Tuesday, 29th. After some detention in seeking a troublesome horse that had strayed, we again proceeded forward fasting. This abstinence, to which we have been several times subjected, affects one of our party in a singular and uniform manner; his voice becomes hollow-toned, and his hearing much impaired, a state that is popularly known, as he expresses it, by the phrase of _the almonds of the ears_ being _down_. We pursued the Indian path a considerable distance this morning; but as its course continued its divergence from the river, and we were fearful of deviating too far, we abandoned it, and by an oblique course endeavoured to regain the river. Here, however, the undergrowth being almost impervious, induced our return to the path, which we again attained near an Indian hunting camp of the past season, situated in a beautiful prairie, near a gently swelling hill. Here finding a little water in a ravine puddle, we halted, and served out a stinted ration of dried meat to each individual instead of dinner, which, so far from gratifying, tended to stimulate our desire of food. {96} Having been some days entirely destitute of tobacco in any shape, those of the party who are habituated to the use of it experienced an additional formidable privation. One of the men, who was erroneously supposed to have still a remnant of the precious stimulant in his possession, was heard to reply to an earnest and most humble petition for a small taste of it, or to be allowed to apply his tongue to it:--"Every man chaws his own tobacco, and them that hasn't any chaws leaves."