New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1900-02-16
AT tn NATIONAL CAPITAL.

Washington. Februarv 81
CHAMPION OF THE BUFFALO-An -.
auene tribute to .ae virtues and intelligence ~ -
no" almost extinct American bison was nats 80
other day by Buffalo Jones. OF Kansas -. H9
the House Committee on Public Lands Mr. -
Won MS sob-iquet by many years OF devo4,, .
the interests Of the bison. familiar to most - -
present generation Of Americans oniy tbror'-s
pictures In books and occasional visits to -.
%ooioslcaI gardens the country circus tn
Kansas man appeared before the Public -
committee in advocacy OF a scheme OF his V,bIcs
mas been formulated into a House BILL u,
proposition is TO set aside several hundred shon
SAND acres Of the public lands OF New Mexico 20
a ouHaIo reservation. Mr. Jones believes that .
thls were done the prsiries Of the West womb
again TEEN with buffalo In few years. He IS
perhaps better acquainted with the animal than
any oIher man alive. and Is therefore capable OF
speaking Of its traits and prospects. ''Buffalo,,
Jones accounts for the poor pasturage OF the West
at present in peculiar way only about one
co li as much grass grows there now when
P'bIjo SAID ne TO the grave statesmen Of the
counfs for ~ SoiiiLil,tee MS shortage ac-
We may De compelled 20 resort to the hudaIo In
the west RSs 6u hf deserted . 1g OF
5bore 5 E to economize his food supply Many
nero nave / watched Craze day after dav Tha
buralo exercises so much intelligence in MS graz
years l am led TO believe that he had been taught
o S some wise shepherd the cunning methods un-
bison rises at dawn. and with his sharp teeth set
a
reach Then the herd lined up like soidiers star "a
OUT Tor the days grazing. Under the leadership
straight line each eating the grass IN h his Sat5
and leaving swath about four feet wide between
OF the grass thus left are blown over the portio5
cleared of and thus crop for the coming yesr
is planted As soon as the buffalo has enough
to eat ne lies down for midday rest. After
unlike that Of hog. but much louder. and starts
At Gight angles IN me direction OF the nearest
Not one of the hundreds of thousands that follow
returning from the drinking place while do
mesticated animals destroy all the vegetation in
with the range, but with the water as we'll
S nen tne IEoo9 AXE or stream IS reSensd the
respectful distance making room for others in the
the water. The nearest approach TO the buffalo IN
the West is the catalo which is cross between
the bison, and is as hardy as his ancestors. defy
summer without shade or shelter. But the catalo
some of the wild nnbIic lands In Sev-Vevieo a.
will be only few years when there will he neither
kith nor kin of the bison left in the world
Champ Clark boasts that once there was mora
onyx in his district than in any other Ike terri
tory in the world; but, alas! he mourns its de-
struction He relates that constituent Of his
in Crawford County, Mo, ignorant OF the delicate
texture of this precious stone. put lot Of dyna-
mite under big bed of It few years ago ex-
pecting to reap a rich harvest from the blast The
result, according TO Mr.. Clark. that the entire
bed of ONYX scattered over several adjoining
counties in fine dust. In the twinklng ~ an
eye, said Mr.. Clark. this uniformed constituent
or mine reduced TO unmerChdnJable dust S0000O)O
or more worth of the finest onyx on the whole
earth did not at the time know myself thar
advised my constituent how 10 proceed save The
onyx and at the same time make fortune. :
think his unluCky experience ought 10 be published
broadcast through the world that he who runs
and has onyx bed may read and profit"
MARYLAND ILLITERACY AMENDMENT
Ex-senator Germans machine in Maryland came
giving a serious twist TO the politics OF that
State soon after the Legislature met al Annapolis.
Some of the machine managers had prepared a
bill prescribing educational qualification for
the voters Of the State The purpose Of this. OF
course, 10 disfranchise the blacks Had not a
clerk in Germans office laid before him analysis
along educational lines OF the vote Of Maryland
bill undoubtedly would have gone through the
Legislature authorizing the people vote consti-
tutiOnal amendment similar 10 that OF louisiana
disfranchfsed the negro The analysis which was
based the last census showed that illiteracv
of the whites in Southern and Eastern Maryland
was greater in proportion 10 the population than
the nliteracy in those sections OF the State having
a large element Of blacks. An educational GualiA-
more votes in Maryland than IL would have cosr
the Republicans Mr.. German lost no time In
having the bill killed at Annapolis after he con-
WINGED himself that the clerks analysis
rect.