son, now an elderly man, was with Joseph. Hearing that the Nez Perce were leaving Weippe Prairie, Howard sent out a strong force from Kamiah on July 17 to ascertain in which direction the Nez Perce were heading. Major Edwin C. Mason and "Colonel" Edward McConville, a civilian volunteer, led the force of cavalry, civilian volunteers, and several Nez Perce scouts. Joseph's Nez Perce ambushed the scouts, killing 2 and wounding one, and Mason turned back, but after having learned that the Nez Perce were traveling the Lolo Trail. The Nez Perce undertook one last raid in Idaho on July 18, stealing several hundred horses at Kamiah. On July 16, the main body of the Nez Perce departed Weippe Prairie on the arduous Lolo Trail through 120 miles (200 km.) of uninhabited mountains. They were about 750 persons in all, two thousand horses, and hundreds of dogs in a column several miles long. They reappeared on the Montana side of the Lolo Pass on July 25, having accomplished the difficult passage with relative ease. Soon, they would again meet up with the U.S. army. Howard, with 700 men, set off after the Nez Perce on the Lolo Trail on July 30. He telegraphed ahead and soldiers awaited the Nez Perce just over the Montana border at Fort Fizzle. Colonel John Gibbon would intercept the Nez Percé at the Battle of the Big Hole. References Sources Dillon, Richard H. North American Indian Wars (1983) Greene, Jerome A. Nez Perce Summer, 1877 (2000) Clearwater, Battle of the Idaho Territory Nez Perce National Historical Park Protected areas of Idaho County, Idaho 1877 in Idaho Territory July 1877 events Clearwater