BOTANICAL INFORMATION. 29 



and forms large circular patches, and little less than 2 feet 

 high. Amongst this Opuntia, grow most of that limited 

 number of herbaceous plants which occur here ; the 

 Astragalece 1, 2, 22 and 106 ; Epilobium 45 and 3 ; (Enothera 

 albicaulis and coronopifolia ; Calochortus 68 and 609 ; Hyme- 

 nopappus 141, 142, 214 ; Eriogonum annuum? 151 ; Phaca 

 106 j Cynoglossum 186 and a number of small annual species 

 which were already withered ; Bartonia parviflora n. 663 and 

 368; Castilleja, n. 511 ; Erysimum asperum; Helianthemum 

 petiolaris ; Hosackia Purshiana, very abundant every where ; 

 small shrubs of Iva axillaris, (rare); Owyria? n. 162, (rare); 

 (Enothera 647, (rare). The following plants grow in 

 groups by themselves : Phaca I ; Phaca 22, rarely solitary, 

 with long, very slender creeping roots, binding loose 

 sand-hills ; Cynoglossum 186, and the delicate Epilobium n. 3. 

 The curious annual, n. 80, grew in abundance on the deep 

 sands between Colorado and Bear River. A few other 

 herbaceous common plants are here also to be found, as 

 (Enothera biennis, Erigeron Canadensis, and others as by 

 accident from the neighbouring regions. 



In the Artemisia bushes (wild-sage- plains of the Anglo- 

 American travellers) lives a beautiful gallinaceous bird, the 

 so-called " sage-cock w (Tetrao urophasianus) ; as grey as the 

 Artemisia itself, and the flesh of it as bitter too. It assem- 

 bles in little flocks, seldom more than eight or twelve 

 together, and lives, at least, generally, on the Artemisia 

 leaves. The desert region about the great Salt Lake is the 

 Sierra de los Grallos of the New Mexicans, or Grasshopper 

 Desert ; containing great part of the country of the Shos- 

 honies, Bannak and Eutaw Indians, tribes ever on the 

 move and in the saddle, amongst whom are some of the 

 best horsemen in the world, especially the famous Shosho- 

 nies* or Snake Indians and the Eutaws. The Bannaks, a 



* Those individuals who would enjoy seeing true and well-finished 

 sketches of scenes and scenery of the life and country of this remarkable 

 tribe of Indians, I recommend to apply to the liberality of Sir Wm. D. 

 Stewart at Murthly Castle, Scotland ; who has, at enormous expense. 



