wounds were mortal and gave total casualties as 57. Frank Grouard said that 28 soldiers were killed and 56 wounded. Estimates of Crow killed range from one to five and Shoshoni from one to eight. The Lakota and Cheyenne casualties are likewise uncertain with estimates of the number killed ranging from 10 to 100. The Crow reportedly took 13 scalps (although scalps might be cut into pieces and divided among warriors). Crazy Horse reportedly later said that the Lakota and Cheyenne casualties were 36 killed and 63 wounded. How he came up with such a precise number is unknown, as it seems unlikely that the Indians compiled a statistical record of the casualties among the eight or so Sioux and Lakota bands plus the Cheyenne and a few Arapaho who participated in the battle. By the standards of the usual hit-and-run raids of the Plains Indians, the Battle of the Rosebud was a long and bloody engagement. The Lakota and Cheyenne fought with persistence and demonstrated a willingness to accept casualties rather than break off the encounter. The delaying action by Crook's Indian allies during the early stages of the battle saved his command from a devastating surprise attack. The intervention of the Crow and Shoshoni scouts throughout the battle was crucial to averting disaster for Crook. Crook claimed victory by virtue of occupying the battlefield at the end of the day, but his actions belie his claim. Concerned for his wounded and short on supplies, Crook retraced his steps to his camp on Goose Creek, near Sheridan, Wyoming, and remained there immobile for seven weeks awaiting reinforcements. He would play no role in the Battle of the Little Bighorn eight days later. Crook's Crow and Shoshoni allies left the army for their homes shortly after the battle. The Lakota and Cheyenne returned to the battlefield after Crook's departure and piled up rocks at the location of key events in the battle. Some of the rock piles they built are still there. U.S. ammunition expenditures One immediate question from the U.S. Army that followed the battle of the Rosebud was how between 10,000 and 25,000 rounds of 45-70 caliber rifle and carbine ammunition could have been expended during a half day's fight with only a dozen or so enemy casualties, especially considering the use of single shot rifles and carbines. These questions resulted in the investigations of the weapon's extraction