The South Carolinians are here, and there are other desperate characters here, and in the night we do not know what might happen." And so, on the strength of such an agreement, I had done business in Atchison, and to get my corn across the river had gone over one day and back the next.
I had yet one more load of corn to haul.

There had been a thaw, and then the snow had frozen again, making it in many places slippery traveling.

The river bank, from the top of the bank down to the ice of the river, was about twenty feet, and very steep; and this by much traveling had become a perfect glare of ice, so that teams could not hold their footing at all.

I had gone over for my last load one day, intending to return the next day, but I had found unexpected hindrances, and when I got to the east bank of the river opposite Atchison, it was sometime after dark.

I got down as best I could and crossed over on the ice to the Atchison side of the river, and I was now to get up that bank of glare ice.