14 WESTERN INCIDENTS.

CLEAR CREEK VALLEY.

Our road towards Idaho now lay over a very rough,
precipitous country, to a point a few miles below that
city, where we again struck the Valley of Clear Creek.
As we followed along the abrupt windings of this valley,
we were continually reminded of the insatiate thirst of
man for the filthy lucre gold, by the broken and decay-
ing flumes and water wheels, and the crumbling and
half-refilled excavations in the banks along the stream,
which had been made and used by the earlier pioneers in
their search for hidden treasure. Some two miles below
Idaho we passed the extensive and more permanent
works, now being erected for the same purpose, by Gen.
Beaufort for an Eastern company of capitalists.

At early dusk we found ourselves in front of the Beebe
House, in Idaho, acknowledged to be the best hotel in
Colorado, with good mountain appetites for an excellent
supper which awaited us. Our venerable driver, and part
owner of our outfit, was almost exhausted by his continuous
wallopings of the mules; and our mules (or rather horses
by brevet, since the close of the war), were hors de com-
bat from the effects of a long drive over rough roads, and
the aforesaid wallopings of the venerable driver. On en-
tering the hotel I was most agreeably surprised to find
that it was owned and kept by old and familiar friends
from Sullivan county, New York; which fact rendered
our short stay exceedingly pleasant. The hot springs,
ample bathing, and hotel accommodations, render this
place the Saratoga of the mountains for the good people
of Denver and adjacent cities.