eem to fear the danger: though, even if they had, most of
us had grown so selfish and unaccommodating, that I don't think they
would have met with much sympathy.

It was an hour beyond noon when we were in readiness to start. We took
two of the baggage-horses with us, to carry the tent-poles and
covering, and a few utensils. Our personal baggage was packed on the
horses we rode. Bradley and Don Luis rode in advance, Jose followed
with the baggage-horses, and McPhail and myself brought up the rear. We
had not proceeded more than four miles on the trail when we saw a
couple of horsemen some distance ahead; advancing towards us. As soon
as we were within a couple of hundred yards of each other, we at once
recognised them to be Lacosse and the old trapper. Urging our horses
into a smart trot, we soon arrived alongside of them; and, on inquiring
what it was that had caused them to remain so long at Sutter's, and
also how it was that they had neither the baggage-horses nor,
apparently, any provisions with them, Lacosse gave us this explanation.

He stated that after leaving the camp, they struck the Sacramento River
that night, and succeeded in reaching the upper settlements towards
evening on the following day. The next morning they pursued their
journey and arrived at Sutter's Fort about sundown; they encamped near
here for the night. Flour was as much as eighty-five dollars a-barrel,
and everything in the way of provisions was in the same proportion.
They purchased a stock of flour, and, packing their horses, moved off
the same day. In the evening they encamped some fifteen miles up the
Sacramento, near the mouth of the Feather River, and within a hundred
yards of the spot where the Indian village existed which Captain Sutter
had destroyed; the whole circumstances connected with which we had
already heard from the old trapper. They resumed the journey early on
the following morning, and by the evening had made about twenty-five
miles, when they rested for the night near one of the little camps of
miners, which they found scattered about the valley every few miles
along the route. The next day they pushed forward, and found those
encampments much less numerous--only one or two were passed throughout
the entire day. Just after sundown, however, they saw by the fires up
the hills quite a little colony of gold-washers, which they moved
towards; and, after purchasing some provisions at a store recently
opened there, for which