Omaha daily bee., 1883-05-18
PIONEER HARDSHlPS.
True Story Of the Death Valley
Horror.
Lost in the Mountains Terri
bic Sufteringof a Train that
Crossed the Sierras
in Nidwinter.

From the San Francisco Chronicle.
SAN BERNARoINo, May 1.-The
story that is commonly told of the
emigrant train that persisted In Death
valley In 1849 forms one of the most
painful chapters In the history Of Cal
~ifornis. 1t has been frequently retold
with all Its thrilling details. The
scene Of death, as IL looked years
after, with the blesched bones of oxen
and the fragments of wagons scattered
over the valley, has often been pict.
ured. Only two of the party Of eighty.
seven, 1t Is said, survived. Although
the account of the terrible sufferings
of that band Of emigrants IL one Of
the favorite stories told Of early Call.
fornis days, the truth OF that terrible
journey is yet to be made public. The
following narrative 10 based upon facts
gathered from the many who survived
the privations and sutferings of that
winter In Death valley:
In the first mad rush for the "Lsnd
Of Gold" ia 1849, many of the Argo.
nauts were men who left nome, wives,
children, kindreds or sweethearts, to
whom they expected to return In the
near future. All who came expected
to return Immediately. Some came
to our shores to build up homes. The
great hegira of 1849 was made up of
fJrtupe. hunters eager to reach the en-.
ohanted land. NJ They left the Estates"
without regard to the season Of the
year, aud thus many arrived at the
great halfway house-Salt Lake
late In the fall, and there learned of
the SHOWS of the Sierra Nevada noun.
tsins and the fate of the Bonner party
and others who attempted to cross the
almost plored wilds during the
winter months.
IMPATIENT PIONEERS.
Many trains decided to winter at
Salt Lake and spread themselves out
among the Mormon settlers, where
they could find food and shelter for
thems, Ives and stock. About the LIST
of October the impatient fortune
hunters, bemoaning and cursing their
inactivity, began to canvass the theory
of crossing by some southern route.
No one, however, appeared to know
anything of the country, aud further
they had been told by Fremont that
the route was Improbable Still
they were not Satisfied and finally dis.
covered In the person of a Mormon,
Maj Hunt, a person who had been
over a southern route with a pack
train, aud who declared 1t feasible for
wagons and offered to pilot them
thr( ugh for $40 per wagon, A train
Of 105 wagons and Two carts was made
up, containing about 300 persons. The
rodeo took plscs at Hobble Greek, U.
T., ten miles southwest Of which on
the 81 of October, 1849, an organiza.
ton OF the train was effected by elect.
Ing Cipt. Baxter, of Michigan, cap.
tain, DR.. Mccormick of Iowa City,
To-, second In command, and dividing
the train into seven sections, each
with a captain for guard duty, and
with Maj. Hunt employed as guide.
The train rolled out and reached
Beaver creek, in Southwestern Utah,
without any incident worthy of note.
LED AsTRAY.
Here they we're met by Capt. O, X.
Smith with q pack train from st.
Louis, Mo Capt. Smith had led a
pack train over the old Spanish South.
ern trail and prof, ssed to know a cut.
off by which a hundred miles could be
saved, by following up Beaver creek,
leaving 1t near the point where the
Mountain Meadows massacre after
wards occurred, and crossing a range
of mountains and striking the old
Spanish trail near the crossing of the
Muddy" He Induced nine of the
men, led by VIII Webster, q daring,
reckless man, to join him, and then
the entire train followed him with the
exception of ave wagons and the
guide, Maj. Hunt, who pronounced
against the route.
The train pulled out, and following
the trail taken by Capt. Smith, fol.
lowed 1t up on to the range of noun.
tains between them and the muddy"
Here they found by his wandering
and winding trail that Capt. Smith had
lost his way. The train encamped and
sent out pioneers to look out . route
of the mountains. Two days we're
spent in o fruitlesss search, and a. oil
the pioneering parties had returned,
with the exception of one composed OF
the Rev. Mr.. Briefly and two young
mon, and reported 1t impossible to get
off the mountains, 1t was determined
to retrsce their steps and follow the
trail taken by Maj. Hunt. On the
morning of the third day the teams
were hitohed to the wagons and every.
thing prepared to start. They were
detained q short time while the men
buried q oomrade who had died the
night before. While they were walt.
Ing Briefly and party came In and
reported finding a practicable route
down q valley which opened out
towards the southwest.
IN DEATH VALLEY.
The train was here again divided.
Slxty-fve wagons followed Brierly
down Into what Is now known as
Death valley, the balance of the train
returning and taking the Spanish trail
followed by Maj. Hunt. The expert.
enoe of the train of sixty.fve wagons
which followed Briefly "down Into the
valley of death" was a severe one.
They travelled for days without food
for their stock and barely water enough
to subsist on. Still they continued
on their course, leaving their way
dotted by the carcasses of their oxen.
which fell down and died from starva
ton. Finding 1t impossible to pro
coed with the wagons, they were
Tally abandoned, and, packing Al
much provisions on their starving
cattle as they could carry, all started