OMAHA TO CHEYENNE. 459 



My mustang proved tractable and made excellent 

 time; and having obtained in Omaha all the informa- 

 tion within my reach concerning the remaining half 

 of my journey, I determined to use all despatch and 

 avoid as far as I could the cold weather of the Rockies 

 and Sierras. 



I may here state that in consequence of the long 

 rides I was now compelled to make, with very few 

 stoppages except at night, the original plan of the 

 journey was somewhat changed, and my journal neces- 

 sarily fell into disuse ; my chief object being to get 

 over the mountains as quickly as possible. I was, 

 therefore, unable during the remainder of my ride to 

 refer so much to daily incidents, but confined myself 

 to jotting down in a general way whatever I thought 

 might prove of interest to the reader. 



Over the Great Plains that lie between the Mis- 

 souri and the Rockies my nerve was thoroughly 

 tested, and not less so the mettle of my mustang which 

 carried me a distance of five hundred and twenty-two 

 miles in six days. Halts at this time were few and far 

 between, except for necessary food and sleep. The 

 weather had become verv cold since leaving: Omaha, 

 and the ascent had been gradual but continuous. 



The surface of Nebraska is extremely varied. There 

 are no elevations that can be dignified with the name 

 of mountains, but in its northern and western parts 

 there are lofty hills. Along the Niobrara and White- 

 Rivers, extending into Dakota, there are sand-hills 

 with a very scanty vegetation and very difficult to tra- 

 verse on account of the loose sand. The gently rolling 

 lands of three-fourths of Nebraska appear very much 

 like the suddenly petrified waves and billows of the 



