The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1883-05-26
GAME IN THE YELLOWSTONE.
Buffalo Bills Plea for the Preservation Of
the Bufaloes and Elks.

wish to sincerely protest against one
or two measures for the Improvement
of the Yellowstone Park, which, if
thoughtlcssly carried out, are certain to
be looked upon in the future as man.
moth mistakes. refer particularly to
the idea of supplying the park hotels
with game. which is now rather abund-
ant upon the mountains and in the
Valley of the Yellowstone. The In
dams have always looked upon the
kissing springs and the strange receSscs
of the park with awe, and never harmed
beast or fowl that sought refuge within
its precincts. They entertained similar
supcrstitions in regard to the Black
Hills, and no buifaloes or clkS were
slaughtered there until the whites came.
To-day the buffalo and elk have almost
entirely disappeared The buffalo is
actually q thing Of the past in great
rcgionS of the West, where. only a few
years since. gigantic herds were met
from day to day. Their slaughter has
been criminally large and useless, and
no hand is raised to stop the utter eX-
tinctiOn which threatens them. Even
their bones have been raked up and
shipped East rs a new source of profit
! In ten years the new generation will
point to solitary specimens in travelling
menagericS or geological gardens as
the rare survivors of the nObleSt of
American wild beasts. 1t is difficult to
estimate the percentage of decrease in
their numbers, but certainly it should
be the duty of some one to check their
wholesale destruction, not on senti-
mental grounds simply, but for more
practical reasons. For example, Il large
class of settlers supply their tables with
ycnison the year round. They kill
when their needs demand it, and are
too conscious of the growing scarcely in
numbers to shoot oftcncr than is neces-
Sary. Buffalo meat is the main de-
pcndcncc of many. A hunting cXpedi-
ton organized for the special purpose
of stretching game on the plains for the
coyotes to pick after nightfall does not
find favor in the West rs il did decade
or so ago.
For many years past the different
animals have instinctivcly sought places
of refuge, and one of their safest re-
treats has been Yellowstone Park.
Here, at least, they have been safe from
Indian hunters, and, up to the present
time, the whites have allowed them to
continue in comparative peace. Let n
rifle report awaken the echoes on the
hills and in the canyons, and the crea-
lures will soon vanish from sight. Once
out of their stronghold, and upon the
| ,Nln;,, th,;,, Oh 6
few. For these and many other reasons,
in my opinion, the consideration Of
measures for indiScriminate hunting in
this spot should be deplored. say en-
courage the beasts to stay so that in
after years, when more are to be found
elsewhere, they may serve the interests
of natural history, as well as CRAFTY and
instruct the curiosity of the young.
They will not be found hostile to civil
lizing influences. have to-day herd
of twcnty-onc head of butfaloeS on my
Nebraska ranch, which were captured
wild but few months since. To-day
they roam about at will, and are fully
as tractable rs the cattle with which
they minglc. They are easy to APP
proach, and appear remarkably sus-
ceptiblc 10 kindness.
BY all means let the march of i'm
proyemcnt 90 on in the region of the
Yellowstone. but let the gunShot be
/ prohibited nj the outset. Its effect will
be disastrous, and will rob the domains
of y great and noble charm. The park
is richer and grandcr than any other
natural garden in America, and if its
beauties are to be preserved ut all they
should be preserved together. Why
not continue to give the beasts the pro
lection they have always known here,
and which has been denied them else
where? And why should we now cease
TO respectthe superstition of great tribes
before us, sanctioned by the faithful
observance of centuries. and which in
sured for the splendid beasts of forest
and plain the safest home they ever
knew.-W +. Cody Buffalo BID ia
~ Y. Sun.