The Great Salt Trail | Page 7

horse, and in the evening halted
on the bank of a small stream which had evidently been an Indian
camping-place about three weeks ago.
In the morning when ready to leave, they again saw the Indian trail,
which after a while separated in every direction, showing that the band
had broken up into small hunting-parties. In all probability the savages
were still somewhere in the vicinity, so it behooved the white men to
move with the greatest caution. The utmost vigilance was exercised,
but not a sign was seen, and at night they camped in a deep ravine
which concealed them from the level of the surrounding country.
The next morning at daylight the march was resumed, but before they
came out of the ravine on to the level prairie a council was held as to
the best course to pursue. It was deemed prudent to make a bee-line
across the mountains, over which the trail would be very rugged and
difficult, but more secure. One of the party named M'Lellan, a
bull-headed, impatient Scotchman, who had been rendered more so by
the condition of his feet which were terribly swollen and sore, swore he
had rather face all the Blackfeet in the country than attempt the tedious
journey over the mountains. As the others did not agree with his
opinion, they all began to climb the hills, the younger men trying to see
who would reach the top of the divide first. M'Lellan, who was double
the age of some of his companions, began to fall in the rear for want of
breath. It was his turn that day to carry the old beaver-trap, and finding

himself so far behind the others, he suddenly stopped and declared he
would carry it no farther, at the same time throwing it as far down the
hill as he could. He was then offered a package of dried meat in its
place, but this in his rage he threw upon the ground, asserting that those
might carry it who wanted it; he could secure all the food he wanted
with his rifle. Then turning off from the party he walked along the base
of the mountain, letting those, he said, climb rocks who were afraid to
face Indians. Mr. Stuart and all his companions attempted to impress
him with the rashness of his conduct, but M'Lellan was deaf to every
remonstrance and kept on the way he had determined to go.
As they felt they were now in a dangerous neighbourhood, and did not
dare to fire a rifle, they were compelled to depend upon the old
beaver-trap for their subsistence. The stream on which they were
encamped was filled with beaver sign, and the redoubtable Ben Jones
set out at daybreak with the hope of catching one of the sleek fur
animals. While making his way through a bunch of willows he heard a
crashing sound to his right, and looking in that direction, saw a huge
grizzly bear coming toward him with a terrible snort. The Kentuckian
was afraid of neither man nor beast, and drawing up his rifle, let fly.
The bear was wounded, but instead of rushing upon his foe as is usually
the case with a wounded grizzly, he ran back into the thicket and thus
escaped.
They were compelled to remain some days at this camp, and as the
beaver-trap failed to supply them with food, it became absolutely
necessary to take the chances of discovery by the Indians, in order to
live, and Ben Jones was permitted to make a tour with his rifle some
distance from the camp, defying both bears and Blackfeet. He had not
been absent more than two hours when he came upon a herd of elk and
killed five of them. When he reported his good news, the party
immediately moved their camp to the carcasses, about six miles distant.
After marching a few days more, hunger again returned, the keenest of
their sufferings. The small amount of bear and elk meat which they had
been able to carry in addition to their other equipage lasted but a short
time, and in their anxiety to get ahead they had little time to hunt. As
scarcely any game crossed their trail, they lived for three days upon
nothing but a small duck and a few miserable fish. They saw numbers
of antelope, but they were very wild and they succeeded in killing only

one. It was poor in flesh and very small, but they lived on it for several
days.
After a while they came across the trail of the obstinate M'Lellan, who
was still ahead of them, and had encamped the night before on the very
stream where they now were. They saw the embers of the fire by which
he had