AMONG THE MORMON SETTLEMENTS. 121 



pleasantly all through the long and trying journey with these 

 men. 



We were to go the southern route, which leads through the 

 lower settlements, and then takes across the Great Sandy 

 Desert via the Santa Fe trail, emerging onto the Pacific at 

 San Pedro, which is eight hundred miles southwest from Salt 

 Lake. This route is only traveled in the winter season, as it 

 is nearly impassable during the summer on account of the 

 extreme heat. The northern route, which is far the shorter 

 and more traveled of the two, strikes towards the north from 

 Salt Lake City, along the eastern shore of the lake to its upper 

 extremity, when it runs a westwardly course until it reaches the 

 Humboldt River, which it follows down to its sink; it then 

 crosses over to Carson River and enters Carson Valley, along 

 the western edge of which lies the Sierra Nevada. The road 

 then crosses these mountains, and branches off in different 

 directions towards the various mining camps. This road, which 

 we would otherwise have traveled, was rendered unpassable 

 by snow, so that we were under the necessity of taking the 

 other route. Our departure was to have taken place on the 

 11th, but on various accounts we did not get under way until 

 the afternoon of the 12th, when, with twenty passengers and 

 their accoutrements closely crammed in our rude conveyances, 

 we gladly turned our backs upon and said farewell to the 

 Salty City. Passing mainly over the same road which we had 

 followed in our march from Camp Floyd, we encamped in the 

 afternoon of the 13th inside the walls of Lehi. In the evening 

 we were treated to a serenade from a juvenile Mormon band. 

 Prominent among the strains of melody which they rolled out 

 upon the still night air was " The Girl I Left Behind Me," an 

 air which had its due effects on the minds of its rough audience, 

 as it brought up old recollections of times gone by. The 

 musicians were stationed in the plaza, or public square, and 

 as the music, which was extremely well executed, reached our 

 8 



