THE MISSOURI RIVER JOURNALS 3 I 



I parted from him really with sorrow, for I have found 

 him all I could wish during the whole passage; and his 

 position is no sinecure, to say naught of the rabble under 

 his control. All the wood-cutters who remained walked 

 off by the road ; and we went back in the wagon over a 

 bad piece of ground — much easier, however, than return- 

 ing on foot. As we reached the prairies, we travelled 

 faster, and passed by the late garden of the fort, which 

 had been abandoned on account of the thieving of the 

 men attached to the Opposition Company, at Fort Mor- 

 timer. Harris caught a handsome snake, now in spirits. 

 We saw Lazuli Finches and several other sorts of small 

 birds. Upon reaching the fort, from which many great 

 guns were fired as salutes to the steamer, which were 

 loudly returned, I was amused at the terror the firing 

 occasioned to the squaws and their children, who had 

 arrived in great numbers the previous evening; they 

 howled, fell down on the earth, or ran in every direc- 

 tion. All the dogs started off, equally frightened, and 

 made for the distant hills. Dinner not being ready, 

 three of us took a walk, and saw a good number of 

 Tamias holes, many cacti of two sorts, and some plants 

 hitherto uncollected by us. We saw a few Arctic Ground 

 Finches and two Wolves. After dinner Mr. Culbertson 

 told us that if a Wolf made its appearance on the 

 prairie near the fort, he would give it chase on horse- 

 back, and bring it to us, alive or dead ; and he was as 

 good as his word. It was so handsomely executed, that 

 I will relate the whole affair. When I saw the Wolf 

 (a white one), it was about a quarter of a mile off, 

 alternately standing and trotting; the horses were about 

 one-half the distance off. A man was started to drive 

 these in ; and I thought the coursers never would reach 

 the fort, much less become equipped so as to overhaul 

 the Wolf. We were all standing on the platform of the 

 fort, with our heads only above the palisades; and I 



