The mob turned back and went to the TA ranch and fortified. The leaders claimed the reason they were fortifying at the TA ranch was on account of their plans miscarrying in regard to the killing of the sheriff on the night of the 9th of April. The mob intended to kill the sheriff and his deputies, if they first made a raid on Buffalo. But if the mob should get in a fight on the road to Buffalo, so that there was a chance for the people in Buffalo to hear about the mob being in the country before they had time to get to Buffalo, they claimed to have made arrangements with certain parties in Buffalo to assassinate the sheriff and his deputies in order to prevent them from swearing in a large posse of men for the purpose of arresting the mob. About 12 o’clock a party of 15 or 20 men were seen by the mob a short distance from the TA ranch going on the road towards Buffalo. The leaders of the mob said the party were the sheriff and posse and gave orders for every man of us to conceal himself and keep out of sight until the sheriff and posse came up so close that we could see the white of their eyes from the stable, and then the leaders of the mob said for us to open fire on the sheriff and posse, and to kill every one of them. The leaders of the mob claimed that the sheriff and posse would come to the ranch to demand the surrender of the mob, but the sheriff’s party kept the road toward Buffalo and did not come to the ranch that day, April 10th, 1892. The leaders claimed that we were safer fortified at the TA ranch than anywhere. They said the sheriff at Buffalo would deputize several hundred settlers for the purpose of arresting the mob who would have taken no part in the fight. If the sheriff and deputies had been killed on the night of the 9th of April, according to the arrangements made by the mob with certain parties in Buffalo, the leaders of the mob claimed that it would be impossible for the sheriff’s posse to capture us at TA ranch inside of a week, and that before that time Governor Barber and Senators Carey and Warren would manipulate the troops at McKinney in such a manner that the troops would come to the rescue of the mob before the sheriff’s party could do us any injury. The leaders of the mob were very bitter towards the soldiers at McKinney, and especially the commanding officer. The leaders of the mob said they knew the teamsters and wagons would be captured by the rustlers, and that they had fixed up a good scheme on the old beef-eating vagabond who was in command of the troops at McKinney. They claimed that they had told the teamsters to tell everybody that they had orders from the leader to drive the wagons to the post at McKinney and turn them over to the commanding officer at the post according to arrangements that the leaders had made with the commanding officer to take charge of the wagons a week before.