I think he did a good job. The book is about the migration to the west as part of the Donner-Reed party. The report is written as a letter to the editor from the perspective of a member of the party.
To THE
EDITOR OF SPRINGFIELD TIMES,
As a
member of the Donner-Reed party, I would like to explain what happened on our
trip to California. My name is Aditya
Indla and it is my pleasure to be writing this letter to you. I really hope you
can print this letter so other California enthusiasts know what to expect along
the way.
Our
trip was very awe-inspiring, yet full of terrible dangers. Many famous
landmarks such as: the beautiful, naturally carved Chimney Rock which looked
remarkably like a chimney; the sentinels of the west, the cold, brutal Rocky
Mountains; and the high Scott’s Bluff were dotted along the trail that many
emigrants including the Donner-Reed party followed. The trail was full of
Indians from ones who would beg for food and help us to others who would attack
us at the slightest whim. The delightfully sweet smell of the flowers, like
nothing could ever go wrong again was very relaxing, but we were to be proven
wrong mostly because: all of the animals seemed to have deserted us so we could
not depend on animals as a major food source. In the Rockies, when we were
stranded, our only food was what we had packed, which depleted fast. Many grew
angry at Mr. Reed and blamed him for the hardships that befell us. I thought, though, that Mr. Reed had made the
greatest effort of us all. At rare intermissions between the hardships we
faced, the trip was also full of many beautiful places that seemed so much like
Heaven, which everybody loved, and many wanted to stay there.
The
Journey
We began
our trip with high spirits, sure that most of us would make it to the wild and
untamed land of California. After a few
hours, we reached the borders of Illinois, to be greeted by an orchard of
beautiful cherry and crab apple flowers along with the runners of the sweet
strawberries growing.
On May
11th our party reached Independence, the last town on the frontier.
Mr. Reed, our leader, arranged for more wagons of provisions to help us reach
California. Just then, the clouds of tiny insects known as pesky skeeters
attacked us, proving to be a nuisance along the trail. Indians were common in
Independence as they would trade for clothes, food, and other necessary items.
After a few days out on the prairie, one fine morning, we stumbled upon a
giant, sweet smelling carpet of pink and blue. The girls loved the beautifully
pink verbena, while the dark blue wild indigo, larkspur, and bluebells were the
favorite of the boys.
One
day, Mr. Reed’s family had a surprise visitor. The visitor was a Kaw Indian and
the rest of his tribe was outside, begging everyone for food, buttons or
anything they took a fancy to. The next part of the trip was to cross the Big
Blue River, but we had no means to do so. After many cold and strenuous days of
waiting on the banks of the river, we finally built a raft to take us across. We
eventually reached a very dry stretch of land which was home to the Pawnee
Indians. The Indians invaded camps and the only way to keep them away was to fire
guns.
Mr.
Reed also led us to a family of prairie dogs and their complex underground
towns. An elk was shot and cooked to
provide us food for the time. Eventually we came to the grand and amazing
Chimney Rock. Chimney Rock was created by rain and wind blowing away at the
limestone and other soft stones to create the solid block it used to be.
We
reached Fort Laramie on July 3rd. The next day, on the Fourth of
July, we toasted to friends left behind and for our own luck on the trail to California.
We met Sioux Indians in the middle of their war dance and they were extremely
friendly to us. They wanted to trade for one of our horses and Patty’s sister,
Puss. Patty was Mr. Reed’s daughter. Mr. Reed politely refused but the Indians
kept bringing up items, so Puss was sent to the wagon. After we left Fort
Laramie, we only caught fleeting glimpses of owls and wolves, for no other
animals dare go near Fort Laramie. The mighty sentinels of the West, the
Rockies and the Sierra Nevada, stood in our way to California. These mighty mountains
were untamed by man and stood as a defiant wall that must be scaled to reach
the new land of California, the last remaining obstacles standing in our way.
Our
Trials & Tribulations
The
trip was not all fields and flowers, though. We were faced by many hardships
along the way, but fought through and refused to give up. Please allow me to
describe them to you.
Our
first major hardship began in the Valley of the Platte. We were running low on
water and there were very few springs. The party had to drink from the muddy
Platte River. All of the children were
complaining about the disagreeable taste. Fortunately, we found more and
more springs full of fresh water, otherwise our journey might have ended then
and there.
When we
reached Fort Laramie, we restocked provisions and celebrated the 4th
of July. The next part required a trip across the Rocky Mountains, where we promptly
got stranded!!!!! Our food was running out and we were also running out of
water. We waited until some of the snow melted and collected water, which we
stocked for the trip and followed the path made by other wagons that we found
after the snow had melted.
Once we escaped, we had to travel to Fort
Bridger to renew our supplies. At Fort Bridger we got a message from Mr.
Hastings, who was an aquantaince of Mr. Reed’s, which said that there was a
path through a canyon which would save three hundred miles from a trip around
Fort Hall, which was the normal route. The path seemed much harder than Mr.
Hastings had let on. We were stuck there!!!!!!
Our wagons were trapped in the valley and had
to take another path. Mr. Hastings recounted that the path he told us about was
all what he heard, but there was a mountain path that would be much easier to
pass than the valley path. After twenty-one long, hard days of climbing we
finally crossed the mountain and entered the Salt Lake valley.
After twenty-two more days of travelling, we
camped at a strange place that was full of wells filled with cold water, which
was the last place to find water, as told to us by a letter from Mr. Hastings
that said,” Two days and two nights of hard driving to reach the next grass and
water.” Everyone was angry at Mr. Hastings because he told us that this was an
easy trip, but it was actually extremely difficult.
In the
middle of the drive, there was a large mountain to cross, which annoyed
everybody even more. All of our water was running out extremely quick, and
before we even reached the mountain, we ran out of the water we had packed. Many
almost went mad with thirst and one of our own oxen went so crazy from thirst
that it broke free and charged into the desert! In order to survive, all of the
party had to get rid of most of their belongings.
Most of
us thought that the worst was over, but when we were almost in California, we got
trapped in the Sierra Nevada! This time, it was even more dreadful than in the
Rockies. Sickness spread like wildfire through our camps and many caught
diseases like cholera and typhoid. Many died of hunger and the rest were
trapped until they died or the snows melted.
Finally,
though, men from California came and took us to Sutter’s Fort, where we would
live the rest of our lives in peace.
During
this trip, many major choices were made, some good and some bad. One of them
was whether to follow Mr. Hastings or to go the normal route which was much
safer. Another was whether to keep all of our belongings and maybe die because
we were too slow. Our final choice was whether to go into the Sierra Nevada
just before the snow falls or go after the snow melts and probably run out of
food. My advice would be to take the normal trail because it is much safer.
Also, do not cross the Sierra just before the snow falls because you might get
trapped, just like we did and if you wait until the snow melts, you might not
get stranded.
My
reflections
I
changed much as a result of this long and hard journey. I learned to never take
life for granted, and never to underestimate the power of human bravery and
perseverance in the face of recurring hardships. Many sacrificed their lives
trying to get to California and if they had just turned back, I wouldn’t be
writing this letter to you! If we hadn’t gone just because going west became
very difficult, California probably wouldn’t have become a state. Many of our
most faithful travelers died from starvation and lack of water. One who died
was Milt, our most faithful helper and our teamster, who led the oxen. His
memory inspired us to work harder to survive to fulfill his dream of getting us
to California. I changed because I learned the magnitude of many sacrifices
made by people like him.
Mr.
Hastings said that the pass would be easy, but it was actually the hardest part
of our journey. He just guessed about the route based on what others said, and
not always correctly. He also conveniently forgot to mention that there was a
mountain in the middle of the desert. I learned to not blindly trust others
because no one can be omniscient.
If I could change one thing, I would change
the route we took. If we took the Fort Hall route, it may have been longer, but
we would still be safe and we could get more provisions and water. Many of our
friends would probably still be alive and with us if we hadn’t gone through the
pass and lost most of our food and water. The Fort Hall route was the most
common route taken, and it is better to be safe than sorry, especially when one
extra barrel of water or one extra bunch of provisions can make all the difference
in how many survive another day.
In the
end, though, everything turned out all right. Most of us made it to California,
though some of our most faithful helpers died along the way. One day, this
newspaper letter and Patty’s doll will be the only things that will help people
remember the ill-fated Donner-Reed party, although none of the members of the
party will ever forget the amount of suffering we had to endure.
YOURS SINCERELY
ADITYA
INDLA
