Delineations of the Ox Tribe: The Natural History of Bulls, Bisons, and Buffaloes.: Exhibiting all the Known Species and the More Remarkable Varieties of the Genus Bos.Vasey, George
Science
Delineations of the Ox Tribe: The Natural History of Bulls, Bisons, and Buffaloes.: Exhibiting all the Known Species and the More Remarkable Varieties of the Genus Bos.
Vasey, George
American bison; Buffaloes; Cattle; Oxen
"The sergeant had brought two horses with him for the journey. One of
them had already been despatched, and the other now stood just in the
way of the Buffalo, who was going out of the wood. As soon as the
Buffalo saw this second horse, he became more outrageous than before,
and he attacked it with such fury, that he not only drove his horns into
the horse's breast, and out again through the very saddle, but also
threw it to the ground with such violence, that it died that very
instant, and most of its bones were broken. Just at the moment that he
was occupied with this latter horse, I came up to the opening, where the
wood was so thick that I had neither room to turn my horse, nor to get
on one side; I was, therefore, obliged to abandon him to his fate, and
take refuge in a tolerably high tree, up which I climbed.
"The Buffalo, having finished this his second exploit, suddenly turned
round, and shaped his course the same way which we had intended to take.
"From the height of my situation in the tree, I could plainly perceive
one of the horses quite dead; the other sprawling with his feet, and
endeavouring to rise, which it had not strength to do; the other two
horses shivering with fear, and unable to make their escape; but I could
neither see nor hear anything of my fellow-travellers, which induced me
to fear that they had fallen victims to the first transports of the
Buffalo's fury. I, therefore, made all possible haste to search for
them, to see if I could, in any way, assist them; but not discovering
any trace of them in the whole field of battle, I began to call out
after them, when I discovered these magnanimous heroes sitting fast,
like two cats, on the trees, with their guns on their backs, loaded with
fine shot, and unable to utter a single word.
"I encouraged them as well as I could, and advised them to come down,
and get away as fast as possible from such a dangerous place, where we
ran the risk of being once more attacked. The sergeant at length burst
out into tears, deploring the loss of his two spirited steeds; but the
gardener was so strongly affected, that he could scarcely speak for some
days after."
Speaking of a small settlement in the interior, he says: "Buffaloes were
shot here by a Hottentot, who had been trained to the business by the
farmer, and in this manner found the whole family in meat, without
having recourse to the herd. The balls were counted out to him every
time he went a shooting, and he was obliged to furnish the same number
of dead Buffaloes as he received of balls. Thus the many Hottentots that
lived here were supported without expense, and without the decrease of
the tame cattle which constitute the whole of the farmer's wealth. The
greatest part of the flesh of the Buffalo falls to the share of the
Hottentots, but the hide to that of the master."
[Illustration: Young Cape Buffalo.]
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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