I had selected Corporal John B. Charlton of Troop "F" for my _civilian_ companion-- I considered him one of the best non-commissioned officers in the regiment-- While he had a free, rollicking, reckless, dare devil spirit about him--he was easily controlled, and perfectly amenable to discipline-- He was a very handsome, intelligent, active, energetic man of about 24 years of age--and was on his second 5 years enlistment--his first having been in the Fifth Artillery-- He was fully six feet--spare, sinewy, straight as an arrow--an athlete--one of the best riders, shots and hunters, and all round soldiers in the regiment-- He had a straight nose--strong chin and steel-blue eyes, the glint of which, when he was aroused--looked dangerous when squinting down the sights of our old Spencer Carbines-- He reminded me of that free, rollicksome--"devil-may-care" d'Artagnan, one of the "Three Musketeers"-- He probably had a past like many other enlisted men who entered the regular army after the Civil War-- If so, for obvious reasons, we never pried into that past. He entered into the spirit and novelty of this new adventure with commendable zeal, energy, spirit and enthusiasm-- I felt that I knew my man perfectly, and that, under all circumstances, he would prove absolutely loyal to all duty and be faithful to whatever trust I reposed in him-- We were all well mounted, well armed, and had one good, well trained pack mule to carry our grub-- We both had guides, the one assigned to the writer being William Rhodes, a rancher, who had been driven in to the shelter of the post by Indians, a very quiet, sturdy, honest and reliable man who knew the country fairly well within a radius of 40 miles, but beyond that his knowledge was no better than my own or any other man in the detachment, besides being one more man to feed and care for after he had got beyond his bailiwick as a post guide-- I never took another guide beyond a 50 mile radius. The Pursuit--A Howling "Norther"