The Extermination of the American BisonHornaday, William T. (William Temple)
History
The Extermination of the American Bison
Hornaday, William T. (William Temple)
American bison; Wildlife conservation -- United States -- Sources
The two buffalo cows that Mr. McNaney killed just before we moved our
camp seemed to be the last in the country, for during the following week
we scouted for 15 miles in three directions, north, east, and south,
without finding as much as a hoof-print. At last we decided to go away
and give that country absolute quiet for a week, in the hope that some
more buffalo would come into it. Leaving McCanna and West to take care
of the camp, we loaded a small assortment of general equipage into the
wagon and pulled about 25 miles due west to the Musselshell River.
We found a fine stream of clear water, flowing over sand and pebbles,
with heavy cottonwood timber and thick copses of willow along its banks,
which afforded cover for white-tailed deer. In the rugged brakes, which
led from the level river bottom into a labyrinth of ravines and gullies,
ridges and hog-backs, up to the level of the high plateau above, we
found a scanty growth of stunted cedars and pines, which once sheltered
great numbers of mule deer, elk, and bear. Now, however, few remain, and
these are very hard to find. Even when found, the deer are nearly always
young. Although we killed five mule deer and five white-tails, we did
not kill even one fine buck, and the only one we saw on the whole trip
was a long distance off. We saw fresh tracks of elk, and also grizzly
bear, but our most vigorous efforts to discover the animals themselves
always ended in disappointment. The many bleaching skulls and antlers of
elk and deer, which we found everywhere we went, afforded proof of what
that country had been as a home for wild animals only a few years ago.
We were not a little surprised at finding the fleshless carcasses of
three head of cattle that had been killed and eaten by bears within a
few months.
In addition to ten deer, we shot three wild geese, seven sharp-tailed
grouse, eleven sage grouse, nine Bohemian waxwings, and a magpie, for
their skeletons. We made one trip of several miles up the Musselshell,
and another due west, almost to the Bull Mountains, but no signs of
buffalo were found. The weather at this time was quite cold, the
thermometer registering 6 degrees below zero; but, in spite of the fact
that we were without shelter and had to bivouac in the open, we were,
generally speaking, quite comfortable.
Having found no buffalo by the 17th, we felt convinced that we ought to
return to our permanent camp, and did so on that day. Having brought
back nearly half a wagon-load of specimens in the flesh or half skinned,
it was absolutely necessary that I should remain at camp all the next
day. While I did so, Messrs. McNaney and Boyd rode over to the Buffalo
Buttes, found four fine old buffalo cows, and, after a hard chase,
killed them all.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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