22 AN INDIAN BATTLE. 



home of my childhood, to converse with friends whose names and features 

 fond memory has chained to my heart, while imagination roamed with 

 delight amid those scenes endeared to me by earliest and most cherished 

 recollections. But all the sweet pencillings of fancy were at once spoiled 

 by the uncivil intrusion of a full torrent of water, that came pouring from 

 the hill-side and forced its impetuous way into the valley below, — deluging 

 me from head to foot in its descent. My condition, as the reader may 

 well suppose, was far from being enviable. However, resolved to make 

 the best of a bad thing, after wringing the water from my drenched bed- 

 ding, I selected another spot and again adjusted myself to pass the dreary 

 interval till morning ; this I succeeded in doing, — how or in what man- 

 ner, it is unnecessary to say. Sleep was utterly out of the question, and 

 I am quite sure I never hailed the welcome morn with greater delight 

 than on this occasion. 



Others of the company fared almost as bad as myself, and there was 

 scarcely a dry bed in camp. But the little concern evinced by the moun- 

 taineers for their mishap, surprised me most. They crawled from their 

 beds, reeking with wet, as good humoredly as though their nocturnal bath 

 had in no wise disturbed their equanimity, or impaired their comfort. 



The morning proved so disagreeable two of our party, who were accompa- 

 nying us for the purpose of adventure, concluding this a kind of adventure 

 they were unwilling to meet, wisely resolved to take the back track, and 

 accordingly left for home. Towards night the rain ceased, and, the clouds 

 having dispersed, we were again en route. Travelling on till late, we 

 encamped in the open prairie, and early the next morning resumed our 

 course. Having reached a small creek, about 10 o'clock, we halted for 

 breakfast, Avhere another Santa Fe company came up. This proved a 

 party of Americans, with some six or eight waggons and a large number 

 of horses and mules, on their homeward journey. They had also in their 

 possession an elk nearly full grown, two black-tailed deer,* an antelope 

 and a white-tailed fawn. 



Through them we received intelligence of a battle recently fought be- 

 tween the Pawnee and Arapaho Indians, at the lower Cimarone Springs, 

 south of the Arkansas. The former had been defeated with greai 

 slaughter, — losing their horses and seventy-two of their bravest war- 

 riors, to increase the trophies and enliven the scalp-dances of their ene- 

 mies. This action occurred directly upon the Santa Fe trail, and the dead 

 yet bestrewed the prairie, as our informants passed, half devoured by 

 wolves, and filling the air with noisome stench as they wasted beneath 

 the influence of a scorching sun. 



An approving murmur ran through the crowd while listening to the re- 

 cital, and all united to denounce the Pawnees as a dangerous and villan- 

 ous set, and wished for their utter extermination. 



* The black-tailed deer are larger than the common deer, and are found only in 

 the snow-mountains. For a description of them the reader is referred to subsequent 

 pages. 



