ncnflTY OF THE ARKANSAfl. Ml 



fliiee or four mUes, retaining for a considerable distance th« distinguiihing 

 tTa\ts before described. 



The vicinity affords an abundance of game, among which are deer, 

 aheep, bear, antelope, elk, and buffalo, togetlier with turkeys, geese, ducks, 

 grome, mountain-fowls, and rabbits. 



Aflbrding, as it does, such magnificent and delightful scenery; such 

 rich scores for the supply of human wants, both to please the taste and en 

 raptui^ the heart : so heaven-like in its appearance and character, it ia no 

 wonde? the untaught savage reveres it as the place wherein tlie Good 

 Spirit delights to dwell, and hastens with his free-will oflerings to the 

 •trange fountain, in the full belief tliat its bubbling waters are the more 

 immedia\e impersonation of Him whom he adores. 



But, there are other scenes adjoining tliis, that demand a passing notice. 

 A few miles above Fontaine qui Bouit, and running parallel with the east- 

 em base o( the mountain range, several hundred yards removed from 

 it, a wall of coarse, rcd granite (quite friable and constantly abrading) 

 towers to a vajied height of from fifty to three hundred feet. 



This wall is formed of immense strata, planted vertically and not ex- 

 ceeding eight feet in thickness, with frequent openings — so arranged as to 

 describe a complete line. 



The soil in which they appear is of a reddish loam, almost entirely des- 

 titute of other rock, even to their very base. 



This mural tier ia isolated, and occupies its prairie site in silent majesty. 

 as if to guard the approaches to the stupendous monuments of nature's 

 handiwork that form the back-ground, disclosing itself to the beholder for 

 a distance of more than thirty miles. 



CHAPTER X\J. 



Vicinity of the Arkaniaa. — Settlement.— The Piiebio.— Rio San Carlos, ite valleya 

 and scenery. — Shooting by moonlight. — Taos. — Review of the country travelled 

 over. — ^Tao8 ; its vicinity, scenery, and mines. — Rancbos and Rancheros. — Mexi- 

 can houses ; their domestic economy, and filth. — Abject poverty and deplorable 

 condition of the lower classes of Mexicans, with a general review of their char 

 acter, and some of the causes contributing to their present degradation.— The Pue 

 bio Indians and their strange notion.s. — Ancient temple. — Character of the Pueblos 

 —Journey to the Uintah river, and observations by the way.— Taos Utahe, Pa- 

 utahs, Uintah and Lake Utahs. —The Diggers; misery of their situation, stra-ige 

 mode of Uving, with a sketch of their character.— The Navijos ; their civiUzation, 

 koetillty to Spaniards, ludicrous barbarity, bravery, &c., with a sketch of their 

 country, and why they are less favorable to the whites than formerly. 



Thb Arkansas at tliis point is a clear and beautiful stream, about one 



hundred and fifty yards wide. It flows over a bed of rock and pebbles, 



with a rapid current, averaging two feet in depth. Its soutiiern bank is 



steep and inducts to a high sandy prairie, which present a somewoat et^- 



19* 



