Among the scouts in Penrose’s command were fifteen Mexicans.  Among them and the Americans a bitter feud existed.  When Carr united Penrose’s command with his own, and I was made chief of scouts, this feud grew more intense than ever.  The Mexicans often threatened to “clean us out,” but they postponed the execution of the threat from time to time.  At last, however, when we were all in the sutler’s store, the long-expected fight took place, with the result that the Mexicans were severely beaten.

On hearing of the row, General Carr sent for “Wild Bill” and me.  From various reports he had made up his mind that we were the instigators of the affair.  After listening to what we had to say, however, he decided that the Mexicans were as much to blame as we were.  It is possible that both “Wild Bill” and I had imbibed a few more drinks than we needed that evening.  General Carr said to me: 

“Cody, there are plenty of antelopes in the country.  You can do some hunting while we stay here.”  After that my time was spent in the chase, and I had fine success.  I killed from twenty to twenty-five antelopes every day, and the camp was supplied with fresh meat.

When the horses and mules belonging to the outfit had been sufficiently recruited to travel, we returned to Fort Lyon, reaching there in March, 1869.  The command recruited and rested for thirty days before proceeding to the Department of the Platte, whither it had been ordered.

At my request, General Carr kindly granted me a month’s leave of absence to visit my family in St. Louis.  He instructed Captain Hays, our quartermaster, to let me ride my mule and horse to Sheridan, 140 miles distant.  At Sheridan I was to take the train for St. Louis.

I was instructed to leave the animals in the quartermaster’s corral at Fort Wallace until I should come back.  Instead of doing this, I put them both in charge of my old friend Perry, the hotel-keeper at Sheridan.

After twenty days, pleasantly spent with my family at St. Louis, I returned to Sheridan.  There I learned that my horse and mule had been seized by the Government.

The quartermaster’s agent at Sheridan had reported to General Bankhead, commanding at Fort Wallace, and to Captain Laufer, the quartermaster, that I had left the country and had sold the animals to Perry.  Laufer took possession of the animals, and threatened to have Perry arrested for buying Government property.  He refused to pay any attention to Perry’s statement that I would return in a few days, and that the animals had merely been left in his care.

As soon as I found this out I proceeded to the office of the quartermaster’s agent who had told this lie, and gave him the thrashing he richly deserved.  When I had finished with him he hastened to the fort, reported what had happened, and returned with a guard to protect him.

Next morning, securing a horse from Perry, I rode to Fort Wallace and demanded my horse and mule from General Bankhead.  I told him they were Quartermaster Hays’s property and belonged to General Carr’s command, and explained that I had obtained permission to ride them to Sheridan and return.