26 THE BISON. 



the prairies and driven the buffalo east of the 

 mountains. Mr. Dougherty, the very able and 

 intelligent sub-agent, who accompanied the expe- 

 dition to the Rocky Mountains, and who communi- 

 cated so much valuable matter to Mr. Say, asserted 

 that he had seen a few of them in the mountains, 

 but not west of them. It is highly probable that 

 the buffalo ranged on the western side of the 

 Rocky Mountains, to as low a latitude as on the 

 eastern side. De Laet says, on the authority of 

 Henera, that they grazed as far south as the banks 

 of the river Yaquimi.* In the same chapter this 

 author states, that Martin Perez had, in 1591, es- 

 timated the province of Cinaloa, in which this river 

 runs, to be three hundred leagues from the city of 

 Mexico. This river is supposed to be the same, 

 which, on Mr. Tanner's map of North America, 

 (Philadelphia, 1822,) is named Hiaqui, and situated 

 between the S7th and £8th degrees of north lati- 

 tude. Perhaps, however, it may be the Rio Gila 

 which empties itself in latitude 32°. Although we 

 may not be able to determine with precision, the 

 southern limit of the roamings of the buffalo west 

 of the mountains, the fact of their existence there in 

 great abundance, is amply settled by the testimony 

 of De Laet, on the authority of Gomara, 1. 6, c. 17* 

 and of Purchas, p. 778. Its limits to the north are 



* " Juxta Vaquimi fluminis ripas tauri vaccaeque et prae< 

 grandes cervi pascuntur," ut supra lib. 6 cap. 6. f 



