Year: 1879

and always gave it to the right one.
I was charmed with their honesty,
| auick>wil and sense of justice. This
sense of honor and justice must have
been inherent-they never could have
learned from the agents. those just
| and honorable guardians whom the
| Government has placed over them.


The only excitement after leaving
Fl. Peck was an occasional herd OF
| antelope or buffalo, and every one
| would run on deck to see them. My
| husband was made happy BY having
| several shots at antelope and one at a
herd of buffalo, which swan the river
in front of our boat. He never hit
anything, but he always gave 50 many
good reasons for not doing so that we
would have thought it miracle If he
had. The voyage might have been
tedious, for we spent hours on sand
bars, and at best only made five miles
an hour, but we we're not in q hurry.
The prospect at Assinaboine-not .
house, not even tent to receive us
enabled us to bear patiently and phil
osophically all delays. You see We
did not pine to "fiy on the wings Of
the wind to dear Assinaboine. We
sat contentedly on deck OR in the .pi,
lot house and listened to the man cry
the depth of the water. His voice
became as familiar as a "household
word" 1t was almost continual
cry, in a monotonous voice: "Two
feet !" eight feet!" "No bottom y
and when he said that we would soon
feel the boat give a surge. and We
knew we were on q sand>bar.


We used to land every day or two
at some wood-pile to get wood, and
wherever there was a little plain with
few cotton wood trees, the only kind
in this Territory, except an occasional
ir, we found a woodmans hut and
wood piled along the banks of the
river. These little huts are made of
logs and thatched with mud and grass,
and are almost entirely covered with
skins hung up to dry; no floor in the
huts, except mother earth. There
were usually two or three men and
one dog at a wood-pile. At one
place remember there were several
huts and eight or ten men.


think / may say that We had a
delightful voyage, for we had pleas
ant party OH board. The greater part
of the time we had pleasant weather,
and then we had our band, which
added greatly to our happiness. We
spent some delightful afternoons on
deck, gliding up the river, enjoying
the sweet strains OF some familiar air.
for we did occasionally glide, though
it seemed that the greater part Of the
time we were on sand.bar. fA>-s
1t is eleven hundred miles from
Bismarck to Coal-Banks, our landing,
after seventeen days on the river.
You may imagine We we were glad to
be on terra frna once more, even if il
were terra i,acog,,ita.


We arrived at the Coal-Banks on
the morning of the 4th Of May. The
landing is a little plain or valley be.
tween the hills and river, and it was
no. long before the little valley was
thickly dotted with white tents, that
sprung up like magic. An officer OF
the Third Infantry, stationed at Ft.
Shaw, met US to show US the way to
the site OF the new fort. You see we
had travelled all this distance by land
and water to look for the site of Ft.
Assinaboine. The regiment canped
two days at the landing and then
marched over to the new fort, leaving
two companies at the landing to pro.
tect Government property. Our boat
laid at the landing all that day (the
day we arrived) and until the next
morning at three o'clock when we
steamed off and left them. My aunt
and l, with two other ladies, went on
up the river seventy-fve miles to Fl.
Benton-that is as tar as the river is
navigable. We spent one week in
Benton with Mr. Joseph Baker and
wife, the kindest and most hospitable
people l have ever had the good for.
tune to meet. We met MIR. B. in
Atlanta and he invited US to stay at
his house while we were in Benton,
but we of course never thought of ac'
cepting the hospitality Of strangers,
and when we arrived in Benton, in.
tended to stop at the hotel. When
Mr.. and Mrs. Baker met US they in
sisted so strenuously upon US to go
home with them that We could not re-
fuse without being rude. | hope to
be able to return their hospitality
soon. Mrs B. is coming to visit me
next month, and promises me long
visit next winter when We are in our
new quarters. Mr.. Bakers father
owns line of steamers between Ben
ton and st. Louis. They live in ele-
CANT style. We were astonished
| (that mildly expresses it, to find such
magnifcence and luxury out here.


We retuned by boat to the Coal
Banks, where an escort met lis to
bring US over here. We drove over
in seven hours, distance of thirty
seven miles. 1t was a pleasant day;
not too sunny, and calm, which is
wonderful, for the wind blows all the
time here, 50 it seems to me. We
enjoyed the drive very much, though
we we're in mortal terror of Indians
when We started. 1t is anything but
safe for small parties 70 travel between