In 1835 he managed to corral 300 Indians…

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tack them in their camps at night, and thus suc- ceeded in killing a great many. His name, “Santiago,” as he was called, became a terror to the Indians all over the country and he be- came widely known to fame and to the Mexican people as a dashing, fearless Indian fighter. In 1835 he managed to corral 300 Indians in the town of Gallina and he and his company killed the whole party with the exception of seven, who escaped to the mountains. They scalped the dead Indians and took the scalps to Chihuahua. There they strung them on a rope and stretched it across the plaza from the church to the east side, amid the wild huzzas of an excited populace. Whether the killing was fair or not, the question was never dis- cussed— it was a triumph over the common enemy, and the people shouted for joy, throw- ing up their hats in wild exultation. Barrels of tequila and mescal were opened and everybody enjoyed themselves reveling in a stream of riotous pleasure. From far and near the people came flocking in to see and participate in the ( 27 ) howling jollification, until the city was literally suffocated with the surging masses of humanity. McKnight subsequently bought the silver mining hacienda at Corralitos and worked the mines until his death at Chihuahua, in 1844.