St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1884-12-06
Putting an End to the Buffalo.

During recent warm day a reporter
stroiled into n wholesale fur dealers to
solace himself with view of the hairy
integuments which suggested winter 3
cooling blasts. A large pile of bison
robes attracted his gaze, and to him the
proprietor said:
Better buy one and frame it, my
boy
Frame it?''
"Yes. In five years from now they'll
De as scarce as silver fox skins and tive
times rs useful"
.aWhy, what was the catch this
year,
-Four"
ssFour WHAT Thousand?"
'.No, sir; plain four. In other words.
there wasn't any catch this year, and
our firm corralled six out of the 10000
of the catch of 1888"
..Do YOU mean to tell me that the
buffalo have disappeared from the face
of Dakota and Montana earth?"
practically, yes; and from all other
earth in the Northwest as well. The
remnants of the big band, numbering
probably, few thousand. are sopIe-
where north of the international line;
no one seems TO know clearly where,
but probably in the remote vicinity of
Woody Mountain. There are few
on the Upper Moreau, and still fewer
ON the plains between the James River
sixth parallel. An old bull was re-
Gently driven into Fort Mead, along
with lot of domestic cattle, by the
COWBOYS He looked like the last of
his race, and if he has any fellows they
can't be found
..What did you use to call big yearly
eatch?"
well. in the year after the Northern
Pacific was opened1hrough to the Little
Missouri, 1881 think it was, North
western traders got in about 100000
robes. You see the railroad let in the
hide hunters, and as the buffalo hap
pened to be south OF the line. and within
reaching distance of the Missouri and
transportation, the output was very
large Thousands upon thousands were
killed whose hides were never removed.
and of the thousands a large majority
furnished only few pounds of tender
loin to the rapacious riIiemen. We've
been talking for years about the time
when the buffalo would be practically
extinct. Now that time has come. and
it 5 too late for protective laws. Such
against the Indians. but they might
have been against the white hide hunt
ers and the rich sportsmen. who were
the most wanton death dealers of the
lot
"Can they be bred to domestic
cattle?"
80. yes. readily enough. But the
hybrid, while good enough for meat. is
not of much use for robes. It's pity
there wasn't law enacted decade or
two ago making it penal offence for a
white man to even shoot at \ buffalo.
The Indians are not so ruthless i'll their
destruction as has been claimed. and,
besides, when they get robe and tan it
it is worth something. The robes tanned
in the East. or by whites anywhere, are
incomparably inferior to those known
to the trade as Indian tanned. The reds
take a lot of pains, and seem to have a
method which. while it leaves the hide
plable, leaves it of sufficient thickness
and strength to hold the hair and with
stand the rough usage all robes must
expect to undergo.
Il should be inclined to believe, from
your remarks, that buffalo overcoats
will be worth good deal II few years
from uow.'
"a good deal2 Well. if you call 800
to $3.50 good DEAL I agree with you.
Seriously. there must be substitute
found for them, since [ am not exag-
gerating an iota as to scarcity. st.
Paul Pioneer Press.