Page:Oregon Historical Quarterly volume 25.djvu/160

 some buffalo and succeeded in wounding one but failed to get him.

May 26.—This day our road was tolerable hilly and very hard. We traveled about three miles back from the river. Our men wounded several buffalo today but lost all. At one time we looked to be run over by a herd of buffalo but by a desperate effort succeeded in turning their course. Encamped on the river bank. Grass moderate.

May 27.—This day we traveled 18 miles over good roads all the way up the South Platte bottom. Saw but two buffalo today. After camping, we saw gathering a storm, which broke on us at dark. After the storm had abated, the cattle broke the guards and ran off, which took till midnight to get all back and everything settled.

May 28.—This morning we left camp early, traveled four miles to the crossing of South Platte. Here we found the stream to be about one-half mile wide and from three to twelve inches deep, but mud much deeper. If we stopped moving, the quicksand would soon let us down. We crossed over and took north over the divide between North and South Platte, struck Ash Hollow at 4 in the afternoon (this is where Gray had the trouble with the Sioux), and continued down the hollow. Plenty of wood and water but no grass. We had to tie all of our cattle up and guard them this night on account of wolves. This morning we left Ash Hollow as soon as possible. About two miles travel brought us to North Platte. Here we followed up the valley through deep sand, which made very heavy hauling for four miles. Here we came to good grass. Here we lay till 4 o'clock in the afternoon, when we again took up our line of march and traveled about four miles further and encamped on the bank of the river.

May 30.—This day we found heavy sand in the forenoon, in the afternoon we had good roads. This evening we met quite a number of Sioux Indians, the first Indians we had seen after passing the Iowa Mission. We saw no Pawnees on the road.