66 Ex. Doc. No. 41. 



change it. The ^vhole way was a succession of steep ascents and 

 descents, paved with sharp, angular fragments of basalt and trap. 

 The metallic clink of spurSj and the rattling, of the mule shoes, the 

 high black peaks, the djsep dark ravines, and the unearthly look- 

 ing cactus., which *stuck/Out from the rocks like the ears of Mephis- 

 topheles, all favored the idea that we were now treading on the verge 

 of the regions below. Occasionally a mule gave up the ghost, and 

 was left as a propitiatory tribute to the place. This day's jour- 

 ney cost us some twelve or fifteen mules; one of mine fell headlong 

 down a precipice, and, to the surprise of all, survived the fall. 



The barometric height was taken several times to-day. Long and 

 anxious w^as my study of these mountains, to ascertain something 

 of the^ir general direction and form. Those on the north side swept 

 in something like a regular curve from our camp of last night to the 

 mouth of the San Carlos, deeply indented in tw^o places by the in- 

 gress into the Gila of the Prierte (Black) and Azul (Blue) rivers. 

 Those on the south, where we passed, w^ere a confused mass of ba- 

 salt and trap, and I could give no direction to the axis of maximum 

 elevation. They seemed to drift off to the southeast. Wherever 

 the eye wandered, huge mountains were seen of black, volcanic ap- 

 pearance, of very compact argillaceous limestone, tinged at times 

 with scarlet from the quantities of red feldspar. Through these the 

 Gila (now swift) has cut its narrow way with infinite labor, assisted 

 by the influx of the Prierte, the Azul and San Carlos rivers. 'As the 

 story goes, the Prierte flows down from the mountains, freighted with 

 gold. Its sands are said to be full of this precious metal. A few ad- 

 venturers, who ascended this river hunting beaver, washed the sands 

 at night when they halted, and were richly rewarded for their trouble. 

 Tempted by their success, they made a second trip, and were at- 

 tacked and most of theni killed by the Indians. My authority for 

 this statement is Londeau, who, though an illiterate man, is truthful. 



Octoher 27. — After yesterday's work we were obligeH to lay by 

 to-day. The howitzers came up late in the afternoon. They are 

 small, mounted on wheels ten feet in circumference, which stand 

 apart about three feet, and with the assistance of men on foot, are 

 able to go in almost any place a mule can go. 



I strolled a mile or two up the San Carlos, and found the whole 

 distance, it has its way in a narrow canon, worn from the solid ba- 

 salt. On either side, in the limestone under the basalt were im- 

 mense cavities, which must have been at times the abodes of Indians 

 and the dens of beasts. The remains of fire and the bones of ani*- 

 mals attested this. Near its mouth we found the foundation of a 

 rectangular house, and on a mound adjacent that of a circular build- 

 ing, a few feet in diameter. The ruin was probably that of a shep- 

 'herd's house, with a circular building adjoining as a look-out, a* 

 there was no ground in the neighbbrhood which was suited for irri- 

 gation. Both these ruins were of round unhewn stones, and the 

 first was surrounded by pieces of broken pottery. Dip^gi^g ^ ^^""^ 

 feet brought us to a solid mass which was most likely a dirt floor, 

 such as is now u==ed by the Spaniards. 



In my walk I encountered a settlement of tarantulas; as I ap- 

 proached, four or five rushed to the front of their little caves in an 



