102 SADDLE AND CAMP 



ter crossing the river at Tolchaco we had en- 

 countered several of these herds. The Nava- 

 jos are a pastoral people, and their flocks of 

 sheep and goats are their chief source of live- 

 lihood. The wool is manufactured by the 

 women into the famous Navajo blankets, 

 though the Indians are now selling large quan- 

 tities of wool to traders, and doubtless a few 

 years hence blanket making will be a lost art 

 among them. This was the last herd which we 

 met on our journey. 



At the point where the trail leaves the Little 

 Colorado we found some pools, the water yel- 

 low with adobe dirt. Here our canteens were 

 filled and the horses were watered for the last 

 time before reaching the Tuba oasis. Not far 

 beyond this point the old emigrant trail joins 

 the mail road from Flagstaff to Tuba, and 

 thenceforward we found traveling much im- 

 proved. The junction of the trails is ninety 

 miles from Winslow and thirty miles from 

 Tuba. The latter is a government station and 

 Indian school, situated upon the mesa rising 

 above the Moen Copie Canon on the north side. 



The scenery between the Little Colorado and 

 the Moen Copie is exceedingly picturesque. 

 Pink-and-gray cliffs cut the skyline with ser- 

 rated ridges, and from the higher points along 



