down somewhere. One of his enemies
remained on the ground where we had first fired upon them, and we stopped
there for a short time to cut from him some meat for our supper. We had
neglected to secure our horses, thinking it an unnecessary precaution in
their fatigued condition; but our mule took it into his head to start, and
away he went, followed at full speed by the pack-horse, with all the
baggage and instruments on his back. They were recovered and brought back,
after a chase of a mile. Fortunately, everything was well secured, so that
nothing, not even the barometer, was in the least injured.

The sun was getting low, and some narrow lines of timber, four or five
miles distant, promised us a pleasant camp, where, with plenty of wood for
fire, and comfortable shelter, and rich grass for our animals, we should
find clear cool springs, instead of the warm water of the Platte. On our
arrival, we found the bed of a stream fifty to one hundred feet wide, sunk
some thirty feet below the level of the prairie, with perpendicular banks,
bordered by a fringe of green cottonwood, but not a drop of water. There
were several small forks to the stream, all in the same condition. With
the exception of the Platte bottom, the country seemed to be of a clay
formation, dry, and perfectly devoid of any moisture, and baked hard by
the sun. Turning off towards the river, we reached the bank in about a
mile, and were delighted to find an old tree, with thick foliage and
spreading branches, where we encamped. At sunset, the barometer was at