We continued our journey for about a week, and crossed a number of small streams, which ran into the Puerco, till one noon we reached another rivulet, on whose shady bank we resolved to rest. From this point we surveyed in the south a large forest which ran across our road from the eastern mountains to the Puerco, while we saw above it distant ranges of mountains running in the same direction, which we saluted as the San Saba Mountains. These were the only ranges that separated us from home, and full of desire of them as old friends, we saddled toward evening, and at midnight entered the forest, which we had seen before us ever since our midday halt. The moon had hitherto distinctly shown us the buffalo paths, but here her rule was at an end, and only now and then did a ray fall through the lofty masses of foliage which now roofed us over. We stopped on a very trampled path, which we could not follow, however, through the forest, for even if our cattle kept the road, the creepers hanging over it rendered our progress difficult. Our cattle were very thirsty, and as we had no doubt of finding water in the forest depths, we resolved to try and reach it. We dismounted, gathered dry grass, out of which Owl and Tiger twisted torches, one of which we lit, and then pressed on, leading our horses. We had not gone more than one hundred yards into the forest when Tiger cried that he was at the river, and shortly after we led our thirsty horses down the bank and refreshed them in the cool stream: we filled our gourds and returned by the same road to the prairie, where we fastened up our cattle in the grass and lit our fire. As the horses were very hungry we did not drive them out of the grass, but set a sentry over them who was relieved every half hour. At daybreak we shot turkeys in the wood for breakfast, bathed in the adjoining river, and then fetched up the sleep we had lost in the night.