BUFFALO AND WATEE. Tl 



tlie dry Led of a creek; the grass was scant and poor in- 

 quality ; and all the mules had to be tied to the wagons, 

 both for safety and for fear of their stravine: hack to the last 



aterin 



day our tired animals toiled 



endless nndulations of the dreary, arid plain; occasionally 

 crossing diy water-conrseSj hut nowhere was there a drop to 

 drink. About five o'clockj far away on the horizon^ a number 

 of black specks came in view. At first, even with the glasses, 

 we could not make them out ; though they were eyidently 

 moving and coming towards us. In half an hour we could 

 plainly see that they were a herd of oyer one hundred buffalo. 

 At this sight our hopes of finding water were greatly revived ; 

 for at eventide so large a herd would certainly not be found 



far from it. I cou 

 morning I had had 



my 



herd I saw evidence of a heavy local rain, and on my return 

 found our party camped within lialf-a-mile of some largo pools 

 of water. Since morning we had travelled twenty-one miles, 

 and the engineers had surveyed ^^ a line" the whole of the way. 

 In a very few minutes our clothes were thrown off, and, 



■ 



like shonting school-boys, we were splasliing each other in 

 the sparkling water. These pools were all transitory, and 

 prohably in less than a week afterwards had disappeared 



into the sandy soil. 



Long before the streak of pink and gold, so beautiful in tliis 

 region, had begun to appear in the east, the heavy sleepers: 

 were roused. By five o'clock the engineers were at their 

 transits and levels ; and as General Wright was desirous that 

 the train should accompany the surveyors, the unfed animals 

 were slowly pulling the wagons tlu'ough the yielding earth. 

 As the day advanced, the mules of the engineers began to give 



