Louisiana capitolian., 1880-06-24
AN ARRAPAHoE HUNT
REDUCING A BIG HERD or BUFFALO
TO A SKELETON.

An army officer in tho Baltimore Amer.
lean. While have been endeavoring,
vainly perhaps, to convey to you some
idea Of tho appearance Of tho Arrapabocs,
tho hunting party has made rapid pro.
gress and ono Of tho young warriors, now /.
far IN the lead waving his blanket In o
peculiar manner, makes known TO the
hunters that tho herd IL near by, and
that taking n certain course will bring
us TO windward Of them. As tho distance
between Tho hunters and tho herd grows
less tho bucks tlivcst themselves Of all
their clothing save tho brccchclout, and
tho superiluous garments orc handed to
their squaws for safe-keeping, together
with tho ponies they have been riding,
as they now mount the fresh animals
their better halves bring up TO them.
Tho old buffalo bull, actingas outmost
guard, has heard o sound l,c cannot
explain; no turns TO warn The unsuspec-
ting herd Of his not altogether ground
less fear, when tho whole party Of
Indians, like one man, give the ponies
their head and sweep down upon the
grazing herd. But not grazing now for,
as il by magic, The whole herd become
aware Of tho danger, and with heads
low and tails erect they arc bounding
over tho level plain before them ut o
much faster ratio than their numbering
bodies would lead one to suppose pos
sble. Tho Indians, dashing up on tho
0anks Of the moving column, pour in
their deadly fro. Not waiting TO SEQ
tho result, they urge their ponies on,
still Gring) sometimes 70 near that the
barrel of the rifle rests on tho buffalo)
as fast as they can load till their ponies
pause from exhaustion and tho skeleton
herd is beyond reach Of thoir weapons.
While pursuers and pursued have been
thus actively engaged tho squaws have
not been idle, for, as the hunt ceases.
you find them with their pack animals
already on tho field where the dead
buif'aloes lie. The bucks. returning, ride
down along the dead and dying and
pout out to their sguaws those they
have slain, and when the squaw has put
her own individual mark upon them
then she begins her part of tho hunt,
which is skinning, cutting up and pack.
ing. nave seen five hundred buffalOes
killed in tho above manner, and l have
never yet heard dispute arise owing
to buck having mistaken an animal
he had killed. II would seem as il the
dead care ass had "a tongue in every
wound that cried, "Pass me not by
you killed me- The squaws are natural
butchers. There is not q miss-cut made
in removing tho robe; nor is one particle
of the animal left for the ki0tcs that can
be in any way utilized by these people.
From the slnews lying along tho back.
one (from which the bow-strings arc
madc) to the horny hoofs (from which is
dissolved a kind Of gluten for the
preparation Of the robcs) nothing Is
wasted. No wonder it exasperates these
provdcnt people to come upon the car
oasses of hundreds Of thousands Of
buffalo, killed yearly by the white hun.
tcrs for the hides alone. Not even .
tongue gone, or a slice from the favorite
hump taken, There they lie aud rot.
The food God had provided for them
feeding only the vultures and kiotes, the
bones standing as monument to prog
ressve ciIization and 40 reminder that
white men are not allowed in IL
, territory. -. s.