Iowa territorial gazette and advertiser. [volume] (Burlington, Iowa Territory [Iowa]) 1840-1846, 1844-07-06
From lie St. Louis Eepiblieaii.
Prairie and Mountain In. I

i ofSSuAottDE aihA HiAdsCV Cig yY&b y }3AsAiff
blunt, good7humered and iree-snpk en- man,
by the name of OGLE, from somewhere il,
Illinois, if memory serves afsrettIt. On
the 22d of July, the day we fes1;hSsl fnde-
pendehee Rock, he was ont far from camp,
in company with our excellent little sur
geon, Tilghman; both Of them always ac-
tive and eager in search Of 69hes They
had encountered various stray groups 81
buffalo, succeeding admirably III soaring
them, one after another, out = sight, when
late in the day, they were lucky enoughto
cripple a veteran huh 50 badly, that they
were enabled to follow and sOveft&ke him
on their mules. Popping aiother ball or
two into the old beast, he dropped, rolled
his eyes, tossed his head aliarilsi, and then
lay still, apparently quite tadad, while the
victorious hunters jumped Pom their sad
dies, hobblcd their mules, drew their knives,
sifd prepared for the butchering, in great
exuitation. little surgeon Iilghman, 4
passionate, and already accomplished stu
dentin anatomy had conceived an intense
desireto obtain and carry home with him,
should he ever get back, the complete skull,
horns and scalp of a buffalo.H -Actuated by
this inclination, he now set 10 work, Curl
ously examining the physioghoinical aspect
and archaeological presentation OF his new
subject; during which, in enthusiastic for
getiulness, he seated himselilupon the ami
mails shoulder, leaning over between the
horns, and enjoying in the fullest degree
his new and fantasical ottoman. Ogle,
more intent upon procuring meat, and re-
turning toicamp, had sharpened his knife,
and now made a vigorous cut near the tail,
TO commence the operation of.skinning. A
violent shake of the old bulls head, init
mating, no doubt, his decided objection to
such iamiliarities, in an instant sent the
little surgeon rolling five yards distant, and
the way he then picked himself up, and
took to his pedal propellers, may be inter-
esting to imagine; while Ogle, who was
?; stout round shouldered, and slow-mo-
toned man, itas suddenly seized with a
nimble fit, that set him jumping over the
sage bushes and getting out Of, the way
With that extraordinary rate'of speed, rem
dered classic in the famous epic Of sDan
Tucker"
| Strange as it then appeared, and strange
as itsmust now seem in reading, the NOR
italy wounded bull rose and ranlafull half
mile from the spot where it FIRST fell, while
Oglc and the surgeon, after recovering from
their CONSERVATION, mounted their mules
and followed thcrunaway game, with des-
perate determination not to be swindled
out Of their supper. The bull stopped,
worn with weakness almost to the last
gasp, and turned upon his pursuets. In
an instant two more balls were driven into
the creatures side, and, after moving a step
or two, and glazing wildly around him,
down he tumbled, headforemost as before.
Surgeon Tlghman now thought proper to
maintain = respectable distance for a few
moments before resuming his scientific ex-
animation Of the animals skull; but Ogle,
who POSSESSED as daringa spirit as any
man alive, and whose eye uneasily marked
the sun plunging lower and lower, moment
ly, towardhis fiery western couch, walked
cautiously but firmly up to the beast, and
deliberately stuck his knife up to the han
die into the region Of its liver. What was
the establishment of the two amateur buffalo
butchers when the tortured monster again
tore the earth with its short horns and
Struggled furiously to its feet! The sur
geon was on his mule, and fifty yards dis
tant, imam instant. Ogle was not SO lucky,
for his mule was on the opposite side Of
the bull, while lis rifle stood against sage
bush in another. direction. To get posses
sion Of both was impossible, and he could
only preciritately seize the gun and make
off on foot with an expedition at once alarm-
ing and lndierous. Ogle ran like man
about to dive into water for swim, and
az he startled, and jumped over, and cut
round the sage bushes, that grew thick and
| high, all over the ground, turning quickly
every moment to see if the bull was after
him; tripping, stumbling, half-ialling, and
/, stumbling again in desperate efforts TO re-
cover himself, his cumbrous form doubled
up, Strengthened out again, twisted, wrig-
gled, and bounded about in contortions so
unchristmnlike andinconceivable that moth
J ing like # may be mentioned, unless one
!. can imagine such freak Of modern inn
provement as Calvin Edison, manufactured
, into q stout man by means Of blown up
India-rubber suit, and running a race with
La whirlwind! iaiHaa saisf 15a .
i The bull dashed violently after Ogle for
q few steps, but pause again, too weak 10
, continue the chase. There is something
} mcst appealing and pitcous in the slow
turning of these huge creatures heads
. from side to side, and the indeseribable
glare Of their dark eye, balls; when strug-
Cling between death and impotcnt rage. -
Pain, misery, anger, wonder, blind fury
and Overwhelming terror, seem to speek in
this mute deilotement Of departing ife- -
Again and again win they rouse themselves
from the approaches Of death, and make
| new efforts at escape and revenge. This
poor aoId bull suddenly discovered Ogle's
hat on q sage bush, where he had left it,
4 and making q plunge, the animal drove one
Of his short horns tight through it, 50 that
& when he rose erect again, he had the bat
sticking up-sidc-down upon his head
Nothing could have exceeded the absurd
q effect Of this picture. "A witness Of the
Z scene might have observed DR.. Tilghman
in the distance, rolling from side to side
q upon his mule, IN an ecstacy Of laughter
], while Ogle, having just paused from his
II flight, and tnfned, stood staring al the bull
....3Ls