that they were out of reach of most of the emigrants. As
for me, all my funds had been absorbed in procuring my outfit at
Eddyville, in Iowa. We had not dreamed that there would be use for money
on the Plains, where there were neither supplies nor people. But we soon
found out our mistake.

The crossing of the Snake River, although late in the journey, gave us
the opportunity to mend matters. About thirty miles below Salmon Falls
the dilemma confronted us of either crossing the Snake River or having
our teams starve on the trip down the river on the south bank. We found
that some emigrants had calked two wagon beds and lashed them together,
and were using this craft for crossing. But they would not help others
across for less than three to five dollars a wagon, the party swimming
their own stock.

If others could cross in wagon beds, why couldn't we do likewise?
Without more ado all the old clothing that could possibly be spared was
assembled, and tar buckets were scraped. Old chisels and broken knives
were hunted up, and a boat repairing and calking campaign began. Very
soon the wagon box rode placidly, even if not gracefully, on the waters
of the Snake River.

My boyhood experience at playing with logs and leaky old skiffs in the
waters of White River now served me well; I could row a boat. My first
venture across the Snake River was with the wagon gear run over the
wagon box, the whole being gradually worked out into deep water. The
load was so heavy that a very small margin was left to prevent the water
from breaking over the sides, and some water did enter as light ripples
on the surface struck the _Mary Jane_--for we had duly named our craft.
I got over safely, but after that I took lighter loads, and I really
enjoyed the work, with the change from the intolerable dust to the clear
atmosphere of the river.

Some people were so infatuated with the idea of floating on the water
that they were easily persuaded by an unprincipled trader at the lower
crossing to dispose of their teams for a song and to embark in their
wagon beds for a voyage down the river. A number of people thus lost
everything they had, and some even lost their lives. After terrible
hardships, the survivors reached the road again, to become objects of
charity. I knew one survivor who was out seven days without food other
than a scant supply of berries and vegetable growth and "a few
crickets, but not many."

We had no trouble to get the cattl