74: WILD SPORTS IN THE FAR WEST. 



of me "with the butt of my gun. It took four hours 

 to do the two miles, and. only the conviction that I 

 must either break through the ice or drown, gave me 

 force to cany out mj resolution. At length I reached 

 a fence, and stepped on dry ground. I endeavored to 

 climb over in vain ; my lower garments and limbs 

 were frozen too hard. I was obliged to pull down a 

 part of it to make a passage, and it was not till I had 

 been more than an hour by the fire that I was thawed 

 enough to be able to move freely. 



The continuation of the road was dry, with one short 

 exception ; and the next house that I came to was 

 quite a harbor of refuge for this night, as I w^as much 

 in need of rest and refreshment. 



I now for the first time saw the wide prairies w^hich 

 extend through Illinois, and present a dismal prospect 

 in this cold season. The long weaving yellow grass 

 gives a melancholy tint to the j^icture ; the wide spread 

 straw-colored surface, fringed by a forest in the dis- 

 tant horizon, depresses the spirits. The frost had set 

 in again, so that at least I could follow my route with 

 dry feet, and at a good pace. The first head of large 

 game that I fell in wdth was a buck, making long 

 jumps through the high grass, and putting up large 

 flocks of prairie fowl, which flew to some distance 

 before they settled. In the house where I passed the 

 night, I gave my gun a thorough cleaning, and put it 

 in good condition. On the following morning, about 

 eight o'clock, I came to the Fox river, w here I found 

 two houses. To my astonishment, this also was a 

 town, and called Waterton. A very pretty American 

 woman, who kept a sort of tavern, set bread and milk 



