4 h 



[7] 



23 



mejb, and reported himself just escaped from .Taos* He Tbrouglit 

 the intelligence, that, yesterday, the proclamation of Governor 

 Armijo reached there, calling the citize,ns to ^rms, and placing the 

 ^vhole country under martial law; that Armijo has assembled all the 

 Pueblo Indians, numbering aboutS.OOO, and all the citizens capable 

 of bearing arms; that 300 Mexican dragoons arrived in Santa Fe 

 the day Armijo's proclamation was issued, and that. 1.200 more were 

 hourly expected; that the Mexicans to a man were anxious for a 

 fight, but that half the Pueblo Indians were indifferent on the sub- 

 ject, but would be made to fight. 



A succession of thunder storms passed yesterday to the north 

 and west, but did not reach us. The ground indicates recent rain^ 

 as also does the grass, which looks as in the spring, just sprouting. 

 The hills to the left, as near as I can judge, the same as in the 

 Raton, were of different colored sand stone, regularly stratified, and 

 clipping gently to the east, topped by a mural precipice of green 

 stone. The growth on the mountains, pinon and cedar. On the 

 plains, which are covered with scorise, scarcely a tree is to be seen. 

 We encamped on the little Cimarron, and observed at night for 

 latitude and time, 7 altitudes of polaris give for the latitude 36*^ 

 27' 50" ; 7 on arcturus in the west, and the same number on alpha 

 aquilse in the east gi-ve the meridian by chronomoter difference* 

 6h. 58m. 39s. Approximate height 6,027 feet. 



The plants of to-day, in addition to many of plants heretofore 

 mentioned, were the Erysinum Arkans^anum, lippa cuncifolia, myo- 

 sotis glomerata, so frequently found on .the plains, lytherus line- 

 aris, hypercium ellipticium, several verbenas, and several new 

 varieties of oxybaphus, wild sage, and on the stream's a few" cotton- 

 wood and wallows. 



August ll! — We made alongmarch to-day w^ith the advanced guard 

 and the 1st dragoons, to the Ocate, 3l| miles. The*i;oad approaches 

 the Ocate, at the foot of a high bluff to the north, where the river 

 runs through a canon, making it inaccessible to animals- We as- 

 cend the river for four or five miles, to where the road crosses ^ 

 there we left the. road, and at that point, the river being dry, con- 

 tinued to ascend it a mile, and found good grass, and, occasionally^^ 

 running water. The scenery to-day was v«ry pretty, sometimes 

 approaching to the grand; the road passed through a succession of 

 valleys, and crossed numerous '' divides" of the Rayada and Ocate. 

 The Rayada is a limpid running stream, ten miles from^ the little 

 Cimarron, the first of the kind noted, though w^e have' been tra- 

 versing the bases of many mountains for days past. The pasture, 

 however, is not good. At points two and four miles farther, at the 

 foot of the mountains, there are .springs and good grass. At the 

 last point we overtook the infantry, w^here they halted. About 

 five miles before reaching the Ocate, the road descends into a 

 valley, overhung by confused and rugged cliffs, which give promise 

 of grass and water, but, on going down, we found that this beauti- 

 ful valley had no outlet, but terminated in a salt lake. The lake 

 is now dry, and its bed is white with a thin saline encrustation. 

 Here the road is indistinct, and takes a sudden turn to*the left. 



