Then, as he had done many a time, he leaned over and pressed his ear to the solid earth.

Immediately the rumbling became more distinct and he recognized what it meant: it was the tramp of numerous hoofs galloping forward.
Carson and several of his men stole noiselessly out to reconnaissance and found a half dozen warriors hurrying along a drove of more than a hundred horses.

They had been on a raid among the Mexican settlements in Sonora and were now returning home with their plunder.
The temptation was one which Carson and his companions could not resist.
They sent a volley from their rifles among the thieves, which threw them into such a panic that they dashed off at full speed without giving the least thought to their valuable property.

The latter as a matter of course was taken charge of by the trappers, who were glad of the opportunity to chastise the cowardly marauders.
Under the circumstances, however, the animals were of little value to the hunters, who had all they needed.

It was beyond their power to return them to their owners, but the best were selected, several of the plumpest killed and cured, and the rest turned loose to go whither they chose.
The trappers continued up the Gila until near the copper mines of New Mexico, where they found a party of white men trading with the Indians.
The peltries were cached and placed in charge of their friends, while Carson and his companions continued on until they reached Santa Fe.
There their employer bought a license to trade with the Indians who lived near the copper mines.