Tour of the Gold-fields 231 



more sandy if anything, and towards evening was 

 more of a rolling country. Before we camped for 

 the night we swam "Riley" across a creek about 

 twenty feet wide, and paid one dollar and fifty 

 cents for ourselves and belongings to cross in a sort 

 of canoe, which took us about five minutes. 



At the ferry house was a comfortable looking 

 woman with four little children, one an infant; 

 like the Texans she told us they had plenty of cattle, 

 but only one milch cow, so we went on. 



April 2§th. This morning mounting a slight 

 rise of ground we at once found ourselves on a high 

 dry, too dry, prairie, facing a bracing northwest 

 wind, just strong enough to feel it stirring up our 

 spirits, and we went cheerily on for about eight 

 miles to a bridge, crossed it, and for about two 

 miles had a succession of sloughs to cross, some 

 boggy, some quicksand, others we had to swim. 

 By carefully sounding we kept our packs dry in 

 crossing, and safely reached the back of Murphy's 

 corrall, where I skinned a magpie I had shot, and 

 Layton took a nap. We then went to admire Mr. 

 Murphy's fine stock of brood mares, and the young 

 horses he is raising. At three in the afternoon we 

 packed and left for Sacramento City, keeping to 

 the road for eight miles, when we came to a wood 

 where we collected sufficient fuel for our evening 

 cooking, and went on two miles or so to a lagoon 

 of excellent water, and camped. We had no tent 



