The Western news. [volume] (Libby, Mont.) 1933-current, 1943-07-08
Old Timer
Saw Passing
Of Buffa|oeS

AS an eye WllleSs, beiiJaihisi
Lamb of Laurel, Mont, recently
told a large meeting of Rotarlans
of that city about an important
event in the history of Montana ana
the West-the passing OF the Dull
-falo from the plains of Montana
where thousands of them roamed
at will until the white man came
and slaughtered them.
Mr.. Lamb, who is now DO, SAD
that with the passing of the but
falo went the organized resistance
of the Indian tribes OF that district
because to the Indians the buffalo
meant food. clothing and shelter.
A report of Lambs talk was gwen
in the Laurel Outlook, as follows.
II have nothing to tell but what
i saw and can remember. and II IS
long time since ! gave much
thought to 1t.
1T is about the passing of the
buffalo. II is as I saw it. 1t takes
me back to the early 80s. and the
scene is on the north side OF the
Yellowstone river, near Miles City.
The area comprised quite a strip or
country, commencing on the west at
a creek called Froze-to-Death and
extending north TO the Bull noun
tains and Musselshell valley, and
east down the Yellowstone, TO
where Glendive now is.
AT that time the country was
not settled, and that year (l88O)
vast herds of buffalo drifted IN to
take the place of other kinds OF
game, such as antelope, deer, elk
and some struggling bands OF but
falo already there. | never saw
stock cattle to anywhere near the
equal of the buffalo that was on
the range then Anywhere from
five to 10 miles from the Yellow
stone river you sould look III any
direction and see buffalo on every
hill, ridge or valley as far as the
eye could reach. You could see
millions at one time
IF one had not seen it. IT WOULD
be almost unbelievable. But they
were there, and were gone in the
no Of the herd was dn the prairie
south of Dickinson in North Da-
kota
I'm the late summer there were
no hunters in that country, but by
the first of November II was more
thickly settled than | think it viii
ever be again. The hunters came
and the slaughter of the buffalo
commenced. Every day that wa
not too stormy you could hear thu
constant roar of the big guns.
You can draw some idea OF hov
many buffalo were killed by tn
number of hides that were shippe,
out by steamboat from as far ives
as Fruze-to-Death TO the Sunda,
creek bottom 70 miles east of Miles
City. There were over 10000 0l
hides shipped by steamboat, by &C
tual count.
Buffalo hunters camps were
made in every conceivable place
some at the head Of coulees. som
on the banks Of bluffs. great man
cribbed up with poles or built Q
rock and alkali mud. and ridg
pole covered with buffalo hides
(There was surplus of Did bull
whose hides were not good for any
thing else.) The most common Wer
tents put up in Indian fashion, Q
just a pup tent made of green but
falo hides streached over pole an
used to sleep in or store goods in.
"A camp outfit generally consist
ed of a team and wagon, and sac
die horse or two Some Of the laTf
er outfits had more horses-som
four head Of work horses and thre
or four head of saddle horses.
THE camp cooking outfit cor
sisted of a good-sized frying pal
dutch oven, good-sized KEITH
dish pan and smaller pans to pl
cooked food in to serve. Also II
Guided were knives, forks, tin plate
and cups. 1t is quite an art
cook on an open fire and not blac
your vessels or burn them.
A hunters supplies consisted ,
50-pound sack of flour so pount
of sugar SO pounds of coffee, sic
Of bacon, beans. baking powder ar
so pounds of different kinds
dried fruit. The most essential itel
was the ammunition, consisting
100 to 500 pounds Of lead, SO to II
pounds of powder, primer caps, 81
shells, reloading outfit and one
two Sharps rifles. Some used 45-l.
and a great many used 40-9Q cal
bre rifles
The speaker went TO some leng
to explain the animals habit Of d
viding into large family grou
when grazing on the range. I'll
hunters found it convenient to Ut
lie that habit and to prevent star
pedes The leaders had to be kills
first. 1t was not we'll to shoot in
herd, or an injured animal wou
run and stampede the herd I'll
usual technique was to shoot Il
outermost ones, the leaders
guards, through the lungs The
appeared to become numb from Il
resulting internal hemorrhage al
would hump up and lie down.
There were two kinds of hun
ers," Lamb said. One kind we
out and began shooting when
got close enough. Maybe he wou
get one or two and sometimes thre
proh ah1x Al at ,raulI ha oil he co,,