L 
by the mountain of the Montezuma, a deep valley with a dry bed 
but bordered by many cottonwoods. Met an outfit of Indians con¬ 
sisting of four men and five squaws. The two younger fellows 
were impudent, devil-may-care fellows. The two older were quieter 
and more polite. The oldest was a tall, slender man of say 50 
years with a sober, composed countenance and a mouth of un-godly 
width. He shook hands and called me n Hi Amigo, 11 said also that 
they were Navahoes. They drove some 20 or 30 sheep and goats 
n 
and indicated that their wickiup would be made at the junction 
of Montezuma and the San Juan. One of the Indians who rode 
my side asked to see my rifle, which, as usual, was slung across 
the front of my saddle, but I declined the favor as it might have 
been a difficult matter to recover it in case he should be tricky. 
My outfit soon came up and I took them to camp four miles below 
AWiH 
the mourebaa^a of the Montezuma. Chittenden had crossed at the 
wagon trail ford and was making a station south of San Juan 
river. The Indians advised him to "piqua 1 ' up the river, but 
Chittenden didn't "pike." The night following was destined to 
be one of unusual excitement for our party. I was awakened 
at 10;00 or 11:00 o’clock by a confusion of sounds and the 
excited inquiries by Chittenden and others as to who could be 
yelling on the south side of the river. At the same moment my 
ear caught the hoarse yells of some one apparently in the great¬ 
est excitement. I was on my feet in an instant and shouted in 
