Mr.Bent understood the peculiar danger in which Kit would be placed, and though he was splendidly mounted, he loaned him a magnificent steed which he led, ready to mount whenever the necessity should arise for doing so.
That journey was one of the most remarkable of the many made by Kit Carson.

It would have been less so, had he possessed a companion of experience, for they could have counselled together, and one would have kept watch while the other slept.

As it was, Carson was compelled to scan every portion of the plain before him, on the constant lookout for Indians, who would have spared no effort to circumvent and slay him, had they known of his presence in their country.

He was so placed, indeed, that only by the most consummate skill could he hope to run the continuous gauntlet, hundreds of miles in length.
He had gone but a short distance when he detected the trails of his enemies, showing they were numerous and liable to be encountered at any moment.

When night came, he picketed his horses and lay down on the prairie or in some grove, ready to leap to his feet, bound upon one of his steeds and gallop away on a dead run.