Page:Oregon Historical Quarterly volume 22.djvu/150



140 S. H. TAYLOR

while the alcohol hardens it. It is of great use, in connection with spirits turpentine, or tar well heat in, to cure the heel crack.

An important thing in saving oxen, is to have light wagons, light loads and plenty of teams. Let the emigrant always bear this in mind. But a wagon should be good, of course the best. In passing through a dry region like this, every seam in woodwork opens. Few wagons go through here without becoming loose in the fellys and hubs, and producing much trouble. The timber should be of the best kind and perfectly seasoned, and put together by good workmen otherwise the wagon will fail, or cost more than it's worth to take it through.

July 24 We are now in the mountains about four days from the South Pass in the midst of poor feed, but enjoying a little more rain than for a month past.

We have heard nothing of symptoms of scurvy, fever or cholera, though a day back of us there was a death by moun- tain fever on the 4th of July. I have never known, anywhere, a time of such universal good health, as has prevailed this season from the Missouri to this point, on both sides of the Platte. The distance is 740 miles, the time eight weeks, and there has not been 30 deaths among 30,000 emigrants. We have heard of but about three cases of sickness, and have known of no deaths except as we have seen by the way perhaps six or eight graves of this year. A healthy season has had much to do with this state of things, but to a better habit of living is it to be attributed to a great extent. We see no such thing as living constantly on salt food, nor of exposure to conditions to which the system is unfitted. Everybody has milk, and most everybody has an abundance. One-fourth of the draught on the road is done by cows giving milk, a large share of the loose stock is the same and you would be sur- prised to see the extent to which milk enters into the living of emigrants. The impression that evening drawn milk of cows traveling in or out of the team is heated and unhealthy, is a mistake. Our cows are warm, of course, when they stop at