—125— 
or are making an excursion. The region through 
which we traveled belonged, it is true, to a friendly 
Indian tribe, the Snakes; but they are ravaged occa- 
sionally by these implacable foes of both white and 
red men, the Blackfeet. We were therefore on our 
guard so far as the small number of our party per- 
mitted. 
The same day we came across a party of trappers, 
whom we had already met at Fort Hall. There were 
eight of them, chiefly Canadians, going after beaver. 
Some of them had their squaws with them. They 
were bound for Ham’s Fork, a mountain stream 
emptying into the Green River, and, though our road 
was not the most direct for them, they chose, for com- 
pany’s sake, to travel some days with us. Most of 
them were old mountaineers of great experience, and 
they met us with the geniality characteristic of the 
Canadian. We extended reciprocal hospitalities. 
There was no fresh meat in camp, but sufficient of 
dried; also toro, coffee, cocoa and peppermint tea. 
- One of the trappers was a Fleming. He had a 
squaw with him, of the tribe of the Eutaws, whom 
he had bought at one time for $500.00, but was dis- 
posed to sell for half the purchase price. She was a 
little, unshapen bundle of fat; but otherwise seemed 
to have very good qualities, for he recommended her 
to us in the following terms, characteristic of the car- 
dinal virtues of asquaw: ‘‘She is young, gentle, easy, 
and in first rate order.” The trappers seem, unfor- 
tunately, to have adopted from the Indians the habit 
The Journey 
from Beer 
Spring to 
Fort Crocket 
