Captain Baylor's rations were out and Lieutenant Nevill had only supplies enough to do the combined force five days, but the two commanders trusted either to catch the Indians or get in striking distance of the Pecos settlements within that time. The Apaches made pretty good time across the plain in front of Eagle Springs, and did not seem to recover from their scare until they reached the Diablo Mountains. Here they killed and cooked meat from one horse and obtained water by melting snow with hot rocks.
The trail led northward by Chili Peak, a noted landmark to be seen from Eagle Station. Here the rangers quit the trail and went into the Diablo Mountains to camp at Apache Tanks, where General Grierson cut off Victorio from the Guadalupe Mountains the summer before. Next morning Captain Baylor followed the trail north and camped on the brow of cliffs overlooking Rattlesnake Springs. The sign now led to the edge of the Sierra Diablo, where the Indians camped and slept for the first time since leaving Eagle Mountains. They were still watchful, as they were near a most horrible looking canyon down which they could have disappeared had the scouting party come upon them. Their next camp was about ten miles farther on, and Captain Baylor saw they were getting more careless about camping. On the 28th he came across another horse and fire where the Apaches had eaten some meat. The leg of the horse was not yet stiff and blood dropped from one when picked up. The chase was getting to be exciting, and Captain Baylor and his men felt their chance to avenge the many outrages committed by this band was now near at hand.
The trail led off north as though the redskins were going toward the Cornudos in New Mexico, but turned east and entered Sierra Diablo Mountains. In a narrow gorge the rangers found where the Indians had eaten dinner, using snow to quench their thirst, but their horses had no water. From this camp the Apaches made for the cliffs on the northeast side of Devil Mountains. The scouting party now felt the Indians were nearby, as they were nearly all afoot. The danger of being discovered if they passed over the hills during the daylight was so apparent that the rangers decided to make a dry camp and pass the mountain's brow before day the next morning. All the signs were good for a surprise; the trail was not over two hours old, and a flock of doves passing overhead going in the direction of the trail showed that water was nearby.
The morning of the 29th of January the party was awakened by the guard, and passed over the mountain's brow before daylight. There was some difficulty in picking up the trail, though Captain Baylor, Lieutenant Nevill and the Pueblo trailers had been up the evening before spying out the land. By stooping down with their faces close to the ground the Pueblos got the trail leading north along the crest of the mountains. Soon the Indian guides said in low voices: "Hoy esta los Indias." And Captain Baylor perceived the Apaches' camp fires not over half a mile distant.
Leaving a guard of five men with the horses the rangers advanced stealthily on foot. By taking advantage of the crest of the mountain they crept within two hundred yards of the camp, supposing the Indians were camped on the western slope of the hill. The Apaches, however, were cautious enough to put one tepee on the eastern slope overlooking the valley and the approaches from that direction. Captain Baylor thereupon ordered Sergeant Carruthers of Lieutenant Nevill's company to take seven men and make a detour to the left and attack that wigwam while Lieutenant Nevill and himself with seventeen men advanced on the eastern camp. Sheltering themselves behind some large Spanish dagger plants and advancing in Indian file the attackers got within one hundred yards of the enemy, who was apparently just out of bed, for it was then sunrise. Halting the men deployed to the right and left and then, kneeling, the rangers gave the astonished Indians a deliberate volley. At the second fusillade the Apaches broke and fled, the rangers charging the flying foe with a Texas yell.
Sergeant Carruthers executed his orders in gallant style. The Apaches on his side, alarmed and surprised by the fire of Captain Baylor's force, huddled together and three were killed within twenty yards of their camp fire. The redskins ran like deer and made no resistance, for it was each man for himself. Nevertheless, as they fled they were thickly peppered, as there were but two or three out of the party of sixteen or eighteen but left blood along their trail as they ran off.
One Indian the rangers named Big Foot (from his enormous track) ran up the mountain in full view for four hundred yards, and not less than two hundred shots were fired at him, but he passed over the hill. Sergeant Carruthers and several men pursued the fugitive for a mile and a half and found plenty of blood all the way. Another warrior was knocked down and lay as though dead for some time, but finally regained his feet and made two-forty time over the hills with a running accompaniment of Springfield and Winchester balls. One brave stood his ground manfully, principally because he got the gable end of his head shot off early in the action.
Of course the women were the principal sufferers. As it was a bitterly cold, windy morning and all ran off with blankets about them few of the rangers could tell braves from squaws, and in the confusion of battle two women were killed and one mortally wounded. Two children were killed and a third shot through the foot. One squaw with three bullets in her hand and two children were captured. Seven mules and nine horses, two Winchester rifles, one Remington carbine, one United States cavalry pistol and one .40 double action Colt's, six United States cavalry saddles taken from the troops killed at Ojo Calienta and some women's and children's clothing, American made,—evidently those of Mrs. Graham,—a Mexican saddle with a bullet hole in it and fresh blood thereon and over a hundred and fifty yards of new calico fell as spoil to the victors. All the Indians' camp equipage was burned.
The victorious rangers breakfasted on the battleground, as they had eaten nothing since dinner the day before. Some of the men found horse meat good, while others feasted on venison and roasted mescal. The band of scouts could not remain long at this camp for water was very scarce. They had forty head of stock to care for, and the Indians, in their flight, ran through the largest pool of water and liberally dyed it with their blood, and as none of the men were bloodthirsty enough to use this for making coffee or bread they were short of water. However, the rangers found enough pure good water for their use but the horses had to wait until the force reached Apache Tanks, thirty miles distant. This scarcity of water made it impossible to remain at this Apache camp, otherwise Captain Baylor could have added three or four scalps to his trophies. The return march was begun, and at Eagle Station Lieutenant Nevill and Captain Baylor separated. The captured squaw and the two children were sent to Fort Davis to be turned over to the post commander for medical attention, for the rangers had neither a surgeon nor a hospital.