Page:Don Coronado through Kansas.djvu/343

328 DOWN THE MISSOUKI. would, be a rest for the party, thus giving them an op- portunity to recuperate before making the final dash for home. This plan of river transportation was as- sented to by the Spaniards, after secret consultation by every man of the expedition, for the officers were fearful that when divided some accident or advantage might be taken of them, so it was arranged that each man should carefully care' for his arms, and never part with them; and a code of signals was agreed upon in case of any suspicious circumstance, great care be- ing taken to send out an advance guard to report dan- ger ahead, it being agreed that the scouts, under no provocation, were to fire unless they saw people to the number of over twenty ahead, and the boat and land-party were each to keep watch of the other, and both to camp for the night at the same place. The chief had sent messengers to the villages along the Kansas river and to the Osages, so while our party is going down the Missouri, there are num- erous water and land groups making toward the Kaw (Kansas) mouth to take a last look at the wonderful men and their horses. The distance from the City of the Twenty-four to the mouth of the Kansas river is about fifty mUes, and it is arranged that the trip can easily be made in two days. Of course the canoes have to travel nearly twice as far on account of the crookedness of tiie river. But the current of the Missouri is easily four miles an hour, and our canoes are wdl manned by Indians, who dexterously propel the craft with their paddles, so^that it is easy to keep up with the horses and men going aloag the bank. Usoally at noon tiie