m at some one of the
prominent chiefs. He himself presented the muzzle of his rifle within a
few yards of the head of the leader of the now astonished and affrighted
party. This was all the work of a moment. Then calmly he said to the
leader, "leave this fort instantly or you are dead men." A moment of
hesitation on their part, a word of parleying would have been followed by
the simultaneous discharge of the rifles, and six of the warriors at
least, would have been numbered with the dead. In a moment the fort was
cleared, and the savages did not stop until they had got beyond the reach
of rifle bullets.

One of these Indians could speak Spanish. Thus Kit Carson again found the
inestimable advantage of his winter's studies in the cabin of Kin Cade.
The Indians, five hundred in number, might easily, at the expense of the
loss of a few lives, have overpowered the white men, and seized all their
animals and their goods. But Carson well knew their habits, and that they
would never hazard a contest where they must with certainty expect a
number of their own warriors to be slain. Friendly relations were opened
with the Indians, only two or three being admitted to the fort at a time.
The animals were tethered in the rich herbage within the protection of
their rifles and were carefully watched, night and day.

In a few days the men who had left the camp on a trapping expedition,
returned. The whole united company then followed down the south bank of
the Colorado, setting their traps every night, until they reached its tide
waters. From that point they struck over east to the river Gila, and
trapped up the western banks of that river until they reached the mouth of
the San Pedro, a distance of more than two hundred miles.

Their animals now were very heavily laden with furs, and they were in
great need of more beasts of burden. The following is the account which is
given of the manner in which they obtained a supply. It certainly looks
very suspicious. It is not improbable that the Indians, had they any
historians, would give a very different version of the story.

"Near the mouth of the San Pedro river they discovered a large herd of
horses and mules. On a closer examination they found that they were in
possession of a band of Indians, who had formerly given them some of their
gratuitous hostilities. Not having forgotten their former troubles with
these people, they determined to pay them off in their own coin by
depriving th