and now, at 12 o'clock, while the barometer stood at 25.920, the attached
thermometer was at 108 deg.. Our Cheyennes had learned that with the Arapaho
village were about twenty lodges of their own, including their own
families; they therefore immediately commenced making their toilette.
After bathing in the river, they invested themselves in some handsome
calico shirts, which I afterwards learned they had stolen from my own men,
and spent some time in arranging their hair and painting themselves with
some vermilion I had given them. While they were engaged in this
satisfactory manner, one of their half-wild horses, to which the crowd of
prancing animals which had just passed had recalled the freedom of her
existence among the wild droves on the prairie, suddenly dashed into the
hills at the top of her speed. She was their pack-horse, and had on her
back all the worldly wealth of our poor Cheyennes, all their
accoutrements, and all the little articles which they had picked up among
us, with some few presents I had given them. The loss which they seemed to
regret most were their spears and shields, and some tobacco which they had
received from me. However, they bore it all with the philosophy of an
Indian, and laughingly continued their toilette. They appeared, however,
to be a little mortified at the thought of returning to the village in
such a sorry plight. "Our people will laugh at us," said one of them,
"returning to the village on foot, instead of driving back a drove of
Pawnee horses." He demanded to know if I loved my sorrel hunter very much;
to which I replied, he was the object of my most intense affection. Far
from being able to give, I was myself in want of horses; and any
suggestion of parting with the few I had valuable, was met with a
peremptory refusal. In the mean time, the slaughter was about to commence
on the other side. So soon as they reached it, Indians separated into two
bodies. One party proceeded across the prairie, towards the hills, in an
extended line, while the other went up the river; and instantly as they
had given the wind to the herd, the chase commenced. The buffalo started