The Weekly Perrysburg journal. [volume] (Perrysburg, O. [Ohio]) 1861-1???, 1863-10-14
rnoM THE ,l,h ONO CAyAIRy

We are permitted to make the following
interesting extract frcm a private letter.
written by member Of the llth Regiment
o. V. c., which has, probably. ere this
reached it's dostination-Tort Laramie
near the foot Of the Rocky Mountains. in
The Territory of Idahoe. The letter is dated
near Fort Kearney, September II. They
expected to reach Fort Laramie early in
October. The description OF a buffalo hunt
given in the following, will be read with
interest by many OF our Wood County
Nimrods: Pol.
Business has called me frequently to the Fort
and | have had good opportunity to observe
something Of garrison life the frontier and fore
see little of what will be our situation at Lara
mie. The Fort is on a level which stretches for
many miles, between the sand hills on either side
the Platte, and which constitutes the valley OF the
river. The soil is grayclly composition, not fer
tile or capable Of profitable cultivation and utterly
barren of timber Here and there on the route we
came across ranches and stage stations. The
ranches are trading posts, where poor whisky and
cheap calico are dispensed to the "pilgrms" who
happen along; and they are supplied with hcili.
ties Tor "poker" playing, which are taken advan.
tage Of by every man who has specializing propen-
sitcs to win or lose they don't seem to care par.
ticularly which, only hating to "qnt even" in the
morning when they adjourn-a shinlcss, lazy, vii.
lainous set of people generally; many Of them
doubtless, outlaws.
We have lad some interesting adventures during
the last week. First, We found ourselves, uncx-
pectedly, among buffalo. | went out with some
other officers, more to observe the sport than with
any expectation of participating in the chase but
soon found myself engaged as eagerly as the rest
in running down the straGglers from the herd We
found them first in droves, four or five miles apart
and long before we caught glimpse of the herd
but all making theif way toward it, Their course
was toward the river-the Little Bluc--south Of
| Pawnecviyle. The drovcs began to increase IN
numbers as we progressed, and suddenly gaining
ridge, we found ourselves opposite the herd
Thousands upon thousands of buffalo were on the
plain beyond the gully before us far as the eve
could reach on either hand they were clustered on
the ridges, grazing sut moving lcisurcly away
while behind us we saw coming in from every di.
rection, numerous droves -sorie fifty, some hun
dred, some five hundred. Away on the slope be.
fore us galloped few horsen:en, to pick of from
the mau herd such as they could single out
The process Of bringing down buffalo is diff
cult, even with our effective rifles. A single sho
rarely disablcs an animal. II one is wounded, he
falls behind and is easily distinguished; if pressed
closely, he will turn and charge furously on mar
and horse, and alcrtness and skill are requisite t.
evadc him. None of our mon were injured. We
| nf huff la, To
the camp for several days, and every mar whc
took part in the exciting sport is regarded
| Nnrod
The incidents of our hunts on various occasions
have been told at night about the camp fires
| While lsteni e to the accounts of marvellous nd
ventures and hair-brcadth espapes from bulls
horns and the likc-looking away at the prairie
fire burning ficrcely and near enough to light ou>
camp, with the shrill barking of wolves and pra
rie dogs sounding in the distance, and the broad
si't plain stretching away from us, realized, al
most for the first time, that we were away from
civilization, an1 had come to land where Nature
domain has not been disturbed by the hand of man
We ride all day without sight of house, exccp
the stations, at long intervals, where the coacl
horses are kept. We meet trains from the mnial
! rcElohs, conu"c'eu ny "eNic"hs, anu ihuiais, hh
half-breeds and now and then We have STAN
pede of our mule train, which consists Of thirty
two six-mule teams, They sometimes break il
every direction, at full gallop the plain to h
great discomfort of few women, who ride in ont
of the wagons, and the disgust of the Quarter
macte., in whose :hatge they tnot the women are
Fortunately, no serious damage has yet resulted
but stampede is as likely to occur among guile.
and ravnes upon an unhroScn plain.