﻿332 
  REPORT 
  UNITED 
  STATES 
  GEOLOGICAL 
  SURVEY. 
  

  

  abundant. 
  We 
  saw 
  many 
  deer 
  between 
  Mount 
  Trinchera 
  and 
  the 
  Span- 
  

   ish 
  Peaks. 
  In 
  our 
  travels 
  we 
  continued 
  southward 
  to 
  the 
  South 
  Fork 
  

   of 
  the 
  Purgatory, 
  where 
  we 
  found 
  some 
  Mexican 
  settlements. 
  Along 
  

   the 
  upper 
  portion 
  of 
  the 
  stream 
  there 
  is 
  quite 
  a 
  valley, 
  and 
  some 
  corn 
  j 
  

   is 
  raised, 
  but 
  a 
  short 
  distance 
  below 
  where 
  we 
  struck 
  the 
  stream 
  it 
  j 
  

   enters 
  a 
  caiion, 
  through 
  which 
  the 
  wagon-road 
  leads 
  to 
  Trinidad. 
  At 
  I 
  

   the 
  lower 
  end 
  of 
  the 
  valley 
  in 
  the 
  canon 
  is 
  a 
  curious 
  little 
  butte, 
  near 
  ' 
  

   the 
  summit 
  of 
  which 
  a 
  wooden 
  cross 
  has 
  been 
  inserted 
  by 
  the 
  Mexicans. 
  

  

  After 
  making 
  stations 
  on 
  the 
  hills 
  south 
  of 
  the 
  river 
  we 
  started 
  for 
  i 
  

   Trinidad, 
  passing 
  several 
  Mexican 
  villages 
  on 
  the 
  way, 
  and 
  making 
  sta- 
  i 
  

   tions 
  wherever 
  necessary 
  along 
  the 
  route 
  In 
  many 
  places 
  we 
  saw 
  veins 
  \ 
  

   of 
  coal 
  cropping 
  out 
  along 
  the 
  bluffs. 
  Some 
  have 
  told 
  of 
  the 
  great 
  and 
  i 
  

   extensive 
  valley 
  of 
  the 
  Purgatory, 
  but 
  all 
  the 
  valley 
  we 
  saw 
  consisted 
  

   of 
  small 
  patches 
  here 
  and 
  there, 
  seldom 
  a 
  hundred 
  acres 
  in 
  extent, 
  and 
  

   generally 
  less. 
  Where 
  we 
  passed 
  through, 
  the 
  river 
  had 
  overflowed 
  its 
  

   banks 
  and 
  destroyed 
  a 
  great 
  deal 
  of 
  the 
  corn 
  planted 
  on 
  the 
  bottom- 
  

   land. 
  The 
  elevation 
  of 
  the 
  valley 
  proper 
  nowhere 
  reaches 
  6,000 
  feet 
  

   above 
  the 
  sea, 
  so 
  that 
  wherever 
  water 
  for 
  irrigation 
  can 
  be 
  conveniently 
  

   obtained 
  any 
  kind 
  of 
  crops 
  may 
  be 
  raised. 
  I 
  may 
  mention 
  here 
  that 
  

   among 
  the 
  settlers 
  the 
  river 
  does 
  not 
  go 
  by 
  the 
  name 
  of 
  "Purgatory," 
  

   but 
  the 
  original 
  French 
  name 
  of 
  " 
  Purgatoire 
  " 
  has 
  gone 
  through 
  a 
  curi- 
  

   ous 
  transformation, 
  and 
  has 
  been 
  corrupted 
  into 
  Picket* 
  Wire, 
  which 
  

   has 
  a 
  ludicrous 
  resemblance 
  in 
  sound 
  to 
  the 
  former 
  name. 
  A 
  few 
  miles 
  

   above 
  Trinidad 
  we 
  passed 
  the 
  mouth 
  of 
  Long's 
  Creek, 
  which 
  was 
  almost 
  

   dry, 
  although 
  it 
  has 
  a 
  length 
  of 
  30 
  miles. 
  This 
  is 
  accounted 
  for 
  by 
  the 
  , 
  

   fact 
  that 
  it 
  runs 
  its 
  whole 
  length 
  through 
  the 
  low, 
  dry 
  hills. 
  Leaving 
  

   the 
  Purgatory 
  near 
  this 
  point, 
  we 
  crossed 
  over 
  to 
  Eaton 
  Creek, 
  a 
  very 
  

   small 
  stream, 
  draining 
  the 
  west 
  side 
  of 
  the 
  Fisher's 
  Peak 
  plateau. 
  From 
  

   there 
  we 
  ascended 
  the 
  plateau 
  and 
  made 
  stations 
  131 
  and 
  132, 
  on 
  the 
  

   west 
  edge. 
  This 
  table 
  is 
  surrounded 
  on 
  all 
  sides 
  by 
  bluffs, 
  in 
  many 
  places 
  

   several 
  hundred 
  feet 
  vertical. 
  It 
  extends 
  southward 
  several 
  miles 
  and 
  

   eastward 
  as 
  far 
  as 
  we 
  could 
  see. 
  In 
  form 
  it 
  is 
  very 
  irregular, 
  being 
  in 
  

   some 
  places 
  several 
  miles 
  across, 
  and 
  in 
  others 
  a 
  few 
  hundred 
  yards. 
  

   Fisher's 
  Peak 
  is 
  the 
  highest 
  point, 
  at 
  the 
  northwest 
  corner, 
  and 
  detached 
  

   from 
  the 
  main 
  mass 
  by 
  a 
  deep 
  space. 
  It 
  is 
  9,460 
  feet 
  above 
  sea-level. 
  

   On 
  the 
  plateau 
  we 
  found 
  plenty 
  of 
  grass 
  and 
  water 
  and 
  a 
  few 
  quaking 
  

   asp-trees, 
  while 
  in 
  the 
  valley, 
  3,400 
  feet 
  below, 
  everything 
  was 
  parched 
  

   by 
  the 
  burning 
  sun. 
  

  

  Eesuming 
  our 
  march, 
  we 
  rode 
  into 
  Trinidad, 
  and 
  found 
  it 
  to 
  be 
  a 
  town 
  

   of 
  considerable 
  size, 
  with 
  a 
  heterogeneous 
  population 
  of 
  whites 
  and 
  Mex- 
  

   icans, 
  seemingly 
  contending 
  for 
  the 
  mastery, 
  with 
  the 
  odds 
  in 
  favor 
  of 
  

   the 
  former. 
  A 
  number 
  of 
  neat 
  business 
  buildings 
  occupied 
  the 
  center, 
  

   while 
  the 
  suburbs 
  were 
  made 
  up 
  of 
  Mexican 
  huts. 
  A 
  number 
  of 
  coal 
  

   and 
  iron 
  mines 
  are 
  being 
  worked 
  in 
  the 
  vicinity. 
  

  

  Leaving 
  Trinidad, 
  we 
  followed 
  up 
  the 
  Purgatory 
  to 
  the 
  mouth 
  of 
  

   Higbee 
  Creek, 
  a 
  dry 
  water-course 
  coming 
  in 
  from 
  the 
  north. 
  Thence 
  we 
  

   crossed 
  over 
  the 
  divide 
  to 
  the 
  north 
  and 
  came 
  to 
  the 
  Apishpa. 
  With 
  

   this 
  stream, 
  as 
  with 
  the 
  Purgatory, 
  the 
  natural 
  euphonious 
  name 
  had 
  

   been 
  transformed 
  by 
  some 
  western 
  pioneer 
  into 
  Fish-Paw, 
  and 
  the 
  creek 
  

   goes 
  by 
  that 
  name 
  among 
  the 
  settlers. 
  This 
  stream 
  drains 
  the 
  region 
  

   south 
  of 
  the 
  Spanish 
  Peaks, 
  but 
  contains 
  only 
  a 
  small 
  quantity 
  of 
  water. 
  

   Along 
  its 
  banks 
  we 
  found 
  a 
  number 
  of 
  Mexican 
  huts, 
  made 
  of 
  ado.be, 
  

   but 
  the 
  general 
  air 
  of 
  filth 
  and 
  indolence 
  seemed 
  to 
  indicate 
  a 
  low 
  order 
  

   of 
  civilization. 
  Every 
  house 
  had 
  a 
  number 
  of 
  dogs, 
  sometimes 
  as 
  many 
  

   as 
  six 
  or 
  seven. 
  The 
  clothing 
  of 
  the 
  adults 
  approached 
  the 
  minimum, 
  

   but 
  the 
  children 
  were 
  often 
  entirely 
  naked. 
  The 
  valley 
  of 
  the 
  stream 
  

  

  