The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1906-10-06
THE LAST BUFFALO HUNT.

t~~SAo was 6AtCA OnC yCol dSO dt 4OA
Sanch, near the town of Bliss in
OSlahoma, at the time of the visit Of
.ne MEMBERS Of the National Editor
ial Association there.
Inc rsuch is said to be the largest
IN tne Wosd, and the Miller boys
as the o"n>ys are called-do most
things on a bg scale. When thew
gave buffalo hut and feast to 40
600 persons they we're going even
themselves one betts
In the old days. VINES ceoroe r
Balm in the Vide Wo,ia dSacas;,,s 81 - q
buffalo hunt was solemn eeremon;aI
among the Indians. One of tba;r
number acted as lure to theNessts
While others ranged themselsss n
two concealed converging lines NE
leader went out-wearing, perhal>
buffalo skin over his head-and by
curious antics attracted the attention
of the herd.
When one or two of them started
toward him to examine him he re-
treated, the beasts following, and the
whole herd falling in behind. AS
the column of buffalo entered the TN
marked trap the Indians on each side
of it made demonstrations to frighten
them, so that the animals ran around
in a circle, while the men of the tribe
picked them off one by one.
The Millers arranged their buffalo
hunt as a spectacle, having construc-
ted stand for the spectators. 1t is
estimated that 40, 900 persons were
on the grounds and partook of the
dinner of buffalo meat, though if one
old bull buffalo-which was the only
member of the Miller here sacrificed
supplied food for 10000 men and
women that day something like a
miracle must have taken place.
The land laid out for the buffalo
hunt was about forty acres in extent.
Seven tiers of seats were filled with
interested spectators. In the fore
ground were gathered the pictur-
esque cowboys of the range. With
them was group of befeathered
Indians, headed by that famous old
murderer, Geronimo.
Twenty-Five years ago the plains
swarmed with buffalo, but it is prob
able that less than a thousand of
them exist today. Most of them are
in captivity, although there is one
free herd in the Yellowstone Park.
It's numbers can be only estimated,
but it is thought to be increasing.
The next largest herd to that in
the Yellowstone few years ago was
one of $50 buffalo owned by c. J.
Jones, of Garden City, Kan, known
as Buffalo Jones.
Another owner is Micheal Pablo,
a fullblooded Indian of Flathead
Agency, Mon, who held at one time
more than two hundred. The Good
Night Ranch, at Good Night, Tex,
has between forty and fifty Major
G. w. Little, of Pawnee, Okla, has
fifty-fve, and James Philip, Of Fort
Pierre, S. D., has about seventy-fve.
There is also a small herd in New
Hampshire owned by the Austin
Corbin estate. In the Bronx Zoo
there are about twenty-five, which
belonged to the herd of the late w.
c. Whitney. Five other representa-
tives of this herd are scattered
through the East.
At one time buffalo overcoat was
considered a necessity by those living
in the Northwest. In St. Paul one
could buy such a coat for $40. To-
day buffalo robe is worth from $500
to $500. 1t was the pitiful sum of
81. so to So each paid for their hides
which tempted to kill off the buffalo.
In 1870 the Pacific Railroad had
difficulty in operating its trains be-
cause of the enormous herds of buff
falo which crossed their tracks. At
first the engineers tried charging
these herds, but derailed and Grip
pied engines warned them that the
buffalo were not to be brushed off
the tracks i'll this reckless fashion.
After that the railroad trains were
held up and passengers sometimes
watched for two or three hours the
enormous herds crossing the lines.
They were quite inoffensive, and be-
ing unusually stupid beasts, were
not at all frightened at the approach
of man.
1t was this stupidity which added
the element of certainty to their ex-
tinction. Other animals, when hunt
ed, grow wary of man and of the
sound of his gun, but the buffalo
never associated the presence of man
or the guns report with danger, and
the hunter could easily follow small
herd, killing them off one by one
until he had shot them all.
This meant that a good hunter
could kill from thirty to seventy-five
buffalo day. This meant a very
large income, the promise of which
drew thousands of men to the plains,
and during the years of I872-74 mil
lions of the animals were killed. In
1876 $4,000 hides were shipped to
the East from Fort Benton in 1884
none was shipped. The year 1883
had seen the virtual extinction of the
buffalo.
The Southern herds were exter-
minated first. They made their last
stand in Texes, where, scattered over
the country in small n u m b ers,
they offered little temptation to the
professional hunter. Meantime, the
Northern railroads were being push
ed through and the herds there were
quickly attacked and exterminated.
In 1883 the last great herd of buff
falo, estimated at 500, 900, crossed
the Yellowstone river, going north,
and it is thought that they perished
of hardship and disease. At all
events, they never came back, and
they have never been heard of since.
The Millers have some idea of