The Splendid Wayfaring. The Story of the Exploits and Adventures of Jedediah Smith and and His Comrardes, the Ashley-Henry Men, Discoverers and Explorers of the Great Central Route from the Missouri River to the Pacific Ocean, 1822-1832

by John G. Neihardt

Very Good Hardcover Text/Near New. Green linen boards w/gilt spine lettering/VG; strong & sound w/light edge & surface rubs, and frays to upper/lower spine edges. PO stamps (quite faint) to text edges. Illustrated phots and fold-out map (NEW). A narrative of the adventures of mountain man Jedediah Smith (1799-1831) who, at the age of 22, joined the expedition of General William Ashley and Andrew Henry up the Missouri River to trap beaver --- the expedition became the forerunner of the Rocky Mountain Fur Company. Poet, writer and historian John Gneisenau Neihardt (1881 - 1973) gave us Black Elk Speaks (1932).

Hardcover

First published September 1, 1970

About the author

John Gneisenau Neihardt

Reviews

[Robert · Rating 3 out of 5]

Here's to those intrepid adventurers of 1823, many who disappeared 'leaving no hint of the manner of their passing; and others, bewitched by the wild life and the vast free spaces of the wilderness, who shed, as an uncomfortable coat, the inheritance of ages, lapsing into the primitive, never again to long for the snug comforts and predetermined ways of civilized man." This light history reads like an adventure story from its time, the 1920s. Readers should neither be surprised by its triumphalist tone nor it's use of period idiom.

[Magen Stevenson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Warning: Not overrun but there is frequent use of the times colloquialisms.

This is an account of the travels of Jedidiah Smith, now forgotten explorer and first non indigenous man to travel across the Great Basin. It is an interesting look into this part of the history of the modern west, originally written in 1920. Well researched for the time, it does have a heavy focus on the Henry-Ashley camps and only a small fraction of focus on Smith himself. Still an important collection.of the known hsitory at the time of writing. An enjoyable read.

[Luciano Mezzetta · Rating 5 out of 5]

Neihardt is a poet. I first read the book 50 years ago and it is still alive. Sorry I mistyped "first" and the google translator translated ," I fist the book 50 years ago ", into Italian. Porco miseria! I hope it has been translated into decent Italian.