QUEBEC CALÈCHE.
On this occasion Indian guides were employed to lead the way across the passes of the Rocky Mountains, and these guides proved to be untrustworthy and treacherous. One night, when the camp was pitched in a forest, nearly all the horses were stolen, together with the stores, and then, when the emigrants were in this helpless position, they were attacked by a band of Indians. After that, the story seems like one of the cinema plays with which nowadays we are all familiar, for the writer tells how he and another man were chosen to ride for help to a neighbouring fort, how they were pursued by the savages, how they escaped, and how, finally, when they returned, it was to find that they were too late, and that during their absence the wagons had been burnt and the hapless people murdered.
Even disasters like this did not, however, daunt the brave adventurers, and thirteen years later we hear of a huge convoy starting westward from Chicago. On this occasion many, who could not afford to purchase wagons, set out on foot for the long journey of more than a thousand miles, dragging their possessions on little two-wheeled handcarts.
Times have changed now, and there are many railways crossing the great continent. The Indians have disappeared from the forests, and in the Rocky Mountains gay parties of holidaymakers can be seen in the summer-time, riding in the same woods where, a century ago, their ancestors, grimly alert and with guns in their hands toiled along on the weary journey that was to bring them at last to the wonderful "El Dorado" of their dreams, where new homes and fabulous riches were to be found.
At the present time in the western districts the men are great riders, and extraordinary feats of horsemanship are common among the cowboys on some of the cattle ranches.
The vehicles of modern North America are much like those of European countries, but mention must be made of the curious cars used to show off the paces of the celebrated trotting horses. These little two-wheeled carts are very lightly made, and seem to consist merely of two wheels, a small seat, and a pair of shafts.
In Quebec, Canada, a very smart cab may be seen. It is of picturesque appearance, on two high wheels, and bears the French name of "calèche."
In South America there are not many curious vehicles. A great part of the country is covered with tropical forests, and in the south riding is the principal means of getting from place to place. Mules and oxen are used as beasts of burden, and in some districts quaint-looking animals called llamas are also employed. These creatures, which most of us have seen in zoological gardens, are very hardy and can carry heavy loads on their backs.
