After traveling about two hours, putting in our best licks, we came in sight of the train.  We then pushed on with new courage and overtook the emigrants just as they were going into camp for the night.  I rode up and asked if they had any objections to our camping with them.  “Certainly not,” replied one of their crowd, “and if you can fight Indians we will be pleased to have you camp and travel with us also.”

We dismounted, unpacked and turned our pack animals loose with the emigrants’ stock, but picketed our saddle animals near camp.  Those people told us of their fight that morning with the Indians.  Just as they were hitched up and were in the act of pulling out, the Indians attacked them, about forty strong.  They only had twenty-four men and the Indians killed four of their number, and theirs were the graves we had seen that morning.

They didn’t have an Indian scalp, nor did they know whether or not they had killed an Indian.

Jim then told them about our fight with the nine Sioux and of losing our Mexican boy.  “But,” said he, “to show that we got revenge look as this collection of hair,” and he produced the six Indian scalps we had taken.

Jim added that if his horse had not got scared upon making the charge, we would have got them all before they could have reached the boy.

They offered to furnish two men to look after our pack-train if we would scout for their train and travel with them as far as we were to go their route, which was about one hundred and fifty miles.

There were eight wagons in the train, composed of two and four horse teams.

When we were ready to start Jim told me to go ahead, saying:  “You have a pair of glasses and your eyes are better than mine, and I will bring up the rear, so there will be no danger of a surprise party.”

This being agreed to, I started ahead of the train and rode about five miles in advance all the time, keeping my eyes peeled for Indians.  In the forenoon I saw a small band of the savages, but they were a long way off and were traveling in the same direction we were.  I was sure they could not see us, for I could only see them faintly through my glasses.

That evening we made an early camp at a place we named Horse-shoe Bend, and I am told that the place is mentioned yet by that name.  It is a big bend in the Arkansas river almost encircling two or three hundred acres, and where we camped it was not more than a hundred yards across from one turn of the river to the other.

That night we drove all our horses into the bend and did not have to guard them or keep out a camp guard.  I remained out in the hills, about three miles from camp, until dark, selecting a high point and with my glasses watching all over the country for Indians.  The boys were all well pleased when I returned and told them there were no red-skins anywhere near, and that they all could lie down and sleep that night.  They turned in early.