“Fifty or sixty, as nearly as I can figure it,” replied the border king.
It was a great victory, and it had been bought at a comparatively trifling cost. Only about a dozen of the defenders had been killed, most of them during the pursuit, and not more than twenty were wounded.
“Do you suppose the redskins have had enough?” asked the colonel.
“No, I don’t,” Buffalo Bill said. “Of course, this is a galling repulse for them, but all three of the tribes are brave and persevering in warfare, especially the Sioux. This defeat will merely enrage them and make them all the more anxious to have revenge on Uncle Sam’s troopers.”
Wild Bill rode at this moment to the two men as they stood talking. He was mounted on one of the swiftest horses in the fort, and he led another splendid animal, which he offered to Buffalo Bill.
“These are the best beasts I could pick out of the bunch, Buffler,” he said.
Buffalo Bill mounted without a word, and offered his hand to the colonel.
“Where are you going?” asked the astonished officer.
“Where else but to Fort Hays,” said Buffalo Bill. “We had arranged to ride there as soon as it was dark, and if you will hand us the dispatch we will get off at once.”