The Placer herald., 1858-06-12
From the St. Louis Republican, April 27.
Return of the Overland Mail Expedition

&NCtuAA II Va CAC ONCIAdAN AAdlA 4ApCultAoh'
A portion of the exploring party sent out
by the Overland Mail Company, for tie pur-
pose of examining the routes for the carriage
of the mails from The Valley Of the Mississip
pi to Il Pacific coast, which left this city on
the third Of January last, reached Fort
Smith. Arkansas, on their return home, on
the 18th instant, accompanied 10y four of the
party who left San Francisco on the 10th of
January, to examine that portion Of the route
from the Pacific to the Rio Grande. They
left El Paso on the 22d of Mai,h, thus ac-
complishing the distance from the BIO Grande
to Fort Smith--nine hundred and" thirty
miles-in the short space Of twenty five
days which we believe is the quickest "time
on record" in crossing the Plains. The party
was composed of only eight men, as follows:
Major George w. Wo,d, Jesse Talcott, G.
p. Cole, and j. A. Lilly, of tie st. Louis
party; and Lieutenant Frank De Ryther.
James Swartz, and John Bu;terfield, jr., of
the San Francisco party They brought with
them ore wagon and thirteen animals, which
they left at Fort Smith, the party proceeding
east.
The route travelled on the return trip was
different from the one passed over in going
out, VIZ: via the Hurro Tanks, Los Cornudas
and the Guadalupe Falls to Captain Pepe'S
new crossing the Pecos, below the mouth
of delaware Creek thence down the Rio
Pecos to the "Emigrant Crossing;' thence
to the Mustang Springs, the Big Springs Of
the Colorado, Camp Cooper. Fort Belknap
and Gainesville to the Red River, and thence
to Fo,t Smith.
f,.,, c. /
the San Francisco Valley to the San Jose
Valley; thence to the Coast Range of noun
tains, thence by the San Joaquin river to
the 1ulare Valley. through Fort Yuma and
Tucson to Ell Paso In crossing the Arizona
territory the party took a middle route be-
tween Beales' and the southern route, (but
little travelled heretotore,) and is pronounced
by them An excellent natural road Both
expeditions pronounce the entire route from
San francisco as perfectly piacticab for
staging purposes The worst part of the
whole route, so far as the roads are concern
ed, is from the Red River to Fort Smith,
through the Indian Territory.
The Desert, CT Llano Estarado, the great
est inpediment OH the route. was crossed 10y
them in twenty-seven hours, the distance
being sixty five miles They saw no Indians,
neither hostile or friendly, after leaving San
Francisco until they arrived al Preston,
Texas, excepting three friendly Camanches,
near Camp Cooper. An ample supply Of
wood, water and grass is found on the rnute,
with the exception of the Lano Esiacado,
which is covered with IuXurant growth of
gramma grass. They passed Capt. Pope's
Camp of the Ar'esian Well Expedtion,"
near the Rio Pecos where he is engaged in
BORN an artesian wei, for the purpose of
procuring water on he Llano Estaralo. He
attained the depth OF one hundred and forty
seven feet, but had not succeeded in getting
water to the surface. He WAS then boring
through limestone rock. and felt confident
that so soon as he had bored through this
he would find an abundance of water.