The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1897-10-03
THE DARK DAYS OF YORE.
PeTiIs Encountered By the Pioneers in Crossing
the SierraS in 1916.

NY bloIhsf rooe on a mule, carrying
4 Tommy III her lap Patty and Jim
4 rode behind the two Indians and I be
/ hind Mr.. Stanton. In this way we
1 Journeyed on through the rain. looking
/ I'D Win fear toward the mountains.
/ where SNOW was already falling, al
| though 1t was only the last week in
! October. Winter had set in d month
( earlier than usual. An trails and
! roads were covered. Our only guide
/ was the summit which 1t seemed we
( would never reach.
When i. was seen that the wagons
! could not be dragged through til snow
( their goods and provisions were packed
( on oxen and another start was made,
men and women walking in the snow
Up 10 their waists. carrying their chill
/ dren in their arms and trying to drive
/ their cattle. The guides said they
could find no road so a halt was called
and Stanton went ahead with the
[ guides. He came back and reported
/ that we could get across if we kent
! right on but that it would be imposgi-
! bic il snow fell. He was in Sayor of
a forced march until the other side of
1 the summit should be reached. but
some of cur parry were so tired and
! exhausted with their days labor that
/ they declared they could not take an
other step. So the few that knew the
} AdAiSCl llsll ne ll4t7lll bA4llr7
( yielded TO the many and we can1ped
I within three miles of The summit.
That night the dreaded SNOW came.
/ Around tha camp fires under the trees
great feathery fakes came fiuttering
/ down. The air was so full of them
that one could see only a few feet
away We children slept soundly on
our cold bed of snow With a soft mantle
falling over US SO thickly that every
J
| to shake the sha.wl-our only covering
to keep US from being buried alive. In
the morning the snow lay deep in
mountain and valley. With heavy
hearts We turned back to a cabin THAT
| had been built by the Murphy Schal-
lenberger party two years before. We
built more cabins and prepared as best
we could for the winter. That camp
| which proved the camp death to many
in our company. was made on the
/ shore of a lake. since known as Don
ner lake The Donners were camped
in Alder Greek valley below the lake
and were, if possible, in q worse condt-
| ton than ourselves.
Three double cabins were built at
! Bonner lake, which we're known as the
'Breen cabin the Murphy cabin and
the Reed Graves cabin The cattle
we're all killed and the meat placed in
had no cattle to kill, but she made ar
engagements for some, promising to give
two for one in California. Stanton and
the two Indian guides made their home
in my mothers cabin
FIRST GOLD FIND.
During the close Of December. 1916,
gold was found in my mothers cabin
at Bonner Lake by John Denton. Den
ton, with his cane, kept knocking pieces
off the large rocks used as fire irons.
Something bright attracted his atten-
ton, and picking up pieces of the rock
he examined them closely. Then turn
ing TO my mother he said: Mrs. Reed,
that is gold Denton knocked more
chips from the rocks, and he hunted in
the ashes for the shining particles until
he had gathered about a teaspoonful-
This hetied up in a small piece of buck
skin and placed in his pocket saying:
If we ever get away from here l am
coming back for more Denton started
out with the first relief party shat per
iShed on the way, and no one thought
of the gold in his pocket.
"On his arrival at Suffers fort my
father made known the situation Of the
emigrants Captain Suffer furnished
horses and provisions and my father
and Mr.. McClutehen started for the
mountains, coming as far aS possible,
and then with packs on their backs,
proceeding on foot. But they were fin
ally compelled to return. Captain SUIT
ter was not surprised at their defeat
He advised my father to go to Yerba
Buena now San Francisco, and make
his case known TO the naval officer in
command. A party Of seven, command
ed by Captain Reason P. Tucker, was
sent to our relief by Captain Suffer
and the alcalde, Mr.. Sinclair
. RELIEF PARTY ARRIVES.
ION the evening of Feb. 10, 1S47, they
reached our cabins. where all were
starving. There was Joy at Bonner
Lake that night But with the joy sor-
row was strangely blended. For the
dead were lying about on the snow
some even unburied, since the living
had not had strength to bury then
! dead When Milt Elliott died-oul
faithful friend who seemed so like 9
brother-rny mother and l dragged hin
up out of the cabin and covered hin
, with snow.
ION Feb. % the first relief started
with a party Of 2S-men. women anG
children. My mother and her family
were among the number. 1t was g
bright, sunny morning, and we felt
: happy, but we had not gone far wher
Patty and Tommy gave out. They
: were not able to stand the fatigue ant
it was not thought safe to allow then
to proceed. so Mr.. Glover informed
mamma that they would have to be
sent back to the cabin to await the
next expedition. My mother said tha'
. she would go back with her children
that we would all go back together
This the relief party would not permit
and Mr.. Glover promised mamma thai
as soon as they reached Bear valley
he himself would return for ner chill.
dren. Mr.. Glover returned with the
: children, and, providing them viii
l food. left them in the care of Mr.
; Breen.
With sorrowful hearts we Travelled
on. walking through the snow in sin
gle file. The men wearing snow shoe
l broke the snow and we followed in thei
. tracks, At night we lay down on thu
? snow to sleep, to wake to find ou
clothing all frozen. even to our sho,
: strings. At break of day we were again
on the road, owing to the fact that w
: could make much better time over tht
t frozen snow. The sunshine. which i
I would seem would have been welcome
only added to our misery. The dazzling
3 reflection of the snow was very tryini
e to our eyes. while its heat melted GU
: frozen clothing, making it cling to GU
4 bodies. My brother was too small (,
/ step in the tracks made by the men
$ and in order to travel he had to plac
= his knee on the little hill of snow afte
f each step and climb over. Mothe
r coaxed him along, telling him tina
. every step he took he was getting
4 nearer to papa and nearer somethin,
to eat.
DEATH OF DENTON.
He was the youngest child that eve
! I walked over the Sierra Nevada On IN