170 NARRATIVE OF 1853. 
than a distance of twenty miles between the groves, and willow bushes grow only five or six 
feet high. 
Following up the southwest branch of Jefferson river, called Red Butte creek, from the 
color of the hills around, he found no vegetation but artemisia, and on the south side of some 
of the hills a few stunted pines and cedars. The road was, however, very level and good, 
until, leaving the valley, it passed for six miles through a cafion, and twenty-eight miles further 
reached the foot of the dividing ridge between the Jefferson Fork of the Missouri and the Lewis 
Fork, or Snake river of the Columbia, where there was a little good grass and wood. He again 
crossed the Rocky mountain ridge on December 9. The ascent was quite steep, and covered 
with snow a foot deep; in some places drifted to three feet, so that the animals got through 
with much difficulty. The air on top was exceedingly cold, and the southwest wind blew 
clouds of snow in their faces. The descent was even more steep than the ascent, compelling 
them to dismount and travel on foot. At the base of the dividing ridge the course for several 
miles lay through a winding gorge to the source of the Medicine Lodge creek, which for fifteen 
miles has a very pretty valley, but without grass, or any wood except willow. Numbers of 
mountain sheep were seen on the rugged mountains around, but no other game occurred after 
leaving the Bitter Root valley. Crossing over the summit of a low ridge by a rough and 
rugged road, he came upon an immense sage prairie about twenty miles in width, extending as 
far south as Snake river; travelling across which, he again came to the Medicine Lodge creek, 
which he crossed, and proceeded sixteen miles further to a stream known as Kamas Prairie 
creek. 
Sixteen miles from the Kamas Prairie creek he came in view of a large lake, which he called 
the Market lake, for the following reason: It would seem that in years past the bed of this 
lake was an immense prairie bottom or basin, and a favorite resort for game of all kinds; even, 
indeed, the buffalo have been killed in and near it in large numbers, the evidences of which 
were shown by the skulls of the animals found near the present border of the lake. 
So abundant, indeed, was the game here that the trappers and mountain-men of that day, 
who in squads and bands trapped and hunted in this wilderness of mountains, always said to 
each other, when their supply of subsistence grew scanty, ‘‘let us go to the market" referring 
to this resort of the herds of game, and they never visited it in vain until, by one of those 
төрдө freaks of nature in this valley of the Snake river, which is fed at many points through- 
out its length by subterranean streams, this market was converted into an immense sheet of 
water. It is only, accounted for by supposing that the streams making down from the Snake 
River mountains, and losing themselves in the sand or sage desert of the valley, break forth 
st or near the latter, which is thus fed from year to year by the meltings of the snows and the 
rains from these mountains. In order, therefore, to retain and hand down the name of this 
once favorite resort, and the legend connected with it, Lieutenant Mullan named this sheet of 
water the Market lake. 
Travelling along the banks of this lake for eight miles, he left it, and in a short time fell 
35 и ps dunes Snake river, which was from 150 to 200 yards wide, and very deep, 
either side, and bordered with a slight growth of willow. 
_ st down hs yr mie йишде dl, er е би eh 
ak пыш | Beta n five miles of Cantonment Loring, entering a beautiful prairie, 
А ох dress many streams, which continues five miles further to Fort Hall, where 
he arrived December 13. - : 
