The Bozeman courier., 1927-01-14
AGED TEXAN TELLS
OF BUFFALO HUNTS
Vast Herds Of Animals
ROamed the Plains.


living who hunted buffalOes for their |
meat In the 7O's. His first trip to the !
plains region OF northwestern Texas |
on a buffalo hunting expedition was
before the wholesale slaughter Of the
animals for their hides began. AS a
means of preserving Mr.. Sherrods !
"reminiscences Of pioneer days, ]. b. !
! Haley, field representative Of the
Panhandle-P Plains Historical society,
visited SherrOd a few days ago and
obtained from him an account Of his
buffalo hunting experiences. One Of
! the interesting statements made by
Mr.. Sherrod was that in 1875 buffalOes
were killed In great numbers for their
tongues, considered a great delicacy.
His First Buffalo Hunt.
81 was Just boy and was out here
on the buffalo range in 1874 and
1876" he said. 81 was seventeen years
old when came out the first time.
We came out from Brown county,
about 200 miles to the east, and there
were only five Of US. We hunted for
meat. That year you could see 200
and 800 coyotes in a bunch, but the
second year these animals were
thinned out. There were many men
buffalo hunting, who killed the
coyotes for their skin.
1--WE really came a lot further out
than necessary to kill the buffalOes
but we had lots Of fun. There we're
tens Of thousands Of buffaloes every
where. When we got tired Of one
place we would move to another. We
made houses Of poles, covered with
buffalo hides, lined and floored with
the same. The second winter we came
out here there were thirty-twO Of as
from Brown county, and killed 365
buffalo that winter myself. didn't
do anything but hunt.
'SThe first winter we loaded our
wagons with meat. We took year
lings and two year olds and dried their
hams whole. We brought a wash
kettle along with us and rendered up
thirty-two kettles Of full marrow and
tallow. This got so hard that you
could throw It around like a chunk
Of wood. We would take an ak, break
the bones and then scrape the mar
row out. The marrow and tallOw
were used for cooking, making soap
and the like.
eve killed enough buffaloes to fur
nish the people Of Brown county with
meat all the next year Twelve months
afterwards the meat would be as hard
. as a stove on the outside, but good
and fresh when cut into. we didn't
salt our meat. The majority Of the
, meat we cut in big chunks, as large
! as a ten pound bucket, and dried.
Some Of It we carried back In the
whole hams.
. "In killing the buffaloes we used
, needle guns and it cost Us five cents
a shot. We met two fellows up on
o the head Of the Colorado river the
! second year who had been out two
: months and hadn't killed a buffalo
They had these citizens rifles and
= traded us some tobacco to kill some
buffaloes for them. We went out and
killed about fifteen for them.
No Trouble With indians.
'"There were lots Of Indians tn,
\ first year. We left our camp many
times and would look back and SCI
!, the Indians sitting on the tops Of Oul
wagons and moving around our camp
> They never would bother anything ex
cept something to eat or our mules
/. We had to guard the mules ever.
night Many a night we have gOn
!. off into a thicket without mules, ant
the Indians would come into cam
. and pass all around us. There wer
more Indians over in Crosby count
than around Tahoka lake. We neve
did have a fight with them, as the
never did bother us. Lots Of time
we would ride around a point an
meet a bunch Of Indians face to face
8 8 We would both stop, and in a minut
i the Indian behind would turn hi
horse and then all would turn an
ride back the way they had come.
eve never bothered with the bui
Al falO hides in 1874 except to throw
few on top Of our meat when "
- started back. There was a spring
- Tahoka lake, but no water in th
plains lakes then. m
I "The second winter there were hun
dreds Of men killing for hides.
/ "We drove OK teams In 1873 an
must have had about fifteen wagon
I that year. There was an outfit frol
Fort Worth on the Colorado RVS
/ which was killing just for the tongue
I They said they were worth fifty cent
/ in Fort Worth. They would kill Il
I bunfaioes, cut out the tongues an
leave the rest lying there. We wei
I gone on the trip about six month
and a half"