Wapiti or Elk 45 



the Wapiti. Dr. Barton, quoted above, says: "Within the 

 memory of many persons now hving the droves of Elks 

 w^hich used to frequent the saHnes west of the River 

 Susquehanna, in Pennsylvania, were so great, that, for five 

 or six miles leading to the 'licks,' the paths of these 

 animals were as large as many of the great public roads of 

 our country. " {Loc. cit.) 



But how are we to get an idea of their actual numbers in 

 those days .? 



When I was living in Yellowstone Park, in 1897, I used 

 all possible means to reach an estimate of the number of 

 Wapiti it contained. The officials in charge agreed with me 

 that there were fully 50,000 head. The actual park is 3,000 

 square miles, but the winter range of these herds includes 

 Jackson's Hole and some other outside territory, which in- 

 creases the total area to 5,000 square miles, or ten Wapiti to 

 the square mile. In this region the species is described as 

 "abundant." 



In early days the total range of this species was about 

 2,500,000 square miles, over half of which it was, by all ac- 

 counts, very abundant. We are safe, therefore, in believing 

 that in those days there may have been 10,000,000 head. 



The beginning of the nineteenth century saw the Wapiti dwi.v- 

 perfectly described, catalogued, and started on the road to 

 extermination. Thenceforth, travellers in Eastern America 

 were obliged to record only the reminiscences of old settlers 

 or the discovery of fossil horns and skulls. 



A glance at Map 4 (page 43) will show the original and the 

 present range of the species. 



A melancholy shrinkage is set forth, a shrinkage which 

 went on with tremendous and increasing rapidity until near 

 the end of the century. 



In Manitoba the Wapiti was found throughout the south- in maxi- 

 western half of the Province. From Henry's Journal" we 



" A. Henr)''s Journal, 1897, p. 224, et seq. 



