all the ox-yokes used in the entire
traffic; fifty thousand annually during the '50's and until the breaking
out of the war. The forward yokes were sold at an average of one dollar
and a quarter, the wheel yokes a dollar higher.

The freight transported by the wagons was always very securely loaded;
each package had its contents plainly marked on the outside. The wagons
were heavily covered and tightly closed. Every man belonging to the
caravan was thoroughly armed, and ever on the alert to repulse an attack
by the Indians.

Sometimes at the crossing of the Arkansas the quicksands were so bad
that it was necessary to get the caravan over in a hurry; then forty or
fifty yoke of oxen were hitched to one wagon and it was quickly yanked
through the treacherous ford. This was not always the case, however; it
depended upon the stage of water and recent floods.

After the close of the war with Mexico, the freight business across the
plains increased to a wonderful degree. The possession of the country by
the United States gave a fresh impetus to the New Mexico trade, and
the traffic then began to be divided between Westport and Kansas City.
Independence lost control of the overland commerce and Kansas City
commenced its rapid growth. Then came the discovery of gold in
California, and this gave an increased business westward; for thousands
of men and their families crossed the plains and the Rocky Mountains,
seeking their fortunes in the new El Dorado. The Old Trail was the
highway of an enormous pilgrimage, and both Independence and Kansas City
became the initial point of a wonderful emigration.

In Independence may still be seen a few of the old landmarks when it was
the headquarters of the Santa Fe trade.

An overland mail was started from the busy town as early as 1849. In an
old copy of the Missouri _Commonwealth_, published there under the date
of July, 1850, which I found on file in the Kansas State Historical
Society, there is the following account of the first mail stage
westward:--

We briefly alluded, some days since, to the Santa Fe line
of mail stages, which left this city on its first monthly
journey on the 1st instant. The stages are got up in
elegant style, and are each arranged to convey eight
passengers. The bodies are beautifully painted, and made
water-tight, with a view of using them as boats in ferrying
streams. The team consis