History of the Donner Party: A Tragedy of the Sierra

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PREFACE. THE delirium preceding death by starvation, is fuIl of strange phantasies. Visions of plenty, of comfort, of elegance, flit ever before the fast-dimming eyes. The final twilight of death is a brief semi-consciousness in which the dying one . frequently repeats his weird dreams, Half rising from his snowy couch, pointing upward, one . of the deathstricken at Donner Lake may have said, with tremulous voice Look there, just above us, is a beautiful house. It is of costliest walnut, inlaid with laurel and ebony, and is resplendent with burnished silver. Magnificent in all its apariments, it is furnished like apalacc. It is rich with costIy cushions elegant tapestries, dazzling mirrors its floor is covered with Oriental carpets, its ceiling with artistic frescoings downy cushions invite the weary to repose. It is filled with people who are chatting, laughing, and singing, joyous and care-free. There is an abundance of rvarmth and rare viands, and sparkling wines. Suspended among the storm-clouds, it is flying along the face of the precipice . at a marvelous speed. Plying no it has . ivh is and is gliding along on a smooth, ski It is sheltered from the wind and snhw by large beams and hug posts, which are bolted to the cliffs with heavy, iron rods. The avalanches, with thkir burden of earth and rocks and crushed pines, swcep harmlessly abbvk this beautiful house and its happy inmates. ,-It is drawn by neither oxen nor horses, but by a fiery, h-breathed monster, with iron limbs and thews of steel. The mountain trembles beneath his tread, and the rocks for miles re-echo his roar. If such a vision was related, it but indicates, prophetically, the progress of a few years. Californias history is repIete with tragic, startling events. These events are the Iandmarks by which its advancement is traced. One of the most mourn ful of these is recorded in this work-a work intended as a contribution, not to the literature, but to the history of the State. More thrilling than romance, more terrible than fictjon, the sufferings of the Donner Party form a bold contrast to the joys of pleasute-seekers who to-day look down upon the take from the windows of silver paIace cars. The scenes of horror and despair which transpired in the snowy Sierra in the winter of 1846-7, need no exaggeratidn, no embellishment. From all the works heretofore published, from over one thousand letters received from the survivors, from ample manuscrjpt, and from personal interviews wj th the most important actors inthe tragedy, the facts have been carefully compiled. Neither time, pains, nor expense have been spared in ferreting out the truth. New and fragmentary versions of the sad story have appeared aImost every year since the unfortunate occurrence. To forever supplant these distorted and fabulous reports-which have usuaIIy been sensational newspaper articles-the survivors have deemed it wise to contribute the truth. The truth is sufficiently terrible. Where conacting accounts of particular scenes or occurrences have been contributed, every effort has been made to render them harmonious and reconcilable. With justice, with impartiality, and with strict adherence to what appeared truthful and reliable, the book has been written...