Mr.
Crooks, With Five Others, Turned Their Steps Up It; Retracing By
Land The Weary Course They Had Made By
Water, intending, should
they not find relief nearer at hand, to keep on until they should
reach Henry's Fort, where
They hoped to find the horses they had
left there, and to return with them to the main body.
The third party, composed of five men, was headed by Mr.
M'Kenzie, who struck to the northward, across the desert plains,
in hopes of coming upon the main stream of the Columbia.
Having seen these three adventurous bands depart upon their
forlorn expeditions, Mr. Hunt turned his thoughts to provide for
the subsistence of the main body left to his charge, and to
prepare for their future march. There remained with him thirty-
one men, besides the squaw and two children of Pierre Dorion.
There was no game to be met with in the neighborhood; but beavers
were occasionally trapped about the river banks, which afforded a
scanty supply of food; in the meantime they comforted themselves
that some one or other of the foraging detachments would be
successful, and return with relief.
Mr. Hunt now set to work with all diligence, to prepare caches,
in which to deposit the baggage and merchandise, of which it
would be necessary to disburden themselves, preparatory to their
weary march by land: and here we shall give a brief description
of those contrivances, so noted in the wilderness.
A cache is a term common among traders and hunters, to designate
a hiding-place for provisions and effects. It is derived from the
French word "cacher", to conceal, and originated among the early
colonists of Canada and Louisiana; but the secret depository
which it designates was in use among the aboriginals long before
the intrusion of the white men. It is, in fact, the only mode
that migratory hordes have of preserving their valuables from
robbery, during their long absences from their villages or
accustomed haunts, on hunting expeditions, or during the
vicissitudes of war. The utmost skill and caution are required to
render these places of concealment invisible to the lynx eye of
an Indian. The first care is to seek out a proper situation,
which is generally some dry, low, bank of clay, on the margin of
a water-course. As soon as the precise spot is pitched upon,
blankets, saddle-cloths, and other coverings are spread over the
surrounding grass and bushes, to prevent foot-tracks, or any
other derangement; and as few hands as possible are employed. A
circle of about two feet in diameter is then nicely cut in the
sod, which is carefully removed, with the loose soil immediately
beneath it, and laid aside in a place where it will be safe from
anything that may change its appearance. The uncovered area is
then digged perpendicularly to the depth of about three feet, and
is then gradually widened so as to form a conical chamber six or
seven feet deep. The whole of the earth displaced by this
process, being of a different color from that an the surface, is
handed up in a vessel, and heaped into a skin or cloth, in which
it is conveyed to the stream and thrown into the midst of the
current, that it may be entirely carried off. Should the cache
not be formed in the vicinity of a stream, the earth thus thrown
up is carried to a distance, and scattered in such manner as not
to leave the minutest trace. The cave, being formed, is well
lined with dry grass, bark, sticks, and poles, and occasionally a
dried hide. The property intended to be hidden is then laid in,
after having been well aired: a hide is spread over it, and dried
grass, brush, and stones thrown in, and trampled down until the
pit is filled to the neck. The loose soil which had been put
aside is then brought and rammed down firmly, to prevent its
caving in, and is frequently sprinkled with water, to destroy the
scent, lest the wolves and bears should be attracted to the
place, and root up the concealed treasure. When the neck of the
cache is nearly level with the surrounding surface, the sod is
again fitted in with the utmost exactness, and any bushes,
stocks, or stones, that may have originally been about the spot,
are restored to their former places. The blankets and other
coverings are then removed from the surrounding herbage; all
tracks are obliterated; the grass is gently raised by the hand to
its natural position, and the minutest chip or straw is
scrupulously gleaned up and thrown into the stream. After all
this is done, the place is abandoned for the night, and, if all
be right next morning, is not visited again, until there be a
necessity for reopening the cache. Four men are sufficient, in
this way, to conceal the amount of three tons weight of
merchandise in the course of two days. Nine caches were required
to contain the goods and baggage which Mr. Hunt found it
necessary to leave at this place.
Three days had been thus employed since the departure of the
several detachments, when that of Mr. Crooks unexpectedly made
its appearance. A momentary joy was diffused through the camp,
for they supposed succor to be at hand. It was soon dispelled.
Mr. Crooks and his companions had been completely disheartened by
this retrograde march through a bleak and barren country; and had
found, computing from their progress and the accumulating
difficulties besetting every step, that it would be impossible to
reach Henry's Fort and return to the main body in the course of
the winter. They had determined, therefore, to rejoin their
comrades, and share their lot.
One avenue of hope was thus closed upon the anxious sojourners at
the Caldron Linn; their main expectation of relief was now from
the two parties under Reed and M'Lellan, which had proceeded down
the river; for, as to Mr. M'Kenzie's detachment, which had struck
across the plains, they thought it would have sufficient
difficulty in struggling forward through the trackless
wilderness.
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