108 IN THE OLD WEST 



curly buffalo grass, and their animals soon im- 

 proved in appearance on the excellent pasture. 

 In a few days, without any adventure, they struck 

 the Platte River, its shallow waters (from which 

 it derives its name) spreading over a wide and 

 sandy bed, numerous sand-bars obstructing the 

 sluggish current, nowhere sufficiently deep to wet 

 the forder's knee. 



By this time, but few antelope having been seen, 

 the party ran entirely out of meat; and one whole 

 day and part of another having passed without 

 so much as a stray rabbit presenting itself, not 

 a few objurgations on the buffalo grumbled from 

 the lips of the hunters, who expected ere this to 

 have reached the land of plenty. La Bonte killed 

 a fine deer, however, in the river bottom, after they 

 had encamped, not one particle of which remained 

 after supper that night, but which hardly took the 

 rough edge off their keen appetites. Although 

 already in the buffalo range, no traces of these 

 animals had yet been seen ; and as the country 

 afforded but little game, and the party did not 

 care to halt and lose time in hunting for it, they 

 moved along hungry and sulky, the theme of con- 

 versation being the well-remembered merits of 

 good buffalo-meat, — of fat fleece, hump-rib, and 

 tenderloin ; of delicious " boudins," and marrow- 

 bones too good to think of. La Bonte had never 

 seen the lordly animal, and consequently but half 

 believed the accounts of the mountaineers, Avho de- 



