80 INDIAN THEFTS. 



leased the boy quietly, I should reward them ; but otherwise I had deter- 

 mined to take him from them by force, and if compelled to resort to this 

 course, should give them nothing in return. This appeared to have the 

 desired effect, and they said if I would make the family into which he 

 had been adopted a few presents, in addition to what I had promised 

 them, they would release him. I accordingly distributed the presents, 

 and took possession of the boy. Upon turning him over to us they 

 divested him of the few rags of covering that hung about his person, 

 and reluctantly gave him to us, and he makes his exit from the Witch- 

 ita nation in the same costume in which he entered the world. We 

 soon had him comfortably clothed, and he is much delighted with the 

 change. Captain McClellan will take him to San Antonio, from which 

 place he will communicate with his relatives. 



July 24. — We left the Witchita village at 4 o'clock this morning, 

 and intended to have followed the trail which the Indians travel to 

 Fort Arbuckle, but soon discovered that it crossed numerous brooks 

 running through deep gullies impassable for wagons, which made it ne- 

 cessary for us to turn south towards the dividing ridge between Rush 

 creek and Wild Horse creek. We followed this ridge for seven miles, 

 and encamped upon a small affluent of Wild Horse creek. In our 

 march to-day we passed over an elevated, waiving country, interspersed 

 with groves of oak. Upon each side of the dividing ridge are numerous 

 small spring branches, flowing off to the right and left, and upon these 

 there is an abundance of good timber, with soil of the best quality. We 

 have passed the range of the grama grass, but still find the mezquite 

 and other varieties of wild grasses, upon which our animals continue to 

 thrive, and keep in excellent condition. After we had proceeded some 

 ten miles upon our march this morning, we discovered that our friends 

 the Witchitas had, in the characteristic style of their hospitality, ab- 

 stracted from one of our wagons several articles which they probably 

 supposed would be more useful to them than to us. Unfortunately, we 

 were too far from the village to admit of going back and making them 

 restore the articles. Our Spanish boy states that before he left, they 

 advised him to seize the first opportunity that should offer to steal one 

 of our horses, and make his escape to them. 



July 25. — Our wagons were packed, and we were in motion at about 

 3 o'clock this morning, in a course nearly due east, down the right bank 

 of Wild Horse creek for eight miles, when we entered the Cross-Timbers 

 upon the ridge dividing this stream from Mud creek (an affluent of 

 Red river, which puts in above the Washita.) Our encampment this 



