"We dressed our meat and the wagons came from the camp to take it in. A part of our chase was through an immense prairie dog town nearly ten miles long by two miles wide, with burrows at nearly every rod. This was very dangerous for our horses. My horse, in fact, ran into one and nearly fell, but no harm was done to any of the hunters by the prairie dog holes."
The next day was the Sabbath, "and all were busy cooking and saving their meat." In the afternoon, the camp was moved on three miles in order that better feed might be found. While the pioneers were in camp, a herd of buffaloes came to the river to drink at a place within two miles of the camp. The hunters were anxious to give them a chase, but President Young prevailed on them not to do so. It was not a work of necessity. Here the Indians impeded the progress of the company by setting fire to the prairie, which rapidly burned a large area of country. That evening Presidents Young and Kimball went ahead several miles to examine the fire and make general observations.
On Monday, the 3rd of May, the pioneers did not move camp on account of the weakened condition of the teams. A company of twenty hunters were called to go in quest of game. "We started out with two wagons. I had taken a severe cold which had settled in my side where my bones had been broken last fall, and it made me sick and I was not fit for the hunt, yet I started with the hunters. I had shaken myself up badly the Saturday before and was now feeling the effects of it."
At the same time another party were out to explore the country ahead of them, as the Indians had been burning the grass for several days. After traveling about ten miles to and fro, and seeing no game, Elders Woodruff and Lyman began a retreat for camp. "We sat down upon the edge of a bluff in sight of the camp when a company of horsemen approached, bearing a red flag. When they came within a mile of us, we trailed our guns and went down to meet them. We were informed that the party who had gone up the river had come upon a camp of about four hundred Indian warriors, and that about one hundred of them had followed the party down a ravine to cut off retreat. These horsemen had gone out to call in the hunters. On their return the horsemen came on to a herd of buffaloes. They brought in with them three calves and four antelopes.
"During the night a strong guard was kept and early in the morning the cannon was fired twice to let the Indians know the company was awake. To provide against surprises, the wagons were driven five abreast. After traveling about five miles, some wagons were seen on the opposite side of the river, going down the Platte. One of their men waded the river to find out who the pioneers were and to learn what he could of their movements. They were traders from Fort Laramie, and had been on the way sixteen days from that place.
"The grass, he informed us, was good on the south side of the river, but burned on the north side by the Indians. He consented to carry letters for us to Sarpee who lived near Winter Quarters. Here the pioneers stopped long enough to write fifty-two letters. An epistle was written to the Church at Winter Quarters; and three of the brethren accompanied the Frenchman across the Platte, where they met the other men of his company, nine in all. They informed the brethren that they had not seen an Indian since they left Laramie where there was a ferry.
"We drove on three miles and let our teams graze until the brethren returned from the French traders. They made a report to the camp of what was said to them. A council of the whole company of the pioneers was then called to determine whether we should cross the Platte, or continue along the north side of the river. We were convinced that it would be better for us to cross the river on to the old traveled road to Laramie as there was good grass on that side, while the Indians were burning it off on the north side where we were traveling.
"When, however, we took into consideration the fact that other companies would soon follow and that we were the pioneers, and had not our wives and children with us, we thought it best to keep on the north banks and face the difficulties of burning prairies. A road would thus be made which would serve as a permanent route, independent of the old immigrant trail. There was the further consideration that the river would separate us from other immigrant companies that might be disposed to quarrel with us over grass or water. Besides, by the time the next company came along, the grass would be much better than on the south side of the river. A vote was called for, and the decision was unanimous that we continue along the north banks of the Platte. Col. Markham called the men together and drilled them in a military capacity. The cannon was unloaded and carried on wheels.
"The Frenchman informed us that he had never seen so many buffaloes on the route before as there were this season and that several times the traders were compelled to stop while the herds passed. We saw many deer and antelope today and a few buffaloes. At night we camped near a herd a short distance from us. We also afterwards learned that the alarm of the 3rd about the four hundred Indian warriors was a false one, and that a man had been frightened by a herd of antelope. He supposed them in the distance to be Indians."
The decision to keep the north bank of the Platte was justified by the needs of the people in the movements of subsequent companies, and the general lay of the country. Later, when the engineer applied the accuracy of his instrument to the scientific methods of road building, the old "Mormon Trail," as it was popularly called, was chosen for the Union Pacific Railroad which covered that "trail" for hundreds of miles. In the years of follow there was a rush to the gold fields of California. The frontiers-men of Illinois and Missouri who had given the Saints so much trouble were among the gold seekers. It was the part of wisdom to have between them and the migrating Saints the Platte River.