Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1894-06-21
ON A BUFFALO's BACK.
Wftcher's Wild Ride Before a STAIN.
pedfng Herd on the North Platte.

witcher's Wild Ride Before a Stam-
pedfng Herd ON the North Platte.
From the Chicago Herald
Capt Russell is one of the Black Hills
pioneers. and in the country where he is
known no man would think OF sneering at
what he said. In a general talk he related
many singular occurrences. but none like
the ride of n. L-Witcher Of Sturgis. S Oak.
which Witcher had on the back OF a buffalo
in lS49. Here IL is. minus. OF course. the
interesting manner which Capt. Russell i'm
parted to II:
1T was in the summer OF lS49 A lot of
Californians Were I'm camp on the North
Platte in the vicinity of Chimney rock. which
is landmark now of former times. The
Californians concluded they would like some
buffalo steak out of herd they graz
ing in the distance. II was no uncommon
sight In those days. But you won't see it
any more. No mere buffalo. and never will
be again. Somebody thought different once
but there won't be any more buffalo. The
rarity / mentioned started out to run down
one of the herd. Witcher took the north
side of the herd and his friends came up on
the south and west sides. That stampeded
the herd. for the boys had fired on the buff
falo.
..They took a header toward witcher. who
and he knew they wouldn't turn aside for
him. He had seen them run before. In
spite of the speed of his horse he was soon
overtakep. lie saw the herd gaining on him
and he began thinking. He had been in
many an Indian skirmish. and 1 reckon a
man has to think as quickly in time like
that as he ever does in this life Witcher
had his mind made up what TO do by the
time he was overtaken. provided he wasn't
trampled to death before he could do it.
The foremost of the herd, an old bull,
came upon him and gored his horse to death
almost instantly. Witche- was an athlete
and as quick as a cat. He leaped upon the
back of the buffalo and grasped his shaggy
name with both hands. That only acceler-
ated the speed of the buffalo. Witcher re-
allied that he had saved himself for the
time being. But he heard the snorting bel
lowing, Infatuated stampede behind him
His animal might be run down, or he might
lose his grip and fall, to be trampled under
hundreds OF feet at any moment. Pande-
monium on foot was gaining on him. He
had to do some more quick thinking He
knew his only solution was for his buffalo
did II:
He had long knife such as the forty
miners carried in those days. He managed to
get 1t out, and hanging on for life with one
hand, he reached with his knife one side OF
the neck of the buffalo and slashed into n
The animal leaped like a maddened devil AT
the thrust. and Witcher held on like a tick
on a country dog. Quicker than il takes 10
tell II he changed the knife to the other
hand and made a slit on the other side of
the animals neck. The blood spurted from
both sides and stained the ground over
which Witcher was going at a rate that was
too much for his comfort But very soon
the animal commenced to weaken
Slowly he began TO fail back and finally
all the others had passed him in the race in
which ne had had the sendon. The animal
fell and Witcher jumped from the back of
the buffalo which had saved his life Under
any other circumstances to have killed that
which had saved him would not have been
IKE Nltcher But this was a case where Il
admitted OF no sorrow. A man would kill n
dozen buffalo in those days to save his own
life"