it, but the many
crossings of the stream obtained, make frequent bridges necessary.
These should be of such a character as to allow a water-way of at
least thirty feet, but bridges of simple construction could be used,
stone of any kind being difficult to obtain. The soil is sandy and
easily worked, but will make a substantial road-bed. Having received
your verbal orders to run a rapid line from a point west of here on
the North Fork, where that valley makes its deflection to the South,
eastward to the three hundred and eighty-fifth mile post, I provided
myself with ten days' supplies and rations, and on Wednesday, the
sixteenth, moved up the North Fork as rapidly as the nature of the
ground permitted, camping at night near the four hundred and
twenty-fourth mile, on Mr. Reynold's preliminary line. Before camp was
fully arranged, a heavy squall struck it, tearing down all the tents,
destroying one old one used as a cook tent and injuring some of the
new ones. The herd was also stampeded, but was recovered without loss.
The next morning I went up the valley about ten miles and ascended the
divide to take observations. I found the course of the valley here was
south of west and continued four miles westward. Several large
branches, with deep, broad valleys, almost as large as the main
stream, came in from the North, which it would be impracticable to
cross. I returned, therefore, to a point in the valley near the four
hundred and thirtieth mile of Mr. Reynold's line, where ascent from
the valley seemed easy, and commenced my line at Station fifteen
hundred and fifty-seven by eighty-three and ascended to an upper
plateau in about one and a half miles, with a grade of fifty-two and
eight-tenths feet per mile. I then turned to about Magnetic east, and
we held this course with some deflections northward until night. This
day's work, some six miles, is extremely heavy, the first two miles
averaging about forty thousand cubic yards of earthwork each. On
Friday we continued the line, swinging more to the northward, as the
heavy ravines and rough country forced us away from our course.
Running ten miles, we found a good camping place at end of line, at
night, in a large branch of the North Fork, (the same which comes in
two miles west of Sheridan), where there were numerous large ponds of
water, the drainage from the late rains. The line during the day had
crossed the water courses at that immediate level, between the heavy
break