Their
duration, however, is but limited; they require frequently to be
hauled out of the water and dried, to prevent the hides from becoming
water-soaked; and they eventually rot and go to pieces.
The course of the river was a little to the north of east; it ran about
five miles an hour, over a gravelly bottom. The banks were generally
alluvial, and thickly grown with cottonwood trees, intermingled
occasionally with ash and plum trees. Now and then limestone cliffs
and promontories advanced upon the river, making picturesque headlands.
Beyond the woody borders rose ranges of naked hills.
Milton Sublette was the Pelorus of this adventurous bark; being somewhat
experienced in this wild kind of navigation. It required all his
attention and skill, however, to pilot her clear of sand-bars and snags
of sunken trees. There was often, too, a perplexity of choice, where
the river branched into various channels, among clusters of islands; and
occasionally the voyagers found themselves aground and had to turn back.
It was necessary, also, to keep a wary eye upon the land, for they were
passing through the heart of the Crow country, and were continually in
reach of any ambush that might be lurking on shore. The most formidable
foes that they saw, however, were three grizzly bears, quietly
promenading along the bank, who seemed to gaze at them with surprise as
they glided by. Herds of buffalo, also, were moving about, or lying
on the ground, like cattle in a pasture; excepting such inhabitants as
these, a perfect solitude reigned over the land.
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