The supervisor went to make his preparations for the trip and Scott hurried out to the stable to see Jed. As Mr. Ramsey had said, he seemed to have forgotten all about it and was all ready to start out again. Scott rubbed him down thoroughly and rode out to meet the supervisor. Jed was a little stiff at first but soon limbered up and insisted on leading the procession.
The mighty flood which had roared so furiously in the cañon up on the mountain had not reached the town at all. It had overflowed the river channel for a short distance but had already receded within its banks. The first ranch above the town had not been touched; the next two or three had been flooded but the water had not gotten into the houses and no damage had been done. In the case of the last two up near the mouth of the cañon it was a different story. Everything movable had been washed away and Bronson’s house had been carried from the foundation and was lying on its side far out in the meadow. But no lives had been lost and all the stock had been saved. The settlers considered themselves lucky to have escaped as they did and were very grateful to Scott for the ample warning he had given them.
As they proceeded up the valley the ravages of the flood became more evident. There was a considerable volume of water still coming down the stream bed but the flood was over. It was not till they reached the turn in the valley below the lookout station that the full fury of the rushing water was apparent. The violence of the torrent had carried the water high up on the slope toward the lookout tower and had gouged an enormous pit out of the side of the mountain.
From there on the whole cañon was a total wreck. Not only were all traces of the trail wiped out but the gorge was swept clean. Trees had been torn up by the roots and carried away. What little soil there had been between the rocks was gone and the horses scrambled over slippery beds of smooth, bare rock. An eighth of a mile below the dam they found great chunks of the mason work which had been carried there on the crest of the flood. They began to worry about the safety of the cabin.
The meadow looked more familiar than anything else they had seen. The deep sod alone of all the vegetation in the path of the water had held its own. It was scattered with great chunks of mason work and bowlders and the grass was badly clawed by the wash of the water but it was green and triumphant.