ians had secured reinforcements and
after dividing in two bands, one band hid in the tall grass in order to
pick us off and shoot us as we attempted to hold our cattle, while the
other band proceeded to stampede the herd, but fortunately there were
enough of us to prevent the herd from stringing out on us, as we gave
our first attention to the cattle we got them to merling. Back and
forward, through the tall grass, the large herd charged, the Indians
being kept too busy keeping out of their way to have much time to bother
with us. This kept up until daylight, but long before that time we came
to the conclusion that this was the worst herd of cattle to stampede we
ever struck, they seemed perfectly crazy even after the last Indian had
disappeared. We were unable to account for the strange actions of the
cattle until daylight, when the mystery was a mystery no longer. The
Indians in large numbers had hid in the tall grass for the purpose of
shooting us from ambush and being on foot they were unable to get out of
the way of the herd as it stampeded through the grass, the result was
that scores of the painted savages were trampled under the hoofs of the
maddened cattle, and in the early gray dawn of the approaching day we
witnessed a horrible sight, the Indians were all cut to pieces, their
heads, limbs, trunk and blankets all being ground up in an inseparable
mass, as if they had been through a sausage machine. The sight was all
the more horrible as we did not know the Indians were hidden in the
grass during the night, but their presence there accounted for the
strange actions of the herd during the night. We suffered no loss or
damage except the loss of our rest, which we sorely needed as we were
all pretty well played out. However, we thought it advisable to move our
herd on to a more desirable and safe camping place, not that we greatly
feared any more trouble from the Indians, not soon at any rate, but only
to be better prepared and in better shape to put up a fight if attacked.
The second night we camped on the open plain where the grass was not so
high and where the camp could be better guarded. After eating our supper
and placing the usual watch the men again turned in, expecting this time
to get a good night's rest. It was my turn to take the first watch and
with the other boys, who were to watch with me, we took up advantageous
positions on the lookout. Everything soon became still, the night was
dark and sultry. It