He said, “We have ninety here now, and there will be twenty more here by noon.”

Jim asked, “How many men are there in the company?” They said they did not know for certain but thought there would be about a hundred and ninety.  Jim said that we would take them across to California for five dollars a day, which would be two dollars and a half for each of us.  “Providing you will promise to obey our orders in all things pertaining to the protection of the train and also give us two days to drill the teamsters and the scouts, but we will have to move on one day from here, as there is no ground here that is fit to drill on.”

One of the committee said, “We will give you an answer in twenty minutes,” and they went back to their camp, which was a hundred yards or more from ours.  Jim and I caught our horses and were saddling them when the committee came back to us and told us we could consider ourselves engaged.

I now spoke for the first time, Jim having done all the talking before.  I said, “I want you men to select ten good men who own their horses.  I prefer young men who are good horsemen, for I want them to assist me in doing scout work.”

This seemed to surprise the men.  One of them asked, what the young men would have to do.  Jim now spoke up in his joking way and said, “They will find enough to do before we get to California.  For example I will show you what Will and his scouts have done on our last trip across.”  At the same time he was untying the sack that held the Indian scalps we had taken on our last trip to California.  When he emptied the sack it was amusing to us to see their faces.  Their first expression was of surprise, and the next was of horror.  Jim took up one of the scalps and shook it out and said, “Taking these is one of the things you young men may have to do,” and he continued, “These scalps which seem to give you men the horrors to look at now, will be worth more than money to all the people of this train, for they will save the lives of all of you, and that is more than money could do in an attack by the Indians.”

Some of the men wanted to know in what way the scalps would save them.  Jim answered, “Let us get on the road to our next camping ground, and I will explain everything in regard to the protection of the train when we get to drilling.”

In a short time every thing was on the move, and we reached our place to camp about four o’clock in the afternoon.  Jim commenced to put the numbers on the wagons as soon as we landed in camp in order to get to drilling as early as possible in the morning.  We had been in camp but a short time when one of the committee men came to me and said, “We have selected your men, Mr. Drannan.  Come out, and I will introduce them to you, and you can see if they would suit you, and if they do, you can tell them what you want them to do.”