I think it was the last day of December that we went on the boat and started on our trip down the river the following evening. It was a light craft, stern wheel boat, and I was amazed at the vast quantity of freight that it carried. The trip down the Mississippi was without incident but we had frequent delays on the Arkansas unloading freight and crossing sandbars. From Little Rock to Fort Smith we tied up every night. Most of the time up the Arkansas a man stood at the head of the boat taking soundings.
We were cordially received and entertained on our arrival at Fort Smith by the post surgeon, Doctor Theibaut and his family, where we remained two or three days.
We started from Fort Smith very early in the morning, about four o'clock if I remember rightly, and it was very cold. In the stage with us, was a deputy United States marshal, who told us of the disastrous results attending those who brought liquor into the country--confiscation of property, jail sentences, etc. The trouble with us was that we had a bottle of brandy with us. By the time we stopped for breakfast my wife was thoroughly aroused to the importance of the occasion and whispering to me expressed her fears. I tried to assure her that it would be all right, and that no one would search an army officer's baggage, but it was of no use, and when the marshal was out of sight I broke the bottle over the fence corner and went into breakfast as though nothing had happened. We learned afterwards that army officers were permitted to bring it in for their own use and while at Fort Sill I had some sent me with other medical supplies.
It was very cold for a day or two and we had the stage to ourselves after the marshal left us. I think it was the following night when we were in some very rough mountainous country that the driver stopped the stage and asked if I would get up on the outside with him, explaining that his team was hard to manage and that he might need assistance, to which I readily consented. The team was spirited enough and we went along at a spinning gait. I thought noticeably so for such rough roads and I believe my wife thought it was the ride of her life. After two or three hours the driver said he believed the team was settling down and would probably not give any trouble and if I wished I could go back inside the stage where it was warmer. I accepted this suggestion promptly and found it much more comfortable. The driver explained to me at the end of his division that in the rough country we had passed there were frequent hold-ups and he thought someone ought to sit with him to create the impression that the stage was loaded and highwaymen would be less liable to attack it.