"Aw, we were just fooling," said Tony Matthews. They talked together, low, for a few moments; and Bill called: "Come on in. We won't hurt you."
"Of course you won't," said General Ashley. "But _we_ aren't fooling. We mean business. We'll keep the horses until you've promised to clear out and let this camp alone."
"We don't want the horses. Two of 'em are hired and the longer you keep them the more you'll have to pay." That was a lie. They didn't hire horses. They borrowed.
"We can sleep here very comfortably, kid," said Mike Delavan.
"You'll not get much sleep in those beds," retorted General Ashley. "Will they, boys!"
"And after they've walked ten miles back to town, we'll bring in the horses and tell how we took them."
"All right," said Bill Duane. "You give us our horses and we'll let the camp alone."
That was the best way--to make each promise separately; for some one of them might have claimed that he hadn't promised with the rest.
"Then go on down the trail, and you'll find the horses where you left them."
"On the honor of a Scout," said General Ashley. "We won't try any tricks, and don't you, for we'll be watching you until you start for town."
They grumbled back, and with Bill Duane in the lead stumbled for the trail. General Ashley whistled the signal agreed upon, for Major Henry and Kit Carson to tie the horses and to withdraw. We might have followed the enemy; but we would have risked dividing our forces too much and leaving the camp. We were safer here.
So we waited, quiet; and after a time somebody signaled with the whistle of the patrol. It was Kit Carson.
"They've gone, sir," he reported, when General Ashley called him.
"They're mad; but they're going into town and they'll get back at us later."
"Waiting to see if they turn or anything."
"They won't. They know we'll be ready for them. Shall we move camp, or post sentries, boys?"
We voted to post sentries. It seemed an awful job to move camp, at this time of night, and make beds over again, and all that. It was only ten o'clock by General Ashley's watch, but it felt later. So we built up the fire, and set some coffee on, and called Major Henry in, and General Ashley and Jed Smith took the first spell of two hours; then they were to wake up Fitzpatrick and me, for the next two hours; and Major Henry and Kit Carson would watch from two till four, when it would be growing light. But we didn't have any more trouble that night.