The state capital., 1892-10-08
11 - locked the, sybf76r

ult4cr M war was booming
and raging along the whole line of the
eastern states, and the boys in the
mines, showed in, frozen mp, they
wanted to know; they must know,
don't you see. | had spent winters in
the SHOWS of Mount Shasta. Yes, |
could and would walk from Walla
Walla to Millersville in Idaho, with a
load of letters and papers on my back
tor the snow-bound boys. Over two
hundred miles! Ike Mossman, my
partner, now in Oakland, walked with
me the first one hundred miles, to
Lewiston, and could go no further. A
lot of men were waiting there to GO
with the express, as usual. They
dropped behind, in fragments, and
whe night fell and l still kept on, the
last two of the lot touched match to a
resinous bark of tamarack that stood
by the cleaning, glittering trail OF
snow on the mountain side, and shook
their hats and shouted in manly admir-
alton, though they could go not foot
farther.
You see, had to cross Camas prairie
that night eighteen miles, while the
SHOWS crust was like steel. An hour
of sun Oh this vast and cleaning sea OF
trackless snow-it is a great wheat
field row-and you would sink in the
snow to your knees.
made it without mishap or strug-
gle of any sort; came up to the noun
tain station at the base of Mount Idaho
with the morning star and awakened
the men buried down there in the lit
tie cabin ten feet under the snow with
the Modoc warwhoop.
Only twenty miles more and / would
be with the boys in the mines. They
had been good to me, and | thanked
God that l had strength and skill to
serve them now. What a welcome l
should receive! / was more than gold
to them, as they Otter used to say.
They had only gold for me, but for
they had the world-letters; love.
The fellows at the station took the
greatest care. No. l should eat moth
ing at all at first; only coffee, then a
crust, then beef broth and onions,
meat at last; and by the great roaring
fire fell asleep as ate, and an Indian
with open palms rubbed my swollen
feet and legs.
Hours and hours and hours of sleep,
and then, half awake, lying full length
with feet to the fire on the bearskins
Half awake? aye, more than wide
awake, and the sun settled his account
with the world and went his way. /,
too, must be off. My big leather bag
of letters fitted me like a huge jacket;
good armor against cold, bullets, wind
and-wolves?
had siX-shooter in my left hand,
and small derringer nestled down in
each flank. l had encountered nothing
at all the night before to alarm me.
True, a band of coyotes blocked the
trail at the edge of the woods, eating
some carcass in the snow; but / had
gone around and saved time and
trouble. / was ready to do the same
now, for the old hunter who left the
station told me more than once that
the hard weather had filed the woods
with an unusual number of strange
beasts All / wanted was to get
through, deliver my letters and receive
my welcome. Oh! glorious, glorious
olden days. when the thought of gold
did not figure at all!
/ knew my brother was waiting,
never so anxiously, at the other end OF
the road. I knew he came out every
night as far as the foot Of Dead Horse
hill, three miles. I could shout to him
from the top Of Dead Horse hill, Q mile,