The Hays free press. [volume] (Hays, Kan.) 1908-1924, 1921-12-08

several years past there has been an
annual buffalo killing on the Philip
range. This, with the sale of quite a
number to the state of South Dakota
for its mammoth hundred-thousand-
acre State Park, and the disposition
of other buffalo to cities and park
commissions throughout the country,
has disposed of the increase pretty
well, keeping the herd at about the
thousand mark.
But let US tell you about this
annual killing on the Philip range.
Not since the early 8O's-when the
buffalo was still quite plentiful on the
plains-has there been a buffalo
slaughter to compare with that of
December 1919. Never heard of it
did you? Nope! The newspapers
prefer murder stories to anything so
tame as a buffalo killing. In one
weelz-commencing December 4th
and ending on the 9th-one hundred
and forty-seven big buffalo were kill
ed and shipped from the Philip ranch.
In fourteen different states buffalo
meat found its way to the table at
Christmas time in many a home.
Thus have the heirs of the Plihip
estate been able to maintain the great
range and buffalo herd. The meat of
the buffalo brings fancy price, for
it is a real delicacy; the head for
mounting is a thing of beauty and a
wonderful trophy, and the coat-well,
the old timer of the plains will tell
you the value and the dearth of a
prime buffalo robe or coat. The 1919
killing was the largest ever attempted.
There has been considerable criticism
over this so-called buffalo slaughter.
But the upkeep of a range of twenty
thousand acres and the maintenance
of a herd of practically one thousand
wild buffalo Is some undertaking.
While the sentiment is as strong-and
the love of the buffalo as deep and
sincere in the hearts of the sons and
daughters of Scotty Philip-as the
sentiment that prompted the father
to establish his great range and herd,
! there is a practical side to the propo-
sition that must be met. The Christ
mas marketing of buffalo is simply a
way of making ends meet, and even
the big killing of 1919 did not reach
in number the increase of that year.
So the herd is growing and thriving
and unless the government steps in
and secures this last privately owned
herd of American bison, annual
Christmas killings will necessarily
continue to take place at the Philip
ranch.
This year something like ninety
| buffalo had been sold to meat markets
in various cities throughout the
| Northwest states, and the killing was
scheduled to start on the 14th of Dec
ember. But owing to the open winter
the above-zero weather that obtain
ed until December 2Oth-the killing
was called off. All effort to secure
refrigerator cars or any cars in fact
that could be coupled onto passenger
trains failed. The warm weather
made shipment in freight cars i'm
practical, so the orders for 1920 buff
/ falo were cancelled and in all only
eight buffalo were killed this year for
shipment to nearby points, and by the
( eternal hornspoons-we had the privi-
lege of killing the first buffalo of the
eight. And this is how it all happen
ed:
Andy Leonard, whose wife is Hazel
! Philip, eldest daughter of the Buffalo
/ King, spends several weeks each year
I placing orders for Christmas buffalo
meat. He was just closing the sea-
/ sons trip and was en- route home to
/ handle the shipments at the annual
killing when he dropped into our office
at Bismarck on December 18th. IF
/ we can get cars for shipment we are
going to start killing next week." he
said. 'Come on down, Sam, and get
a real thrill. Kill your own buffalo
and get trophy to hang up on your
den wall here that will be a rarity in
this day" He told US about last
years big killing and before he left
we had the fever in an advanced de-
gree. We promised to be at Fort
Pierre by Wednesday morning, the
18th. Leaving Bismarck, Monday,
December 18th, we arrived at Fort
Pierre at three o'clock Wednesday
morning. Leonard met us at the sta
ton, showed US to a room where we
were advised to get few winks be-
fore daylight, and we hadn't time to
stretch our train-weary legs before