Page:California Historical Society Quarterly vol 22.djvu/225

 traveling through the country one always finds it necessary to cover the distance be- tween two of them every day. They are usually watering places and it takes a hard day's travel from one to another in most cases and in some cases deep into the night. They stand out in the great Oregon desert like the beacon lights and guiding points to a mariner at sea. The stockman or traveler who does not know the landmarks of the Oregon range is in as much danger as the pilot at sea who is ignorant of the charts and maps of the country he is in. One of the most interesting of these buttes is Ram's Peak or Wagontire Mountain. It is marked on the maps as Ram's Peak but the stockmen all know it as Wagontire. . . This mountain is situated near the Harney and Lake county line and is supposed to be in the center of the desert. A large creek flows near its foot- hills and a number of springs boil out of its base. It is 30 to 50 miles from this point in any direction to other water. The water from this creek and springs flows out into the plains and is drunk up by the dry sands." History of Central Oregon (Spokane, 1905), p. 1094. Modern highways now make it possible to travel from Harney Lake to Goose Lake in less than a day. Work had no choice but travel from one water hole to another, which simplifies the tracing of his route in this region.

36. The party was at Alkali Lake, Lake County, Oregon, in the opinion of the an- notator who traced the route. Lewis A. McArthur, president of the Oregon Historical Society, however, believes that the brigade went south from the OO Ranch to the Warner Lakes, which were east of Lake Abert and Abert Rim. Space will not be taken here for the many arguments in favor of and against each identification. The reader may draw his own conclusion from the text of the diary.

37. Juniper Mountain.

38. Lava Beds Bighorn Gray Sheep, Ovis canadensis Calif orniana.

39. Lake Abert at the base of Abert Rim. Both were named by John Charles Fremont in honor of Col. J. J. Abert, chief of Topographical Engineers, U. S. A.

40. The old trail followed the west side of Lake Abert where water was available in springs.

41. Possibly Chewaucan River.

42. Crooked Creek. The camp was probably at the site of Chandler State Park.

43. Blacktail deer are no longer found in this region.

44. Prunus sub cor data kelloggii. These plums were a major source of food for the local Indians. The fruit pits were used by them as beads.

45. Work is following the route of the present highway.

46. Hunter's Hot Springs. Bones are still to be seen in the spring. This is a clear record of the use of hot springs as a depository for the dead. The Indians of northeastern Cali- fornia and western Nevada practiced this means of burial quite extensively.

47. These springs are still to be seen between the highway and the lake a short distance south of Lakeview.

48. Surprise Valley in northeastern California lies over the ridge bordering the east shore of Goose Lake.

49. Willow Creek, Modoc County, California. The brigade has crossed the 42nd par- allel and is now in Mexican territory.

50. Probably Sanicula bipinnate, a poison sanicle called wild parsnip. Pioneer annals record many tales of death from this cause in this particular locality. Work might easily have mistaken the peeled root of this plant for a mushroom.

51. Davis Creek.

52. East Fork of Pit River.

53. All Saint's Day.

54. Hot Springs near Alturas.

55. Aden Mountain.