We found everything in readiness to receive the Indians.  We rode inside the corral of wagons and dismounted.  I told my men to follow me.  We went to the head of the train, which was but a short distance.  I placed eight men under two wagons, four to a wagon, and took the other two with me to the next wagon.  I told them to lay flat on the ground, and when I cried “fire” for each one to shoot and to be sure that he got his Indian.

When the savages got in sight of the wagons, they were probably a hundred and fifty yards from them, and to my surprise they all stopped.  I had forgotten the scalps that Jim had hung up, but of course the sight of them hanging on the top of the wagons stopped them, but they did not stop longer than a few minutes.  Then they began circling around the wagons.  I could see that there were two war chiefs with the outfit.  I knew this by their dress, for a war Chief always wears what is called a bonnet.  It is made of feathers taken from the wings and tails of eagles and reaches from their head almost to their heels.

When they started to circle around the wagons, I said to the boys who were with me under the wagon, “Now you watch that old red sinner who has the lead.  I am going to shoot at him, but I do not know as I can hit him, he is so far away, but if I can get him we have won the battle.”

They answered, “Fire away, and if you miss we will try our hand at him.”

I drew a bead at the top of his head, and when the gun cracked I saw that I had hit him.  One of the boys cried, “You have hit him,” and at that moment he swayed and tumbled from his horse.  The report of my gun seemed to be a signal for the whole train to fire, and for the next minute the noise of the guns was terrific.  While they all did not hit an Indian, they did fairly well for men in an Indian battle for the first time.  There were forty-two dead Indians left on the ground, and as the report of the last gun died away, the Indians turned their horses and fled in the opposite direction, and I ran to the old Chief to get his scalp.

I had just finished taking his scalp after taking his bonnet off when Jim Bridger and quite a crowd of the other men came running up to me.  Jim said, “Did you do that, Will?” I answered, “I did,” and then one of the boys who were with me under the wagon said, “Mr. Drannan sure shot him, for he told us to see him get him, and at the report of his gun, Mr. big Chief went to the Indians’ happy hunting grounds.”

Jim slapped me on the back and said, “That is the best shot you ever made, Will, for that bonnet and that scalp will protect this train from here to California without another shot being fired.”  I said, “You can have this bonnet to use for a scare crow, Jim, but be sure and take good care of it, for I want to keep it as a memento of this trip.”

I then asked Jim if he were going to take the scalps off of the other dead Indians.  He said, “No, we have scalps enough now to protect the train, and that is all we want.  Besides, we haven’t time; we must go on to our camping ground, we have fifty or sixty miles to drive before we can camp for the night.”