t; they kindle quickly and retain heat
surprisingly. We had this morning buffalo steaks broiled upon them that
had the same flavor they would have had upon hickory coals.

"We feel no fear of Indians; our cattle graze quietly around our
encampment unmolested. Two or three men will go hunting twenty miles
from camp; and last night two of our men lay out in the wilderness
rather than ride their horses after a hard chase.

"Indeed, if I do not experience something far worse than I have yet
done, I shall say the trouble is all in getting started. Our wagons have
not needed much repair, and I can not yet tell in what respects they
could be improved. Certain it is, they can not be too strong. Our
preparations for the journey might have been in some respects bettered.

"Bread has been the principal article of food in our camp. We laid in
one hundred and fifty pounds of flour and seventy-five pounds of meat
for each individual, and I fear bread will be scarce. Meat is abundant.
Rice and beans are good articles on the road; cornmeal too, is
acceptable. Linsey dresses are the most suitable for children. Indeed,
if I had one, it would be acceptable. There is so cool a breeze at
all times on the Plains that the sun does not feel so hot as one would
suppose.

"We are now four hundred and fifty miles from Independence. Our route
at first was rough, and through a timbered country, which appeared to be
fertile. After striking the prairie, we found a firstrate road, and the
only difficulty we have had, has been in crossing the creeks. In that,
however, there has been no danger.

"I never could have believed we could have traveled so far with so
little difficulty. The prairie between the Blue and the Platte Rivers is
beautiful beyond description. Never have I seen so varied a country, so
suitable for cultivation. Everything is new and pleasing; the Indians
frequently come to see us, and the chiefs of a tribe breakfasted at
our tent this morning. All are so friendly that I can not help feeling
sympathy and friendship for them. But on one sheet what can I say?

"Since we have been on the Platte, we have had the river on one side
and the ever varying mounds on the other, and have traveled through the
bottom lands from one to two miles wide, with little or no timber.
The soil is sandy, and last year, on account of the dry season, the
emigrants found grass here scarce. Our cattle are in good order, and
when proper care has been taken, n