74 A CALIFORNIA TRAMP. 



usual surroundings of Indian lodges, which was near our 

 corral, gave the thirstier portion of our company a chance to 

 " fire up," and under the influence of the miserable stuff, there 

 dealt out at the rate of twenty-five cents a drink, they were 

 soon forgetting their troubles in this fiery Lethe. 



Following up the valley, we at last left it and struck up a 

 long dry caiion which led to the valley of the Platte. The 

 scenery along the route was very striking and picturesque. 

 The Black Hills arose irregularl}^ on our left in huge, black 

 billows, above which towered the cloud-capped summit of 

 Mt. Laramie, which was for a long time visible ; but it was at 

 last hid from view by high ridges which arose between us, the 

 whole range enveloped in the hazy atmosphere of the Indian 

 summer. We again reached the valley of the Platte, and at 

 nightfall encamped about a half a mile from the river on a 

 sandy bottom and near a fine grove of cotton-woods. 



The next morning we made an early start, and soon reached 

 the first crossing of the Platte about a mile distant. The bed 

 of the river is here about fifteen hundred feet wide, and owing 

 to its deep, sandy banks is in a few places fordable. The 

 stream, which during the spring freshets often fills its banks, 

 was not more than three hundred feet in width now, and by 

 doubling teams we soon crossed it, and proceeded on our way 

 up the valley, the vegetation of which was all dried and 

 withered by the drought. Proceeding over a road filled with 

 deep sand, we came in the afternoon to a group of buttes, 

 through which the trail winds, and extricating ourselves 

 from amongst them, we encamped after night on a desolate 

 plateau overlooking the river. 



We reached the second crossing of the Platte the next morn- 

 ing. This was a difficult place to ford, the shores being some 

 twenty feet high and exceedingly steep, while the bottom was 

 a bed of yielding sand. After crossing, we stopped a short 

 time to breakfast, when we again started, and passing around 



