the summer. In the event of his being sent out on a scouting expedition
he wanted me as scout and guide. I said that although I was very busy
with my railroad contract I would be glad to go with him.

That night the Indians unexpectedly raided our horses, and ran off five
or six of the best work-teams. At daylight I jumped on Brigham, rode to
Fort Hays, and reported the raid to the commanding officer. Captain
Graham and Lieutenant Emmick were ordered out with their company of one
hundred colored troops. In an hour we were under way. The darkies had
never been in an Indian fight and were anxious to "sweep de red debbils
off de face ob de earth." Graham was a dashing officer, eager to make a
record, and it was with difficulty that I could trail fast enough to
keep out of the way of the impatient soldiers. Every few moments the
captain would ride up to see if the trail was freshening, and to ask
how soon we would overtake the marauders.

At the Saline River we found the Indians had stopped only to graze and
water the animals and had pushed on toward Solomon. After crossing the
river they made no effort to conceal their trail, thinking they were
safe from pursuit. We reached Solomon at sunset. Requesting Captain
Graham to keep his command where it was, I went ahead to try to locate
the redmen.

Riding down a ravine that led to the river, I left my horse, and,
creeping uphill, looked cautiously over the summit upon Solomon. In
plain sight, not a mile away, was a herd of horses grazing, among them
the animals which had been stolen from us. Presently I made out the
Indian camp, noted its "lay," and calculated how best we could approach
it.

Graham's eyes danced with excitement when I reported the prospect of an
immediate encounter. We decided to wait until the moon rose, and then
make a sudden dash, taking the redskins by surprise.

We thought we had everything cut and dried, but alas! just as we were
nearing the point where we were to take the open ground and make our
charge, one of the colored gentlemen became so excited that he fired
his gun.

We began the charge immediately, but the warning had been sounded. The
Indians at once sprang to their horses, and were away before we reached
their camp. Captain Graham shouted, "Follow me, boys!" and follow him
we did, but in the darkness the Indians made good their escape. The
bugle sounded the recall, but some of the darkies did not get back to
camp until the next morning