The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1890-11-05
THE BUFFAL0'S MUD BATH.

The Ring-Shaped Walluw No Longer
Familiar Sight on the Prairie.
A buffalo wallow, one Of the most IA
miiiar objects OH the prairies, IS circular
depression, having a diameter OF from SIX 70
thirteen feet-the average, perhaps, ABOUT
twelve feet In approaching a large nero
during the summer the first indication OF
the presence of the huge animals was an I'M
mense cloud of dust rising high In the air,
for the buffalo, as do many of the wild
beasts. loves to revel in the fine sand or
dirt. which he furnishes by digging it up
with his horns. Like bull in his wallow,'
was once frequent saying on the plains,
and it had very significant meaning with
those who had ever witnessed buffalo bull
endeavoring to cool himself Off in wallow
Many years ago, in the early days OF
travel on the great plains, the travellers be-
lieved these curious rings to have been made
by the Indians in their dances, and the idea
prevailed for short time. The buffalo,
whose hair is remarkable for Its intense
Shagsiness and thickness, must necessarily
suffer severely from the heat, and then he
will seek the lowest ground on the prairie,
where there has been little StaSnant water
left, if he can find it; Of course the ground
being soft under the short grass, 1t is an
easy matter for him to make mud-puddle
of the spot in a very short time. lie ac-
comrlishes this by getting down on one
knee plunging his short horns, and at last
his head, into the earth, aud he soon
makes an excavation into which the
water slowly filters. This makes relatively
cool bath, where, throwing himself on his
side as fiat as he can, he rolls fOrcibly
around and with his horns and hump, he
lips up the ground by his rotary motion,
sinking deeper and deeper, continually
making the wallow larger, which fills with
water in which at length lie becomes COM
petely immersed, the water and mud,
mixed to the consistency of mortar, covering
him perfectly, changing his color ana gen
eral appearance. When he rose the mud
dripped in great streams from every part of
his huge body, Notwithstanding monster of
mud and ugl;ness. too terrible TO be accu-
rately described. 1t was generally the
leader of the herd who took upon himself
the business of making the wallow
or if he found another had com,
menced the excavation he would drive.
him away and wall0w until he was
satisfied, standing in mass of mud and
water in the hole until he got ready to give
the others a chance. 1t was always the next
in command who stood ready; and when he
came oat, the next, who advanced in his
turn, and so on according. to rank until all
had performed their additions. Frequently
a hundred or more would patiently wait
their turn, each one making the wallow
little larger and carrying off a share OF its
mud, which, drying to whltlsh color, grad
ually fell off.
1t required about half an hour to make q
decent wallow, and the depth was about
two feet. The water naturally drains into
these holes, together with its accompanying
vegetable deposit, aud the result is re-
markably rich soil, where the grass and
weeds grow with luxuriance so marked
that a buffalo wallow can be distinguished
long before it is reached. The prairies are
covered with them all over the central and
western portion of Kansas, where the plow
has not yet disturbed the primitive sod.
The first thing Kansas farmer does after
rain is to examine the buffalo wall0ws; if
they are filled with water the rain has been
good one, and the saying common in that
region, both by the Individual and the news
papers, is, when speaking or writing of a
soaking rain: 1.-The buffalo wallows are
FULL When the weather was dry the
buffalo had to content himself with the
comminuted dust he could make in the hole,
and, as the weather was generally dry, the
whereabouts. of q herd could usually be
located by thu cloud of dust rising above 1t.