96 LIFE IN THE FAR WEST 



Pass. So gradual is the ascent of this portion of the moun- 

 tain, that the traveller can scarcely believe he is crossing 

 the dividing ridge between the waters which flow into the 

 Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, and that in a few minutes 

 he can fling two sticks into two neighbouring streams, 

 one to be carried thousands of miles, traversed by the 

 eastern waters in their course to the Gulf of Mexico, the 

 other to be borne a lesser distance to the Gulf of 

 California. 



The country is frequented by the Crows and Snakes, 

 who are at perpetual war with the Shians and Sioux, 

 following them often far down the Platte, where many 

 bloody battles have taken place. The Crows are 

 esteemed friendly to the whites ; but when* on war 

 expeditions, and " hair " their object, it is always 

 dangerous to fall in with Indian war-parties, and par- 

 ticularly in the remote regions of the mountains, where 

 they do not anticipate retaliation. 



Trapping with tolerable success in this vicinity, the 

 hunters crossed over, as soon as the premonitory storms 

 of approaching winter warned them to leave the moun- 

 tains, to the waters of Green River, one of the affluents 

 of the Colorado, intending to winter at a rendezvous to 

 be held in " Brown's Hole " an enclosed valley so 

 called which, abounding in game, and sheltered on 

 every side by lofty mountains, is a favourite wintering- 

 ground of the mountaineers. Here they found several 

 trapping bands already arrived ; and a trader from the 

 Uintah country, with store of powder, lead, and tobacco, 

 prepared to ease them of their hard-earned peltries. 



