ACROSS TIIK ROCKY MOUNTAINS, ETC. 23 



We have amongst our men, a great variety of dispositions- 

 Some who have not been accustomed to the kind of life they are 

 to lead in future, look forvv^ard to it with eager delight, and talk 

 of stirring incidents and hair-breadth 'scapes. Others who are 

 more experienced seem to be as easy and unconcerned about it 

 as a citizen would be in contemplating a drive of a few miles into 

 the country. Some have evidently been reared in the shade, 

 and not accustomed to hardships, but the majority are 

 strong, able-bodied men, and many are almost as rough as 

 the grizzly bears, of their feats upon which they are fond of 

 boasting. 



During the day the captain keeps all his men employed in 

 arranging and packing a vast variety of goods for carriage. In 

 addition to the necesssary clothing for the company, arms, am- 

 munition, &,c., there are thousands of trinkets of various kinds, 

 beads, paint, bells, rings, and such trumpery, intended as pre- 

 sents for the Indians, as well as objects of trade with them. The 

 bales are usually made to weigh about eighty pounds, of which a 

 horse carries two. 



I am very much pleased with the manner in which Captain 

 W. manages his men. He appears admirably calculated to gain 

 the good will, and ensure the obedience of such a company, and 

 adopts the only possible mode of accomplishing his end. They 

 are men who have been accustomed to act independently ; they 

 possess a strong and indomitable spirit which will never succumb 

 to authority, and will only be conciliated by kindness and fami- 

 liarity. I confess I admire this spirit. It is noble ; it is free and 

 characteristic, but for myself, I have not been accustomed to 

 seeing it exercised, and when a rough fellow comes up without 

 warning, and slaps me on the shoulder, with, " stranger what for 

 a gun is that you carry ?" I start, and am on the point of making 

 an angry reply, but I remember where I am, check the feeling 

 instantly, and submit the weapon to his inspection. Captain W. 



