Early the following morning we started out, following up Monument Creek to the mouth of Cottonwood; thence up that creek over the ground where Teachout's herd of horses had been captured. We stopped a few minutes at the Neff ranch, which we found deserted, and then went east along the route taken by the Indians when running off the Teachout herd.
An hour later, while we were riding along in a leisurely manner, and had reached within about half a mile of the pinery, we saw to our right a band of about twenty-five mounted Indians, half a mile away on the south bank of Cottonwood Creek. We had been so wrought up by the murders of the previous day, that without a moment's hesitation we wheeled about and made for the Indians as fast as our horses could go. We had no sooner started than I realized that we might be running into an ambuscade, and I warned our people not to cross the ravine at the place where we had first seen the savages, but to go on one side or the other; however, our men were in such a state of frenzy, that they would not listen, so we rushed headlong to the bank of the ravine through which the creek ran. The bank was so steep that we had to dismount and lead our horses. Fortunately for us, there were no Indians at that moment at the point where we were crossing the ravine, but we had not gone a quarter of a mile before a mounted Indian appeared on the bank, almost at that identical place, and probably there were others hidden near the same point.
As soon as the Indians on the south bank saw us coming, they started on the run in a southeasterly direction, and, when some distance away, gradually turned to the eastward. By this time our party began to think a little of the desirability of keeping a way of retreat open, in case of defeat in the expected engagement. For that reason, we veered a little to the right, and kept on until we were directly between them and Colorado City. By this time, the Indians had dismounted on a large open flat, about three-quarters of a mile to the eastward of us, and, forming a circle with their ponies, seemed to be awaiting our attack. We could see their guns flashing in the sunshine, and while we were surprised at this movement, so contrary to the usual custom of the Indians, we did not hesitate a moment, but started toward them as fast as our ponies could take us. Evidently changing their minds upon seeing this, the Indians remounted and started in the direction of the pinery as rapidly as they could go. Their horses were better and fleeter than ours, so we were unable to head them off, and when they entered the edge of the timber we knew it would only be inviting disaster to follow farther. We then resumed our march in the direction of Bijou Basin. An hour or two later, we went by the extreme eastern edge of the pinery, at the point where the old government road crossed Squirrel Creek. Here, judging by the great number of fresh pony tracks, a large number of Indians must have passed only a short time previously. After a short rest at this point, we rode steadily on and reached Bijou Basin that evening just before dark. On our arrival, we found that the besieged party had come in the day before, and that all the men, except the wounded, had returned to their homes. The wounded were being cared for at Mr. D. M. Holden's ranch. There being nothing further for us to do, we started for home early the following morning. Upon our way, we found many Indian pony tracks at various places along the eastern and southern edge of the pinery, showing that the Indians were still around in considerable numbers, but we saw none during the day. After leaving the pinery, we followed the wagon road that came down through what is now known as the Garden Ranch. As we came down the hill, two or three miles to the northeast of the ranch houses, we noticed a number of horsemen congregated near that point. From their actions we knew that they were very much excited, and evidently mistook us for a band of Indians. They gathered around some tall rocks a little way to the eastward of the gateway, and seemed to be preparing for defense. We tried by signaling and otherwise to make ourselves known to them, but were unsuccessful until we were almost within gun-shot distance. They were greatly relieved when they ascertained who we were. We then joined them and reached Colorado City without further incident.
Events of a similar character were of almost daily occurrence while the Indians remained in this region. Every animal on a distant hill became an Indian horseman to the excited imagination of the ranchman or cowboy, and without further investigation he rushed off to town to give the alarm. No lone man on horseback allowed another horseman to approach him without preparing for defense, and every object at a distance that was not clearly distinguishable was viewed with alarm.
For two weeks following the raid upon the present town-site of Colorado Springs, the Indians had virtual possession of the northern and eastern portions of the county. During this time they raided Gill's ranch, east of Jimmy's Camp, and ran off his herd of horses, taking them out of the corral near his house in the night, although the horses were being guarded by armed men. It appears that the Indians stole up to the corral on the opposite side from where the guards were posted, made an opening in it, let the horses out, and were off with them before the men realized what was going on.
About the same time, the Indians killed a demented man named Jonathan Lincoln, at the Lincoln ranch in Spring Valley on Cherry Creek, just north of the El Paso County line. Lincoln and a Mexican were out in the harvest-field binding oats when they saw the Indians approaching. The Mexican saved himself by flight, but Lincoln folded his arms and calmly awaited the coming of the savages. Without hesitation they killed him, took his scalp, and departed again into the recesses of the adjacent pinery. They also killed John Choteau, on east Cherry Creek, John Grief and Jonathan Tallman on east Bijou, and raided the John Russell ranch at the head of East Cherry Creek, from which place they ran off sixteen horses.
About this time, a small band of Indians, while prowling around near the town of Monument, threatened the house of David McShane at a time when all the men were away, Mrs. McShane and some neighboring women and children being the only occupants. Having the true pioneer spirit, the women, under the leadership of Mrs. McShane, put up such a strong show of defense that the savages abandoned the attack in short order, apparently glad to get away unharmed. Soon after, they burned Henry Walker's house, which stood about a mile east of the present Husted station on the Denver and Rio Grande Railroad.
The Indians seemed to have established a camp at some secluded place in the timber of the Divide, from which they went out in small parties in every direction, killing and robbing when opportunity offered. Every day during these two weeks, Indians were seen at various places on the Divide and the eastern part of the county. By this time, however, our people had taken their families out of danger and were so constantly on the alert that the Indians, while having many opportunities for looting and robbing the deserted ranches, had few chances for surprising and killing defenseless people, who were the only ones they cared to attack. Throughout the raid, those who had been able to make any kind of a defense had been let alone. The Indians seemed unwilling to take any chances or to waste their ammunition, unless they were certain of results.
A week or two after the beginning of the Indian troubles, the people of El Paso County took steps to form a military company to be regularly employed against the Indians, its members to serve without pay. It was the intention to keep this company in the field until the Indians were driven out of the region. About the fifteenth of September, eighty mounted and well-armed men, who had enlisted for the purpose, and of whom I was one, met at Husted's saw-mill on the Divide and perfected a military organization by the election of the usual company officers, A. J. Templeton being elected captain. The company took up its line of march through the pinery to Bijou Basin; thence eastward past the place where Simpson's party had been besieged two or three weeks before. After examining with much interest the scene of this fight, we went southeasterly to Big Sandy Creek, thence down the valley of that creek to Lake Station on the Smoky Hill wagon road, about ten miles east of the present town of Limon. On our march we saw no Indians, and, judging from their trails and from other indications, we decided that they were leaving the country. As we marched down the valley of the Big Sandy, in the vicinity of the present towns of Ramah and Calhan, we saw hundreds of dead cattle, most of them cows that had been killed by the Indians only a day or two before. That these cattle had been wantonly killed, was shown by the fact that no part of the animals had been taken for food. In almost every instance they had been shot with arrows, many of which were at the time sticking in the carcasses. Besides the dead cattle, we saw hundreds of live ones scattered all over the hills and down the valley, which had evidently been driven off by the Indians from the ranches in El Paso and the surrounding counties. At a point about ten miles down the valley from the present station of Limon, on the Rock Island Railway, the trail of the Indians left the valley and turned northeastward. At this place we were about seventy-five miles southwest from the Beecher Island battle ground, on the Arickaree fork of the Republican River, where Colonel George A. Forsyth and his fifty followers were at that very time making their heroic defense against an overwhelming number of Indians under the command of the famous chief Roman Nose, although we knew nothing of the affair until some time later. The trail of the Indians led across the country in a direct line toward the battle ground. No doubt they had been summoned by runners to aid their people, and probably this was the reason for their leaving El Paso County.
Upon discovering the course taken by the Indians, Captain Templeton, on account of his small force, deemed it imprudent to pursue them farther. An additional reason for facing about was that our supply of provisions was about exhausted, and had we gone farther we should have had to subsist on the wild game of the region, which would have been a risky thing to attempt. As it was, on our way homeward we had to live entirely on the meat of cattle we killed. Having no camp outfit, we broiled the meat on sticks before our camp fires and then ate it without salt. To me this fare was about the nearest to a starvation diet that I have ever experienced. We reached Colorado City in due time, without having seen an Indian during our whole campaign. Whether we were the cause of the Indians leaving this region, or whether it was a coincidence that they were just ahead of us, I do not know, but it was evident that the Indians were gone, and on account of approaching winter we had little to fear from them during the remainder of the year. There apparently being no further use for its services, the company was disbanded.