Numbers 2.

Reports of Major William S. R. Taylor, First Battalion California Mountaineers.

FORT GASTON,

Hoopa Valley, Klamath County, Cal., September 19, 1863.

SIR: On the 28th of July, 1863, I assumed command of Fort Gaston. I found the magazine in ruins. I immediately set to work rebuilding it, making it fire-proof. It is now completed and in use. The post reports thirty mules. Of these but about nineteen are able to do light work; four are team mules. Out of the balance, four only would stand a hard day's ride. The remaining eleven of the nineteen are miserable old things, almost worthless, but can be made to jog along a few miles a day, such as carrying blankets and a few rations for scouts on foot. Eleven animals have been turned out, being utterly useless. Nine of them I have sent on the summit of Trinity Mountain, where the grass is good and water abundant. They may pick up by fall or before winter sets in. Two mules strayed off some time ago. They are represented to me to be utterly worthless. I have not seen them, however. I have been informed by parties well acquainted here that the Government mules that were of any worth were selected and retained at Fort Humboldt, headquarters of this district, therefore our sorry show of mules at this post. We have but seven saddles belonging to this post at this present moment. The two escort mules of the Weaverville mail have returned without saddles or bridles. We suppose they have escaped from the pasture, as they bear no marks of violence. Even if it should be worse with the mail-carrier and escort, we have no means of assisting them, as there is but one saddle left in the stable, and but three animals that can be saddled. The distance to the station is forty-five miles, which is usually traveled in the night-time on account of lurking squads of hostile Indians. I have had some beef jerked for the use of detachments when scouting. I found it answered much better for the men, as frequently they go out with six days' rations on their backs. In some instances they are not permittedto kindle fires, nor to shoot game, eating nothing but jerked beef and hard bread, and water as a beverage. We would like to jerk a lot more, if allowable, as it is preferred by the men. The men have been kept very busy scouting, escorting trains, the mail, and opening old trails in order to commence active operations this coming winter, when the Indians can be tracked on the snow and their fires seen at night. The rations have been very insufficient to keep the men up in this kind of service, especially their clothing rations. Frequently a pair of shoes are worn out in a single scout of ten days, and pants in a month; underclothing, however, does very well. The country is very mountainous and thickly covered with underbrush, which makes it so hard on the men and their clothing. The settlers are somewhat inclined to extortion here in the matter of forage, having combined to keep the price up. I would recommend that the quartermaster have discretionary powers about purchasing horse feed. Outside of this post there is no consumption for forage. I think oats can be bought for about 3 cents per pound or less, hay at $20 per ton. Packing from Arcata can be had at about 4 cents per pound. Flour is bought by the citizens at 5 cents per poud; 150,000 pounds can be obtained here at the foregoing figures, payable in coin. I detained the