14 



day night came and brought no token of him, his son and Mr. John Stepp 

 immediately started on Thursday morning to Caney River in search of him. 

 On arriving at Mr. Thos. Wilson's, v\rhat vras their astonishment and dis- 

 may to learn that he had neither been seen nor heard of in that settle- 

 ment ! They immediately returned to Mr. Stepp's, the alarm was given, 

 and before sundown on Friday evening companies of the ha^dy mountai- 

 neers- from the North Fork of the Swannanoa were on their way up the 

 mountain. The writer, happening to be present on a visit to the Black, 

 joined the first company that went up. About eighteen persons camped 

 at the Mountain Housq that evening, and continued accessions were made 

 to our party during the night, by the good citizens of that neighborhood, 

 Tvho turned out at the call of humanity as fast as they heard the alarm, 

 some from their fields, some from working on the road, and all without a 

 moment's hesitation. Early on Saturday morning our party under the 

 command of Mr. Fred Burnett and his sons, all experienced hunters, and 

 Jesse Stepp and others who were familiar with the mountains, struck out 

 for the Baain top, and began the search by scouring the woods on the left 

 hand or Caney River side of the trail that runs along the top. We continu- 

 ed on this way to the highest peak without discovering any traces what- 

 ever of his passage, when our company became so scattered into small 

 parties that no further systematic search could be made that day. But 

 directly in our rear as we came up the mountain was Mr. Eldridge Bur- 

 nett with some more of his neighbors, who had come from their houses 

 that morning ; and hearing a report that Dr. Mitchell had expressed his 

 intention of striking a bee line from the top for the settlements without 

 following the blazed trail way- to Caney River, they searched for signs in 

 that direction, and soon found a trail in the «oft moss and fern that was 

 believed to have been made by him, and followed it until it came to the 

 first fork of Caney, where it was lost. Nothing doubting but they were 

 on his track, and that he had continued down the stream, they went seve- 

 ral miles along the beat of the river, over inconceivably rough and dange- 

 rous ground, until dark, when they threw themselves upon the earth and 

 rested till morning. Mr. Stepp, Mr. Fred. Burnett and others made their 

 way to Wilson's on Caney River to join the company that was coming up 

 from the Yancey side, and the writer and many others returned, gloomy 

 ^and disappointed to the Mountain House. Thus ended the first day's 

 search. During almost the entire day the rain had poured down steadily, 

 tke air was cold and chilling, the thermometer indicating about 44° at 

 noon, whilst the heavy clouds wrapped the whole mountain in such a 

 dense fog that it was impossible to see any distance before us. It seemed 

 as if the genii of those vast mountain solitudes were angered at our un- 



