We talked with a number of men, and a few of them said they would come to our camp and look at the horses.  So we rode back, and by noon we had sold half of our horses.  I heard one man say as he rode off leading four horses that he had paid one hundred and twenty-five dollars apiece for, that he had made a bargain, as he would not take two hundred dollars for the worst-looking one.

After dinner that day a man came and looked at the horses we had left and said, “You are selling your horses too cheap.  If you can stay here a few days and let your horses rest, and the people have time to find out what good stock you have for sale, it would pay you well, and you will have no trouble in selling your horses for a much higher price than you have been asking.”

The Capt. answered that we had other business to look after, and it was very necessary for us to get rid of the horses as quickly as possible, even if we had to sell them at a disadvantage.  The man said, “Well, I will send some men to you this afternoon, and perhaps you can make a bargain with them.”

Before the next night we had sold all of our horses at our own price.  Capt McKee said, “I think I will settle up with the boys, and then we will see how we stand.”

I said, “I think you had better lay in enough provisions to last three months, Capt., for we do not know where we shall be or whether we can get any as good as we can here.  And besides, we may not always have such good luck as we have been having the last few weeks.”

Capt.  McKee bought the grub and then settled with the boys, and then he came to me and said, “Now we will settle between ourselves.”

We walked a few yards away from camp and sat down under a large tree, and he showed me a little book where he had everything set down in black and white, and when all was reckoned up there were twenty two hundred and eighty dollars to divide between us two.

As soon as we had divided the money, he said, “Now, are you willing to do the scout work and take the lead of this company?  You are the only one in the outfit who understands the duties of a scout.  I know this work will very often place you in positions that will be anything but pleasant, but someone must take the chances, and your knowledge of the Indians and his ways of fighting makes you more suitable than any one else in the company.”

I said, “I will accept the position, Capt., if I can have the two men that have been with me in the last two hunts, and one more man.  And another thing I want understood is that we four men will be exempt from all camp duty and have the privilege of going and coming any time we please without being interfered with.”

He said, “All that suits me, and I will see that you are also exempt from cooking.  Your meals will be prepared for you from this on.”