loneerkozi.et1ion; - ScholarsArchive at Oregon State University

T}tE OCCASIONAL ADDRESS. 33
first month, but after that we had fine weather, until we arrived at the Cascade
mountains.
We left the Missouri river the 6th of June, and when we got to Wolf creek we
organized by electing Joel Palmer captain, and the usual officers thaf belong to
such organizations.
When we organized, we had about 85 wagons, and in the Nemaha country,
we overtook what was called the Chicago company, headed by Uncle Thomas
Cox, which increased our company to 99 wagons. The morning after we were
joined by that company, Captain Palmer took a company of men and went
ahead of the wagons, and worked the road at the crossing of Bcg Nemaha, as
well as they could, until the wagons came up, but still we had to let the wagons
down the grade by ropes, with from two to four men standing on the off wheels
of each wagon; and still we made the usual day's travel that day. We departed
from the usual rule adopted by the emigrations in former years. Instead of
forming a corral with our wagons for the stock, we camped in such a way that
we could yoke the cattle and hitch on to the wagons without danger of running
over the women and children. Our corral was for the people, both great and
small, not for the cattle and horses; and those who had camped the usual way
considered this the better mode.
When I left Knox county, Illinois, the Democratic Central Committee had a
small wrought-iron cannon, made by a Whig to celebrate the election of Henry
Clay, in I8, and when he was beaten, gave it to the Democrats, and they
named it the Young Democrat; and they gave it to me to bring to Oregon. It
was a real screamer to talkit could be head i5 or 20 miles, and old mountaineers
said that if we fired that every night after we camped, Indians would
not trouble us. And I think it was true, for we adopted that plan and no
stealing only when we neglected to let her bark.
Some thought our company too large, but still we made good travel every
day.
We trave'led that way until we crossed Big Blue river. There Wm. Graham's
son was so sick we concluded to lay by a day or two. That camp was the finest
camp of pioneers I ever saw. It contained 99 wagons, about 400 men, women
and children, from six days to 6o years of age; representing nearly all the professions,
trades and occupations. I think that camp was a good average of the
pioneers of 1847. We had preachers with their bibles and psalm books, doctors
with their medicine chests, lawyets with their law books, school teachers,
anxious to teach the young idea how to shoot, merchants with their goods, nurserymen
with their trees and seeds, stockmen with their fine horses and cattle,
millers, milimen, millwrights, wheelwrights, carpenters, cabinet makers with
a