The Desert Home: The Adventures of a Lost Family in the Wilderness

"We were stirring by sunrise next morning; and having breakfasted heartily, we packed our wagon and started away from our camp, which we had named `Camp Antelope.' The stream we...

"Cudjo had already completed our deer-park, which consisted of several acres, partly woodland and part of it being in the glade immediately adjoining the house. It was enclosed...

"We were all soon engaged in different occupations. Mary was preparing the dried meat, which she intended to boil along with the locust-beans in our tin-pot. Fortunately, it was...

It would be very difficult, my young readers, to describe to you the scene which followed this unexpected recognition. The family had all risen to their feet, and with cries and...

"That evening, as we sat around the supper table, my wife announced that the last grain of our coffee was in the pot. This was sad news to all of us. Of the little luxuries that...

"Well, my friends," proceeded our host, "it was a terrible sight to look upon--those fierce, gaunt wolves--the mad and foaming mastiffs--the dead mother, and the terrified and s...

"Next day we had a warm, sunshiny day--just such an one as would bring the bees out. After breakfast we all set forth for the openings, in high spirits at the prospect of the sp...

"Next morning we were up by the earliest break of day, and had the pleasure of witnessing a beautiful phenomenon in the sunrise. The whole country to the east, as far as we coul...

"Frank and I were rather pleased with the result of the encounter; though I do not see why we should have taken sides with the peccary, who would have eaten the birds--could she...

"Well, my friends, I was in Saint Louis. I had now left out of my three thousand pounds not quite an hundred; and this would soon melt away should I remain idle. What was I to do?

"Now, there were some circumstances to be considered, before we could proceed any farther in the matter of the bees. How were we to get at the honey? `Why, by felling the tree,...

We were soon in the bottom of the valley, where we followed a plain track that led along the banks of the rivulet. We knew that that would direct us up to the lake, where we sho...

"I need not tell you that the announcement was received with joyful acclamations; and that one and all satisfied themselves by tasting of the salt. It had crystallised into smal...

"When daylight came, the mysterious flood was still standing at its full height. I call it mysterious, for as yet we knew nothing of what had so suddenly created it. We could th...

"In the evening, we returned to our house, carrying with us, on the back of Pompo, a good-sized bag of salt. We had evaporated enough to cure our venison, and to last us for sev...

"In three days the cart was finished. We had no difficulty in constructing one, as the principal part--that is, the wheels--was already made. We had two pair of them, of course,...

"We had now arrived on the banks of the salt creek; but as we saw the cliff close by, and knew that we must be near the spring which supplied this little rivulet, we resolved to...

"Of course we could do nothing more for our beavers at present. It was not our intention to trap any of them until they should become very numerous, and then we could obtain ann...

There is a great desert in the interior of North America. It is almost as large as the famous Saara of Africa. It is fifteen hundred miles long, and a thousand wide. Now, if it...

"It was in the middle of the winter. A light snow had fallen upon the ground--just enough to enable us to follow the trail of any animal we might light upon. Of course, the snow...

After so long and terrible a journey, of course, we all stood in need of rest and refreshment. We made up our minds to stay by the stream all night, and perhaps for a day or two...

"Of course, Mary was much pleased at hearing of the discovery we had made. One of the first requisites of a housewife is a supply of good salt; and that we promised to obtain fo...

"Well, my friends, I shall now detail to you the strange incident, which at once decided me to adopt the suggestion of my wife, and make our home in the valley. Perhaps we did n...

"Well, my friends, we had arrived on the banks of a rivulet, and were thanking God for bringing us safely there. We soon satisfied our thirst, as you may believe, and began to l...

"I now believed that we were safe. Both Frank and I experienced that happiness which men feel who have been suddenly snatched from the jaws of death. `The peccaries,' thought we...

"The next adventure which befell us was near having a more serious termination. This time Frank was my companion, while Harry remained at home with his mother. Our errand was to...

"Harry was the first who succeeded in making a capture; and that was a pair of grey squirrels, which he had trapped at the bottom of their tree. For these a large cage was const...

"We arose early next morning; and, having eaten a hearty breakfast of elk-steaks and coffee, began to consider what was the next thing to be done. We had now quite enough of mea...

"We had accomplished a great object. Nothing remained but to train a sufficient number of elk for our purpose. We trapped several fawns; and Cudjo proceeded in breaking them as...

"The main object we had in view was not yet accomplished. With the exception of our flock of turkeys, none of the pets we had tamed could contribute to our support. We wished to...

"Next day Cudjo and I went on with our housebuilding. This day was appropriated to roofing it. We first laid a row of the clap-boards, projecting considerably over the eaves--so...

Some years ago, I was one of a party of "prairie merchants," who crossed with a caravan from Saint Louis on the Mississippi, to Santa Fe in New Mexico. We followed the usual "Sa...

"During the winter we saw very little of our beavers. Through the cold season they lay snug in their houses--although not in a state of torpidity, as the beaver does not become...

"Our hopes of being able to get away from the oasis valley were thus crushed in a moment. The horse could not of himself draw the wagon, and how could we travel without it? Even...

"We were busy of course every day, as we had plenty of work to do. We laid a floor in our cabin, and fenced a couple of fields--one to plant our corn in, and the other to keep P...

"We now continued our journey toward our fishing-ground, Cudjo having hung the porcupine to a tree, with the design of taking it home with him on our return. It was Cudjo's inte...

"I need not describe the joy of my wife and the rest when I returned, and related to them what I had seen, as well as my adventure with the wolverene. The discovery that our new...

"I found the farm everything he had described it--a large plantation with a good wooden house, and well-enclosed fields. I immediately set about `stocking' it with my remaining...

"While we thus stood watching the movements of our beavers, and conversing about the habits of these interesting animals, an incident occurred which very much amused us, and pro...

"Our next was a fishing excursion. As I have said, Cudjo had already discovered that our stream contained fish, and had caught several of them. They were something like bass, al...

"We now climbed back into the live-oak, and recommenced flinging down our moss. We were chatting gaily about the curious scene we had just witnessed. Frank was remarking how luc...

"In the third year our beavers had increased to such numbers, that we saw it was time to thin them off, and commence laying up our store of furs. They had grown so tame that the...

"During that year we raised two crops of corn. Neither one of them required as much as two months to bring it to maturity. When we gathered our fall crop we found that we had tw...

"Brothers," began he, "I am of your own race, although I am not an American. I am an Englishman. I was born in the south of that country something more than forty years ago. My...