Thirty-One Years on the Plains and in the Mountains, Or, the Last Voice from the Plains: An Authentic Record of a Life Time of Hunting, Trapping, Scouting and Indian Fighting in the Far WestDrannan, William F.
History
Thirty-One Years on the Plains and in the Mountains, Or, the Last Voice from the Plains: An Authentic Record of a Life Time of Hunting, Trapping, Scouting and Indian Fighting in the Far West
Drannan, William F.
Frontier and pioneer life -- West (U.S.); Indians of North America -- Wars
On learning that I had been in California they had many questions
to ask about the gold fields of that noted country. They were
expecting to find gold by the bushel when once there.
This was a large train, there being one hundred and twenty wagons
all told. The next morning I sent out one of my scouts north of
the train, the other one ahead, with instructions to keep from one
to two miles in front, and I went south of the trail that day.
This was done so that if the scouts should see a large band of
Indians they could notify the emigrants and give them a chance to
prepare for the battle, but we experienced no trouble on this
trip.
We were two days traveling from where we met the train to Capt.
Mills' quarters, and from here the Captain sent a sergeant and
twenty men to guide the emigrants through to Col. Elliott's
headquarters.
This kind of work was kept up for about a month, every week, and
sometimes two or three trains of emigrants would pass by, but we
experienced no serious trouble the remainder of the season with
Indians.
During this summer the officers in looking through their glasses
from different high points around, discovered a beautiful valley,
which we afterwards learned was named Thousand Springs Valley.
Capt. Mills came to the conclusion that this valley at this time
of the year was headquarters for the Utes, and not thinking the
distance was so great sent another scout and myself to
investigate.
It may be well to mention the fact here, that in these regions the
air is so rarified and clear that distances are very deceptive,
objects appearing to be much closer than they really are.
We started with three days' rations, and on the third day in the
afternoon we struck the valley, just at its mouth on the desert,
but the water was warm, and we traveled some distance up the
valley, finding the springs numerous, but all warm. We also found
an abundance of grass and plenty of Indian sign, but not fresh. It
appeared that a large number of Indians had wintered there. After
looking the valley over we returned to camp, but by a different
route from the one we came. We saw no Indians or fresh sign of
them until the second day of the return trip, but about two
o'clock we came in sight of four Indians traveling eastward. We
tried to attack them, but our horses being much jaded, the Indians
outrode us, so we had to give up the chase. We were of the opinion
that the four Indians were scouts for a big band making its way to
winter quarters.
A short distance north we secreted our horses in a ravine, and
watched for the Indians from the top of a high hill until noon the
next day, but all in vain, for we did not see an Indian. We
returned to camp, our horses worn out and half starved. The part
of country we passed over on this trip is now the most
northeastern portion of Nevada, and just what it is good for I
have never been able to learn.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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