Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1889-06-02


nant of men together that afternoon, had
what few cattle butchered that had lodged
in the snow, and as night came on and the
crust of snow hardened, the little band set
forward, silent, slowly, in single file, through
the great solemn woods to cross the Sierras.
Each mad had a horse and drew a sled. The
sled was often only the hide of a bullock,
with blankets, bread, bacon, arms, amuni-
tion, anything indeed that fell to the lot of
the man who drew the sledge in the general
distribution of provisions. Here were stout,
daring, audaeious hearts now! There is not
room or need to say more. But pray give
this brave and single little remnant of an
army tender respect. Napoleon on the Alps,
the huuehback Hannibal before him were
simply luxurious robbers in comparison
with this sobered and earnest little string
of men on their tortuous way through the
pines to recover kingdom that had been
lost to civilization. Cortez drawing his
ships by pieeemeal over the Isthmus knew
nothing half so terrible in that warm
and luxurious land. For here with
us on the the very first night nearly
every man had feet face, or hands badly
frozen. And the wolves! Before it was vet
quite full dawn we,were' compelled TO form a
solid circle, with our faces to the wolves;
our sleds and horses in the center. And
such beautiful teethl We sat down on our
sleds facing the wolves. The wolves
promptly sat down right before us, their
great red tongues lolling out of their hum
CRY mouths, the beautiful white teeth glis-
tening in perilous contrast. Two sleds of
beel had been already captured and instant
" deYoured. Look herel I've cut N.Y.
self somehow" whispered one of the men
who had lost q sled. We only discovered
that he was hurt by the blood that made the
white snow red. This poor fellow was
reputed to be a professional pickpocket
when at home in the enjoyment of civiliza-
tion and liberty. But he was good soldier
here, and did not even cry out when a wolf
tore away a handful of flesh from his leg;
but he merely laid it to some accidental
awkwardness of his, had his leg bandaged
as we all sat there, shiYering and looking
down into thousand hungry throats, wait
ing, praying for sunrise. But had that tpoor
pickpOeket by sign or sound indicated that
the wolves had begun to eat our men as we'll
as our provisions, there would probably
have been a two-second panic! Then some
few white bones on the bloody snow: the
red epitaph over the common grave of the
''army of Northern Californian
When light came and the wolves went back
q little from our faces we made roaring fires
and broiled or rather burned our beef so
that it would be less heavy, and finally less
attractive to the wolves in these terrible
marches at night
While this was being done posted on
alone with Captain Rodgers, whom 1 had |
come to know and greatly respect, if not to
quite yet trust, to see if possible if there |
was any abatement in the tremendous depth |
OF snow. For our sleds were now all worn |
and broken, our horses were weak and fail |
ing for want of food. After an hour or so |
we crossed huge bear track, or rather what |
Rodgers call bear track. II was simply |
the track of about 20 Modocs on the war |
path! They were going toward my own |
camp. But kept my own counsel. There |
was no turning back now. To tell the worn |
and halt-hearted band of men that the !
Modoc was also with us would have insured I
a sort of paralysis. 1twas push on now or
perish. I
This 'bear track" at this time and place
could mean but one thing-and now you
need map of the whole thing nere-anG
that was war between the three Indian
tribes that hovered about the base of Mount
Shasta. Either this or the Modocs were
merely on their way to, my camp for cattle.
This broad bear track was pointing direct
for either my cattle or the scalps of nv In
dians. In either case the only immediate
danger to the little army was the danger of
panic. But this is the most fearful dan
ger that any man has to meet in war, espe-
cially in the wilderness, where the wild
beasts, where even the elements conspire to
destroy.
CaptSih Rodgers sat down to rest and
went alone to the top of a bold and tre-
mendehs mountain of snow from which the
gTSsses and flowers of the desolated valley
could be seen. 1t was here that 1 had
rested with my two young Indians both on
going to and returning from the scene of
massacre. We had left letter here in
Indian characters: and as these two Indians
who had created the panic before mentioned
had probably passed this way I hoped to
lind new letter from them here. was not
disappointed. 1t took some patient search,
some circuitous and tedious delay, which 1
have not time to set down; bur this is the
letter found on the inner side of a scale of
sugar-pine bark. Bear in mind that the
sugar pine tree is always used BY the Shasta
Indians. You might search the forest in
vain for any sign on any other tree than the
sugar pine. But here is the letter: