Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1858-03-04
NEW SERIES, NO. III.
TERMS {sT,5OstrictIy in advance.
1IAo1ho, $500 at the years eud.
The Utah Expedition.

!, oait Lake, gives vivid account of the suffer-
iilSS' Oh the troops from Utah, on their winter
= campaign. Col. Cook started in command of
SIX companies ID Dragons, from Fort Leayen-
worth, on the 18th of September, and his Jour-
l'ai ehos with his arrival at Fort Bridger. on the
iSth Of November. Hesays the regiment was
hastily called from service in tho field and allow
: "a only three OF four days to prepare for a
liarch OF eleven hundred miles, over an min
h''oltea % and mountainous wilderness. Tbev
'''r'ea on the 18th, but three or g,ur dors
were " lost IN waiting for the Quartermaster.s
D0p"f'lnehs to supply tho absolute necessary
9 transportation On the 18th, IO7 mules. ware
FURNISHED which the same day bad arrived from
? Il march Of, perhaps 2Oeo miles to and from
DiNggef Pass; above 100 of the others were
'7'''iy worthless from want and age, and re-
curing several hours to harness team On
''ie morning Of the 10Th, twenty Transfers ,yora
""n'ing' ana men were furnished utterly iano--
i"il' ol the business and without outfits.
hne regular journal Of each days march is
gwen; now it rained, and how the mp,as d;ea
ana the men complained. On Novemho. a+b
'hey reached Sweet Water Pass. in the Rocky
mountains; NJ the next day they gained Devils
Gate Col. Cook says;
:" Tn the 9th we found the ground o,,o. ,o,,.o
"h''c ana the snow falling, but then yerv mod
erately. marched as usual. On fonr n,;lo
null the nortL wind and drifting snow became
severe the air seemed turned tn 6.,yor e,.
nothing could be seen we were struggling in =
frozen cloud The lofty wall at Three Cross
lhss was happy relief, but the guide. wbo
had lately passed there, was relentless in nro-
nouhcins that there was no grass the idea of
n''ohs and feeding upon grass in that wintrx
Storm under the deep snow, was hard to ento,-
taih' but as he promised grass and other shelter
TWO miles further, we marched an crosy;n,,
twice more the rocky stream half choked with
sho" and ice; finally he led lis behind a grant
granite ROCK, but all too snail for she Promised
Sleiter; only part Of the regiment could bud-
aie 1here' IN the deep snow while the loug nioht
| through the storm continued, and in fearful ed-
oi'T' from above, before, behind, drove the fall
ing ana drifting snow. Thus exposed, for tbe
nope of grass, the poor animals wara drvo,
with great devotion by tho men once more
across the stream and tbree-quarters of a mile
'ey0'i'' 10 the base Of granite ridge, but wbiah
almost laced the storm there the hmisbod
mules, crying piteously, did not seek to eat but
desperately gathered in Il mass and some horses
escaping the guard, went back to the nrd
where the lofty precipico first gave us 5, peas.
ant relief and shelter.
Thus morning light had nothing CHEERING ia
reveal the air filled with driven snow--tba ami
mans soon came driven in, and mingled in con.
iuSioh with men, went cruncbine tba snow in
u, 'ne confined and wrctched camp, tramping all
'iii'SS IN their way. 1t wasnot a time to dwell
on the TACT that from that mountain dasart tbo,o
wa" no retreat nor any shelter near. bnt a time
lof action But for six hours the frost or fra
zen fos fell t1ickly, like snow and sran wa
marched on as in cloud.
inc oeap snow drifts impoded lis much. and
III crossing Sweet Water the Ice broke in ths
middle Marching ten miles only. | got . b,t
ler camp and herdod the horses on the hills 4
was different road, where few days before
Inc bodies OF three frozen men were found >,
On tho Sth The thermometer stood IA doo.oos
'''o" the freezing point. The snow was dee,
wenty-threc mules gave ont, and five WAGONS
we're abandoned.
"Nno trooper horses were left freezino and
y'''s on the road, and 4 number of soldiers
nd teanSters had been lrostbitten. It wasa
cold night; the thermometers were
roken, but BY comparison must have marked
D deg. below zero. A b,ttlo of sherry wine
foze in trunk. Having lost about fifty mules
thirty-sx hours, the morning of the lltb.
the report OF the Quartarmaster, felt bound
leave wagon in th2 bushes, filed with sa,nn.
7-fonr extra saddles and brides and same co,
r9s.
Next day the cora gave ont, and the mulss
ere dying Of hunger.
They gnAwod aad destroyed four w,,.,,
ngues, number Of wagon covers. ate t5.;r
pes ana getting loose, ate the sage fuel eal-
cted at the tents. Some of these they also NJ
eked. Nine died.
Ihe last growing company of dfsmounted mer
ere marched together as .seporato command
day the morning Of the 18th number Of
EN- were iEoft9itten lrom not being in motion,
though standing by fires.
That day eighteen miles were marched ia Pic
ndy where the guide found grass. and fnel
tn 1t SO good that the 18th was made day
rest +; the animals wero all bearded NJ tbe
ass. Fifty horses had been lost since loav;,o
ramic.''
lie closed the report of his march with tba
loving:
: | have l44 horsos and have lost 1874 Most
the loss has occurred much this side Of Sontl
ss IN comparatively moderate weather /,
been OF starvation. The earth has a M
re iiieieSs, leatless, treeless, grassless desert
contains scarcely wolf to glut itself on tba
'dreds OF dead and frozen animals, which for
'ty miles nearly block the road with aban-
ed and shattered property. They mark. ner-
's, beyond example in history, the stems Of
advancing army with the horrors Of l;sas-
IS retreat 0ia's-
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