ELDORADO 95 



conditions a light breeze came down the desert from 

 the north, passing over salty criistations, the inhaling 

 of which parched the tongue like leather. 



The last ten or twelve miles were a dead level, 

 hard and smooth as a pavement and hot as a furnace ; 

 it was every man for himself in the struggle to reach 

 water, and we were scattered along several miles. As 

 it happened I was in the lead, and three or four miles 

 before reaching the foot of the peak I left my ponies 

 and pulled out for water. They stopped at once and 

 stood with drooping heads. I had gone perhaps a mile, 

 when in the distance I noticed a mule and rider ap- 

 proaching. As soon as we met a canteen of good fresh 

 water was passed to me. How few prize God's good 

 gifts of nature until deprived of them. The rider had 

 been sent out by those who had preceded us with the 

 guides, knowing that much suffering would be expe- 

 rienced by those who followed. The young man sup- 

 plied those in need until his canteens were emptied. 

 Other relief parties were sent out with instructions that 

 no compensation under anv circumstances should be 

 taken. I returned at once for my ponies and succeeded 

 in reaching a good camping place at the foot of Pilot's 

 Peak with plenty of grass and good spring water. All 

 had filed in by 5 o'clock p. m.. some with swollen 

 tongues, but all in fine spirits. We had been twenty- 

 seven hours on the desert ; traveling time twentv-four. 

 Here we remained two davs and three nijrhts. when 

 another fortv mile sti'etch of the same kind was en- 

 countered, making this the only little oasis in traveling 

 130 miles. 



