Rocky Mountains. 69 



bison. Since leaving the Arkansa, we had scarcely seen as 

 much wood, as might have supplied us with fuel for a single 

 night. We passed in the course of the day, not less than four 

 or five paths, leading southwest towards the Spanish settle- 

 ments. Some of them appeared to have been recently tra- 

 velled by men with horses, such paths being easily distin- 

 guished from those of bisons or wild horses. 



Our camp was near the head of a dry ravine, communi- 

 cating towards the southeast, with a considerable stream, 

 which we could distinguish at the distance of eight or ten 

 miles, by a few trees along its course. Continuing our jour- 

 ney on the ensuing day, we soon found ourselves in a tract 

 of country, resembling that on the Arkansa near the moun- 

 tains. A similar horizontal slaty sandstone occurs, forming 

 the basis of the country. There is also a variety of this stone, 

 somewhat crystalline, resembling that of St. Michael's, in 

 the lead mine district, but exhibiting no trace of metallic 

 ores. These rocks are deeply channelled by the water cour- 

 ses, but at this time the streams contain little water. 

 These ravines are, the greater number of them, destitute of 

 timber, except a few cedars, attached here and there in the 

 crevices of the rock. The larger vallies which contain streams 

 of water, have a few cotton-wood and willow trees. The box 

 elder, the common elder, (Sambucus canadensis^) and one or 

 two species of Viburnum, are seen here. 



It was perhaps owing to our having followed more care- 

 fully than they deserved, the directions of the Calf, that we 

 did not arrive as early as we had expected, upon the stream 

 we designed to ascend. In the middle of the day on the 25th, 

 we fell in with a smaller river, at the distance of thirty- six 

 miles from the point where we had left the Arkansa, this we 

 concluded, could be no other than that tributary, whose 

 mouth is said to be distant eighteen miles from the same 

 spot. This stream, where we halted upon it to dine, is about 

 ten yards wide, and three feet deep, but appeared at this time 



