Show 68 Salt Lake Provot and his nen had a very costly engagement vith the Indians that ended in disaster for the whites Provot and several of his men had accepted an invitation of a Snake chief Gauche to smoke a peace pipe vith the Indians As the pipe was being passed around the chief stated that it was contrary to Indian medicine to have any metal on one’s person while smoking a peace pipe To oblige the savages Provot and his men laid their guns aside Very soon they to regret their trustfulness for at a signal the Indians drawing knives and tomahawks from places of concealment under their blankets fell upon the whites killing several of them Provot and four others managed to were pre-arrang- escape with Since their lives it ed IQ it was at this point — not at Utah as formerly believed by earlier writers — that Provot spent the winter and where he lost several of his men to has been proved that Indian treachery he was in an excellent position to have been the first to discover the lake chiefly on the basis of Campbell’s letter to Varren as cited above that Bridger is given preference Because it is ChittenThe American Pur Trade I £73 den places the incident on the Provo river instead of on the Veber Dale and others have proved that this incident occurVarious accounts red on the Veber near Great Salt Lake Chittenden says over give different numbers of men killed a dozen men lost their lives Dale gives the number as seven — 18 Chittenden probably nearer the truth |