IN THE FAR WEST. 149 



Indian encampment we had visited the previous day. As 

 soon as they started to return, the party that I was with 

 moved off at a brisk trot, with scouts well advanced, and 

 flankers stretching for a mile or more towards the wooded hills, 

 to prevent any sudden assault from that direction. After 

 proceeding about three miles we heard firing in front, and 

 galloping up as fast as we could, found the scouts on foot and 

 skirmishing with a party of young braves. Our line was 

 deployed in extended order at once, and each man advanced as 

 he pleased. We found the Indians in stronger numbers than 

 we expected, considering their movements the previous day; 

 but as every man of our party seemed to be actually mad for 

 revenge, their numerical superiority availed them little, and 

 they were pushed backwards gradually, notwithstanding the 

 fact that they took advantage of every bit of cover, and 

 seemed to rise out of the ground like grasshoppers. They 

 tried to surround us two or three times inside of an hour, but 

 a vigorous charge scattered them like chaff, and the survivors 

 were glad to beat a hasty retreat to their own lines. Their 

 yells and shouts when circling around us were fairly demoniacal 

 in their intensity, but these had little effect on the pioneers 

 who opposed them, as they had heard them too often to care 

 much for them. After they were driven back to the wooded 

 hill they made a most determined stand, and poured out a 

 deadly fire that killed several horses and wounded a few men. 

 A party of our men on the left, who were on open, rolling 

 ground, attempted to stop this by making a vigorous charge, 

 but they were met by such a volley that they were compelled 

 to halt and seek cover wherever the}' could find it. A few of 

 the more advanced, who had their horses killed under them, 

 used their trusty steeds as breastworks, and kept up the fight 

 with a vigour and determination that only Western pioneers 

 can display, and their fire was so destructive that a body of 

 the Indians charged them several times on horseback, in order 

 to capture them, but they were driven back with heavy loss 

 each time. 



The detachment which I accompanied worked around to 

 the right until we reached a wooded knoll, and under cover of 



