The free citizen. (Orangeburg, S.C.) 1874-1876, 1875-12-04
+" Gabriel COnroy."

Bret Harte's first novel begins as a
serial in Scribner's for November, and
opens with the following description of
the Sicrras i'll winter:
Snow. Everywhere. AS far MS the
eye could reach-ffty miles, looking
southwark from the highest white peak.
filling ravines and gulchcs, and drop
ping from the walls of canons in white
! shroud-like drifts. Fashioning the divid-
ing ridge into ii likeness of monstrous
grave, hiding. the bases of giant pines
and completely covering young trees and
larchcs, trimming with porcelain and bowl
like edges of still, cold lakes, and nm
dulating i'll motionlcss white pillows to
the edge of the distant horizon. Snow
lying everywhere over the California
Sicrras on the 18th day of March, 1913,
and still falling.
1t had been showing for ten days;
showing i'll finely granulatcd powder, in
damp, spongy flakes, in thin, feathery
pillmcs showing from leaden sky stead
ny, showing fiercely, shaken out of purple
black clouds in white hocculent masses,
or dropping in long level lines like white
accs from the tumbled and broken heav-
ems, but always silently. The woods
were SO choked with it, the branches were
SO laden with it; it had SO pcrmcatcd,
filled and possessed earth and sky; it had
SO cushioned and muffied the ringing
rocks and echoing hills, that all sound
was deadened. The strongest gust, tho
ficrccst blast awoke no sigh or complaint
from the snow-packed, rigid files of
forest. There was no cracking of bough
nor craclle of underbrush; the over
laden branches of pine and fir yielded
and gave way without sound The
silence was vast, mcas.recss, complete.
Nor could it be said that any out
ward sign of life or motion changed
the fixed outlines of this stricken land
scapc.. Above there was no play of
light and shadow, only the occasional
deepening of storm and night. Below,
no bird winged its flight across the white
eNpansc, no beast haunted the confines of
the black woods; whatever of the brute
nature might have once inhabited these
solltudes had long since flown to the low
lands. There was no track or imprint !;
whatever loot might have left it's mark
upon this waste, each succeeding snow
fall obliterated all traces or record
Every morning the solitude was virgin
and unbroken; q million tiny feet had
stepped into the track and filed it up.
and yet, in the center Of this desolation,
III the: very Stronghold Of this grim Tor
tress, there was the mark OF human toll.
a few trees had been felled at the en-
trance of the canon, and the freshly cut
chips were but lightly covered with snow.
They served perhaps to indicate another
tree blazed" with an ax, and bearing a
rudcly shaped efligy of human hand,
pointing to the canon. Below the hand
was equare strip of canvas, securely,
nailed against the bark and bearing the
following Inscription:
NOTICE.
Capt Conroy's party of cmigrants are lost
III the snow and cumped up this canon. Out
of provisions and starving!
Left st. Joe October Sth, 1917.
Left Salt Lake january list, 1913.
Arrived here March 1st 1915
Left half our stock on the Platte.
Abandoned our wagons February Goth.
HELP!
Our names are:
Joel Mccormick, J Jane Brackctt,
Peter Dumphy, Gabriel Conroy,
| Paul Devargcs John Walker
Grace Conroy, Henry March,
Olympia Conroy, Philip Ashley,
Mary Dumphy.
| cEhen III smaller letters, in pcnciD:
Mamie died November s. Swcctwntcr,
Minnie died December l, Echo Canon
Jane died January 9, Salt Lake.
james Brackett, lost February
| HELP!
The language Of suffering is not ant to
be artistic or studied, but 1 think that
rhetoric could not improve this actual
record. So l let it stand, even as it stood
tiiis 18TH day OF March, 1913, half hidden
by thin film of damp snow, the snow
whitcncd hand stiffened and pointing