TO SAN ANTONIO. 
11 
our arrangements for a final start. The town did 
not furnish the facilities for so doing. My intention, 
therefore, was to proceed to San Antonio, the princi- 
pal city of Texas, a hundred and forty miles distant, 
and there complete our outfit for the longer march 
across the prairies and deserts to El Paso del Norte. 
Quarter-master Myer had arrived before the Gal- 
veston, with about one hundred horses and mules ; but 
these were quite inadequate for the wants of the party. 
It was found, too, that the twenty -five wagons brought 
out were insufficient to transport the property of the 
Commission ; in fact, they would little more than 
carry the instruments, personal baggage, tents, and 
camp equipage. The instruments were packed with 
great care, and filled four of the ambulances. It there- 
fore became necessary to procure at once additional 
wagons, mules, and horses for the transportation of 
the provisions, of which we had a six months’ supply 
for one hundred men, as well as for the men to ride 
on. But that no time should be lost, it was thought 
best, as fast as the wagons could be got ready, to pro- 
ceed into the interior, as far as the town of Victoria, 
where water, wood, and grass were abundant, and 
where greater facilities were to be found for shoeing 
our animals than at Indianola. Here there was no 
wood, and water could be had only from one or two 
wells, and that of so bad a quality that many of the 
party had been attacked with complaints of the 
bowels. 
The quartermaster and his men occupied them- 
selves in breaking the mules, very few of which had 
ever been in harness before. This was done by mak- 
