The Trinity journal., 1857-02-07
w in ter P apers.
BY EVELYN.-NO. ".

sooner were they out OF sight over neighbor
ing divide than the Indians, who had been watch
ing an opportunity, pounccd upon the camp aud
carried off every particle Of provision, clothing,
blankets, aud everything on which they could lay
their hands, even to ammunition, although they
were at that time ignorant of its use. What was
the surprise of the ranchmcn when on their re-
turn to camp, they found it cleared of every
thing and not a particle of grub" to be had
within twenty-five miles Morton sworc he would
kill and eat every Indian within fifty miles. Du-
gud laughed as he did at everything, while their
companions set to work roasting some game which
they had fortunately taken during the day At
ter partaking of very primitive supper they
made two huge fires and slept through the night
quite comfortably.
The next morning Ingles and nugud, taking
the animals returned to Wcavcrvjle for a supply
of provisions, while Morton and White started in
pursuit of the Indians in order if possible, to re-
cover some of the stolen property Taking
westerly direction they crossed a number of rid
gcs and ravincs without discovering any traces
of the red skins, but on reaching the summit of
WV WV INS bCtNcNH tAc iIdN Uuu NOUln fOlkS OF
Trinity they had an opportunity of witnessing,
free of charge, Il sparrng" exhibition Just then
going on at the foot of the mountain below them.
and in which grizzlies were the performers The
greater portion of the country being covered
with tall pines with but little underground, Oh
jccts could be distinctly seen at considerable
distance. They had therefore an uninterrupted
view of these animals and their pranks although
they were three quarters of mile distant. They
were six or seven in number and were amusing
themselves by standing upon their hind legs, box
Ing each other, wrestling, throwing each other
down, rolling oAtGe srounI. and practicing all
the other antics that a bear iscapu6c OF perform
ing. After watching their operations for time
Morton and White passed on without molcstng
them, being more dcsirous of finding the donre-
dating Indians and of cxpcndng on them their
small stock of ammunition than they were of nt
tacking band of ferocious grizzlies But the
search proved fruitcss, and they were compelled
to return to camp without any of the missing ar
ticlcs. Besides the fact that the country was al
most entirely new to them its rugged and noun
discover the hiding places of the cunning enemy,
On their return they commenced the work of
building cabin on spot previously selected
and by the time Inglcs and Dugud arrived from
from Weaver with another supply of provisions
the logs were ready to lay up" and shakes or
clapboards were split for the roof A substantial
house was soon erected in which they stored all
their movable property, and although it might
have resisted all the attempts of the Dggcrs to
enter it, yet past experience had taught them to
be more careful, and one of their number always
remained at home to watch when their Iabors
called them out Of sight of the house. The In
dams were almost constantly lying concealed in
the bushes watching an opportunity to rob the
unsuspccting settler, nor did they scruple to set
fire to his cabin when their efforts to enter were
unsuccessful. Until they learned the uses of The
various articles that white men usually possessed
they supposed that everything was intended to he
eaten, aud on one occasion Gas was afterwards ac-
knowledged) when amongst other things they
had stolen can of gunpowder, they put it into
kettle of water and boiled it "a long time but fail
ing to make it palatable it was thrown away
The careful watching of our party prevented, for
a time, the recurrence of any noteworthy dcpre- |
dations, although their dark and naked forms
were daily seen gliding along the streams and
through the woods in the ncighborhood
Thus the winter was spent in making prepara-
tions for the active labors of the coming season
Occasionally when the severity Of the weather
did 10 4
on, the ranchmen amused themselves playing bean
poker or some other small game at cards, or by
saving on an old fiddle which was their constant
A short time before the return Of spring, owing
to the continued depth of snow their stock of
provisions became somewhat reduced, so much
so that they were obliged to grind barley, the
meal of which was used both for bread and cof-
fee. The barley was parchcd in the frying pan
and ground without removing the husk.
Besides the trouble occasioned them by the In
lians they were frequently annoyed by the griz-
zlics, whose intrusons have not yet been discon-
inued in that portion Of Trinity County Night
y visits were paid to the cabi n and its vicinity
by these roaming monsters whose ierocty is on
y excellcd by their propensity for Mischief
They often carried off launches Of venlson and
other articles which happened to be left outside
he cabin, aud though their massive footprints
could easily be traced on the following morning
to neighboring thicket, no one dared enter to
lrive out or combat the savage beast. One of
hese animals once paid visit to the cabin, and
after travelling around il without dgcOyernr any- |
hing to suit him, deliberately forced open the
loor of an clubhouse which was used as a repost-
Dry for vegetables and provisions, with single
stroke of his paw, and picking up small keg of
nolasses, walked through the other end Of the
building bursting it open by the same process,
crossed stream near by on foot log, and de-
;amped safely without dropping his plunder
which he carried under his arm. The keg was
leyeT returned and If it was ever found it was en-