Captain William Frock knew his men were in a very bad spot.

Company K of the 9th Cavalry was stationed at Fort Lancaster, an isolated outpost in West Texas.

In fairness, nearly all the outposts in Texas were isolated to one degree or another.

And actually, nearly all the outposts in the entire American West were isolated in the 1850s, 60s, and 70s.

That was the life of a soldier, and it was the nature of the vast and

varied landscape west of the Missouri River. Even though Fort Lancaster was located on the

critical road from El Paso to San Antonio, its closest neighbors were Fort McAvitt, 95 miles in one

direction, and Fort Stockton, 70 miles in the other direction.

There was no chance that the 60 soldiers of Company K and the civilians who operated the small

stores and the stage station at Fort Lancaster could receive help in their battle against

the hundreds of fighters who now surrounded them on three sides.

Kickapoo warriors had united with Hispanic gunmen, old enemies of the Texans, and a collection

of Comoncheros, the name given to the hated white Americans who traded stolen animals

and white captives to Native American groups.

But the makeup of the huge force that was arrayed against Company K

wasn't Captain Frohawk's biggest fear.

His biggest fear was the loss of the company's horses.

That was the very bad spot he was in at the moment.

It looked like he could defend the small cluster of buildings

which had survived the initial assault, or he could defend the horses cluster of buildings, which had survived the initial assault,

or he could defend the horses, but he couldn't do both.

It was a problem faced by commanders since time immemorial.

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