| Departure for Santa Fé — Straitened for Food — Summary Effort to procure Beef — Seizure of one of our Party — Altercation with a Rico — His pusillanimous Procedure — Great Preparations in Chihuahua for our Arrest — Arrival of Mexican Troops — A polite Officer — Myself with three of my Men summoned back to Chihuahua — Amiable Conduct of Señor Artalejo — Junta Departmental and Discussion of my Affair — Writ of Habeas Corpus not in vogue — The Matter adjusted and Passports granted — The Morale — Impunity of savage Depredations — Final Start — Company of Paseños with their Fruits and Liquors — Arrival at Santa Fé, | 193 |
[CHAPTER XXIV] {VIII of Vol. II}
| Preparations for returning Home — Breaking out of the Small-pox — The Start — Our Caravan — Manuel the Comanche — A new Route — The Prairie on Fire — Danger to be apprehended from these Conflagrations — A Comanche Buffalo-chase — A Skirmish with the Pawnees — An intrepid Mexican — The Wounded — Value of a thick Skull — Retreat of the Enemy and their Failure — A bleak Northwester — Loss of our Sheep — The Llano Estacado and Sources of Red River — The Canadian River — Cruelties upon Buffalo — Feats at 'Still Hunting' — Mr. Wethered's Adventure — Once more on our own Soil — The False Washita — Enter our former Trail — Character of the Country over which we had travelled — Arrival at Van Buren — The two Routes to Santa Fé — Some Advantages of that from Arkansas — Restlessness of Prairie Travellers in civilized Life, and Propensity for returning to the Wild Deserts, | 203 |
[CHAPTER XXV] {IX of Vol. II}
CONCLUSION OF THE SANTA FE TRADE
| Decline of Prices — Statistical Table — Chihuahua Trade — Its Extent — Different Ports through which Goods are introduced to that Market — Expedition between Chihuahua and Arkansas — The Drawback — The more recent Incidents of the Santa Fé Caravans — Adventures of 1843 — Robbery and Murder of Chavez — Expedition from Texas — Defeat of Gen. Armijo's Van-guard — His precipitate Retreat — Texan Grievances — Unfortunate Results of indiscriminate Revenge — Want of discipline among the Texans — Disarmed by Capt. Cook — Return of the Escort of U. S. Dragoons, and of the Texans — Demands of the Mexican Government — Closing of the Santa Fé Trade, | 221 |
[CHAPTER XXVI] {X of Vol. II}
GEOGRAPHY OF THE PRAIRIES
| Extent of the Prairies — Mountains — Mesas or Table-lands — El Llano Estacado — Cañones — Their Annoyance to the early Caravans — Immense Gullies — Coal Mines and other Geological Products — Gypsum — Metallic Minerals — Salines — Capt. Boone's Exploration — 'Salt Plain' and 'Salt Rock' — Mr. Sibley's Visit — Saline Exudations — Unhabitableness of the high Prairies — Excellent Pasturage — Rich border Country sufficient for two States — Northern Texas — Rivers of the Prairies — Their Unfitness for Navigation — Timber — Cross Timbers — Encroachments of the Timber upon the Prairies — Fruits and Flowers — Salubrity of Climate, | 237 |
[CHAPTER XXVII] {XI of Vol. II}
ANIMALS OF THE PRAIRIES
| The Mustang or Wild Horse — Capturing him by 'Creasing,' and with the Lazo — Horse-flesh — The Buffalo — Its Appearance — Excellence of its Meat — General Utility to the Indian and Traveller — Prospect of its Extinction — Hunting the Buffalo with Bow and Arrows, the Lance, etc. — 'Still-hunting' — The Buffalo ferocious only when wounded — Butchering, etc. — The Gray Wolf — Its Modes of killing Buffalo — Their great numbers — A 'Wolf scrape' — The Prairie Wolf, or 'Jackal of the Prairies' — The Elk, Deer and Bear — The Antelope — The Bighorn — The Prairie Dog — Owls and Rattlesnakes — The Horned Frog — Fowls — Bees, etc., | 259 |
[CHAPTER XXVIII] {XII of Vol. II}
ABORIGINES OF AMERICA