Year: 1868

Sept. 2, 1863.


EDITOR ADVERTISER 81 mailed my
last letter to you from Fort Craig.
This Fort is a small mud enclosure
with a garrison insufficient to even
take care Of themselves, proved by the
fact that for the past three years in
succession the Indians have taken
their stock from them, and last year
their horses were taken from six arm
ed herders, and from under the guns
ofthe Fort, as ] am credibly informed.
Leaving Fort Craig we recross the Rio
Grand to east side, and travel ten
miles to Panyes (place of rest) and
stop to rest and recruit our teams, pre-
yious 70 fp across the tJOnada
del Mee a0 les without wood
OF winter. altH6u4h t tue present time
some Unterprising Individual has about
half way across, dug out water tanks,
where he dispenses the warm stagnate
fluid at so much per drink per head for
man or beast. We made the trip in
four days with our heavily loaded
teams, safely, but found it very Sc
we're one on both men and animals.
We reach the river again at Fort Sell
don. This Fort is similar to Fort
Craig, although it presents from its
immediate esurroundings, am0re cheer
full appearance, being neat, clean and
having some shade trees around it. 1
could not help noticing particularly
the herd of stock from which the Fort
is ssupplied with beef, and feel a sympa-
thy with the officers and men who
have to eat it. The stock were poor
in every sense of the word; kept at
night in a dry corraII, in morn driven
from ) to miles out on the high dry
prairies to Craze, in eve driven back
and watered in the warm muddy Rio
Grand and put in corrall; they could
not be otherwise than poor, and yet
they enjoy all the advantages the
country affords. We here again re-
cross the Rio Grand and start for Fort
Cummings, 60 miles west. Water at
the end of the first twenty miles,
where it is again sold from a pond at
from 25 to 80 cts. per drink for animals,
and no more water until we reach
Cooks spring, at the Fort. Fort
Cummings is a small adobe Fort, built
at the north of Cooks Canon, and at
the spring. The spring affords an
abundant supply of water, but like
most of the water we have yet found
in New Mexico, of indifferent quality.
Leaving this Fort we pass through a
very dangerous Canon for several
miles, over a very bad, rough, stony
road, and start for Rio AIumbres, 20
miles distant, again without water on
the road. 4After passing through the
canon, the road is good, and after
several hours travel we discern in the
distance what is termed the Rio Mum
bres, (the residence Of Col. Porter as
we here propose to rest and recruit
up our teams, which, after so many
long hard drives, Oh poor grass and
no water, are badly used up. I must
in my next, give you a description Of
this stream and valley, The whole
country over which we have passed
since leaving Fort Craig, presents the
same parched, barren, desOlate APP
pearance: no timber, nothing but
mesqueto bush and a scanty supply of
short bunch grass, and a great atscarcity
of water, and not foot of land sus-
ceptible of profitable cultivation on
the entire route. During our trip
across "JonradU, F." the thermometer
stood each day from SO to 993 in the
shade compelling US to travel mostly
at night. / noticed the thermometer
at midnight, when it was down to so
and G2, where y hours previous it had
been up TO 9S or 994, producing a
change of temperature sensibly felt
without the aid of a thermometer.


Yours,