Idaho semi-weekly world. [volume] (Idaho City, Idaho Territory) 1875-1908, 1893-05-05

P'T'fuL TALE or An EMIeRAN1
FAMILY THAT PERSISTED.

That's Dead Mans cove right before
Jour eyes, said the old man as he point
ca to recess OF half an acre in extent
IN the southern face Of the Little Rocky
mountains. That's Dead Mans cove
and you kin see the iron work Of the
wagon lyin about when We git closer.
When l first looked in here thar was |
five human bodies lying dead in that |
wagon. Me an my pard we dug big |
grave and buried 'em all together back !
agin that cliff, thar whar the rocks is.
We piled the rocks that way so the
wolves couldn't git at the dead"
"But there is no headboard - no
names" protested a. I rode closer to
the spot pointed out.
Couldn't be no names, cause we
couldn't find any" he replied, "and them
rocks is gravestun as will last forever.
Well git of and sit down fur a smoke,
and I'll gin ye the full particulars. I've
passed here hundred times in the last
three years. and it allus gives me the
heertache. Poor husband poor wife
| poor childrenl
III Was this way = be continued after
his pipe was alight. Ne and psrd had
obr shanty down tho valley about
mile. Plenty Of emigrants IN Their xiv
cred wagons used to come by this trail
and turn south into Wyomin, or keep
west into Idaho. They'd come five or
nix families at time, and they'd come
singly. Some of 'em would take SIGH
chances Of Injuns, sickness, landslides
starvashun and death as would make
your ha'r stand on end to think of. No
man kin begin to guess how many graves
thar be of men, women and children be-
tween the Dakota line and the west
branch Of the Missouri river. I've
counted hundred in days ride.
"Waal, one December mornin me and
pard woke up to feel that thar was
blizzard maxim ready to bust on u.s. 1t
had been coolish but pleasant up to that
time. We could tell by the feel of things
what was comm, and began to git ready
fur it. 1t was jest arter noon when a
woman walked into our shanty. She
was an emigrant. Right here in this
cove she had left her husband and four
children to try and find some help. He
had bin sick fur three weeks and was
) little better than a dead man, and she
had bin drivin the team an takin keer of
things gener'ly. She orter to hev turned
back long before, but some fool of a
|. doctor had told the man he'd get well if
they kept on.
, "They had got separated from the
i party they started with, and had made
0 the last hundred miles alone. They
t war out o grub, hadn't a match left to
+ build fire, and the woman knowed a
change fur the wuss was BLOWN up.
E She was frail, leetle woman, and she
u had gone through with huff to down a
!. man, but she hadn't lost all her pluck
n Wit. As soon as she told us the story we
S got ready to go back with her an bring
Is in the outfit. We made start, but we
e never got thar"
b "The blizzard prevented, chi"
, "She did. She came swoopin down all
! !, of a sudden, like some great bird droppir
- from the sky. A fine snow begun tt
fall, the wind started right in to blow 6
!. Twin gale, and l believe the thermom
r eter went from 45 dogs. above to 10 dogs
n below inside of half an hour. We hadn'
b any with us, but the change was suddei
d an amazin. You couldn't face that gall
;. to save your life. 1t jest stopped us an'
a turned us around before we had got tif
a teen rods from the house. As to tn
20 cold, it jest paralyzed you. We had t.
a 90 back, and after takin big drink {
r whisky all around and putin on NOR
ne clothes we tried it agin.
sd "Me and Sam was as tough as bar
* them days and could hev laid down in
81 pond of water and let it freeze up wit
q us. but we couldn't buck agin that biz
zard. When we made the second star
we got about half way up here, the littl
woman leadin the way all the time
to Then we had to stop. You couldn't Sc
Oh three foot from your nose. and all of
ue was freezin to death by inches"
y "And you went backY
:" ave did. The woman was detel
NJ mined to push on, and we jest had
he nick her up and carry her back. 1t ws
se only by the Lords hand pintin the wa
on that we ever reached our cabin agil
OF We had our ears, noses and fingers fri
1t and an hour arter we got b. 4 EaH-
1i' friz solid in our cabin With -
~, of q rOarln nre. LIS w. 81. Pio. ~
al> God and appealed to u Jdt we knowe
bI, it was no use. Thu - the blizzard
1881, and I've hear lien say 1t was
iel dogs. below zs;o n this valley tn
er night. 49,,
by The woman got nipped wuss than
Ell did. but her mind was on the fam
ne hack here. She was bound to come ba'
'l alone. but we stood her off till aoo
nr dark. Then she made bolt fur 1t al
,ne got away.
ity sand went to her death?'
l. "Jest as sartin as if she had jump
off that cliff. The blizzard shet us
fur three days. When we got out
BILE found her within twenty rods OF t
the cabin. She had friz to death goin tn
as fnr. OF course we knowed howlt wou
md he up here. The horses had been
nj bitched and turned out. They lay o'
'I hs by that tree. The folks in the wag
ed had crowded together and kiyered
sed with all the blankets, but all war st
bile dead and as hard as rocks. They ne'
of Jaw that fust night come down.
ut "Me and pard overhauled the wag'
hut we couldn't find anythin giyin
ON ON name of the family, and So like nj
n~ dreds of Others out in this kentry
non mountain and valley, Injun and We
is va kiyered 'em in to sleep till the L.
and cits ready to call 'em fur Judgme
1. | D. hill family ShOl