_August 22._--Left El Paso at three o’clock, a. m., and found the roads heavy all the way along the river. Succeeded in reaching Fort Fillmore at six o’clock, p. m., after a day’s work of forty-two miles. I found the train encamped ready for departure, only waiting my arrival with the mail. We examined the Rio Grande to-night, preparatory to crossing; found the river not fordable, and also found there would be too much risk in attempting to ferry over in the night; thus we are unwillingly compelled to remain encamped on the east bank until to-morrow morning. Another source of trouble was my carriages; I found that neither of those I now had were fit to go on the road. Those we had originally purchased, two of which I brought up with me, were too heavy for the mules, while the two I now had were not strong enough to carry the required loads. In this dilemma I despatched two men to Las Cruces, six miles above Fort Fillmore, giving them orders to purchase at any fair price, if suited to our purpose, a second-hand carriage which we heard was there for sale. My messengers returned about two o’clock in the morning with an old ambulance, which answered a good purpose all the way to San Diego. By setting the axletrees of one of my other carriages I thought to secure two, which would answer a temporary purpose. Made 44 miles to-day. _August 23._--We commenced crossing the river at about sunrise. Our method was this: we placed all our baggage and mails in skiffs, and ferrying them over in the first place, then swam our mules, and lastly the carriages were crossed, by placing the wheels of one side of the carriage on one skiff, and those of the other side in another skiff, and poling them along; on reaching the other side we pulled the carriage up the steep bank by man power. At the town of Mesilla, which is situated some four miles from the ferry, I had to purchase yet another carriage in place of one of mine, the axeltrees of which proved entirely too light. This made four carriages I had purchased since arriving in the Rio Grande valley, before getting two which were even temporarily fit for carrying the mail. We finally got away from Mesilla at 11 o’clock, a. m. In consequence of the muddy state of the roads across the valley, which was here one continuous cornfield for some half dozen miles, we made very slow progress. The _Mesa_, so called, rises very abruptly after you cross the valley, and we pass to the left of this _Mesa_ through some one of its numerous cañons or gorges. The only road accessible at this time to wagons was so dimly defined that we missed our way and consumed all of the afternoon in trying to get to the top of the _Mesa_, and ended in being compelled to return to the village of “Pechacio,” where we passed the night. Made 8 miles to-day.