Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1890-11-06
THE RIVER OF LOST SOULS.
A March That Gave Name to 4 New
Mexican Stream.

Over three centuries backward and be-
fore inquisitive Da Soto had lighted his
camp fires on the banks of the Mississippi
the Spaniards had achieved two settle
ments in this land of the 0ccident-
Santa Fe and St. Augustine. They had
no knowledge of the country which lay
between these points or its inhabitants.
As TO what might be the dangers and
deadfalls of journey from one place to
another, they were as blandly ignorant
as of the history of the moon. But this
ignorance affected them not, and full Of
the uneasy spirit of the hour a military
party in Santa Fe resolved on an overland
expedition to st. Augustine. They knew
the distance, for they could figure the
latitude and longitude, and they could
get the distance by the compass; but
this was the sum of their knowledge.
The expedition, numbering some hun
dreds of men, left Sante Fe late in the
Summer, and crossing the mountains at
Ration Pass, the present route of the San
ia Fe Railroad, they camped that Winter
on the present site of Trinidad. The
grass was long in the valley, the game
was plenty on the hills, their own stores
were ample, and, sending back to Sante
Fe for minstrel and glee maiden, these
gentlemen of the sword got in as gay
season as they ever have since. Those
old dons were lads fspirit and possessed
high hearts as we'll as taste for travel.
Before them to the eastward, as far as
eye could sweep, spread the desert un-
confined What was to be met there
they knew not, but their lack of knowl-
edge was coincident with an equal lack
of care.
With the melting of the SHOWS in the
Spring sunshine the women and camp
followers returned to Sante Fe. The
last hand was waved goodbye, the last
adios was uttered, and the explorers
turned their resolute faces to the work
in hand. They marched down the val
ley of the little muddy river which flows,
as you read this, through the town of
Trinidad The ones who were to return
| to Santa Fe watched them for miles, as
sisted by the CLINT of the sun on steel cap
| and harness. At last they were hidden
in willows far down the valley, and this
|
With the last flap of the last banner it
was as if they had marched out of exis-
tence, and whether they sunk in rivers,
perished in the drifting SHOWS or were
done to death by Indians was never told.
No sign or trace OF this expedition or its
people was ever found. There was some
thing so eerie and mysterious in the
complete disappearance of this band,
something so dark in the silence of their
fate, that the superstitious Spaniard
made the sign of the holy cross when he
recalled it. With that effort at COM
memoration which was the spirit of that
time, the little muddy torrent in whose
valley the lost explorers last were seen
was called Ell Rio de Los Animas -"The
River of Lost Souls" This was the Span
ish name when Sublette, Chouteau, Bent,
Carson, St. Vrain, and other represent
atives of the French Fur Company of
st. Louis first saw it. Knowing nothing
of the story and assisted only by their
differences drawn from the name, these
translated the appellation into the Pur-
gatoire. When the jocund bull-whackel
of the overland trail got to it, In hi'
free-and. easy French he called it ''tht
Picketwire." Every brand it ever had
still sticks, and to-day you will find the
little vagrant of stream pursuing its
glistening mission to the sea with as
many names as member of the British
House of Lords. II Kansas City Star.