. It was an open
chase. Soon four of the horses of the dragoons gave out. The remainder of
the party, consisting of Carson, six dragoons, and three settlers, pressed
on. They soon got near enough to count the numbers of the Indians. There
were twenty. Five of them were soon struck by rifle balls, and dropped
from their horses. The heroic band returned with the stolen property.

Mr. Carson was now a farmer. In May, 1856, accompanied by an old
mountaineer, he took fifty horses and mules to Fort Laramie, a distance of
five hundred miles, and sold them to advantage. He then set out for home
accompanied only by a Mexican boy. He remained at his farm through the
following summer, a peaceful, industrious, busy man, loving his home and
enjoying it. He had quite a number of Mexicans employed upon his large
farm, whose labors he superintended. Much of his time he employed in
hunting, thus abundantly supplying his large family with game. It is
written of him, at this time:

"Mounted on a fine horse, with his faithful dog and gun, early each day he
would start out on the prairies, to engage in the chase. In a few hours he
would return on foot with his noble hunter loaded down with choice game.
Sometimes it would be an antelope or elk. On another occasion it would
consist of black-tailed deer, which are celebrated as being the largest
and finest specimens of venison that roam the forests of any country, and
are only to be found in the Rocky mountains; on another, wild turkeys, and
then mountain grouse and prairie chickens, helped to complete the load.
When thus provided for, it is no wonder that Kit's workmen loved their
employment, and labored with good will.

"In his mountain home he was often visited by Indian friends who came to
smoke the pipe of peace with him, and to enjoy his hospitality. He saw
himself in possession of fine lands, well watered and well timbered. The
soil, unsurpassed in richness and fertility, was a safe and sure
depository for his seeds, telling him in its silent but unmistakable
language, of the harvest in store for him. His stock was the best which
heart could wish. And last, but not least, he was within a stone's throw
of splendid hunting-grounds."

During the summer two gentlemen, Messrs. Brevoort and Weatherhead, were
going to the United States from Santa Fe, with a large sum of money to
purchase goods. One of the worst of frontier vagabonds, a fellow by the
name of Fox, offered his services as guid