Colonel Brodhead at once determined to attack the place and punish the Delaware for their perfidy. The Pennsylvania Government gave him much assistance and a supply of provisions, but his force of regular troops at Fort Pitt had been reduced, from various causes, to about 200 men. He made a call for assistance to the officers of the border counties, but no troops were furnished by them. Colonel David Shepherd, county lieutenant of Ohio County, Virginia (now Green County, Pa.) however, sent him a body of excellent volunteers consisting of 134 Virginia militiamen, arranged in four companies, under Captains John Ogle, Benjamin Royce, Jacob Leffler and William Crawford. These men were hardy young farmers from the settlements in Washington County; most of them rode their own horses, and cheerfully responded to Colonel Shepherd’s call. These troops rendezvoused at Fort Henry, the stockade at Wheeling, where Colonel Brodhead and his command joined them. On Tuesday, April 19, the little army of 300 was ferried over the Ohio River and marched over the Indian trail for Muskingum River. John Montour, Nonowland and Delaware braves joined the Americans to fight their own treacherous tribesmen. The purpose was to march rapidly and take the village of Coshocton by surprise; yet it required ten days to reach that place on account of severe weather and unusually heavy rains. A short pause was made at Salem, where Colonel Brodhead held a conference with the Reverend John Heckewelder. He learned there were no Christian Indians at Coshocton. The Moravians were to prepare corn and cattle for the soldiers against the return march. The missionary then hastened back to Gnadenhuetten and Salem to carry the news that the Americans were in the country and Killbuck and his warriors again donned the war paint to join the Continentals against other savages. Although it required ten days to reach the Muskingum, the Delaware were taken by surprise. They had no expectation that the Americans would act so promptly and, on account of stormy weather, they were careless and kept out no scouts. Then some of the principal chiefs were at Detroit, in attendance at a big council with De Peyster, the British governor. On Friday morning, April 20, during a heavy downpour, the advance guard came upon three Indians in the woods, not more than a mile distant from Coshocton. One of the savages was captured, but the two others escaped to the town and gave the alarm. The captured Indian said there were not many warriors at home, that a band of forty had just returned from a border raid, with scalps and prisoners, but had crossed to the farther side of the river, a few miles above the town, to enjoy a drunken revel.