We said birds always lived where human beings did, and we had great hopes born to us of a better land.

I told John that if the folks were only there now I could kill game enough for them.
We dressed our three birds and got them boiling in the camp kettle, and while they were cooking talked over the outlook which was so flattering that our tongues got loose and we rattled away in strange contrast to the ominous silence of a week ago.

While eating our stew of crow and hawk, we could see willows alders and big sage brush around and we had noticed what seemed to be cottonwoods farther down the canon, and green trees on the slope of the mountain.

We were sure we were on the edge of the promised land and were quite light hearted, till we began to tell of plans to get the good people out who were waiting for us beside the little spring in the desert.

We talked of going back at once, but our meat was too near gone, and we must take them something to encourage them a little and make them strong for the fearful trip.