"The Frenchman informed us that he had never seen so many buffaloes on the route before as there were this season and that several times the traders were compelled to stop while the herds passed. We saw many deer and antelope today and a few buffaloes. At night we camped near a herd a short distance from us. We also afterwards learned that the alarm of the 3rd about the four hundred Indian warriors was a false one, and that a man had been frightened by a herd of antelope. He supposed them in the distance to be Indians." The decision to keep the north bank of the Platte was justified by the needs of the people in the movements of subsequent companies, and the general lay of the country. Later, when the engineer applied the accuracy of his instrument to the scientific methods of road building, the old "Mormon Trail," as it was popularly called, was chosen for the Union Pacific Railroad which {278} covered that "trail" for hundreds of miles. In the years of follow there was a rush to the gold fields of California. The frontiers-men of Illinois and Missouri who had given the Saints so much trouble were among the gold seekers. It was the part of wisdom to have between them and the migrating Saints the Platte River. On May 5th a guard was kept in advance to keep the buffaloes from mixing with the cattle. In the afternoon, one cow and five calves were killed. A wounded bull calf was brought into camp with the intention of keeping it. It was true to its instincts and bunted men and dogs about whenever it could reach them. The day following, it died. "We stopped for the night, but found the grass on fire and had to return a mile, and then camped on the bank of the river on a spot which had escaped the flames. Some, however, took their horses on to an island near by in the river and cut down cottonwoods, from the barks of which they fed." On the morning of the 6th, an early start was made; and the camp, after traveling three miles, stopped where the grass was better for breakfast. "This morning the herds of buffaloes were numerous on both sides of the river and the antelope were in great abundance, some of which ran into camp. A young buffalo calf also came in and followed us. We gave it some milk and left it.