At that place he met with Robinson, the Kentucky veteran, who, with his
two comrades, Rezner and Hoback, had remained there when Mr. Stuart went
on. This adventurous trio had been trapping higher up the river, but
Robinson had come down in a canoe, to await the expected arrival of the
party, and obtain horses and equipments. He told Reed the story of
the robbery of his party by the Arapahays, but it differed, in some
particulars, from the account given by him to Mr. Stuart. In that, he
had represented Cass as having shamefully deserted his companions in
their extremity, carrying off with him a horse; in the one now given,
he spoke of him as having been killed in the affray with the Arapahays.
This discrepancy, of which, of course, Reed could have had no knowledge
at the time, concurred with other circumstances, to occasion afterwards
some mysterious speculations and dark surmises as to the real fate
of Cass; but as no substantial grounds were ever adduced for them, we
forbear to throw any deeper shades into this story of sufferings in the
wilderness.
Mr. Reed, having gathered the remainder of the goods from the caches,
put himself at the head of his party, now augmented by the seven men
thus casually picked up, and the squaw of Pierre Delaunay, and made his
way successfully to M'Kenzie's Post, on the waters of the Shahaptan.
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