Lewistown gazette. [volume] (Lewistown, Pa.) 1843-1944, 1862-02-12
MISCELLANEOUS,
Correspondence Of the Gazette.
MOUNTAIN CITY,
Colorado Territory, Jan. l, 1862.

Colorauo territory, Jan. 1867.
Mr.. Editor.-As have never seen any
news in the columns of your paper from
this section OF the country, ! thought of
giving you brief description of the Rocky
Mountains and the Gold Regions, as it may
be somewhat interesting to the readers of
the Gazette " -s -
But before commencing my subject,
will give you short account of nv Journey
across the Plains, or the Great Prairie of
! the West, as it is very often called. There
were thirteen of US started from st. Jo-
seph, Missouri, on the 10Th of April, at
about IL o'clock, with two mule teams,
which we're loaded With our provisions, bag
gage and camping utensils. Our journey
lay through the state of Kansas, in due
west direction; however, the route changed,
so that We could hardly tell sometimes what
course we were going-sometime north,
sometimes south, and then we would take
turn either to the right or left, and go
direct west; but by looking at the map it
Is direct western course from the hisseu-
ri River to the Gold Region of Pixies Peak.
However, let it be what course it may,
1t is not very easy trip and if you do
not believe 1t, try it and you will find out
how travelling goes with mule or OK team
at the rate Of fifteen to thirty miles day,
and perhaps not that, according to the
weather and the roads. .-r -.
When you have journey to perform of
seven or eight hundred miles, you may think
it very wearisome one, and you will not
be mistaken. The distance from ST. jose
to Denver City is about seven hundred
miles, and from Denver City to the Gold
Mines about fifty miles.
We had pretty good weather, good roads,
and a good team, and drove in twenty one
days to Denver City, having landed there
on the 18th of May, sixty one. On our
journey we saw very few Indians compared
to the number generally along the road. |
suppose we saw about a.thousand or fifteen
hundred in all, and the greater number of
them were squaWs and pappooses. The
men had nearly all gone further south in
search of buffalo and other game, as the
weather was rather cold, and the grass too
short for them to come SO far north We
saw no live buffalo except one at Fort
Kearney, whore they had tame one, bat
saw hundreds of carcasses that had been
killed by some of the weary pilgrims and
the Indians. Other game was generally
plenty, such as elk, antelopes, wolves, bad
gers, jack rabbits, prairie dogs, wild tur-
keys, prairie chickens, and other small
game too numerous to mention.
The first tribe of Indians that we came
to were the Paw-da-wa-d da- mics or Otoes as
some cali them, but the former is the cor
rect name. They are settled along the
western borders of Kansas, and are gen
orally civilized. They live in houses in
stead of lodges, and have considerable
ground in good cultivation, with good fen
ces around it where timber is not too scarce
Their chief productions are sugar cane,
which they are very fond of, and small
quantity of corn. They manufacture their
own sugar similar to the whites. They
have wooden mills, like apple mills in the |
States, which are worked by horse power |
L had quite conversation with an old In !
dian, and he told me that their mission |
had been deserted, that the preacher had |
left, and he expressed great desire for |
preacher and teacher to come to them again
that they might have their children educa-
ted. They also appeared very aecommoda-
ting, and are willing to lend helping hand
to the traveller, and to give all the informa-
ton they can. 1t is very difficult to un-
derstand them, as they can talk but very
little english, but with his broken english
and the gestures and motions that he made,
could make out. what he meant. When
however they want any tobacco, they can
ask for it very well in plain english. There
was one asked me for some J. / gave it to
him, and he took of his hat and thanked /
me very politely. learned afterwards
that the old man expected something from
all the travellers that stopped at his house,
as he has been instrumental in restoring
many mules and cattle that have strayed |
away from the travellers as they passed along.
That night we camped about fourteen miles
from where we saw him, when three of |