[ 174] 284 
all whom they meet on the western side of the mountains to be their ene- 
ies. They deceived me into the belief that I should find a ford at their 
village, and I could not avoid accompanying them ; but put several sloughs 
between us and their village, and forted strongly on the. banks of the river, 
which was every where rapid and deep, and over a hundred yards in breadth. 
The next morning we descended the river for about eight miles, and 
. 
its elevation at this point 6,700 feet. A. frame for the boat being very soon 
made, our baggage was ferried across ; the horses, in the mean time, swim- 
ming over. A southern fork of Grand river here makes its junction, nearly 
opposite to the branch by which we had entered the valley, and up this we 
continued for about eight miles in the afternoon, and encamped in a bottom 
on the left bank, which afforded good grass. At our encampment it was 
70 to 90 yards in breadth, sometimes widened by islands, and separated into 
from the Park. Here it was smooth and deep, 150 yards in breadth, and 
crossed many foaming torrents with-rocky beds, rushing down to the river ; 
mou 
de act 
prairie (tetrao.europhasianus was occasionally seen among the sage. 
and it being probable that they would visit our camp with the desire to re- 
turn on horseback, we 
_Here the river diminished to 35 yards, and, notwithstanding the number 
of affluents we had crossed, was still a large stream, dashing swiftly by, 
shi 
was literally alive with buffalo; and the continued echo o 
into camp with the meat of seven fat cows. eeccnel 
During the earlier part of the day’s ride, the river had been merely a 
latrow ravine b i i ins, backed on both sides, but 
zes ; but, after several hours’ 
t bottoms. In the 
broad buffalo 
descending from the mountain by the main head of the Arkansas, I was 
irou to follow,) there was no sign of a buffolo trace. Apprehend- 
is reason, and the character of the mountains, which are known 
. 
