He said, “I don’t believe they will find a good place to camp in five miles from here and maybe further.”

I said, “Well, Capt., go into camp here, and if you do not hear from me by dark, have everything in readiness for an immediate start.”

My men and I now took the trail of the Indians.  We traveled with great caution for several miles, and as it was just beginning to grow dark we came in sight of the Indian camp fire.  I left two of my men with the horses, and taking one man with me I crawled near enough to count the Indians, and I was surprised when I saw how few there were sitting around the fires.  I could only make twenty-five, and I counted them over several times, and they had made a trail big enough for a hundred Indians.  I was satisfied that they must have a large number of horses with them.  So we crawled down where they had left the horses to feed, and I saw that I was right.  There was a large band of horses, feeding.  I could not count them they were so scattered, and the darkness hid them, but I thought there were from a hundred to a hundred and twenty-five horses in the bunch.

We went back to our comrades and mounted and took the back trail to where the Capt. was waiting for our return.  As soon as we arrived, I reported to Capt.  McKee what we had found.  After I had told him the number of Indians in the band, and the number of horses I thought there were, he asked me when I thought was the best time to make the attack.

I answered that any time between that moment and daylight would do, for we had a soft snap before us.  He said, “Well, you boys get something to eat, and we will saddle the horses and go for them and have it over with.”

In a very short time we were all ready and off for the Indian camp.

When we could see the fires, the Capt. asked, “Which way we shall make the attack, on our horses or on foot?”

I told him that was for him to decide, but that there were so few of them that I thought it would be to his advantage to make the attack on foot.

“It will be impossible for them to get away, for my scouts and I will be between them and their horses, and if any of them should get away from you, we will attend to them before they can get to their horses.”

The whole company dismounted, and without making the least noise they crept down to the Indian camp, and in a few moments the firing commenced.  But it was only a short time before we knew that it was over, as we heard the boys shouting, and in a moment more we were with them at the Indian camp.  I asked them what they made such a racket about, and they said that they were shouting for more Indians to come, that there were not enough of them to go around.

One of the boys said that every time he drew a bead on an Indian, someone else had got in before him, and that he did not get a chance to shoot one Indian in the whole fight.

The Capt. and his men now went and got their horses and unsaddled them and staked them out, and we all turned in for the night.