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13 Indians their appearance was rather singular their dress was made of Buckskin no covering of their feet or on their heads from which flowed long straight hair which lay loose about their face and shoulders they were very friendly each one shaking hands with us as they passed on. This afternoon we also met the Pony Express returning from San Francisco he passed us like the wind and we could not get a single word of news we camped tonight on the Blue River again. The following day at noon we parted from this beautiful little stream having traveled fifty miles along its banks we now struck out on the broad open prairie on the old military road to California this road has been well worn by travel it is about one hundred feet broad and cut down from the constant rise about one foot its whole width. The whole immigration to and from California in 1848 and 1850 was over this highway it is now a splendid road the peculiar nature of the soil rendering it when exposed to the sun as hard as brick without any assistance from man. It is far ahead of the smoothest Mac Adanized roads in the States a wagon loaded with six to making no impression whatever on its flinty surface tonight we had to camp on the open prairie without wood or water the prospect was not all all encouraging and we could not help contrasting it with our abundance of the night previous of the Little Blue. We pitched our tent and camped on the side of the road picketed our horses and downharted and unhappy we threw ourselves on our blankets to find some rest. This was the first time I began to think of home with many regrets for leaving it all the hardships and difficulties of our undertaking then rose before my mind vividly and I could not help thinking we had sacrificed our good established business the comforts of home and friends to come on this wild goose chase for now in its sober reality I could not consider it in any other light.