56 THE PLAINS. 



ravine represented on the map to be a gorge impassable 

 for waggons. To an inexperienced plainsman the difficulties 

 in a journey from A to B would be insurmountable, yet 

 by following the dotted line it will be seen that it is 

 made without a single ravine. In the same way every 

 point on the river B can be reached from any point of 

 the river A without crossing a ravine. The map will 

 also show how easy it is to gain the ' principal divide ' 

 going up from either stream, and how many cul-de-sacs 

 constantly threaten the traveller going down from the 

 ' principal divide ' to either. The difficulty, however, is 

 not so great as it appears. A good plainsman can 

 generally tell from the ' lay of the land ' which is the 

 proper ' divide ' to follow. 



I received my best lesson in plains craft from a 

 Pawnee Indian, who took a party under my command, 

 with waggons, without delay, or the slightest accident, 

 over a section of 'bad lands' which, after examination, 

 I believed utterly impassable. The ' divide ' followed 

 was extremely tortuous and narrow ; in one place so very 

 narrow as to require skilful driving for the passage of the 

 waggons, the ravines on each side being generally per- 

 pendicular banks from thirty to eighty feet deep. 



In the buffalo region the crossing of ' divides ' by 

 waggon trains is greatly simplified. The buffalo always 

 travel on 4 divides ' when crossing from one stream to 

 another, and nine times out of ten a waggon can follow 

 wherever a well-marked buffalo trail may lead. 



To persons unaccustomed to plains life, who come 

 out on short visits of business or pleasure, the likelihood 

 of getting lost from party or camp is a serious drawback. 

 Every such person should provide himself, before starting 

 on the journey, with a compass and an outline map of 

 the country which he proposes to visit. The most ser- 

 viceable compass for such use is a not too freely balanced 

 needle, contained in a circular brass box about two 

 inches in diameter, with a spring to unship the needle 





