AND RETURN TO SAN FRANCISCO. . 35 
patches of from twenty to fifty acres, but all connected 
by a small and never-failing stream of excellent water. 
The object of our friend in settling here was to secure . 
to himself a large tract of land without encroachment. 
Thus he has a section of good tillable land of one hun- 
dred and sixty to two hundred acres, and on the low 
hills around it about four thousand acres excellent for 
grazing purposes. Having secured all the valley, no 
one would take up land on the hills. His section 
would, therefore, give him: the use of the large tract 
adjacent, which was all he required. 
March 22d. Took an early breakfast, and started 
at seven o'clock. MacDonald led the way, and we 
followed him in Indian file. We had now no more 
beautiful valleys or grassy plains to traverse. Nothing 
but. a succession of lofty and rugged mountains lay 
before us, through the intricacies of which we had to 
wind our way. There was no road, nor even a trail, 
save those made by wild animals, of which there was 
an abundance in these parts. Our guide often directed 
our attention to the huge tracks of the grizzly and 
brown bear, and again to those of the elk, which con- 
stantly crossed and recrossed our path. He had been 
several times to the place we were going, and knew 
the country well; yet so wild and rugged was it, so 
dense the forest, and with such a succession of ascents 
and descents, that he sometimes seemed at a loss which 
way to go. The general direction was well known; 
but among such a number of deep gorges and ravines, 
mountains, hills, and valleys, it was no easy task to 
select the right one; anda mistake in the mazes of such 
a place would leads us into inextricable difficulties. 
